Military Inauguration

Scott Ritsema
CIVICS NEWS.com
January 20, 2009

Isn't it fitting that the inauguration of a new Imperialist-in-Chief (he is going to immediately resume the reigns of the American Empire, and I use this term as a libertarian, not as a socialist) was immediately followed by a display of artillary fire from a massive killing machine? Was this mock-killing ritual supposed to be cool or presidential or stately or something? Lew Rockwell asks the rhetorical question, "Remember when the US made fun of those huge state pageants in North Korea, with millions assembled to hail the dear leader with religious and militaristic fervor?"

OK, it's a slight exaggeration, but the difference is in degree rather than in kind.

And ABC has gone and made the same mistake so many media outlets make. They have said that "we" have now sworn in "our" new Commander in Chief. Seriously, we're not a military state...yet at least. "We" don't have a Commander in Chief. You only have a Commander in Chief if you're in the military, which is still seperate from the civilian government. I guess I should just get over it and realize that we have a military form of government. [UPDATE: 6:58 PST... I just heard it again from the TV, which is on in the other room (a rare thing in my house): "we have a new commander in chief."]

Here's the clip where you can see the killing machine that makes the inauguration a military ceremony.



UPDATE: 1/22/08
Some argue that "it's just a 21-gun salute; they've been doing this for a hundred and fifty years! Why are you making a big deal out of this?" Admittedly, there are worse things to point out about the in-coming Obama administration. I simply make this post (with its admittedly charged rhetoric) to make a point to Christians that this thing called government is inherently this way--violent, militaristic. It's a question of the degree of coercive force that governments employ, but they all exist on the very basis of violence. It is extremely troublesome to me that we have a Christian pastor opening the ceremony in prayer, we have a president who cites Scripture and invokes the name of God...and all of this Christian stuff is adulterated by its association with the state, which is inherently an agency of force and military violence.

Forgive the annoyingly heavy terminology used, but using different language for things just might help my brothers and sisters in Christ re-think their association with the state.