• This is a political forum that is non-biased/non-partisan and treats every person's position on topics equally. This debate forum is not aligned to any political party. In today's politics, many ideas are split between and even within all the political parties. Often we find ourselves agreeing on one platform but some topics break our mold. We are here to discuss them in a civil political debate. If this is your first visit to our political forums, be sure to check out the RULES. Registering for debate politics is necessary before posting. Register today to participate - it's free!

If the military swears an oath to uphold the Constitution...

If the military swears an oath to uphold the Constitution...

  • Yes

    Votes: 13 36.1%
  • No

    Votes: 19 52.8%
  • Other

    Votes: 4 11.1%

  • Total voters
    36
Just out of curiosity...are you a big fan of execution for Edward Snowden?

I honestly don't know enough about his case to say.

I don't know exactly what all he released, the damage it could potentially do, or how it might aid enemies of the United States.

I won't discount the plausibility that I would support execution for the guy, but neither would I say out of hand that he deserves execution just because he released "something".

That said, what Snowden did is a crime. He is a criminal. I don't consider him a "hero". He deserves to be punished.

I won't say that he deserves to die for what he did, and I won't even propose a particular length for a jail sentence, but the guy definitely deserves to go to jail.

Edited to add:

I just read the criminal complaint filed by the DOJ against Snowden and none of the charges against him carry the death penalty (in so far as I could tell, though I may have missed it).

I don't see why you would suggest he might be sentenced to death?
 
Last edited:
I doubt you can show that I was endorsing the people to do anything or advocating for any action to take place.

Okay.
 
We were trained if you were going to disobey an order because you thought it was unlawful, it better be a hill you were willing to die on, cause you probably would.

I think your words are very wise.

Sadly, far too many on the far right truly believe that if the day of Right Wing rebellion finally comes and they take to the streets murdering their fellow Americans who they have targeted for assassination that the military and police will gladly join with them as allies in the bloodletting.

Very very sad that such irrational delusion bordering on actual insanity exists as part of our body politic.
 
If the military swears an oath to uphold the Constitution...

...does that mean they would be legitimately justified in staging a coup and overthrowing the government?
The military has no Constitutional authority to do so. And who does the military answer too? Its the President of course and that seat still has no authority to shutdown the Congress.
 
Your problem is staying on track. The theme of the thread is not the destruction of the Constitution and our system of government but rather RESTORING the government to the guidelines presented in the Constitution. I know of no reasoned intelligent rational person that thinks we should eliminate the Constitution. I DO however know some mindless ****heads that think they should be able to pick and choose which parts of the Constitution they want to follow based on their particular political ideology. But...that is a topic for another thread.
Bingo!
 
I never said I was going to. Run your mouth somewhere else little boy.

I am neither still in the military nor in the US.


I've already explained to you that I don't care what their interpretation is, I care what mine is, so I have no idea why you're pushing this same strawman again.



And the biggest part of that oath is to support and defend the constitution. If those conflict the constitution takes priority. Or are you claiming soldiers should commit any atrocity they're ordered to?

This 'little boy' was born in 1943 and will 'run his mouth' where and when he feels like it.




"The only valid censorship of ideas is the right of people not to listen." ~ Tommy Smothers

download11.jpg
 




Correct.

Some people in the USA, on the left and the right would like to pick which parts of the Constitution that they like, enforce those parts to the hilt and ignore the rest.

But that's not the way that the U.S. Constitution was designed to work and that's not the way that the U.S. Supreme Court interprets the constitution.
 
I honestly don't know enough about his case to say.

I don't know exactly what all he released, the damage it could potentially do, or how it might aid enemies of the United States.

I won't discount the plausibility that I would support execution for the guy, but neither would I say out of hand that he deserves execution just because he released "something".

That said, what Snowden did is a crime. He is a criminal. I don't consider him a "hero". He deserves to be punished.

I won't say that he deserves to die for what he did, and I won't even propose a particular length for a jail sentence, but the guy definitely deserves to go to jail.

Edited to add:

I just read the criminal complaint filed by the DOJ against Snowden and none of the charges against him carry the death penalty (in so far as I could tell, though I may have missed it).

I don't see why you would suggest he might be sentenced to death?
oh...I don't know...treason, sedition, deciding as a member of the government which parts of the constitution he wanted to follow and then waging his own personal version of a rebellion because he felt that the government was behaving in a way that was unconstitutional.

Goes back to the OP. If it is 'wrong' for the military to oust a corrupt and unconstitutional government then it be equally wrong for a single citizen to do the same.

And for the record...as I said earlier in this thread...I believe we are neither at risk of a military coup, nor does the current government new the criteria for overthrow.
 
Soot I don't believe you are right on your accusation that I committed a felony. I never endorsed the removal of the US government by name, but endorsed the idea of the people to remove their government. That is a wide open statement that talks of government in general, not of one individual government. I doubt you can show that I was endorsing the people to do anything or advocating for any action to take place. My argument was simply a matter of rights, not a matter of action.

Since the government does not practice rights and no person or body of people has the right to rule over another person or body of people my statement was correct.

You really think they are going to enforce these laws against a bunch of people on a forum? No, the reason these laws exist is to get people like McVeigh and other nutters like that. Just because a bunch of keyboard warriors go online and talk about how they are ready to rebel against "tyrannical gummint" they are not going to even bother with it. The reality is that there are thousands of comments like this all the time. It only becomes an issue when it becomes a "true threat" that is clearly intended to be taken as a threat, represents a clear and present danger, and the gravity of the situation would cause fear in people. In the end we would not have enough room in all the jails for all the right-wingers who have made questionable comments over the years. I am sad that they paint conservatism with this mantle of extremism, but it is absurd to say they are felons just for venting. If you turned them in for treason a prosecutor would just laugh at you.
 
Unfortunately, too much of our populace has become too complacent, docile, and cowardly to carry out such a rebellion, but yes, I think it is way overdue.

Unfortunately we have too many wackadoos in this country that want their way and find the US Constitution inconvenient to their agenda.

Sorry, but in case you missed it, Barack Obama is the duly elected president of the US. Your party had its shot and you lost.

Show some respect for the will of the people, which is fundamental precept of our way of governance. A real American would lick his wounds and put up a better candidate next time. Many of us had to bite our tongues for eight years of the GW Bush administration. We had to bite particularly hard at his numerous apparent Constitutional encroachments and tramplings. We did not take up arms, we endured and plotted. Our revolution involved finding a better candidate that could actually win the White House. That is the way it works in this country. You should learn to respect the will of the people, especially when its not your will.
 
Last edited:
If the military swears an oath to uphold the Constitution...

...does that mean they would be legitimately justified in staging a coup and overthrowing the government?

They would, but it'd have to be something egregious. Like Martial law being instituted and disbanding congress, something to that level where our system of governance as a whole was being threatened, not due to a policy here or there. Although, I could very well see something like that happened if there was some national firearm ban, or the government taking over the press and not allowing any dissent... something extreme. There is a reason that the military makes the oath to the Constitution and not to office the president or man who currently presides it.
 
If the military swears an oath to uphold the Constitution...

...does that mean they would be legitimately justified in staging a coup and overthrowing the government?

It depends on what the government is doing.
 
My God, some of you people in this thread are so ridiculously anti-Obama it's become an obsession.

I get that you don't like the guy, I get that he hasn't implemented policies you'd like implemented, and I even get that he has a different political ideology from you.

He is still your rightfully elected President, and the treasonous talk of staging a military coup and throwing him out because you don't like him borders on the offensive.
 
My God, some of you people in this thread are so ridiculously anti-Obama it's become an obsession.

I get that you don't like the guy, I get that he hasn't implemented policies you'd like implemented, and I even get that he has a different political ideology from you.

He is still your rightfully elected President, and the treasonous talk of staging a military coup and throwing him out because you don't like him borders on the offensive.

Welcome to the deluded faction of America.
 
Back
Top Bottom