On this episode of “The Watchdog,” Lowkey is joined in-studio by special guest Greg Stoker to discuss all things military from an anti-war perspective. He shares his personal experiences in U.S. military intelligence, what being in the Army is really like, and how the U.S. is aiding Israel in its destruction of Gaza.
Greg Stoker is a former Army Ranger with a background in special operations and military intelligence. He completed four combat deployments to Afghanistan during the Global War on Terror. After becoming disillusioned with the military and with the U.S. empire, he became an anti-war activist and is one of America’s most vocal critics of the military-industrial complex. He hosts the show “State of Play” on MintPress News.
The reality of the military is far from glamorous and is a far cry from how it is presented in movies and pop culture. Like many, Stoker himself joined straight out of high school because of precarious economic conditions and a lack of opportunities. He soon found out the realities of how inhumane and brutal the system is. As he explained to Lowkey:
You are basically degraded and broken down in order to ‘build you back up.’ But it is not really like a punishment and reward system; it’s just a punishment. And it is inherently violent, so when you get out of that, you don’t really know how to navigate in society, so a lot of guys can’t really hold down jobs or have relationships. And, of course, drinking is a huge thing throughout the military, and people don’t know how to stop.”
As a result, Stoker notes, many find it impossible to cope when they are released and end up killing themselves. Suicide rates among veterans are twice the national average and are rising. There are few, including Stoker, who have not lost friends to it.
Lowkey and Stoker also discuss how the loss of the Vietnam War led to the rise of the internet. American war planners believed that better data and surveillance would have turned the tide on the battlefield and helped crush dissent at home. To that end, the military sponsored the growth of ARPAnet, the precursor to the World Wide Web, and continues to work closely with Silicon Valley to this day.
These surveillance tools developed made the United States a leader in global spying, and Washington has used this edge to help the Israeli military in Gaza, sharing advanced signal intelligence and spying technology with the IDF to aid their slaughter in Gaza.
Of course, the U.S. also supplies the majority of Israel’s weapons, donates billions of dollars worth of aid, and offers diplomatic and political support at international bodies such as the United Nations.
“The buck stops with the United States,” Stoker said, noting that Israel would run out of munitions almost immediately without U.S. support. “Israel can’t do this without us. Their military is designed to fight short, violent wars that exist for less than six weeks.”
He also noted the United Kingdom’s crucial role in the violence, stating: “I consider this a tripartite genocide. The U.S. is the empire. Israel is our colony. But Britain is the old empire that gives us coalition legitimacy. They will always hold on to our coattails and rally other European states behind the United States.”
Do not miss this timely and engaging episode.
Lowkey’s tour of the United Kingdom begins in September. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit here.
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