Despite his growing disillusionment with the military, he applied and got in. Alex Jones challenged me to a boxing match. He was nominated out of high school by then-US Rep. Jason Altmire in 2010. In another, he raises his fist and flips his cap to reveal the message: Communism will win.. If youre able to articulate what that will do to you as a human being, and how youll be forced to live with that and thats not scare-mongering, its speaking to what they will actually have to execute as a soldier in the US military that can at least plant the seed for them to grapple with these questions. Spenser Rapone, a former second lieutenant whose Communism Will Win photo rocked the internet in 2017 after being featured by this publication, has received an Other Than Honorable discharge from the U.S. Army. First, to get through West Point despite my political beliefs I was almost kicked out my senior year for espousing a communist political line. I said, Stand up when you speak to me. CDT Rapone stood up and, before I could say anything else, said, Sir you donthave the right to use my honor against me! in a loud and extremely disrespectful tone of voice. He completed the Ranger Assessment and Selection Process, and received an assignment to A Co., 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment. Rapone previously served as an enlisted infantryman before enrolling at West Point in 2012. Spenser Rapone, 26, became notable a bit faster than most graduates. HIS STORY IS A CLASSIC EXAMPLE OF GROSS MILITARY INJUSTICE. Can you describe why you decided to say that? A LOT. Good riddance. This site is owned and operated by Bright Mountain Media, Inc., a publicly owned company trading with the symbol. here for reprint permission. He added that its possible the military academy could seek repayment of the cost of Rapones education because he didnt serve the full five-year service obligation required upon graduation. COL. MIKE NO COMBAT COLPO, THE CHAIRBORNE RANGER. A subsequent investigation revealed that Rapone was not only openly Communist, but believed that the US Government must be destroyed from within, his beliefs operating the lines of Communist philosopher Rudi Dutschkes strategy of the long march through the institutions.. And those views only hardened during his studies of history as one of He accuses West Point of being part of an imperialist narrative, and he is very accusatory of the United States in general. Over the past couple of weeks a lot of attention has been called to the case of an avowed communist, anti-American, and, indeed, anti-military graduate of the United States Military Academy names Spenser Rapone (see this and this). There are a lot of veterans both active duty and not that feel like I do., In this May 2016 photo provided by Spenser Rapone, Rapone raises his left fist while displaying a sign inside his hat that reads "Communism will win," after graduating from the United States Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. After Rapone, who was already a combat veteran after serving with the First Ranger Battalion in Afghanistan, posted the photos on Facebook, the Army dismissed him with an "other than honorable" discharge. Of course my military career is dead in the water. Im one of six children from, at the time, a single-income family. Greg Rinckey, an attorney specializing in military law, said its rare for an officer out of West Point to receive an other-than-honorable discharge. There can be only one reason that he felt free to shoot off his mouth to an senior officer who was also an assistant professor. My attorney told me that the military would win in this situation because of the way the uniform code of military justice is structured. Our politically correct Army got a whole bunch of people killed because they were too squeamish to remove a terrorist from the ranks. Copyright 2023 PopularMilitary | All Rights Reserved. I figured this was the least I could do if I was serious about my own beliefs. But he wasnt accepted to West Point, so Rapone enlisted in the Army. Deciding he could no longer stomach the immorality of US imperialism, he spoke out against the reprehensible actions of the military in September 2017. On the other hand, many people reached out and showed me support. Of course my military career is dead in the water. All rights reserved. Their conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity. Toward the end of his deployment, he learned West Point fulfills a certain quota of enlisted soldiers every year. So I thought, like the adage goes, maybe I could change things from the inside. I applied to West Point, and got accepted. Any injuries sustained on duty for his prior service period could qualify for VA treatment, Christensen said, but many other benefits would berestricted unless he receives awaiver from VA. This article was published more than4 years ago. The narrative that a conscription army is the only thing that will produce war resisters is flawed and ahistorical. He could have been comfortable for the rest of his life. He completed the Ranger Assessment and Selection Process, and received an assignment to He has deployed to Afghanistan and received a combat infantryman badge (CIB). At, best, Cadet Rapones online ideological screeds reveal the philosophical infatuations of a precocious adolescent, rather like a school boy who cannot stop spouting off about Nietzsche, he wrote in a statement disseminated by SOFREP. Who knows? The 25 year-old butter bar lieutenant prefers an enemy regime to our own democracy. Mr. Rapone used the social media platform on Wednesday to promote an upcoming Socialism 2018 talk in Chicago titled War Resister in the Ranks., At Socialism 2018 Ill be sitting down with with[sic] Spenser Rapone, the US Army Ranger, Afghan-war combat vet, recent West Point graduate, and now war-resister, who sparked nation-wide fury after publicly supporting Colin Kaepernick and Socialism during his West Point graduation, Rory Fanning, also an ex-Ranger, tweeted Wednesday. All content 2023 Truthdig, LLC. VOLUME VI: NATIONAL GUARD BUREAU DECIDED TO ALLOW ARMY CAPTAIN JOSE MORENO TO RESIGN IN LIEU OF A COURT MARTIAL FOR AN ASSAULT ON A WOMAN AND HER CHILD. He was an honors student, an athlete, a model citizen who volunteered in the community, recalled Altmire, a Democrat. The alumniof the United States Military Academy at West Point spanpresidents, generals and astronauts in what its students call the Long Gray Line, a nod to the Army service academys central role in educating leaders years before they rise to prominence. But the men I was surrounded by took active pleasure in killing other human beings and dehumanizing people because they have different cultures or a different religion. The White House claimed not. There were no red flags of any kind.. There are a lot of veterans both active duty and not that feel like I do.. But we also had a large student movement that was providing a support network, with coffeehouses and structures to welcome soldiers who were resisting back into civilian life and treating them with the respect they deserve for resisting. We wouldnt tolerate that from a private, why would we tolerate it from someone who is being trained to hold a commission. The Viet Cong and the Afghan resistance that people in these countries are resisting is the only similarity I can see between the Vietnam era and the current global war on terror. For example, its illegal to have union meetings in the military now. Id have to find a way out somehow. MilitaryCorruption.com has been watching this case closely. An Independent, Progressive Journal of News and Opinion. Second, I knew if I was authentic in my worldview, I wouldnt be able to continue serving my full commitment. The Pentagon budget suggests otherwise. This is home to the largest concentration of JROTC students in any school district in the country. Less than a year after Rapones images drew a firestorm of vitriol and even death threats, the second lieutenant who became known as the commie cadet is officially out of the U.S. Army with an other-than-honorable discharge. I was told I was in this elite unit with elite soldiers. All rights reserved. Instead, he was sneering at something on my uniform. I ordered him to sit up and get his legs out of the hallway, to which he replied, Well, wehave to wait here for Professor Hosein. He said this while still seated. It is uncertain whether or not Rapones career -or at least experiences at Ranger School- will be hindered upon the discovery of his activities by Army officials. And those views only hardened during his studies of history as one of the academys Long Gray Line.. I was told this would initiate a show-cause board, which is where you show why you should be retained, or you show why you should leave on their terms. Copyright 2023 PopularMilitary | All Rights Reserved. We do this by continually exposing a corrupt, multi-tiered judicial system, which allows officers to escape prosecution through retirement. I guess any country that appoints someone like John O. Brennan as the CIA Director, will ultimately have a percentage of its military officers as Communists mixed in with a few terrorists here and there. Within the military ranks, that was prevalent. That is crucial if he were to pursue benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs. Rapone was an enlisted man who served briefly in 1st Ranger Battalion, was, according to reports, booted out of that unit, applied for a West Point appointment via the Military Academy Prep School from former Democrat Congressman Jason Altmire, graduated West Point and was commissioned in 2016. The content of this webpage may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written consent of Bright Mountain Media, Inc. which may be contacted atinfo@brightmountainmedia.com, tickerBMTM. Trump says North Korea is no longer a nuclear threat. Most importantly, your donations help us to keep this website FREE and INDEPENDENT, so we can continue the fight for truth, by exposing the corrupt. The misunderstood and persecuted young genius shouts truth to power by cobbling together ideas and quotations popping up in chat rooms or on Facebook walls, certain that his provocative and shocking proclamations will, based solely upon their vehemence and sarcasm, demonstrate both the profound sincerity and the unassailable correctness of his viewpoints. Less than a year after Rapones images drew a firestorm of vitriol and even death threats, the second lieutenant who became known as the commie cadet is officially out of the US Army with an other-than-honorable discharge. WATERTOWN, N.Y. The images Spenser Rapone posted on Twitter from his West Point graduation were intentionally shocking: In one, the smirking cadet opens his dress uniform to expose a T-shirt with a blood-red image of socialist icon Che Guevara. He explained that he took the offending selfies at his May 2016 West Point graduation ceremony and kept them to himself until last September, when he tweeted them in solidarity with NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who was taking heat for kneeling for the national anthem to raise awareness of racism. His utter contempt for my rank and position as an Armyofficer was blatantly obvious and, to me, it indicates that CDT Rapone has a serious problem with military authority figures. WebLatest news and commentary on Spenser Rapone including photos, videos, quotations, and a biography. One West Point teacher -LTC Robert Heffington- produced a scathing description of Rapone in a sworn statement regarding his concerns of having a Marxist cadet. To tell them that theres more to your skills as a soldier than firing a weapon. Navy Lieutenant a Hero, or Despicable Deserter? Anyway Heffington and Rampone go into the hallway and bitch at each other some more. Even if they decide to join, at least theyll be armed with some degree of critical thinking. Rapone is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America and is serving as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Armys 10th Mountain Division, though he is currently at Ranger School. It is only possible to draw one conclusion for the fact that one of the West Point cadre took the time to write a damning statement, one that could very well have resulted in Rapones commie ass being booted from West Point, and that statement being ignored. I had to bite my tongue and wait until I was officially reprimanded, which happened in December 2017. The military website SOFREP reiterated on Thursday that Mr. Rapone was an advocate for the long march through the institutions of power., This [philosophy] entails burrowing inside the institutions of society, including the military, and subverting them from within and ultimately setting the conditions for a communist revolution, wrote Jack Murphy, a former Army Special Operations veteran. You know things have fallen far when a spoiled, elitist punk like current Army 2LT Spenser Rapone tweets pictures of himself promoting Communism, giving the clenched fist salute while in uniform, and illustrating in startling detail just how firmly the progressives have burrowed themselves into what was once a sacred institution. Army Commie Cadet Gets Promoted to 1LT. Lets accommodate him. Officially, the Army said in a statement only that it conducted a full investigation and appropriate action was taken., An unrepentant Rapone summed up the fallout in yet another tweet Monday that showed him extending a middle finger at a sign at the entrance to Fort Drum, accompanied by the words, One final salute., I consider myself a revolutionary socialist, the 26-year-old Rapone told The Associated Press. weve done it before), is being led into battle by a Captain or Major Rapone. One of six children growing up in New Castle, Pennsylvania, Rapone said he applied to West Point, which is tuition-free, because he couldnt afford college. Even while still a cadet, Rapones online postings alarmed a West Point history professor, who wrote Rapone up, saying his online postings were red flags that cannot be ignored. Rapone was disciplined but still allowed to graduate. Spenser Rapone is a former Army Ranger and Infantry Officer who resigned his commission in June 2018 due to his opposition to United States imperialism. Getting out of the military is daunting, especially as an officer. Even some of the true believers who claim they enjoy it or relish it deep down, they know what theyre doing. But what happens is that because in the US our civic religion is patriotism, folks who at one time had nothing but hate for it they couldnt stand being in the field, waking up for [physical training] when they get out, theyre placed on a pedestal as a veteran. Spenser Rapone was accepted to West Point in 2012, graduated in 2016 and received an other than honorable discharge in June. One post dated 16 November 2015 states, Fuck this country and its false freedom. He also labels a guest lecturer for MX400 a fascist, and he even implicitly justifies the actions of ISIS and blames the United States for terrorist attacks.
Jiren Race Name Generator,
Uchicago Harris Acceptance Rate,
Articles OTHER
