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| | [[Image:chickenhawks.gif|thumb|They so proudly wear this insignia.]] | | [[Image:chickenhawks.gif|thumb|They so proudly wear this insignia.]] |
| − | [[Image:OperationChickenhawk.jpg|thumb|"Operation Chickenhawk" illustration (by William Bramhall), from Al Franken's Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot (1996)]]
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| − | A '''chickenhawk''' is a person in a position of public prominence or power who displays two traits:
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| − | *Aggressive support for military force as a primary instrument of foreign policy.
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| − | *A documentable lack of combat experience.
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| − | Currently, the U.S. Administration has an abundance of these creatures. Indeed, since the resignation of Colin Powell, there is no-one with genuine combat experience in any prominent executive position. This can lead to policies based on dangerously abstracted notions of the nature and efficacy of war.
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| − | Those who have seen the horrors of war first-hand tend to be cautious about wilfully unleashing such havoc again, no matter how remote or foreign the field. As well as not appreciating the full human costs of their decisions, there remains the uncomfortable suspicion that chickenhawks are prepared to send others to risk their lives in ways that chickenhawks would ''never'' risk their own.
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| − | ==Prominent Chickenhawks==
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| − | Here is a short list of prominent chickenhawks:
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| − | *[[George W. Bush|George W. "glug, glug, snort, snort" Bush]]
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| − | *[[Dick Cheney|Dick "Dick" Cheney]]
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| − | *[[Sean Hannity|Sean "Tough Guy" Hannity]]
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| − | *[[Scooter Libby|I Lewis "Scooter" Libby]]
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| − | *[[Joe Lieberman|Joe "nuke Tehran" Lieberman]]
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| − | *[[Rush Limbaugh|Rush "Rush" Limbaugh]]
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| − | *[[Bill O'Reilly|Bill "Bore" O'Reilly]]
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| − | *[[Karl Rove|Karl "Talking Points" Rove]]
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| − | *[[Paul Wolfowitz|Paul Wolfowitz]]
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| − | *[[Ronald Reagan]]
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| − | ===Bill Clinton - A Chickenhawk?===
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| − | ====Why he should be considered a Chickenhawk====
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| − | Some liberals get really offended (see the NH Gazette link) when people call Bill Clinton a chickenhawk, as if bombing Iraq, Kosovo, and Afghanistan are somehow peace-loving activities. Bill Clinton evaded the draft, just like every other well off liberal AND conservative of that time. Well except for John McCain, but McCain came from a military family. He actually thought he was serving his country when the Gooks were kicking his ass for 5 years.
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| − | Bill (and Hillary) Clinton supported the war in Iraq back in 2002, just like John Edwards, Joe Lieberman, John Kerry, Chuck Hagel, Colin Powell, and Bob Gates did. Al Gore opposed the war, but he wasn't in political office at the time. Iraq under Hussein and Osama (I mean Barack Hussein Obama) opposed the war too, but he was just a two bit state senator in Illinois. Who gives a shit what your state senator thinks?
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| − | ====Why conservatives go too far in making Clinton look like a hawk====
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| − | Some conservatives try to equate bombing Iraq and Kosovo with a 5 year long war in two countries. A lot more people have died in international conflict directly or indirectly caused by George Bush than under Bill Clinton. Some estimates say over 650,000<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6040054.stm Lancet claims 655,000 deaths in Iraq]</ref> people have died because of the Iraq War. 500 Serbs were killed by NATO. 500 vs. 655,000, you do the math.
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| | ==Commander-In-Chiefs who have led Wars, but never fought in a War== | | ==Commander-In-Chiefs who have led Wars, but never fought in a War== |
