As Americans, we are constantly receiving messages about our military forces. There have been countless books written, major motion pictures made and political careers launched based on the experience of military service, the reality of combat and the lessons of war. With regards to works of art, many of these venerate and honor our forces with stories of great heroism and sacrifice. Others tell sobering tales, not always with happy endings, about the best intentions gone horribly wrong. Many of the greatest of these works somehow do both.

There have also been many detractors. People who speak out on topics of misconduct, war crimes, influence of military industrial corporations, and gargantuan mistakes that cost trillions of dollars are voices that must be heard and acknowledged in a republic that values liberty and free speech. As Americans, we have a right to expect that our armed forces and their leaders will learn from mistakes made in past conflicts and past administrations. Fair criticism of policies, tactics and results - what you might call peer review in the world of science - should be fair game when you truly understand the meaning of “we, the people.”

How should we feel about our military? Are we an evil empire? Are we the greatest nation ever to exist? These are important, even existential questions. They deserve reflection and answers. However, discussions like this often take a monolithic view towards the men and women who actually serve. We often forget to look at these citizens as being part of “we, the people.” We also often conflate the entire military machine as being monolithic. This can be helpful when assessing broader implications and questions that lean more to the existential side. However, we feel it is not appropriate to hold this view in discussions about those who serve.

There may be those among you reading this who are saying “I’m a pacifist! I’ll never support the military under any circumstances.” This is a perfectly admirable viewpoint - particularly when discussing existential questions or matters of policy. We are not here to pass judgment on past decisions. We do not seek to change your mind about military strategy, foreign policy or mistakes that America may or may not have made with its military forces over the course of our nation’s history.

One of our primary objectives here at the Third Rail Party is to inform and, hopefully, educate the American people - simply about what is. So much of our modern discourse in American society consists of finding “softer” ways of expressing ideas in hopes of not offending anyone. There isn’t necessarily anything wrong with that. Treating others (everyone!!) with respect and kindness is also one of our main objectives and a plank in our Platform. However, it is equally important to recognize things for what they actually are and in the starkest, most objective terms possible in order to make good decisions - a concept our men and women in military service to their republic might express to you as “situational awareness."

Continuing with our opening theme of American popular culture and its influence on our perception of ourselves - we acknowledge that “Hollywood” is part of the force behind the creation of American myths. Art is subjective by definition - both in its creation and in its interpretation. We should not expect art to be like science - demonstrable, provable, repeatable. However, the magic of art is that it can reveal truth. Truth is not fact - as Prof. Indiana Jones admonished his students to remember:

We argue a lot about the facts surrounding our military and its deployment. Sometimes we can lose sight of important truth. In this spirit, we would like to offer one of our favorite movie quotes that we happen to think reveals an important truth that often escapes us. The 1986 Paramount Pictures release “Top Gun,” written by Jim Cash and Jack Epps, Jr., directed by Tony Scott and produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer has arguably become part of the American myth. The aforementioned pacifists might, quite frankly, see this film as one of the prime examples of what they might call “irrational exuberance” in glorifying our military. There is validity to that viewpoint, but we prefer to focus on objective reality.

While many Americans identify with “Maverick,” played by the great Tom Cruise, we’d like to call your attention to the character of Commander Mike Metcalf, call sign “Viper” - portrayed by the inimitable Tom Skerritt. Viper is the commanding officer at Top Gun. As such, he plays a very large role in shaping the viewpoints of the young officers he is training. Sometimes, the truth to be found in movies is hiding in the details. It’s not necessarily found in the explosions or the action, but often in brief but important scenes where something profound is said.

In one of the first briefings given to the pilots at Top Gun, Viper drops a truth bomb on the young lieutenants that we think escapes most Americans when they think about the men and women of our armed forces:

We honestly want you to read that three or four times and let it really sink in as you think about it. Throw a little bit of “we, the people” and "government of the people, by the people, for the people" in there as you do your thinking. Objective reality: the men and women of our armed forces either volunteered or were ordered by law to literally give their bodies and their lives to the government and follow the orders and policies of elected officials who don’t always make the best decisions. This concept might be best described to you by a combat veteran of the jungles of Vietnam as a “sh!t sandwich.”

These statements may be met with some skepticism by those who would point out that commanders in the field very often make significant decisions of their own. Others might point to instances where people “got away with” things, in their view. We don’t dispute these viewpoints, but we do dispute the notion that America and its military are unaccountable. Again, there are individual events that can be pointed to, but we would wager that most Americans are not even aware of the Uniform Code of Military Justice and would be quite surprised to learn how strict it is, how harsh the penalties are and how swiftly the proceedings take place. This is why you often hear active duty and veterans make comments about civilian life to the effect of “If they tried to pull that in the Navy, they’d be in the brig!”

Yes, the men and women of our armed forces deserve your respect - not just because of what they (are ordered to) do - but because of who and what they are. There are still living veterans left who were drafted to fight in the terrible wars of the 20th century. There are many veterans among us who volunteered to serve in the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq that lasted almost two decades. Some of these people - our countrymen - suffer from physical, mental and emotional scars so profound as a result of their service to our country that they may even envy their fallen brothers and sisters, longing to join them in Valhalla. There are many hundreds of thousands of your fellow citizens who - right this very moment as you read this - are serving their country, providing and securing our quality of life and, indeed, protecting freedom around the world for other nations.

“Freedom” isn’t just what we think it is. It goes beyond the truths outlined in our Declaration of Independence, for example. When we say that our military protects freedom around the world, we also speak of practical matters. We talk about the fundamental freedom of association and freedom of movement guaranteed to our citizens. In other words, if Country A has a product that they wish to ship willingly under terms of free trade to Country B, they should be able to do so without being harassed or thwarted on the high seas by the navy of Country C. We take such things for granted, but there are absolutely places in the world - right now - where this is not the case. We also tend to think of “pirates” in terms of Johnny Depp, but rest assured - you are able to take your pleasure boat out into the coastal waters of the United States without really having to worry about pirates - not because they only exist in the movies - but because you are protected by the United States Coast Guard and the United States Navy. Try this off the coast of Somalia at your own risk, but know that the United States and its allies protect free trade and free movement on the high seas worldwide.

Here at the Third Rail Party, one of the planks in our simple Platform is an unwavering and unequivocal support for the men and women who serve in our armed forces and for our veterans. We want all Americans to know how important it is to distinguish between our military and their civilian commanders. We do not have unequivocal support for our civilian commanders. In fact, we reserve the right to fire them at the next election. However - most importantly - we are committed to using our voices and our votes to ensure that those whom we elect to command our forces are people of integrity, authenticity and honor. How can we, as citizens, commit any less to those of our countrymen who have volunteered their very lives in service of our country to preserve that right? We must not bestow the truly awesome and daunting office of Commander in Chief upon those who are not ready, let alone those who are not worthy. Furthermore, we must elect representatives who will truly and actually perform their Constitutional duty as a check on Executive power.

Do not cast your vote frivolously. Do not decide based on sound bites. Do not decide based on ad-hominem attacks in specious, shameless political ads. Most importantly, do not decide based on someone’s immutable characteristics such as skin color or gender. Chose a person of honor. Chose a person of integrity. Chose a person of experience with a demonstrable record of decision making that can be used as a guide. When someone has shown you who they are, believe them. Don’t believe them if they suddenly start saying the total opposite because it became politically expedient to do so.

You have a choice. We have a choice. Don’t forget your “e pluribus unum” and “we, the people.” When we talk about our military, or about our government - we aren’t talking about “them”. We are talking about us. We are talking about a nation with a broken government that is in command of the mightiest military on Earth. We are talking about a nation of people that are either asleep at the wheel or think that there is nothing they can do. We are here to tell you that there IS something you can do. You can leave the legacy parties that no longer represent you. You can join us and help us elect worthy commanders and honorable leaders. You can help us break the seemingly endless stalemate and string of “continuing resolutions” in Congress. You can help us restore sanity to decision making that can mean the difference between a memorial service and a homecoming for your loved one who is serving in harm’s way. Our military must be honored. Our civilian commanders must be checked. It’s up to we, the people.