In this episode of ‘The Business of Life,' we discuss the cost of war: Can the US economy sustain its many wars being waged abroad? And what is the cost of the never-ending war on terror? Watch “Why Artists Don’t Make Money (Episode 3)” - bit.ly/1KssoAt
VICE News Let me answer it fast for you, so you can understand nothing. Can the Us economy sustain blablabla?.......No. Cost of lifes blablabla? No, just stop it. This show is shit, im sorry but it smells all the way imaginable of money, dirty dirty money.
Sadly short on actual numbers. So tired of opinions and opinions of opinions... More distractions and few detailed facts and jumping from topic to topic.
VICE News also a lot of people i do know we think about some of this stuff, just send all the crazy killer that are sitting in jail doing nothing send the killer's of our world they like to kill so they would do great
I think the better questions are who profits from war and what relationship they have with politicians.. If a politician personally profits from a war, and votes to go to war there's a conflict of interest there. I have a feeling the Bush family had a financial reason to invade Iraq
Dee Jay one of the question was kind of about that subject, are we just in the business of making our own enemy. Didn't answer at all, changed subject about ''Does the military personnel is supporting the war'' -_-
I'm quite critical on the US government and how it conducts war and how much it spends on it, so in theory I should be all over this segment. There are interesting numbers and a couple of the points made are quite good, but imo it gets overshadowed by *bad journalism*. You basically just have a room full of people agreeing with each other, there's no room for debate - even the host comes across as highly biased (a really odd impression to get, especially if you basically agree with him). All the questions are just quickly tackled, there is no depth, we're just bombarded with shockingly high numbers and told how outraged we should be.
Sechari I think that has to do with the format of the show. It's only 20m long. There's not really a whole lot of time per episode to get into the nitty gritty of each issue.
Robert Pool It was just a shot gun interview though. They jumped around between afghanistan, food funding for soldiers on bases, Ukraine, drone wars, without looking at any depth... I only made it halfway before realizing it was bad journalism... And I think I left out one or two topics.
More combat veterans should have been involved in this discussion. I am combat vet myself (USMC Infantry 04-08) and I disagree with a lot of what is said (except for the Restrepo guy). In regards to demonizing the contractors, almost all of them are combat vets serving their country. Also, everyone complains on the amount of money spent on contractors but people with advance skills and combat experience come with a large price tag. Don't most people realize that most contractors came from Special Operations??? That being said, I would rather go into combat with 10 contractors than 100 "boots" fresh out of infantry school. Quit talking too sheep about war when you need to be talking to wolves.
andy366919 Veteran here also. US ARMY 11B Infantry Air Assault. 05-11 ending as a SGT. i also have to agree with you.. also i have to agree with plebeian it's good for people to get involved also. Also i wanted to add as contractor You have to buy your own stuff. These contractors were not a basic soldier, like you said they were on some type of special ops. using their skills in private sector. Draw ups and downs. Military they got the best top stuff what the military can supply, as free lancer they have to rely on their own gear what ever they can get their hands on. Money mostly goes to their gear and these guys don't really have life back home.. I used to work with a lot of contractors in Iraq and some times i was glad to be in a Humvee then in a pickup truck these contractor had to ride in but i trust those guys with their skills.
andy366919 "almost all of them are combat vets serving their country." *None of them are serving their country if they do the bidding of a warlord.* PMC is just a fancy word for mercenaries. If it wasnt for the threat of being jailed or "nuked from orbit". Many of these Western PMC companies and their employees would work for "anti Western" forces. For example, you can just take a look at ex BlackWater owner Erik Prince and hes gray area dealings in this regards in Africa. Where he is aiding Chinese interest at the cost of Western ones. I wouldnt call that US patriotism tbh. Having large amount of operating mercenaries is cost infective and pose a national security risk. Something one can clearly see in some African nations with weak central governments. A allied "paramilitary" force one day, a anti central gov force the next... There is nothing a PMC company can do the Governmental military cant do better for a cheaper price. What a single soldier with hes own economical interests thinks is best or hes worth (financially) is irrelevant. "Quit talking too sheep about war when you need to be talking to wolves." I find that a bit coincidental, but funny considering my nick is Lobos _(Means Lone or timber Wolf, while granted I found that out a good amount of time after I selected the nick)_ and I am a also exMil myself. LoL
Not considering the number of veterans who served from WWII on. Now if you're discussing active duty personnel serving, then yes, you're only talking about 1-3% of the population. Sounds right to me.
So is this about millennial veterans and the on going wars or is this about the lady in the middle who's just going to continually spew information pertaining to basically women soldiers only. Women play such a minor role in the military, this is not misogyny this is truth if you ever served.
I am a foreigner, I have been in the USA for a little less than a decade pursuing my education. I have two bachelor degrees: Finance and Management, a Master in International Trade and Commerce, and a Master of Science in Finance. (All from top accredited USA institutions) I received a good number of scholarships and assistanships that basically paid for my graduate education. Valedictorian in high-school and top 5% in the University here (USA). It is almost impossible for me to obtain a job that would allow me to stay, in which I am not -exploited by a 20 or 30% lower-than market salary just because of the company need to fill papers for the H1 Visa. Luckily, I will start a PhD (here in the USA) this Fall and I will receive a tuition waiver and stipend. 99% of International Students are not as lucky as me. The process of immigration is unfair and the USA is losing a lot of top notch talent from international students. Many emigrate after completing their degrees.
Ivan Kebabremover I agree, vets needed a little more representation. It's all fine talking about combat from an academic perspective but the realities of war are an entirely different animal. But I welcome all people's perspective, people need to be more involved.
As an agnostic on 'good days', I do find it ironic that story of the garden of eden is playing out in my lifetime. Mankind's insatiable thirst for knowledge, and more importantly the 'mastery' and control it imbues, will leave us all on a dying planet, in the mother of dystopian worlds.
I believe that this country, The United States of America, is the greatest on earth, and has the responsibility to take care of itself, and these wars abroad are a way to do that.
*VA was underfunded on purpose because its a Capitalistic system.* Everything is viewed as a cost, including Citizens. The most cost effective way to improve VA would be to start up nationalized health care system. It would make preventative health care more economical and having the US nation buy medicine would get US Citizens much cheaper medicines on a macro level.
Hello people of the world. The war in Iraq and Afghanistan was really wierd. There were big bases where the military ate Mcdonalds, lobster, and crab everyday and even have huge video game stations to relieve stress. They had wifi to browse the web and sometimes even swimmimg pools. These base for the most part, dont even feel like a war zone. Then you have a few smaller base where Marines/soldiers would litteraly be shot at, blown up, killed or wounded everday or every other day. Most of these bases have no running water or electricity. These bases make you feel like you were in a Vietnam movie... Yeah so i guess in war your experiance may vary. I'm not trying to put anyone down here, just pointing this out because must people dont know this.
Carl Assquatch It's throughout the whole video in different statements and on different subjects.. This is clearly not the full footage either lol. If you want me to type it out it'l be a page long. Clearly simpletons like yourself don't get it so it's a waste of my time. Why don't you re-watch it and open your eyes.
One of the contractors who did what I did in the Marine Corps told me he made 200k a year for his contract. Several of my buddies EAS'd and immediately got hired and came back to Iraq making salaries like that. It went from serving your country to making cash. That being said, that culture has not died under the Obama administration, if anything its worse now. Military contractors are less politically magnified and able to do what our Marines and Soldiers. Obama can use them without any outcry from the public unlike our military.
Ismail Ibn Ibrahim Al Rumi Real courage is beheading innocent Christians, throwing gay people off a roof and stoning women to death. That's some Islamic fun. Aloha Snackbar.
i think its important to state that a contractor does not equal a military contractor. a contractor is not necessarily involved in combat. he might just be an aircraft mecanic or some guy fixing a generator
you are perfectly correct. i wasnt talking about the financial side i was merely saying there is a difference in the jobs. when the female marine is talking about the actions of these contracters it seems as they are all hired for military purposes.
I feel like in a time travel watching this episode. Roll back to the late .60 and you will hear the same arguments being used against the war in Vietnam. Sure now its getting oil or stopping terrorists, but in the .60 the biggest threat was the USSR. Nothing changed and anti-war slogans reamined the same.
I didn't hear it mentioned once that men are obligated to sign up for selective services in order to vote... As far as I know, the US is the only western country that does this. Why?
Plebeian A lot of European coutries have conscription. It's for two reasons, one is because its an old law from the days when America fought bug wars and needed more manpower. The second reason is sexism.
Ivan Kebabremover No... european conscription is gender neutral, meaning both sexes are recruited, it's the same here in Canada. The US seems to be the only one that exempts women from this policy.
Plebeian US was the sexist one I was talking about. Just to clarify, I don't think woman should be conscripted because I rally don't think anybody should.
Plebeian Yeah I can get behind that. You know I think these vice reporters do a pretty shit job at talking about the military you served in. If I were you I would be offended as fuck.
They don't say anything about veteran admissions to college & university. I have a friend on an admissions board of a top 20 public law school. Every vet +/- gets in as long as they hit the minimum req. They are given the same hand up as underrepresented minorities. Our society doesn't get enough credit for what we do for vets, just credit for what we don't do.
VICE News hey i was curious if you might be able to lead me in the direction of a veterans service organization that will correspond with me regularly to help me with a claim. I suffered a brain injury in iraq and i have problems with remembering common tasks and thus have been terminated from jobs ever since my end of time in service in 2008. Im currently collecting disability but last year i finally put a claim in for 100%through my local congressmans office (due to nagging by my family), but they, as well as the VA have provided no correspondance on the status of my claim. I need a new vso, someone who can guide me by the hand,call me when they need something, and verify that the information i give the VA is properly handled and not misinterpreted. Any info would be greatly appreciated.
Comments to the producers and moderator: I very much dislike the editing of this show, and this episode is no exception. It is terribly disjointed, does not logically flow. I would like to see guests fully address the questions of the audience. Often, this is not the case. The selected topics are good, however. Side note: Sebastian Junger has always been, and will continue to be, a great resource for the world.
Shawn W Agreed on each point. The dialogue between question to response were very disjointed. Question is about one thing, response is about something else. The utter lack of time and depth on any given sub-topic is also frustrating.
*Claim (Anu Bhagwati):* _"Do lower income people disproportionately serve [in the US military]? Absolutely."_ _Evidence:_ Studies from both the DoD and from the Heritage Foundation show that enlisted US military personal are less likely to come from impoverished families, and are actually more likely to come from middle/upper-class families. *Conclusion:* Claim is false. *Claim (Anu Bhagwati):* _"Do people of color disproportionately serve? Absolutely.... So there is kind of a lopsided demographic [mix]."_ _Evidence:_ According to a 2013 study by the DoD, and, according my calculations (which involve normalizing the racial population %'s to exclude racial categories not included in the US census) the following was true as of 2013 Whites were 63% of the US population and 65% of Active Duty Military Members Blacks were 13% of the US population and 17% of Active Duty Military Members Hispanics were 17% of the US population and 12% of Active Duty Military Asians were 6% of the US population and 4% of Active Duty Military Native Americans were 1% of the US population and 1% of Active Duty Military *Conclusion:* Claim is a misleading exaggeration at best. When it comes to members of the US military on active duty, the number of Whites in the military is roughly what you would predict given their population size (the same thing is also true of Native Americans). Asians and Hispanics are slightly underrepresented among active duty personal, whereas Blacks are only slightly overrepresented. *Claim (Anu Bhagwati):* _"Women who are homeless and veterans are impacted by sexual assault as well.... We know that because we've seen the VA studies, about 1 in 3 homeless women veterans has been impacted by sexual assault in the military."_ _Evidence:_ This claim draws support one convenience sample of 509 female veterans who opted to enroll in several VA Homeless Women Veterans Programs. The study failed to provide detailed demographic info on which branch of the military the subjects belong to, their material status, age, or race, (data which might allow one to assess how representative the data really was). Furthermore, in order to meet eligibility requirements participants also had to be: (1) a veteran, (2) homeless, (3) female, and (4) had to have mental health disorders or addiction problems. *Conclusion:* Claim is based on a study with significant limitations and therefore is stated far more confidently than is actually warranted by the evidence. We don't "know" that over 1/3 of homeless female veterans have experienced military sexual assault. The exact proportion is an open and arguable question. Even assuming that 100% of the women in the sample were both honest and in a state of mind such that they were capable of answering accurately (the inclusion requirement of mental health problems renders this idea suspect)... it could still be true that the sample was _vastly_ unrepresentative (given that it was neither random nor weighted to the demographic characteristics of the general female veteran population). Finally, the fact that the study excluded female veterans _without_ mental health problems or physical addictions give us even more reason to regard it as unrepresentative and suspect (and thus to regard the claim as large overstatement). download.militaryonesource.mil/12038/MOS/Reports/2013-Demographics-Report.pdf (p.22) www.census.gov/popest/data/ www.defense.gov/news/Dec2005/d20051213mythfact.pdf www.heritage.org/research/reports/2008/08/who-serves-in-the-us-military-the-demographics-of-enlisted-troops-and-officers www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1049386713000807 reachmilitaryfamilies.umn.edu/sites/default/files/rdoc/Decker%20et%20al.2013.DoD_.pdf
Really, last time I checked the percentage of Blacks in the military, it was higher... up to 25%. But perhaps it was by branch though. I know a fact though that a good third of the Army is made of minorities. The military has always been pretty diverse... a good thing.
Starting off by saying you will not get drafted into the military is really a poor thing to say. Every man of fighting age must still register for the draft. IF a bad war were to break out it is entirely possible the draft could come back. Having to register is a serious thing and should be treated as such.
*While the US is seen as a "world Police".* People tend to ignore that most of their world policing is very much in regards to their own national interests. USA isnt the richest nation in the world because they havent used both soft _(diplomatic)_ and hard _(military)_ power to assert their needs. If people think the aspect of "world police" is just out of selflessness and there are no benefits gained from it,... they are naive. That said, other have indirect benefits from it as well. Like Europe being able to have smaller military costs and Taiwan staying a country etc. However, if USA just "stopped" being a super power. Its not like Europe would thank them for that and taking such a step by the US, while totally unrealistic at this point in time, could risk them being isolated and lose their dominating wealth. Its easy to be a "hippie" when you reap the benefits indirectly without getting your hands bloody when others have gotten them that *FOR YOU!*
HoppeKongen Both, a increase in military spending needed to cover for the US would be huger than is talked about now with the increased risk from Russia. It would have a negative impact on social programs and most likely taxes as well. The EU nations had larger armies before, but the cost of a modern army expected to function outside the terms of "cannon fodder" is very costly. China for example. Is a good example of a nation with allot of troops that are basically dysfunctional to the point they would only function as fodder in a large scale conflict.
the problem is recruiting. and the fight. you can't get high tech people. fighting in endless war for quasi goals. with dubious thought put into it. otherwise they would just get that high tech money. you gotta fight for the right reason for them to give up on the big money
the contractors are a waste of money. when I was deployed these contractors were making 100,000 a year for opening and closing a gate. while as a private I made 20,000 a year
The pace of this show is dizzying. I am really into all the topics and I like the format, but it seems like each question gets addressed for like 2 seconds and then they move on to the next thing with out extensive analysis. I think this program would be cool, but the host is too vocal and should let the experts talk more, and also shouldn't reinterpret the questions from the audience.
I have an idea, why don't you have everyone covered by public healthcare? I know its pretty crazy but maybe you goons could stop fighting wars and start caring for your own people like the rest of the first world...
Is it just me or did the edit the shit out of this. I think this series would be better if there was less editing and it wasn't sponsored by the Bank of America. I don't want to say it looks dishonest but rather it looks like it has a predetermined view point their marketing.
Funny this video talks about military spending while ignoring all the money being wasted in health care, pensions, interests (an actual category), and other spending, (also another actual category). You talk of the problem but not any possible solutions/ alternatives.
One of the worst episodes. Having war criminals as political leaders and deliberately increasing the economical bubbles is absolutely disgusting. Shame on you.
Victor Panzinger Because as much as the world is trying not to keep admitting it, The US is still by far the most powerful country in the world and we are still running the war on terror, so it is important information for anyone with a brain to know what it going on with our military. Hey, all the books mostly just talk about Rome, while Carthage was nearly equally as powerful..
This is terrible. Do you really have to spend 30 seconds talking about each topic and then move on? Why not just have an insightful 10 minute video instead of a few vox pops that come nowhere close to debate?
In this episode of ‘The Business of Life,' we discuss the cost of war: Can the US economy sustain its many wars being waged abroad? And what is the cost of the never-ending war on terror?
Watch “Why Artists Don’t Make Money (Episode 3)” - bit.ly/1KssoAt
VICE News Let me answer it fast for you, so you can understand nothing. Can the Us economy sustain blablabla?.......No. Cost of lifes blablabla? No, just stop it. This show is shit, im sorry but it smells all the way imaginable of money, dirty dirty money.
Sadly short on actual numbers. So tired of opinions and opinions of opinions... More distractions and few detailed facts and jumping from topic to topic.
VICE News i came here from the ad 1 thing i'm 16 and i don't give a shit about it now let me get back to my classical music remix dubstep playlist
VICE News also a lot of people i do know we think about some of this stuff, just send all the crazy killer that are sitting in jail doing nothing send the killer's of our world they like to kill so they would do great
VICE News Very good debate program!!! Keep up the good work!!!
War.....war never changes.
Something_to_appease_Google xD
Something_to_appease_Google seriously?
***** Dude I have the Fallout 4 trailer open on another tab right now lmao
***** You're mad! Hahahaha
Something_to_appease_Google
Nah your mad to diss one of Black Isles greatest series. Fallout 1/2/tactics were fucking awesome.
I think the better questions are who profits from war and what relationship they have with politicians.. If a politician personally profits from a war, and votes to go to war there's a conflict of interest there.
I have a feeling the Bush family had a financial reason to invade Iraq
Very good point sir
Dee Jay one of the question was kind of about that subject, are we just in the business of making our own enemy. Didn't answer at all, changed subject about ''Does the military personnel is supporting the war'' -_-
Dee Jay en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halliburton
Dee Jay Agreed, don't forget Chaney and Haliburton.
Dee Jay I mostly see Cheney ambitions there.
I wish these things were longer with more segment's! Keep up the good work!
Why is this shot like an infomercial? It looks like he is going to pull out a rotisserie oven and try to sell it to us.
Ehren every time I refresh it's a bank of america commercial too
Adrian Va You just "Set it! and Forget it!" (call now and get another for free, with some Flexseal)
Adrian Va Mmmmmm rotisserie chicken
jefftc14 Adblock my friend.
I'm quite critical on the US government and how it conducts war and how much it spends on it, so in theory I should be all over this segment. There are interesting numbers and a couple of the points made are quite good, but imo it gets overshadowed by *bad journalism*. You basically just have a room full of people agreeing with each other, there's no room for debate - even the host comes across as highly biased (a really odd impression to get, especially if you basically agree with him). All the questions are just quickly tackled, there is no depth, we're just bombarded with shockingly high numbers and told how outraged we should be.
Sechari I think that has to do with the format of the show. It's only 20m long. There's not really a whole lot of time per episode to get into the nitty gritty of each issue.
Robert Pool It was just a shot gun interview though. They jumped around between afghanistan, food funding for soldiers on bases, Ukraine, drone wars, without looking at any depth... I only made it halfway before realizing it was bad journalism... And I think I left out one or two topics.
Sechari I was thinking the EXACT same thing! Wish this was WAY MORE in depth.
Jed Wells In depth LOL. From Vice, one of the owners of which is the Dirty Digger, aka Rupert The Sun Murdoch. POS.
Vice News is real journalism! Talking about important issues! and doing amazing documentaries in Ukraine and Iraq
Gibran Rojas It's just sad that this is not one of those instances.
This is an amazing video keep it up vice!!!
Videos like this make me question VICE as a news organization.
At least they brought on Sebastian Junger, he was the only one on here worth listening to.
More combat veterans should have been involved in this discussion. I am combat vet myself (USMC Infantry 04-08) and I disagree with a lot of what is said (except for the Restrepo guy). In regards to demonizing the contractors, almost all of them are combat vets serving their country. Also, everyone complains on the amount of money spent on contractors but people with advance skills and combat experience come with a large price tag. Don't most people realize that most contractors came from Special Operations??? That being said, I would rather go into combat with 10 contractors than 100 "boots" fresh out of infantry school. Quit talking too sheep about war when you need to be talking to wolves.
andy366919 Retired US Navy
I agree, but I think it's important that people get involved
andy366919 Veteran here also. US ARMY 11B Infantry Air Assault. 05-11 ending as a SGT. i also have to agree with you.. also i have to agree with plebeian it's good for people to get involved also.
Also i wanted to add as contractor You have to buy your own stuff. These contractors were not a basic soldier, like you said they were on some type of special ops. using their skills in private sector. Draw ups and downs. Military they got the best top stuff what the military can supply, as free lancer they have to rely on their own gear what ever they can get their hands on. Money mostly goes to their gear and these guys don't really have life back home.. I used to work with a lot of contractors in Iraq and some times i was glad to be in a Humvee then in a pickup truck these contractor had to ride in but i trust those guys with their skills.
andy366919
"almost all of them are combat vets serving their country."
*None of them are serving their country if they do the bidding of a warlord.*
PMC is just a fancy word for mercenaries. If it wasnt for the threat of being jailed or "nuked from orbit". Many of these Western PMC companies and their employees would work for "anti Western" forces. For example, you can just take a look at ex BlackWater owner Erik Prince and hes gray area dealings in this regards in Africa. Where he is aiding Chinese interest at the cost of Western ones.
I wouldnt call that US patriotism tbh.
Having large amount of operating mercenaries is cost infective and pose a national security risk. Something one can clearly see in some African nations with weak central governments. A allied "paramilitary" force one day, a anti central gov force the next... There is nothing a PMC company can do the Governmental military cant do better for a cheaper price. What a single soldier with hes own economical interests thinks is best or hes worth (financially) is irrelevant.
"Quit talking too sheep about war when you need to be talking to wolves."
I find that a bit coincidental, but funny considering my nick is Lobos _(Means Lone or timber Wolf, while granted I found that out a good amount of time after I selected the nick)_ and I am a also exMil myself. LoL
big up the sister on the panel. great things to share
"Veterans make up 9% of the US population." That number seems incredibly high.
Not considering the number of veterans who served from WWII on. Now if you're discussing active duty personnel serving, then yes, you're only talking about 1-3% of the population. Sounds right to me.
So is this about millennial veterans and the on going wars or is this about the lady in the middle who's just going to continually spew information pertaining to basically women soldiers only. Women play such a minor role in the military, this is not misogyny this is truth if you ever served.
I am a foreigner, I have been in the USA for a little less than a decade pursuing my education. I have two bachelor degrees: Finance and Management, a Master in International Trade and Commerce, and a Master of Science in Finance. (All from top accredited USA institutions) I received a good number of scholarships and assistanships that basically paid for my graduate education. Valedictorian in high-school and top 5% in the University here (USA).
It is almost impossible for me to obtain a job that would allow me to stay, in which I am not -exploited by a 20 or 30% lower-than market salary just because of the company need to fill papers for the H1 Visa.
Luckily, I will start a PhD (here in the USA) this Fall and I will receive a tuition waiver and stipend. 99% of International Students are not as lucky as me.
The process of immigration is unfair and the USA is losing a lot of top notch talent from international students. Many emigrate after completing their degrees.
The only vet here is a fucking pog. Nice reporting vice.
Ivan Kebabremover Person on the ground? Ground unit?
Plebeian Hello again. I think they should have gotten somebody who was combat arms.
Ivan Kebabremover I agree, vets needed a little more representation. It's all fine talking about combat from an academic perspective but the realities of war are an entirely different animal. But I welcome all people's perspective, people need to be more involved.
Plebeian Persons Other than Grunts.
Best Episode so far... The panel is leaps and bound better than previous!
The last 3 min makes me cringe...
As an agnostic on 'good days', I do find it ironic that story of the garden of eden is playing out in my lifetime.
Mankind's insatiable thirst for knowledge, and more importantly the 'mastery' and control it imbues, will leave us all on a dying planet, in the mother of dystopian worlds.
Glad to see a women speaker having the most time to talk for a change :)
I believe that this country, The United States of America, is the greatest on earth, and has the responsibility to take care of itself, and these wars abroad are a way to do that.
Hahaha this girl @9:25 is thinking something else.
This is the most Un-Vice thing they've ever done.
*VA was underfunded on purpose because its a Capitalistic system.*
Everything is viewed as a cost, including Citizens. The most cost effective way to improve VA would be to start up nationalized health care system.
It would make preventative health care more economical and having the US nation buy medicine would get US Citizens much cheaper medicines on a macro level.
Hello people of the world. The war in Iraq and Afghanistan was really wierd. There were big bases where the military ate Mcdonalds, lobster, and crab everyday and even have huge video game stations to relieve stress. They had wifi to browse the web and sometimes even swimmimg pools. These base for the most part, dont even feel like a war zone.
Then you have a few smaller base where Marines/soldiers would litteraly be shot at, blown up, killed or wounded everday or every other day. Most of these bases have no running water or electricity. These bases make you feel like you were in a Vietnam movie...
Yeah so i guess in war your experiance may vary. I'm not trying to put anyone down here, just pointing this out because must people dont know this.
The fucking propaganda in this is too much.
jefftc14 what is that propaganda ? Or you are just too blindly patriotic to accept truth ?
Carl Assquatch You are the one who is blind my friend. They make some decent points but it's ruined by the bullshit.
jefftc14 and you cant even name that bullshit ?
Carl Assquatch It's throughout the whole video in different statements and on different subjects.. This is clearly not the full footage either lol. If you want me to type it out it'l be a page long. Clearly simpletons like yourself don't get it so it's a waste of my time. Why don't you re-watch it and open your eyes.
jefftc14 name at least 3, you are too dumb like every american , you cant accept that your country is just like russia regarding foreign policy
"If you don't care I'm going to make you care." Nationalism.
One of the contractors who did what I did in the Marine Corps told me he made 200k a year for his contract. Several of my buddies EAS'd and immediately got hired and came back to Iraq making salaries like that. It went from serving your country to making cash. That being said, that culture has not died under the Obama administration, if anything its worse now. Military contractors are less politically magnified and able to do what our Marines and Soldiers. Obama can use them without any outcry from the public unlike our military.
Wow, absolutely no opposing views. Lots of flash, numbers, and cool music. Am I watching FOX?
This is a fantastic series, love you guys. Please make more.
Odd question with all being discussed but the jingle at the start of this...Is it an original score or can I get it anywhere?!
U.S. Military casualties in Afghanistan:
2001-2008: 564
2009-2015: 1,694
#YesWeCan
Ismail Ibn Ibrahim Al Rumi Why bother knowing the real numbers if you can't use them against a Republican president?
These numbers are not correct.
madman3470 BHO makes no accidents.
Ismail Ibn Ibrahim Al Rumi Many underreported heroes. #Courageous
Ismail Ibn Ibrahim Al Rumi Real courage is beheading innocent Christians, throwing gay people off a roof and stoning women to death. That's some Islamic fun. Aloha Snackbar.
i think its important to state that a contractor does not equal a military contractor. a contractor is not necessarily involved in combat. he might just be an aircraft mecanic or some guy fixing a generator
Rune Pedersen Who gets paid to work, not paid to just be there.
you are perfectly correct. i wasnt talking about the financial side i was merely saying there is a difference in the jobs. when the female marine is talking about the actions of these contracters it seems as they are all hired for military purposes.
thumbs up only for junger though
I feel like in a time travel watching this episode. Roll back to the late .60 and you will hear the same arguments being used against the war in Vietnam. Sure now its getting oil or stopping terrorists, but in the .60 the biggest threat was the USSR. Nothing changed and anti-war slogans reamined the same.
The guy at 6:20 is forking his tongue at us.
Johnny BeGood 6:19
I didn't hear it mentioned once that men are obligated to sign up for selective services in order to vote...
As far as I know, the US is the only western country that does this. Why?
Plebeian A lot of European coutries have conscription. It's for two reasons, one is because its an old law from the days when America fought bug wars and needed more manpower. The second reason is sexism.
Ivan Kebabremover No... european conscription is gender neutral, meaning both sexes are recruited, it's the same here in Canada. The US seems to be the only one that exempts women from this policy.
Plebeian US was the sexist one I was talking about. Just to clarify, I don't think woman should be conscripted because I rally don't think anybody should.
Ivan Kebabremover I agree, I don't think anybody should be conscripted either. But since we are let's be fair about it.
Retired Navy
Plebeian Yeah I can get behind that. You know I think these vice reporters do a pretty shit job at talking about the military you served in. If I were you I would be offended as fuck.
The editing is too quick.
Jack Sidaway Strongly agree.
I'm glad that we are realizing that the military is bloated.
They don't say anything about veteran admissions to college & university. I have a friend on an admissions board of a top 20 public law school. Every vet +/- gets in as long as they hit the minimum req. They are given the same hand up as underrepresented minorities. Our society doesn't get enough credit for what we do for vets, just credit for what we don't do.
Switching veterans from the VA to Obama care would be a great idea. Better care.
lol
VICE News hey i was curious if you might be able to lead me in the direction of a veterans service organization that will correspond with me regularly to help me with a claim. I suffered a brain injury in iraq and i have problems with remembering common tasks and thus have been terminated from jobs ever since my end of time in service in 2008. Im currently collecting disability but last year i finally put a claim in for 100%through my local congressmans office (due to nagging by my family), but they, as well as the VA have provided no correspondance on the status of my claim. I need a new vso, someone who can guide me by the hand,call me when they need something, and verify that the information i give the VA is properly handled and not misinterpreted. Any info would be greatly appreciated.
Brutal editing no?
Comments to the producers and moderator: I very much dislike the editing of this show, and this episode is no exception. It is terribly disjointed, does not logically flow. I would like to see guests fully address the questions of the audience. Often, this is not the case. The selected topics are good, however.
Side note: Sebastian Junger has always been, and will continue to be, a great resource for the world.
Shawn W Agreed on each point. The dialogue between question to response were very disjointed. Question is about one thing, response is about something else.
The utter lack of time and depth on any given sub-topic is also frustrating.
Id just like to point out...the best war documentary isnt Restrepo. Look up "Into the Hornets Nest"...Even better then Restrepo.
*Claim (Anu Bhagwati):* _"Do lower income people disproportionately serve [in the US military]? Absolutely."_
_Evidence:_ Studies from both the DoD and from the Heritage Foundation show that enlisted US military personal are less likely to come from impoverished families, and are actually more likely to come from middle/upper-class families.
*Conclusion:* Claim is false.
*Claim (Anu Bhagwati):* _"Do people of color disproportionately serve? Absolutely.... So there is kind of a lopsided demographic [mix]."_
_Evidence:_ According to a 2013 study by the DoD, and, according my calculations (which involve normalizing the racial population %'s to exclude racial categories not included in the US census) the following was true as of 2013
Whites were 63% of the US population and 65% of Active Duty Military Members
Blacks were 13% of the US population and 17% of Active Duty Military Members
Hispanics were 17% of the US population and 12% of Active Duty Military
Asians were 6% of the US population and 4% of Active Duty Military
Native Americans were 1% of the US population and 1% of Active Duty Military
*Conclusion:* Claim is a misleading exaggeration at best. When it comes to members of the US military on active duty, the number of Whites in the military is roughly what you would predict given their population size (the same thing is also true of Native Americans). Asians and Hispanics are slightly underrepresented among active duty personal, whereas Blacks are only slightly overrepresented.
*Claim (Anu Bhagwati):* _"Women who are homeless and veterans are impacted by sexual assault as well.... We know that because we've seen the VA studies, about 1 in 3 homeless women veterans has been impacted by sexual assault in the military."_
_Evidence:_ This claim draws support one convenience sample of 509 female veterans who opted to enroll in several VA Homeless Women Veterans Programs. The study failed to provide detailed demographic info on which branch of the military the subjects belong to, their material status, age, or race, (data which might allow one to assess how representative the data really was). Furthermore, in order to meet eligibility requirements participants also had to be: (1) a veteran, (2) homeless, (3) female, and (4) had to have mental health disorders or addiction problems.
*Conclusion:* Claim is based on a study with significant limitations and therefore is stated far more confidently than is actually warranted by the evidence. We don't "know" that over 1/3 of homeless female veterans have experienced military sexual assault. The exact proportion is an open and arguable question. Even assuming that 100% of the women in the sample were both honest and in a state of mind such that they were capable of answering accurately (the inclusion requirement of mental health problems renders this idea suspect)... it could still be true that the sample was _vastly_ unrepresentative (given that it was neither random nor weighted to the demographic characteristics of the general female veteran population). Finally, the fact that the study excluded female veterans _without_ mental health problems or physical addictions give us even more reason to regard it as unrepresentative and suspect (and thus to regard the claim as large overstatement).
download.militaryonesource.mil/12038/MOS/Reports/2013-Demographics-Report.pdf (p.22)
www.census.gov/popest/data/
www.defense.gov/news/Dec2005/d20051213mythfact.pdf
www.heritage.org/research/reports/2008/08/who-serves-in-the-us-military-the-demographics-of-enlisted-troops-and-officers
www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1049386713000807
reachmilitaryfamilies.umn.edu/sites/default/files/rdoc/Decker%20et%20al.2013.DoD_.pdf
Really, last time I checked the percentage of Blacks in the military, it was higher... up to 25%. But perhaps it was by branch though. I know a fact though that a good third of the Army is made of minorities. The military has always been pretty diverse... a good thing.
i like the question about Obamacare? Did that progress anywhere? Did anyone talk more about that option?
I you would have shut the guy in the glasses up so the people who have actually been in the military and spent time with combat units could talk.
If you're going to go through the trouble of having a panel, how about having people with differing opinions? This is a circle jerk.
Starting off by saying you will not get drafted into the military is really a poor thing to say. Every man of fighting age must still register for the draft. IF a bad war were to break out it is entirely possible the draft could come back. Having to register is a serious thing and should be treated as such.
*While the US is seen as a "world Police".*
People tend to ignore that most of their world policing is very much in regards to their own national interests. USA isnt the richest nation in the world because they havent used both soft _(diplomatic)_ and hard _(military)_ power to assert their needs.
If people think the aspect of "world police" is just out of selflessness and there are no benefits gained from it,... they are naive. That said, other have indirect benefits from it as well. Like Europe being able to have smaller military costs and Taiwan staying a country etc. However, if USA just "stopped" being a super power. Its not like Europe would thank them for that and taking such a step by the US, while totally unrealistic at this point in time, could risk them being isolated and lose their dominating wealth.
Its easy to be a "hippie" when you reap the benefits indirectly without getting your hands bloody when others have gotten them that *FOR YOU!*
Lobos222 When you say: "Its not like Europe would thank them for that"
Who are you referring to? The leaders in EU or the people who live in Europe?
HoppeKongen
Both, a increase in military spending needed to cover for the US would be huger than is talked about now with the increased risk from Russia.
It would have a negative impact on social programs and most likely taxes as well.
The EU nations had larger armies before, but the cost of a modern army expected to function outside the terms of "cannon fodder" is very costly. China for example. Is a good example of a nation with allot of troops that are basically dysfunctional to the point they would only function as fodder in a large scale conflict.
Being a mercenary is likely the second oldest profession in human history. The occupation isn't going anywhere.
The US does not have an "obligation" what so ever to help other countries. That's total crap! We have an obligation to help our own citizens!
the problem is recruiting. and the fight. you can't get high tech people. fighting in endless war for quasi goals. with dubious thought put into it. otherwise they would just get that high tech money. you gotta fight for the right reason for them to give up on the big money
This video forgot to mention that the military industrial complex serves the elite well.
they probably spectated that most people die in war....
the contractors are a waste of money. when I was deployed these contractors were making 100,000 a year for opening and closing a gate. while as a private I made 20,000 a year
The pace of this show is dizzying. I am really into all the topics and I like the format, but it seems like each question gets addressed for like 2 seconds and then they move on to the next thing with out extensive analysis. I think this program would be cool, but the host is too vocal and should let the experts talk more, and also shouldn't reinterpret the questions from the audience.
Why do thy keep demonizing contractors? They are mostly vets anyway. ...... But thats not unpatriotic.
Ackerman is very satisfied with himself, eh?
This was an incredibly one sided set of interviews
yo soy fiesta
I have an idea, why don't you have everyone covered by public healthcare? I know its pretty crazy but maybe you goons could stop fighting wars and start caring for your own people like the rest of the first world...
Is it just me or did the edit the shit out of this. I think this series would be better if there was less editing and it wasn't sponsored by the Bank of America. I don't want to say it looks dishonest but rather it looks like it has a predetermined view point their marketing.
Funny this video talks about military spending while ignoring all the money being wasted in health care, pensions, interests (an actual category), and other spending, (also another actual category). You talk of the problem but not any possible solutions/ alternatives.
People love to talk about welfare recipients but in reality 2/3 of our budget goes to the military and rebuilding foreign countries
It's hard for me to believe you're a money specialist when you're wearing.. Bapes
5:37 somebody give that girl some water she just keeps licking her lips mmmmmmm
POG thinks she knows
These "subject matter experts" know very little about what they re talking about
something is organically wrong with this attempts on epic subjects
This fucking show is on the 4th ep? I am sorry but VICE kinda sucks lately.
One of the worst episodes. Having war criminals as political leaders and deliberately increasing the economical bubbles is absolutely disgusting. Shame on you.
This show is fear monger, no solutions
Soon our government will be filled by contracters
As a vet that woman is not a good rep didnt seem very knowledgeable witch is surprising due to her rank.
Desk Warrior....
went too fast.. and its fucking short..
So as a none american, why would I care about this?
Victor Panzinger Because as much as the world is trying not to keep admitting it, The US is still by far the most powerful country in the world and we are still running the war on terror, so it is important information for anyone with a brain to know what it going on with our military. Hey, all the books mostly just talk about Rome, while Carthage was nearly equally as powerful..
***** hahahah
cops have ptsd
Yes, Vice is such American propaganda.
Right.
That was sarcasm.
This is terrible. Do you really have to spend 30 seconds talking about each topic and then move on? Why not just have an insightful 10 minute video instead of a few vox pops that come nowhere close to debate?
Thanks for the shallow propaganda Vice!