At least three people have asked me so far if I thought there was a possibility of a military coup based on the protestations of a gaggle (6 so far) of retired US generals demanding the removal of Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. And given the bloodless coup in Thailand, along with some curious moves by our own Congress (like legalized torture and domestic spying), makes the topic once again newsworthy.
It's not suprising that this issue was previously addressed by a professor at the US Army War College…in the form of a fictional letter written after a military coup titled "The Origins of the American Military Coup of 2012".
Now let's be clear – it is remarkable that (as of right now) 6 retired Iraqi war generals have ALL stepped out and called for Donald Rumsfeld's ouster – but that is quite far from talk of a military coup d e'tat. Not to mention the ramifications of such a move – the dissolvement of our federal government, most likely economic ruin due to a lack of faith in our currency, and the necessity of a prolonged period of martial law. That being said, we as a nation are no stranger to coups, having fomented them in Iran (1953), Guatemala (1954), Brazil, Vietnam, Chile (1973) as well as attempted coups in Haiti and Venezuela.
So, long story short – I don't think we will have a military coup.
Tags: coup
