He Was 15 and Had a Number of Bodyguards Who Carried Machine Guns...

A Militia Beats a Standing Army Every Time...

Did you know that back in the early 2000’s there was a 15 year old lad that was leading 300 men in an effort to kick the Taliban out of Afghanistan? I was reading about this recently and found the story rather interesting. I was trying to figure out what makes up the reasoning I see on so many firearms related websites to have you check a box or click a link that you are over 18 to enter the site. And after reading a large portion of the Art of Rhetoric from the writings of Aristotle (384-322 bc) on youth and then coincidentally this story about this young man, I’m going to interject this first and then attempt to tie both subjects together.

Aristotle (384-322 bc) would argue that this young fellow was typical of many youth. It’s just that many just don’t have the chance to live out their fantasies.

In his Art of Rhetoric, he devoted considerable space to discussing the points one can make on a whole range of topics to persuade your audience to agree with you. One such topic was the young.

In general, he says, the young are the sort of people who will indulge themselves in anything they have an appetite for. Of the bodily appetites, he says, they are especially subservient to those to do with sex, over which they have no control whatsoever. The intensity of their desires is equaled only by the speed with which those desires cool, since their will is keen rather than determined and strong. They are passionate, hot-tempered and carried away by impulse. Because they love to be highly regarded, they cannot bear to be slighted and become angry if they think they have been wronged.

But even more than being highly regarded, they love to win, since the young are keen on going over the top (and victory, Aristotle points out, is a kind of going over the top). They are not interested in money, never having experienced shortage; they are good-natured, never having experienced much wickedness; naïve, never having been deceived very often; and optimistic, never having experienced much in the way of failure.

For the most part, Aristotle continues, they live in hope, ‘for hope is concerned with the future, and remembrance with the past, and for the young the past is short but the future long’. So because they easily hope, they are easily deceived; but they are more courageous, too, for their passion prevents them fearing while their hope inspires them with confidence. They also prefer to do what is noble rather than what is in their interest, since they live by character rather than by calculation.

At that age more than any other, they love friends and companions because of the pleasure of simply being together and their inexperience in making judgments according to their interests. They also think that they know everything, so are obstinate; but they are prone to pity because they judge others as they do themselves and assume all men are honest; and they love laughter, which is ‘educated humiliating’.

But I digress…getting back to the “boy” at hand…

That young fellow might disagree with most of Aristotle’s view considering:

He took over the role as leader of the group of “rebel” soldiers when his father died three months previous. He had been killed in a Taliban rocket attack.

15 year old Mohammed owns/commands six tanks and his prize possession is a rocket launcher which can fire three-foot long missiles.

Mountains

The army he commanded was one of many small groups of fighters based in the mountains of Afghanistan, who were trying to topple the ruling Taliban.

And of course he didn’t see anything wrong with being a soldier at such a young age. And apparently neither did the 300 men that followed him.

Already married

He said: "Children make great soldiers. They are strong and fast and they are very brave." (I’m not sure that brave is the word to use! C.L.)

Muhammed was already married to 13-year-old Jamila and, unlike his father who had three wives, he planed to stick to just one.

Ambition

Muhammed lived with his wife and mother, and his father's other wives, near the town of Kalafgan. He also had a number of bodyguards who carried machine guns.

His ultimate ambition was to become President of Afghanistan. I wonder what he is doing these days.

I have to admit the young don’t really quite know what they are doing. He might have thought he did, but what a pity he still had to grow up and find out. Or maybe he grew up too soon. What do you think?

My point with all of this is that maturity should be the considering factor. How about a test of some sort to decide who can purchase a firearm and at what age? No, I’m not suggesting 10 year old boys and girls. I guess there has to be a line drawn somewhere.

Thing is…how many young men fought the British to free our nation from their control? I bet there were many that were as young as 13 that were involved according to my research.

The other thing is, that this young fellow was COMMANDING a MILITIA of his fellow citizens. What did the MILITIA in Afghanistan do against the Russian army that tried to occupy? Oh, that’s right…they ran their ass out. And how about the big bad United States Army? Oh that’s right they ran their ass out too!

Happy Veterans Day! I didn’t really want to piss you off but the founding Fathers had no desire for a standing army. As a matter of fact, they were dead set against it. WHY? Because it would be USED for mischief wherever those in power desired to use it. Well, SUPRISE, SURPISE. Try doing that with a militia.

What, sir, is the use of a militia? It is to prevent the establishment of a standing army, the bane of liberty. …Whenever Governments mean to invade the rights and liberties of the people, they always attempt to destroy the militia, in order to raise an army upon their ruins. —Elbridge Gerry, Fifth Vice President of the United States

"The army...is a dangerous instrument to play with."
George Washington to Alexander Hamilton, April 4th, 1783

"A standing army is one of the greatest mischiefs that can possibly happen."
James Madison, Debates, Virginia Convention, 1787

“Always remember that an armed and trained militia is the firmest bulwark of republics—that without standing armies their liberty can never be in danger, nor with large ones safe.”
James Madison, Inaugural Address, March 4, 1809

“Standing armies are dangerous to liberty.”
 Alexander Hamilton, The Federalist Papers, 1787

Those Forgotten and Ignored 13 Words

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