This is who we are.Īt the same time, we are a country that values deeply the idea of democracy and that all men are created equal. And the Vietnam and Iraq wars were not exceptional. Teddy Roosevelt said about one invasion that it was “wholly exceptional.” But they’re not. But by laying them all out together, I tell a story different then the story most Americans grew up hearing. Maybe you read one book about what we did in the Philippines and say, “That’s awful.” Or one about Panama or Haiti or Cuba, Nicaragua, Honduras, China or Mexico. Beyond the apathy, there’s cognitive dissonance: We are the birthplace of freedom and the greatest country in the world, so it sounds like we did something terrible, but “that’s not who we are,” so let’s just move on. But Trump represents a strain that finds out what’s happening and wants more of it. There’s this assumption that if Americans only knew what was happening, they’d be against it. Imagine how they’d feel if they realized it’s not just ignorance but apathy. You quote someone in Haiti who is shocked that Americans don’t know what we did there. It’s what Butler wrestled with when he said he was a racketeer for capitalism: “What if I had thought about what I was doing and fought back? Could I have made a difference?” Maybe, maybe not. But what about individuals working as a collective? And what could people at ExxonMobil have done in the 1980s? Probably a lot. What can I as an individual do to stop climate change? Not a lot. He’s everywhere and making choices that have a huge sweeping effect. And if he doesn’t blow the whistle on this fascist coup against FDR in 1934, does it or something like this happen? He plays such a singular role. Maybe some of his choices just boil down to “Let’s take that hill instead of that hill,” but if he hadn’t decided to re-enslave Haitians, would that have happened? Possibly not. Our choices as individuals matter up to a certain point, and the structures of our society and history matter a lot as well. If Butler had not been born, wouldn’t much of this still have happened? 6 is a fixed point on this country’s timeline. Like the Challenger disaster, the Oklahoma City bombing and the fall of the Twin Towers, Jan. It is a flashbulb memory, fixed and irrevocable entry into another world war, Buter was as well known for his “ War Is a Racket” speech and writings as he was for his military career.Įntertainment & Arts Column: Jan. By the end of his life in 1940, a year before U.S. He then risked a court-martial by repeatedly attacking the manipulation of American power by its plutocrats. Not only did he serve in Cuba, the Philippines, China, Nicaragua, Panama, Mexico, Haiti and the Dominican Republic but he also personally implemented horrific tactics to exploit those lands and their people, including the essential re-enslavement of Haitians.Īnd finally, Smedley Butler was an American hero again, testifying before Congress to stop “the Business Plot,” an alleged attempt by ultra-wealthy Americans to halt Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal and install a fascist government in its place. Smedley Butler was also a symbol of America’s racist, imperialist and hyper-capitalist policies. Smedley Butler was an American hero of the early 20th century, a symbol of the country’s growing power as a Marine for more than three decades who received 16 medals, including two Medals of Honor and one Marine Corps Brevet Medal. If you buy books linked on our site, The Times may earn a commission from, whose fees support independent bookstores. Gangsters of Capitalism: Smedley Butler, the Marines and the Making and Breaking of America’s Empire
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