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- The ‘Broken Veteran’ Excuse
Graham Platner’s victory this week in Maine’s Democratic Senate primary would have been a stunning achievement for a political newcomer under any circumstances. What makes it truly remarkable is that Platner pulled this off despite a decades-long trail of questionable behavior: a Nazi tattoo; contemptible written statements about sexual-abuse victims, Black people, and women; admissions of past substance abuse and marital infidelity; allegations of demeaning, disturbing, and physically threatening behavior toward former girlfriends. (Platner has denied any physical intimidation or violence.)Platner and his surrogates have rolled out a catch-all excuse, meant not only to clarify how he could have made so many bad decisions, but also to shame people who criticize him: Platner, a Marine Corps veteran, was dealing with the heavy emotional burden and mental toll of the wars this nation sent him to fight. It’s not his fault. And he’s a better person now.But that argument—and I say this as a veteran of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars—is nonsense, a convenient answer intended to divert the conversation from legitimate questions about Platner’s many flaws. It plays on Americans’ sympathy for those who have fought in war and overplays the distinction between veterans and civilians. Whether this justification is used cynically or sincerely—or ignorantly—it is insulting to veterans. Many of them suffer from their time in combat but don’t engage in the kind of behavior that Platner has. And many of them—despite, or because of, their wartime experience—are among our nation’s most accomplished, ethical, hardworking, and patriotic citizens and leaders.Let me put this as plainly as possible: I know quite literally hundreds of combat veterans and the soldiers I fought with, to my knowledge, all somehow managed to avoid getting Nazi tattoos. It doesn’t take much effort to avoid being inked with an SS symbol.[Mike Nelson: Condemning a Nazi tattoo shouldn’t be this hard]Platner himself has said repeatedly that much of his bad behavior stemmed from his war experience. “I’ve been very up front since the beginning of this campaign that that was a pretty dark period of my life after I came back from my combat service,” he recently told MS NOW’s Chris Hayes, admitting to “not being a good boyfriend” and “self-medicating with alcohol.” He has spoken about having PTSD and, in an interview with The New York Times, described an incident in which his friend was badly injured when their vehicle got hit by an IED… [TheTopNews] Read More.12 hours ago - Net Gain
We’re covering the Knicks, and a savvy strategy people are using to game prediction markets. [TheTopNews] Read More.12 hours ago - Iran War Live Updates: Israel and Hezbollah Exchange Strikes, Complicating Possi...Israel’s military said it attacked the southern outskirts of Beirut, the Lebanese capital, after accusing Hezbollah, the Iran-backed armed group, of violating a cease-fire. [TheTopNews] Read More.12 hours ago
- Man who built Guernsey finance charity retires
Peter Neville stands down as head of the charity supporting people ineligible for mainstream banking. [TheTopNews] Read More.13 hours ago - Swiss voters reject 10 million population cap, early projections sayNot all votes have been counted, but the current trend suggests 55% of participants voted against the proposal. [TheTopNews] Read More.13 hours ago
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Graham Platner’s victory this week in Maine’s Democratic Senate primary would have been a stunning achievement for a political newcomer under any circumstances. What makes it truly remarkable is that Platner pulled this off despite a decades-long trail of questionable behavior: a Nazi tattoo; contemptible written statements about sexual-abuse victims, Black people, and women; admissions of past substance abuse and marital infidelity; allegations of demeaning, disturbing, and physically threatening behavior toward former girlfriends. (Platner has denied any physical intimidation or violence.)Platner and his surrogates have rolled out a catch-all excuse, meant not only to clarify how he could have made so many bad decisions, but also to shame people who criticize him: Platner, a Marine Corps veteran, was dealing with the heavy emotional burden and mental toll of the wars this nation sent him to fight. It’s not his fault. And he’s a better person now.But that argument—and I say this as a veteran of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars—is nonsense, a convenient answer intended to divert the conversation from legitimate questions about Platner’s many flaws. It plays on Americans’ sympathy for those who have fought in war and overplays the distinction between veterans and civilians. Whether this justification is used cynically or sincerely—or ignorantly—it is insulting to veterans. Many of them suffer from their time in combat but don’t engage in the kind of behavior that Platner has. And many of them—despite, or because of, their wartime experience—are among our nation’s most accomplished, ethical, hardworking, and patriotic citizens and leaders.Let me put this as plainly as possible: I know quite literally hundreds of combat veterans and the soldiers I fought with, to my knowledge, all somehow managed to avoid getting Nazi tattoos. It doesn’t take much effort to avoid being inked with an SS symbol.[Mike Nelson: Condemning a Nazi tattoo shouldn’t be this hard]Platner himself has said repeatedly that much of his bad behavior stemmed from his war experience. “I’ve been very up front since the beginning of this campaign that that was a pretty dark period of my life after I came back from my combat service,” he recently told MS NOW’s Chris Hayes, admitting to “not being a good boyfriend” and “self-medicating with alcohol.” He has spoken about having PTSD and, in an interview with The New York Times, described an incident in which his friend was badly injured when their vehicle got hit by an IED… [TheTopNews] Read More.
12 hours ago
We’re covering the Knicks, and a savvy strategy people are using to game prediction markets. [TheTopNews] Read More.
12 hours ago
Israel’s military said it attacked the southern outskirts of Beirut, the Lebanese capital, after accusing Hezbollah, the Iran-backed armed group, of violating a cease-fire. [TheTopNews] Read More.
12 hours ago
Peter Neville stands down as head of the charity supporting people ineligible for mainstream banking. [TheTopNews] Read More.
13 hours ago
Not all votes have been counted, but the current trend suggests 55% of participants voted against the proposal. [TheTopNews] Read More.
13 hours ago
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