A message to the university regarding John F. Kelly’s invitation to the CSU – The Rocky Mountain Collegian

Editor’s note: All content in the Opinion section reflects the views of the individual author only and does not represent the position taken by The Collegian or its editorial board. Letters to the editor reflect the opinion of a member of the University community and are submitted to the publication for approval.

Content warning: This article contains references to sexual assault, torture, domestic violence, racism, Islamophobia, xenophobia, and many other topics. I believe these are necessary to fully explore the story of John F. Kelly. While this article attempts to avoid explicit language, many of the sources may have explicit images or descriptions.

I was delighted to see the recent announcement about Colorado State University hosting “One of America’s most distinguished military leaders.,” John F. Kelly, September 5. I am incredibly grateful for the rare opportunity to hear from a representative of the less public side of the CSU, the dark side of conflicts of interest and profiteering at the expense of suffering. Today, I simply want to share a bit of Kelly’s illustrious past and impeccable character, which can perhaps best be summed up thus:A man clearly betting that hell doesn’t exist.,“so that our students can one day achieve the same level of success and infamy.

We must start with the core of his personality: his long military career. Kelly is proud of his service in the Marines and claims to have the utmost respect for his fellow service members. Kelly’s respect apparently could not overcome his homophobia, as Reportedly vehemently opposed the repeal “Don’t ask, don’t tell.“ While we do not know his views on transgender soldiers, they were not positive enough to prompt any action against the ban imposed by former President Donald Trump.

There are also his unfortunate views on women, including disbelief. sexual harassment reports. More recent examples include his false claims which led to a series of death threats and nooses being sent to a black congresswoman and its supposed repeated sexist comments In the White House.

But perhaps we shouldn’t examine Kelly on military issues: he certainly doesn’t believe Civilians We have a right to do so. And who am I to question the judgment of a man who thinks we fought in the Iraq war? ““honourably” and “for the right reason”.“ One could even assume malice was involved, especially considering Kelly’s own Marine Corps was involved in several atrocities and subsequent cover-ups in Iraq, Fallujah being the most infamous, but Haditha gained attention as photos of the massacre were only released last week..

So let’s examine his upcoming promotion to head of the Department of Homeland Security, while holding down a few side jobs, as any self-respecting American would do. He admirably overcame the emotional and moral concerns of numerous human rights groups to enact a policy of separating children at the border, even using it to drum up some business for his friends.

Kelly had the foresight to contribute to the same Latin American instability from which he would later benefit, as during Your time Leading the U.S. Southern Command, He snuggled up proudly with “very friend“ and violent drug lord Juan Orlando Hernandez in Honduras, He employed a Chilean war criminal To teach the next generation of soldiers and considered that the atrocities of the past in Colombia had “showed us the way” for current operations in the Middle East.

Equally infamous was Your help enacting the “Muslim ban,“ which he presented as essential to preventing extremist violence. He was possibly under the assumption that only such brilliant individuals as himself could see through his charade that the current travel ban was not directed at any religion, despite his boss’s constant propaganda. A policy of that kind During her campaign, this may be true, as we have seen Kelly’s horrific treatment of immigrants and refugees extend to many diverse groups.

Some might see hypocrisy between his insinuation of violence by immigrants who have never committed it and the defense of documented domestic violence by “Man of true integrity and honor.” Rob Porter. But for Kelly, the difference is immediately visible. A similar mindset was applied at Guantanamo Bay, where He described prisoners tortured and held without trial as “defiant and violent” and said, “I have never been more proud of any troops under my command than of the young military professionals on duty day and night at Guantanamo,” who beat and sexually assaulted prisoners as a matter of policy..

All of the above experiences make Kelly an excellent candidate to help promote democracy at CSU. I welcome the “perspectives on the complexities of governance, policymaking, and national defense,” especially from such an erudite leader whose solutions to these complexities include building a giant wall, banning travel from countries that seem to have a lot of Muslims, and ensuring that children of asylum seekers are “put into foster care or whatever.”

He is the perfect man for “Elevating democracy and civil dialogue on campus“given his ability to blame anything, including the Civil War, on”The lack of ability to reach agreements.After all, democracy is best represented by an unelected strongman who has done everything possible to hide his decisions from the general public.

While Kelly’s conservative worldview is certainly “Expose students to diverse perspectives,“There are those who believe that the CSU Democracy Project It focuses on those who exercise power, rather than those who suffer from it.

Ultimately, Kelly represents what Americans rarely get: an honest look at the corruption, brutality and inhumanity of the military-prison industrial complexes. He is a leader who used his office for personal enrichment. He sees no contradiction in celebrating a “Dedication to freedom for all“while throwing children into cages. He tries to distance himself from his past work, but “It was always just Donald Trump with better manners.“It’s as close as you can get to an admission of the CSU leadership’s real priorities.