I think this thread came from a good place, but I want to add a few thoughts because I think service members WILL be talking about yesterday's events -- and that leaders SHOULD be talking to their troops about them.

They need to be thoughtful, not scared of doing so. 1/

Yesterday, our nation's capital was attacked and the capitol was briefly occupied. 1100 members of the DC National Guard were activated, as were more than 6000 NG troops from half a dozen states.

They're now operating in a highly political environment. More could join them. 2/
Calls for our military to remain apolitical really mean: (1) our military must be non-partisan; (2) it should not interfere or influence elections; & (3) service members should not portray their personal opinions as the military institution's opinions. 3/ https://t.co/ROksRHFh6R
While there is a lot we don't know, there are indications that at least some police yesterday acted in a biased way -- allowing the mobs to bypass barriers to attack and enter the capitol building.

Personal/partisan sympathies cannot interfere with a military unit's duties. 4/
Leaders and commanders should talk to their formations about these issues, and try to understand if there are service members for whom that might be a problem. (Hint: there probably are.)

You can't do that if you're not communicating with them and having real discussions. 5/
NG units now play a role in maintaining order to allow the transfer of political power to take place.

Leaders can & should make clear that civilian electoral institutions HAVE decided the outcome. The Electoral College vote has been certified. Joe Biden will be President. 6/
Support for insurrectionists is a threat in military units. Partisan divisions can also hurt unit cohesion and effectiveness.

But leaders should not avoid these discussions or pretend divisions aren't there. They need to work to unify around values and principles of service. 7/
But having these conversations will/may also identify service members who don't share those values, and are unwilling to change their views.

How to deal with those soldiers is a whole different problem, but it is one leaders should be addressing. 8/
Service members should also be careful about whether/how to comment on these issues in public, esp on social media.

In this sense, it is wise to avoid pure commentary, particularly if it could give the impression you're speaking for the military -- intentionally or not. 9/
But professionalism & respect don't amount to pure avoidance, either.

Not talking about these issues won't make them go away, and it could potentially obscure real problems.

So, please talk about them. But be professional & thoughtful. And remember the public is watching. 10/10
PS1/ Here is a great example of how to address and correct these issues when they occur (but I also hope it doesn't just end with the deletion of posts/comments): https://t.co/94H3UUzt9r

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🧵⬇️1. Fb is LifeLog, LifeLog is Darpa, and DARPA is a Enterprise Run by CIA... Well... Past President... Big Tech, Big Pharma, MSM, HOLLYWOOD, DC...

Past Presidents....Zuckerberg, Gates...
All C_A... the Family business.... The company...


2. Past Presidents....Zuckerberg, Gates...
All C_A... the Family business.... The company...The Farm.... all C_A assets... most of them related by blood, business, or marriage...


3. "The individual is handicapped by coming face-to-face with a conspiracy so monstrous he cannot believe it exists. The American mind simply has not come to a realization of the evil which has been introduced into our midst." - J. Edgar Hoover


4. diff. names & faces.... Monsters that lurk in the Shadows. Swamp, Deep State, Establishment, Globalist Elite Cabal...

Shall we go back...How far back...


5. I know these monsters... it's when I try to explain them to others is when I run into a problem.This is why I'm better at retweeting and compiling. I never know where to start... Everytime I try to thread, i end up w/ a messy monstrous web.I'm better at helping others thread.
Let me take a stab at this after years of reporting on Marine One, HMX-1, Continuity of Government, etc. None of this is definitive, but it could help explain what folks are seeing:

1.) HMX-1, which flies the VH-3D and VH-60N 'White Top' helicopters used to move... 1/X


the President and VP around, those helos being called Marine One or Two when either is onboard, need to train. The urban landing zones, including WH and VP Residence, are not simple to get in and out of. So, crews need some currency training. They are not just tasked with... 2/X

moving POTUS and VP to get them around the region and to Andrews AFB for long-haul flights, they are essential to Continuity of Government operations. This means that if a threat were to emerge, they need to be ready to snatch POTUS and VP in minutes. This is partially... 3/X

why they have a full forward operating location at Naval Support Activity Anacostia, just 3 miles from the WH. As such, practice is important and considering the state of things, it is critical now more than in any recent memory. 4/X

2.) Considering what happened last week, including mobs of Trump supporters screaming in unison to hang the VP for doing what the constitution states, absolutely despicable in every way, security has been tightened just as it has been all over. Using the helicopters instead.. 5/X
If you're curious what Trump's defense will look like, all you have to do is turn on Fox News. My latest at @mmfa

The tl;dr is that for years right-wing media have been excusing Trump's violent rhetoric by going, "Yes, but THE DEMOCRATS..." and then bending themselves into knots to pretend that Dems were calling for violence when they very, very clearly weren't.

And in fact, this predates Trump.

In 2008, Obama was talking about not backing down in the face of an ugly campaign. He said "If they bring a knife to the fight, we bring a gun."

https://t.co/i5YaQJsKop


That quote was from the movie The Untouchables. And there's no way anybody reading that quote in good faith could conclude that he was talking about actual guns and knives. But it became a big talking point on the

In 2018, Obama-era Attorney General Eric Holder was speaking to a group of Georgia Democrats about GOP voter suppression. He riffed on Michelle Obama's "When they go low, we go high" line from the 2016 DNC.
This article by Jim Spellar for @LabourList misses the point about why Labour needs to think seriously about constitutional reform - and have a programme for it ready for government.


The state of our constitution is a bit like the state of the neglected electric wiring in an old house. If you are moving into the house, sorting it out is a bit tedious. Couldn’t you spend the time and money on a new sound system?

But if you ignore the wiring, you’ll find that you can’t safely install the new sound system. And your house may well catch fire.

Any programme for social democratic government requires a state with capacity, and a state that has clear mechanisms of accountability, for all the big and all the small decisions that in takes, in which people have confidence.

That is not a description of the modern UK state.

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