FarmerJoe
7th February 2014, 07:02
Hello all.
I've been reading and looking at posts and information here for some time now, and only now decided to actually join. It's been a long time coming for me to come around to this political view point, but I come from a family that holds the same views as you guys.
I grew up on a farm in a town of about 400 people. My family has been on this farm for four generations, and I have just recently taken over it. Growing up my mother and father taught my brother and I Marxist, communist and socialist views. They never really forced it upon me, and I remember spend late nights with my dad in the fields asking him about Marxism, how things would work, what it would be like to live in such a society. It seemed that for every question I had he had an answer.
Looking back now, I can say that regrettably I was stupid. In 2001 I got whipped up in the war frenzy, I threw down my tools and pick up a rifle. In my mind I was right, justified, I knew what I was doing. My father had done the same in Vietnam, his father had done the same in World War II, and his in the Great War. It just seemed natural for me to do the same, and so I walked into the house one day, sat my parents down and told them I was joining the Army. My mother was horrified, and my father told me one thing, and that was that I would forever be changed.
I lost everything. My best friend and I had joined as infantry. We did two tours together in Afghanistan. At the beginning of our third tour together, he was killed. I wasn't more than 3 feet from him when he was shot. We were moving threw a village and someone just stepped out of a doorway and shot him. Just like that. I really fell apart the rest of that tour. I would always dream about when we were kids, and we'd wake up early to help get the cows water in the mornings. But my father was right, it did change me. The things I did, saw. I understand why my father and grandfather were such quiet and soft spoken people. When I finally returned home for good, I felt empty, lost and confused.
For better or worse, my little brother (and my only sibling) enlisted for the war while I was away. I assume when he told dad, he said the same thing he said to me. I never really asked, whatever was said was between them. He went too Iraq. Not even two weeks later we got the letter and flag.
A few years passed. I worked at home on the farm. Stayed in town, I somehow got married. Five years ago my father passed. Died of a heart condition. I'm sure my mother died of a broken heart, she was as healthy as a horse. Now it is just me and my wife and this old house.
I felt lost and betrayed. So I read my fathers books and writings. I took comfort in reading his essays. But one topic kept sparking my interest over and over was his commentaries about politics. He had a good collection of leftist books, and even more of his own writings. As I read more and more of it, it started to make more and more sense to me. I started looking things up online, somehow found my way here.
It's nice to see I'm not alone in this. That there are other people with the same ideologies as myself. I really look forward to talking and getting more involved here. I might at some point type up these old essays and writings for you all to read (though they are all in polish so I'd have to translate).
I just re-read all this. Sorry if it seems like I am dumping my life story one you all. I guess I kind of got going and a lot of things came out.
So, hello!!!
I've been reading and looking at posts and information here for some time now, and only now decided to actually join. It's been a long time coming for me to come around to this political view point, but I come from a family that holds the same views as you guys.
I grew up on a farm in a town of about 400 people. My family has been on this farm for four generations, and I have just recently taken over it. Growing up my mother and father taught my brother and I Marxist, communist and socialist views. They never really forced it upon me, and I remember spend late nights with my dad in the fields asking him about Marxism, how things would work, what it would be like to live in such a society. It seemed that for every question I had he had an answer.
Looking back now, I can say that regrettably I was stupid. In 2001 I got whipped up in the war frenzy, I threw down my tools and pick up a rifle. In my mind I was right, justified, I knew what I was doing. My father had done the same in Vietnam, his father had done the same in World War II, and his in the Great War. It just seemed natural for me to do the same, and so I walked into the house one day, sat my parents down and told them I was joining the Army. My mother was horrified, and my father told me one thing, and that was that I would forever be changed.
I lost everything. My best friend and I had joined as infantry. We did two tours together in Afghanistan. At the beginning of our third tour together, he was killed. I wasn't more than 3 feet from him when he was shot. We were moving threw a village and someone just stepped out of a doorway and shot him. Just like that. I really fell apart the rest of that tour. I would always dream about when we were kids, and we'd wake up early to help get the cows water in the mornings. But my father was right, it did change me. The things I did, saw. I understand why my father and grandfather were such quiet and soft spoken people. When I finally returned home for good, I felt empty, lost and confused.
For better or worse, my little brother (and my only sibling) enlisted for the war while I was away. I assume when he told dad, he said the same thing he said to me. I never really asked, whatever was said was between them. He went too Iraq. Not even two weeks later we got the letter and flag.
A few years passed. I worked at home on the farm. Stayed in town, I somehow got married. Five years ago my father passed. Died of a heart condition. I'm sure my mother died of a broken heart, she was as healthy as a horse. Now it is just me and my wife and this old house.
I felt lost and betrayed. So I read my fathers books and writings. I took comfort in reading his essays. But one topic kept sparking my interest over and over was his commentaries about politics. He had a good collection of leftist books, and even more of his own writings. As I read more and more of it, it started to make more and more sense to me. I started looking things up online, somehow found my way here.
It's nice to see I'm not alone in this. That there are other people with the same ideologies as myself. I really look forward to talking and getting more involved here. I might at some point type up these old essays and writings for you all to read (though they are all in polish so I'd have to translate).
I just re-read all this. Sorry if it seems like I am dumping my life story one you all. I guess I kind of got going and a lot of things came out.
So, hello!!!