Rapone said his journey to communism grew out of his experiences as an Army Ranger in Afghanistan before he was accepted into the U.S. Military Academy. Good riddance. 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. There is only one reason that his insubordination was tolerated. While in uniform, Spenser Rapone advocated for communism and political violence, and expressed support and sympathy for enemies of the United States,he said. But you can explain what their material relation to violence and power will be as a soldier and the harsh reality of what that means. 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. The next morning, one of the field-grade officers said to me, So, I hear youre a fan of Colin Kaepernick, and I thought, Oh boy, here we go. Then my chain of command pulled me aside and told me I was under investigation. I have told him to get haircuts in the past, and I know other officers have,as well. Can you talk about the repercussions afterwards, not only from the military, but the right-wing media, your family, etc.? What will it take for the academy to pull down these totems of white supremacy? Ten thousand students are enrolled in the program; 55 percent are black, 40 percent are Latinx. An other than honorable discharge means Rapone will not be entitled to VA benefits or the GI Bill. In the pictures, he was wearing a t-shirt depicting famous socialist Che Guevara under his uniform and had also written the Don Christensen, a former Air Force chief prosecutor, told The Post on Tuesday it was very unusual for a West Point graduate toreceivethis type of military dischargeunless it was for a serious crime, like drug use. Proof has surfaced that West Point leadership knew as early as 2015 that avowed Communist 2nd Lieutenant Spenser Rapone held Marxist anti-American beliefs. NATIONAL GUARD IS A HUGE CESSPOOL OF CORRUPTION THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES AND ITS TERRITORIES VERY SELDOM DO THE GENERALS PULL INK IN A MAJOR NEWSPAPER FOR THEIR BRAZEN MISCONDUCT, BUT THEY DID THIS TIME. 1. knightro2323 6 yr. ago. Toward the end of his deployment, he learned West Point fulfills a certain quota of enlisted soldiers every year. Mr. Rapone retweeted the message. The opening I saw was the one-year anniversary of Colin Kaepernicks protest of police brutality. WE WANT ACCOUNTABILITY FOR THOSE WHO CONSPIRED TO WRONGFULLY IMPRISON THIS OUTSTANDING AIR FORCE OFFICER. What , VADM John Disher got the job as Chief of Naval Education and Training Command (CNET) after Airman Recruit (AR) Lee Mirecki, 19, of Appleton, Wisconsin, was drowned by Navy swim , Captain Robert J. Naughton, served his country, and suffered for his country when he was held captive for years in Hanoi during the Vietnam War. Spenser Rapone, the former second lieutenant whose Communism will win photos went viral in 2017, has received an other than honorable discharge from the Army. Trumps election emboldened them to act out in a way that wasnt typical before. 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. Many other military personnel also tweeted in favor of Kaepernick, although most were supporting free speech, not communism. Bidens misleading deficit claim earns him a Bottomless Pinocchio, Fact-checking Trumps reaction to Bidens reelection announcement. weve done it before), is being led into battle by a Captain or Major Rapone. And even if youre not in combat, youre supplying the bullets, youre supplying the food, to aid in the war effort. pic.twitter.com/PP5lvIR8Pp. When I enlisted during the Obama era, one of the prevailing themes was the commander in chief doesnt understand what were doing. The casual racism you see in American society is intensified in the military because of the hyper-masculine environment, especially in combat arms. Thats why he richly deserves the nickname NO COMBAT Colpo. I want to shift gears. To tell them that theres more to your skills as a soldier than firing a weapon. Or at the very least, Id be able to remove myself from the army and find a way to talk about my experiences in some type of antiwar movement. West Point released a statement after Rapone posted the photos, saying his actions in no way reflect the values of the US Military Academy or the US Army. And US Sen. Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican, called on the secretary of the Army to remove Rapone from the officer ranks. Top brass at Fort Drums 10th Mountain Division accepted Rapones resignation Monday after an earlier reprimand for conduct unbecoming of an officer. Rapone said an investigation found he went online to advocate for a socialist revolution and disparage high-ranking officers and US officials. On the other hand, many people reached out and showed me support. 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. We wouldnt tolerate that from a private, why would we tolerate it from someone who is being trained to hold a commission. Hes holding up a sign under his hat, and it says, Communism will win. But you sat on the photo for a while. His expulsion came after a viral tweet showing him clad in uniform, fist raised displaying a But as bad as that is, theres something very different about taking a human life yourself, let alone if you dont understand what cause its serving. Yesterday, this sworn statement surfaced. At Socialism 2018 I'll be sitting down with with 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. So I decided to enlist as an infantryman out of high school. Their conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity. It was during Rapones 2016 USMA graduation that he posed for photos of himself wearing a Che Guevara shirt under his uniform and the message Communism Will Win pasted inside of his dress cap. Colpo had the benefit of a free college education (USMA Class of 1978) but made sure he never went into harms way during 30 years of active duty. This story has been shared 139,795 times. This was for a couple reasons. Oh, it just hit me, the military probably considers Communism as a religion and is therefore protected in the military like the Muslim religion. Does anyone remember Army Major Nidal Hasan and the Foot Hood shooting November 5, 2009? Hes not just reporting Rapone, hes going a long distance to ensure that he is seen as blameless. Everyone who is sworn into the American military has to take an oath of office which includes they wont advocate the overthrow of the Government. Rapone said his journey to communism grew out of his experiences as an Army Ranger in Afghanistan before he was accepted into the U.S. Military Academy. What I saw completely stunned me. 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. 2nd Lieutenant Spenser Rapone poses in a selfie with the Communist Manifesto and his Army dress uniform last month. Someone at West Point was protecting him. WebLt. Hed be good at following the party line.. There were no red flags of any kind.. He enlisted as an infantryman out of high school in 2010, and deployed to Afghanistan in 2011. PUNK 2LT SPENCER RAPONE PROMOTES HIS PRO-COMMUNIST SYMPATHIES IN TWITTER DISPATCH MEMBER OF USMAS CLASS OF 2016 DISGRACES UNIFORM AND MEMORY OF OUR FALLEN DEAD NOW [ Read More], Avowed Marxist and Antifa supporter Spenser Rapone, affectionately referred to as the Commie Cadet has been tossed out of the Army with the most severe administrative discharge called an other-than-honorable (OTH).Breitbart.com and PJmedia.com are reporting [ Read More]. 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. They read me my rights and told me I had the right to an attorney. I soon found myself trying to resolve the contradiction of my future officership. Operating under the twitter handle punkproletarian, Rapone supports various extreme left-wing ideologies, including more violent fringe groups such as Black Lives Matter and Antifa. Our politically correct Army got a whole bunch of people killed because they were too squeamish to remove a terrorist from the ranks. He told the AP he received death threats but found solace in hearing from like-minded troops. Since then, the image has gotten a lot of attention, particularly in light of the recent NFL free speech scandal. You posted it with a hashtag, #VeteransforKaepernick. In another, he raises his fist and flips his cap to reveal the message: Communism will win.. After completing Airborne school at Fort Benning, he completed the rigorous Ranger Assessment and Selection Program and was assigned to the the 1st Ranger Battalion in Savannah, Georgia. 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. And those views only hardened during his studies of history as one of 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. Pentagon suspends war games with South Korea after Trumps meeting with Kim. Your donations help us to promote EQUAL JUSTICE FOR ALL, regardless of rank or privilege. COL. DANIEL H. WILSON, USMC WAS RELEASED FROM PRISON 3 YEARS AGO. 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. None of that really matters because it is obvious that Rapone and the faculty thought Rapone was immune from any kind of serious disciplinary action. In allhonesty, I was waiting for him to simply say, Yes, Sir. Left: Army 2nd Lt. Spenser Rapone graduating from West Point in May of 2016. 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. This launched a separate investigation back at West Point: hundreds of cadets who were even remotely associated with me were interviewed, and they were asked about their politics. He added that its also possible the military academy could seek repayment of the cost of Rapones education because he didnt serve the full five-year service required upon graduation. Spenser Rapone, the former second lieutenant whose Communism will win photos went viral in 2017, has received an other than honorable discharge from the Army. But his interview with the AP shed light on how he went from a graduate of one of the most exclusive and traditional institutions on Earth to a pariah within the ranks before being mustered out. The narrative that a conscription army is the only thing that will produce war resisters is flawed and ahistorical. Although its not illegal to be a communist in the military, there are other ways to formulate their arguments to repress you. On Monday, the Armys 10th Mountain Division accepted the resignation of 2nd Lt. Raponeless than a year after he posted photos of himself at his 2016 graduation, posing in a Che Guevara shirt under his uniform, along with a fist salute to underline a message written in his cap: Communism will win., The photos, which Raponeposted to social media last September, created a fierce backlash, sparked death threats and drew calls from Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) to investigate Rapones online writing last fall. He was drawn to the writings of Stan Goff, an antiwar socialist and fellow Special Forces veteran who taught at West Point, he said. Why this rough, tough Army Infantry officer (he was called behind his back the chairBORNE Ranger) never even went overseas during three decades drawing a fat paycheck. He also is a supporter of another punk, spoiled millionaire football player Colin Kaepernick whos the current darling of those who follow the likes of Obama and that whining bitch Hillary Clinton. Of course my military career is dead in the water. At worst, however, Cadet Rapones statements bespeak either a severe mental or psychological disorder, or a genuine commitment to values and ideals wholly at odds with those of West Point and the Army, he added. This site is owned and operated by Bright Mountain Media, Inc., a publicly owned company trading with the symbol. If he does leave the Army, or if West Point ever had the guts to prosecute him under the UCMJ from the looks of their tepid, wimpy statement, dont hold your breath waiting for action he can always get a high-paid pundits spot on CNN or MSNBC bashing President Trump. 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. PUNK 2LT SPENCER RAPONE PROMOTES HIS PRO-COMMUNIST SYMPATHIES IN TWITTER DISPATCH MEMBER OF USMAS CLASS OF 2016 DISGRACES UNIFORM AND MEMORY OF OUR FALLEN DEAD NOW WITH 10TH MOUNTAIN DIV., THE SCUM ALSO SUPPORTS LEFTIST FOOTBALL PLAYER COLIN KAEPERNICK IN DISRESPECTING OUR NATIONAL ANTHEM THIS DIRTBAG EVEN MAKES RETIRED COL. MIKE NO COMBAT COLPO (USMA 78) LOOK LIKE RAMBO, West Point was once a place of honor and pride. Spenser Rapone was accepted to West Point in 2012, graduated in 2016 and received an other than honorable discharge in June. What kind of bizarro world is that? I was still idealistic, he said. I figured maybe I could change things from inside.. And those views only hardened during his studies of history as one of Spenser Rapone Template:TOCnestleft Spenser Rapone was a US Army officer and Democratic Socialists of America member. Who Was Protecting the Commie West Point Graduate And Why. 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. IT TURNS OUT THE ARMY REALLY DOESNT WANT ANYONE TO KNOW ABOUT THEIR RIGHTS AS VICTIMS. Can you start off by telling us about your background and why you decided to join the military? All rights reserved. Deciding he could no longer stomach the immorality of US imperialism, he spoke out against the reprehensible actions of the military in September 2017. Finally, Heffington gets tired and tries to end the conversation: The conversation continued for approximately fiveminutes, and every single statement or question I had for CDT Rapone was met with a ready and very disrespectful retort. Comparisons of claims against the evidence. It doesnt happen. Soon after enlisting and finishing basic training, military airborne school, and ranger selection, I was deployed to Afghanistan, to Khost Province right on the Pakistan border. Follow me on Twitter. Now you can personalize your Truthdig experience. Communist ex-Ranger and West Pointer receiving a other than honorable discharge. He was an honors student, an athlete, a model citizen who volunteered in the community, recalled Altmire, a Democrat. Robert J. Naughton Protected Corrupt Naval Officers Who Imprisoned a Navy Chief in a Military Mental Hospital, United States Military Academy West Point. Spenser Rapone, 25, was spotted on social media supporting kneeling football players -exercising freedom of speech- with photos of him promoting communism at his graduation -displaying symbols that have traditionally suppressed free speech. I knew there could be repercussions, said Rapone, who is scheduled to speak at a socialism conference in Chicago next month. (Courtesy of Spenser Rapone via AP), Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. 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. Of course my military career is dead in the water. He told the AP he tweeted the photos in solidarity with Colin Kaepernick, the former NFL quarterback who knelt during the national anthem in protest of police brutality, which itself drew intense criticism from President Trump for perceived slights against the military. The question hanging fire, though, has remained how did this guy get through four years at a very rigorous institution without his TAC officer and other active duty officers knowing about it. Iadmit this made me quite angry, and I said, Make sure you spell my name right!. Taking to Twitter, Rapone and his socialist allies confirmed he would be speaking at a socialist event in July after he was finished being pushed out of the Army this month with an other than honorable discharge. There are a lot of veterans both active duty and not that feel like I do, he said. 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. Again, Im trying to imagine what is happening here because Rapones insubordinate behavior seems to have been widely known and no one cared. This May Day, get a Jacobin subscriptionfor just $1 for an entire year. Second, I knew if I was authentic in my worldview, I wouldnt be able to continue serving my full commitment. He is also a teaching assistant, which gives him a platform to inflict his twisted worldview upon students who might think that if they dont go along, their grades could suffer. Before, soldiers would feel hesitant about saying blatantly racist or sexist things. His other than honorable discharge, which is highly unusual for a West Point graduate in a circumstance such as this, also may block him from many veterans benefits despite his years of service, including in combat.
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