By Lydia Fiser
By Lydia Fiser
Micah Goulet served two tours in Iraq in a combat unit from 2001 to 2006 before coming to UF as a student. As an Iraq Veteran Against the War, he supported Obama during the campaign. Goulet is against both conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, a large factor in his evaluation of the candidates.
“I understood [Obama's] position on Afghanistan. I didn’t agree with it, but I understood it,” he said. “But when you’ve got one guy, McCain, saying, to quote Nixon, ‘We’re going to have victory with honor in Iraq and Afghanistan’…and then you hear Obama saying, ‘No Iraq, yes Afghanistan,’ it’s like what the fuck?”
Although Goulet saw Afghanistan as a loosing battle that the U.S. shouldn’t be involved with, he felt Obama would come closer than McCain to representing his ideals by withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq. But since the election, Obama has disappointed Goulet by not withdrawing troops quickly enough.
“I know that there’s going to be a lot of bloodshed when the American troops leave,” he said. “But what do you do? Do you continue to occupy and push that date of bloodshed back further and further?”
Despite his frustrations, Goulet is pleased with the help Obama has given to him and his “veteran brothers” by increasing the GI Bill, expanding Veterans Affairs hospitals and the medical and mental benefits available, and helping increase student aid through the stimulus package.
Goulet gives Obama a B for his first year in office, but he isn’t hopeful looking toward the future.
“I hope by 2012, we’re out of the recession. I hope the conflict in Iraq is going to be resolved…I hope that’s the case,” Goulet said. “I don’t think that’s going to be the case…I didn’t think Obama was right on all his positions (during the campaign), and I still don’t.”
Well “The Fine Print”, I must say that you tried. Soldiers usually identify as conservative as do most military employees. Good job on finding one of the few liberal Obama supporting soldiers. Nevertheless, I am appreciative of what he did for our country. It just seems that “The Fine Print” could be less blatant about their liberalistic leanings. I suppose though, that even whe Obama supporters aren’t granting him good grades that it isn’t a good sign for his 2012 potential.
Well Robert I don’t know if you go to UF, but if you did you’d know that TFP is UF’s leftist rag. They used to have a “Spotlight on socialism.” As far as 2012, it’s still two and a half years away. In early 2006 it didn’t look like the GOP would get reamed in 2008 but look how that turned out.
Fred and Robert. If you look at any history of American Journalism, there is very rarely any absence of political voice in content and editorial decision. As an honors graduate in political theory and mass communication at UF ’08, I see TFP staff as having filled in that voice with load bellows where there was only weak and untuned voices in scant local journalistic scene. This interview of the Iraq vet captures such a political nuance that other papers (i.e. the Alligator) ever failed to seek out for UF and Gainesville readers.
While it’s true that many of us combat vets are conservative, I feel that this phenomenon has less to do with the fact the occupations of those two countries are just or morally ideal, and more with the fact that we combat vets have been conditioned by the military to think that way. It cannot be refuted that members of the military are re-socialized from enlistment (or for officers, since commissioning) to believe those values that the military would have us take on. Those of us “liberal vets” have been responsible enough to come to terms with the murders and illegal violence we have seen and been a part of over there and see it for what it really is. Do not demean my service to my country by saying I’m not proud, because you sir, who I challenge to experience the things I have and hold to your philosophy, have no idea what is going on over there.