The Cruise Industry and the Messiah

Most everyone I tell I work on cruise ships responds with a smile. After almost ten years I have to ask myself do I still like the work. When I first began working in the cruise industry I could only think having a job on the ocean in the entertainment industry must be delightful. The travel is the highpoint. Having to “Greet and Smile” every single crewmember and guest within a ten foot radius all day long is a chore. If it does not feel like a chore, then you become brainwashed to believe this is real life. As soon as you return to the states shock will set in, unless you simply ignore your environment and continue with your learned protocol. In this situation you can be a good influence on America. The United States Armed Services providing this service to the Middle East is suspect. Where in the historical philosophy of America did our military absorb the role of Christian missionaries? While Ronald Reagan favored a large defense budget, I’m not sure this would have been his view. Star Wars was a satellite-based missile defense system intended to protect the continental United States from a rogue nuclear attack. The operative words are National Defense. Currently our military is playing National Offense. Strategically playing strong offense can be the best defense, but it is more expensive. The media currently says the United States is involved in three wars. Recognizing missionaries in full combat dress must be confusing. It is liberal. It is bleeding heart liberal. Being involved in three wars in the Middle East seems Islamic. Using the United States military as Christian/Islamic missionaries seems Obamic. Is it correct many of the opposition to President Obama’s policies pointedly refer to his middle name Hussein? These realizations seem to mark the President as a prophet. Is that what we need in a President? Does America further need to empty her pockets as a closet imperialist paving the way for Republican globalization? Has Haliburton suddenly grown an ethical partner exploring a new way to drain the pockets of other countries? It is a complex issue. When I see American military leaders communing Christianly with the indigenous peoples of countries with which we are at war, it turns my stomach. Isn’t war ugly? How can we promote peace with the local populaces and still effectively defeat their insurgencies? Suddenly Donald Rumsfeld’s military strategy for defeating Saddam Hussein doesn’t seem so bad. It was a war. It was dirty and ugly and brutal. Mercilessly we bombed strategic points of Iraqi infrastructure rendereing their country impotent of maintaining civil life. All the while Haliburton was poised to save the day and fill their pockets. Whose pockets will be filled if successfully we are able to democratize Afghanistan? Who will reap the rewards of all those poppies? Who will harvest their vast supply of natural resources? Who currently is tapping those destroyed oil wells in Iraq? The media doesn’t seem to have much to say about Iraq these days. What is going on there? Formerly the French and the Russians maintained successful oil contracts with Iraqi suppliers. Christian/Islam beliefs although meritorious to man don’t work in times of war. What happens? The wars linger on in an attempt to breed American allies overseas. What happened in Korea and Viet Nam? President Nixon masterminded our exit from the Viet Nam war, and little subsequently was heard about the evil regime of Pol Pot. The decision is made and we wash our hands of the altercation, such as Iraq. I for one in belief in the concept of war feel it should not be painted over with happy tidings. Rebuilding countries from within within our construct is nothing more than Imperialism. We can act the Messiah when doing it, but is Christianity and Islam the right path for war? It certainly is the most expensive.