Archive article: https://archive.is/EfZkV “We don’t have a military full of Nordic pagans,” he said. “No more beards, long hair, superficial individual expression,” he added. “We’re going to cut our hair, shave our beards, and adhere to standards.”
Wait … a white supremacist who rejects Viking Age cultural appropriation‽
The beard thing is targeted at POC in the military. Most black men can’t closely shave without catastrophic damage to their faces.
Oh I know. It’s just unusual for a tatted up white supremacist to not have some misplaced affinity for Vikings, based on the Nazified version of them rather than the reality. So for Hegseth to specifically call out a rejection of Nordic aesthetic is odd. The pagan part of his callout is weird, because Christian Vikings were very much a thing, too.
Plus we learned in Vietnam that racial tensions in your military doesn’t make a effective fighting force. All you end up with is a whole bunch of dead white leaders with no way to tell if the enemy killed them or their own men.
What did Hegseth think was going to happen? That all the generals were going to stomp their feet and hoot and holler? That they were going to pump their fists in the air and shout “YEEEAAAH!” ?
That sh*t might work on Private Pyle but those Generals had more important things to do and places to be. They’re pissed that they’ve been summoned from all over the world by a guy who calls their troops “suckers and losers” to take part in a pep rally.
This is what CEOs of failing companies do to make themselves seem important on their sinking ship.
His comment about beards is iterally the least problematic/newsworthy part of his speech. Why the fuck would you focus on this and not, I don’t know, his straight outta 1984 “war is peace” statement? Extreme journalistic malpractice.
I agree they literally declared war on American citizens
So, I thought this was going to be some secret strategy briefing heralding some awful new global project. Instead it’s a couple little boys peacocking around bragging about how masculine they are to a captive audience.
I wonder how the generals and admirals feel about being pons in this loser’s bruised ego theater?
The least cool thing a person can do is brag about how cool they are. Same thing applies to masculinity. When you preform like this, you’re expressing how weak, afraid, unsure and incapable you are. That’s the maga cultural movement in a nutshell.
Fuck every single person in civilization leadership at this moment.
Were you trying to say “pawns?”
Prawns
Yeah.
[sad trombone]
It’s kind of a relief in a way, of all the ways “fascists war department leader calls all the generals home suddenly for a meeting” could go, raving about aesthetics is probably one of the least immediately dangerous for everyone else.
He’s trying to force black men out of the military, it’s not like he’s giving fashion tips.
Well and women.
Instead it’s a couple little boys peacocking around bragging about how masculine they are to a captive audience.
Uhm, well there was a lot of that stuff, but Hegseth spoke for like 45 minutes and inbetween the usual incoherent rambling and machismo, and the book plug [!], there were some actual important announcements thrown in. Internal investigations is to be gutted, records of wrongdoing will be expunged, “DEI” purges will continue, and a whole lot of “you can do whatever the fuck you want now, we will back you” messaging. This was a rallying cry to the fascists in the audience, and I fear there is a subset that will act on it.
Haven’t made it through the entirety of Trumps speech yet, but most of the first ~20 minutes have been his usual meandering.
Edit 1: Heh, nice Freudian slip a bit later into Trumps speech:
That’s why I chose ‘razin’ Caine. He’s fantastic, by the way. I hope you all agree. If anybody disagrees, could I please have your hand? Who disappears that ‘razin’ Caine is no good? Just raise your hand. *inhales* I don’t see any hands raised.
That and they declared war on American citizens and said war crimes are encouraged.
Yes, he insulted very high ranking officers.
Yes, it will piss them off.
But most unfortunately, some of them are going to resign “in protest” and be replaced by bootlickers who do whatever trump says.
That is the goal, it’s not to get them on Trump’s side, it’s a desperate attempt to get the ones willing to fight to quit before they can really fight in a meaningful way
The military brass are well aware of the result of them stepping down in protest. These guys are warriors and see themselves as patriots. Many, if not all, are pretty politically savvy as well. If they’re not strongly aligned with fascism, they will stoutly defend the Constitution from this idiotic horde and that means keeping their post and making difficult choices if the need arises.
I promise you, all of these guys have mentally prepared for this moment. Threats foreign and domestic. They know the “domestic” line is the least likely to occur but the most difficult to navigate. And they likely play out scenarios in their heads all the time to be prepared. They’re well-read on historical coups and not blind to what is on the line in front of them. It is not uncommon for military leaders to appreciate the benefits of authoritarianism, but when it occurs, historically, it’s easily spun as using authoritarianism to protect the country in some way. We can all see the grift. A teenager can logic what these chucklefucks on stage are trying to do. The military leaders are not going to give up their country for anything the Trump administration is selling.
The administration is full of idiots and headed by a narcissist. This meeting was likely a test. If they thought the military was with them, they’d ramp up project 2025 and try to take control. Seeing that the military isn’t fully with them, they’ll pivot and try to foment even more fear among the citizens. Get that divide going which they think the military will react to. The military leaders likely will see through that as well. But I also don’t think the administration has the support anymore to bring about the civil war they want. There are too many cracks forming in their supporters. They will still try it. They have to. They know the harshest elements of Project 2025 will cause upheaval and dissent. Without the brainwashing, without the military I don’t think they can pull it off. But they will still cause a lot of damage before they’re stopped.
These guys are warriors and see themselves as patriots.
Lol
Ok buddy, they definitely are in all the movies
In real life you can’t get that high up without fucking more than a few people over.
Military officers mostly have college degrees and are professionals and leadership experts. In addition to this they have extensive military training. High ranking officers are some of the most intelligent and experienced folks you will meet. Certainly more trustworthy than the majority of CEOs, politicians, and talk show hosts that have far more power than they should.
High ranking officers are some of the most intelligent and experienced folks you will meet.
Lol
Have you literally ever interacted with any military officer in a professional capacity?
Yes, yes I have. It seems that you have not, nor do you understand the requirements of becoming even a low ranking CO.
Once you’ve watched a Captain get relieved of his command and get sent to the sandbox to count ammo in a connex and then get PROMOTED to Major, you know that it’s all made up.
O-1 through O-4 are basically the same as E-1 through E-4, Automatic.
nor do you understand the requirements of becoming even a low ranking CO.
A college degree and a pulse?
Yeah man, it’s super fucking difficult…
The regulations and guidance are publicly available if you would like to educate yourself
Yeah. That’s why I mentioned the politically savvy part. A very few seem to get there on just time and merit. Most have the political acumen and ruthlessness to rise through the ranks within a terrible system.
Still completely wrong…
Do you even know someone who’s been in the military?
Or are you basing opinions on Major Dad reruns?
Because the multiple issues with the promotion system was actually a multi episode arc on that show, even back then…
I’ve spent the last decade as a proxy voice for conscientious objectors and my girlfriend’s dad just retired a few years ago as a major general in the national guard. Does that count?
Edit: The governor threw him a gala event for his retirement and all.
and my girlfriend’s dad just retired a few years ago as a major general in the national guard. Does that count?
Nope.
It’s your GFs dad, but I’m sure he is very impressive to a teenager.
Not even getting into the “guard” aspect…
No, they won’t. This is a childish humiliation ritual… Every one of them has gone through basic. They can sit there are zone out when someone screams at them, I’m sure they can handle watching a content creator make a fool of themselves for an afternoon
These aren’t politicians or powerless administrators. The people Hegseth pulled off their jobs are the final line of defense for the constitution
They have actual power, they’re not going to performatively give it up and comply in advance
Yeah. Top Gun is super realistic too. Just v-ball all day and racing motorcycles
This same group of people basically quietly removed Trump from power after Jan 6
The national guard is picking up trash in DC, they had to be ordered to carry weapons. They managed to throw a military parade without marching, if you watch the footage you can see individuals accidentally matching up their steps and staggering them again
The military as a whole is not on board with any of this, and they’re a very critical key to power
I feel like the chance of a military coup in the USA just went up 1000%. I’m sure there’s plenty of MAGAs in that military but there’s gotta be a lot who take their oath and tradition very seriously.
Since you mention it, by summoning leadership to the pentagon he just gave them plausible deniability for being in the same place at the same time, without being monitored (e.g. off base). If you wanted to jump-start a coup, that’s a helluva way to do it.
Trump took the stage after him, noting that: “I’ve never walked into a room so silent before.”
The president, who famously avoided the military draft multiple time, then gave a far more subdued address, talking about everything from Joe Biden’s autopen, his love of the word “tariffs”, and the threat of nuclear weapons.
“I call it the N word. There are two N words and you can’t use either of them,” Trump said to an awkwardly silent audience.
I don’t think pissing off the entire military leadership with something that didn’t need to be said (or could have been an email) is going to make them particularly keen to support you…
It’s like a Nazi Ted Talk.
Thanks melania for making them look like Nazi foot soldiers too:
Not a single beard in the crowd… might Hegseth be a ridiculous pedantic asshat? Some people are saying it.
Maybe he’s targeting Sikhs that have beard exemptions for religious reasons?
It’s mostly about black men. Due to the texture of their facial hair, they are more likely to get ingrown hairs and irritation from shaving closely. A lot of the people with facial hair exemptions are black men.
What could they possibly be taking notes on?
They had no idea of what the meeting was about, they were probably being prepared.
How are fascists always so cringe
If they weren’t so cringe they’d have friends and be less insecure. These two things alone make it harder to be a fascist right out the gate.
An important reminder that a large part of fascism is pure idiocy.
No beards on generals? Must be the cope from having this handsome gentleman beat their asses all the way to Dixie and back!
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Is he ranting because he doesn’t have enough testosterone to grow one? 🤷♂️
Another common misconception is that those with thicker beards have more testosterone than people with thinner beards. Even though testosterone does play a role in the growth of facial hair, low testosterone is rarely the cause of sparse facial hair growth.2
Thia myth has been wandering around for too long. The two people I know with extreme testasterone levels have no beard growth
That’s exactly what I was thinking. He’s probably extremely insecure that he can’t grow a beard.
“this meeting could have been an e-mail”
holy shit i really think pete hegseth might be one of the least likable human men i have ever heard speak
