The New York Times reports that recruiting shortfalls caused by the war in Iraq have allowed “large numbers of neo-Nazis and skinhead extremists” to infiltrate the military, according to a report from the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). The SPLC estimates that the numbers could run into the thousands, citing interviews with Defense Department investigators and reports and postings on racist Web sites and magazines.
The report quotes Scott Barfield, a Defense Department investigator, saying, “Recruiters are knowingly allowing neo-Nazis and white supremacists to join the armed forces, and commanders don’t remove them from the military even after we positively identify them as extremists or gang members.”
Barfield said Army recruiters struggled last year to meet goals. “They don’t want to make a big deal again about neo-Nazis in the military,” he said, “because then parents who are already worried about their kids signing up and dying in Iraq are going to be even more reluctant about their kids enlisting if they feel they’ll be exposed to gangs and white supremacists.”
Barfield also said that he had provided evidence on 320 extremists there in the past year, but that only two had been discharged. He also said there was an online network of neo-Nazis.
“They’re communicating with each other about weapons, about recruiting, about keeping their identities secret, about organizing within the military,” he said. “Several of these individuals have since been deployed to combat missions in Iraq.”
The report cited accounts by neo-Nazis of their infiltration of the military, including a discussion on the white supremacist Web site Stormfront. “There are others among you in the forces,” one participant wrote. “You are never alone.”
An article in the National Alliance magazine Resistance urged skinheads to join the Army and insist on being assigned to light infantry units.
The Southern Poverty Law Center identified the author as Steven Barry, who it said was a former Special Forces officer who was the alliance’s “military unit coordinator.”
“Light infantry is your branch of choice because the coming race war and the ethnic cleansing to follow will be very much an infantryman’s war,” he wrote. “It will be house-to-house, neighborhood-by-neighborhood until your town or city is cleared and the alien races are driven into the countryside where they can be hunted down and ‘cleansed.’ “
He concluded: “As a professional soldier, my goal is to fill the ranks of the United States Army with skinheads. As street brawlers, you will be useless in the coming race war. As trained infantrymen, you will join the ranks of the Aryan warrior brotherhood.”
How many of the recently reported murders of Iraqi civilians were committed by these neo-Nazis?
Reacting to the same article, Gateway Pundit says: “And, as for the “Thousands of Skinheads” in the military.
Show us one! Just one! I’ve never even met a Neo-Nazi or a Skinhead in my entire life, but I am supposed to believe there are thousands in the military?... Please!”
Curious logic, indeed. I’ve never met a Tanzanian, so I suppose that means there aren’t any.
While there may be a number of (hopefully) former gang members in the military nowadays, they tend to be more urban/minority-based rather than neo-nazis or skinheads. In more than two decades, I can only recall one instance of someone who had been in the KKK prior to enlisting but was no longer associated with that group.
In contrast, there has been increasing infiltration by some of the national gangs such as MS-13.
For the sake of equal-opportunity racism, baiting and military vilification, any chance of getting the Bloods or Crips into this or maybe even another story?
Hell, come to think of it where’s the Mafia and IRA? Gotta be a Mafia connection somewhere – Afghanistan has excellent prospects with its heroin crops and trade.
If there’s any criminal group you feel has been discriminated against or left-out, please leave a short note with story and justifications for future publication.
Thanks…Bill Keller.
As distasteful as these people are, I imagine that being thrown into the melting pot that is the military will do more to change the views of skin-heads than anything else.
Today’s military is fighting a war. A neo-nazi soldier fighting alongside a Black or Hispanic quickly learns that race is irrelevant. Perhaps the lesson will stick.
Piglito is exactly right.
When you’re pulling security on a broken-down humvee along a lonely stretch of Iraqi highway and a convoy of U.S. troops comes along and stops to add their guns to your perimeter while you change a tire (or whatever), the last thing you care about is the color of their skin.
The story of recruiting problems is a favorite of folks whose wishful thinking and antiwar fervor determine their news sources. But I noticed over on Barking Moonbats that the Pentagon has to ask Congress to increase their limits for the number of folks in uniform so that they won’t have to quit recruiting these next four months. Seems they are near to full up.
I wonder which source is more credible since they can’t both be true.
Hate Groups Infiltrating U.S. Military?
The U.S. military is being infiltrated by white supremicists asserts a group that makes its living stirring up racial fears.
Adecade after the Pentagon declared a zero-tolerance policy for racist hate groups, recruiting shortfalls caused by the war in…
Nonsense…
Feeling lonely, Marc?
Most other members of what one could call the Militant Right are rushing to play down this report today, citing an old Harpers article to try to discredit the group that produced it rather than actually dealing with the evidence. Then they trot out anecdotal evidence or assertions without evidence that the military will throw these bums out. It is what you might call the “Use the Force” argument – otherwise known as “shut your eyes tight and hope like hells”.
Any mention of Neo_Nazi groups using the U.S. military to gain fighting expertise, especially when it quotes an Army inspector, is something that should be taken seriously until its been totally investigated in my opinion.
(The same goes for gangs, and other extremist political/religious groups.)
But I don’t see that from right wing WASPS in this. That worries me a lot.
Regards, Cernig
Cernig
We’re on the same page. In addition to what you’ve said, what disturbs me is this: the right wing of the blogosphere frequently accuses the left—and justifiably so—of reality denial. Clearly, this problem isn’t confined to the left. Denying reality is bad news, regardless of who does it.
By the way, I hope you don’t consider me to be a member of the “Militant Right.” Right-of-center, yes; Militant right, no. See this post:
http://americanfuture.net/?p=59
Also by the way, I have on occasion attempted to engage in a reasoned dialogue with leftist bloggers, most recently with Mahablog. I’ve never succeeded. It always turns confrontational, complete with ad hominem attacks. In the case of Mahablog, I was blacklisted from commenting, and the comments I had made prior to being excommunicated were deleted. With the left, only true believers need apply. Are you an exception to the rule?
[...] One of the commenters to my “Neo-Nazis in the U.S. Military” post asks: “Feeling lonely, Marc?” Judged by the links listed at memeorandum, my answer is “pretty much.” [...]
Marc, how big of a problem do you think this is?
I was raised in a military family and happens to be biracial myself and viewed this report with a great deal of skepticism. While the SPLC report does identify neo-nazi individuals, they’re claiming a deliberate infiltration campaign by extremists.
I suppose that if I was the head of an extremist or criminal group, I want my members to join the US military in order to acquire combat training. However, if I had any brains, I would also realize that I’d be handing my acolytes into the hands of an organization that’s pretty good at its own indoctrination.
I wonder how many of the thousands of neo-nazis who entered the military were teenagers toying with white supremacy for self-esteem and group identity reasons. And can the SPLC tell when such a teenager stop being a racist? Joining the military is a transformative experience but I suppose neo-nazis must be particularly resistant.
As for the New York Times, did they look into how many court-martials that had a racial components? Of course not, they’re the NY Times.
And whether these recent murders in Iraq were by neo-nazis, I trust journalists will dig up any racial motives if there’s any to be found.
This reminds me of a recent CSPAN interview with Black Hawk Down author Mark Bowden. He cited a conversation with the producer of the movie adapted from his book. The producer was worried about the impression of seeing white American soldiers killing all those black Somali gunmen.
In other words, Marc, if the NY Times tells you that Tanzanian gangs were taking over your neighborhood but you don’t see them, can’t one disregard the assertions of the report without denying the existence of Tanzanians?
Here’s my take on all this. Of course these reports should be taken seriously and investigated, just as the Haditha reports must be taken seriously and investigated. (I don’t put a lot of credence in either of these, but you still have to check them out.) Having said that, my (admittedly long ago) experience in the US Army tells me that it’s extremely unlikely that any neo-nazis or skinheads would get any kind of acceptance or traction in the military. The US military is far more integrated and egalitarian than any sector of civilian society I’ve seen. If neo-nazis, or M13 gang-bangers, or any other extremist crazies, got into the ranks and started acting out, they’d be in the brig/stockade/Leavenworth so fast you wouldn’t believe it.
Tom P and Doug,
Not having served in the military, I take what you have to say respectfully and seriously.
My primary concern is that even a small number of neo-Nazis/skinheads—those individuals who are able to hide their hateful ideology—can cause significant problems for the U.S. Both of you are probably even more aware than I am that the MSM loves to dwell on every accusation of mistreatment and killing of Iraqi civilians by our soldiers and marines. Our reputation is tarnished—not just in Iraq, but with our warm-weather friends (the Europeans)—well before guilt or innocence is established.
I obviously don’t know how many of the recently reported incidents involve, or are presumed to involve, these extremists. It stands to reason—at least my reason—that racists are more likely to be involved in such incidents as actually took place. So, regardless of their number, racists are actual or potential Fifth Columnists.
If only a fraction of what the SPLC said in its report is true, it represents a problem for the U.S. Worst of all—public opinion being what it is—it puts a unjustified cloud over the overwhelming majority of our military. It has provided another rallying call for those who want to cut and run.
I’m in no position to vouch for the SPLC and I’m anything but a fan of the NYT. This being said, I’m not willing to dismiss the message because I don’t like the messenger.
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