Boston Phoenix supports the military

Is it odd that the same day the Phoenix slammed Oliver Stone as a Republican sellout for failing to bash Bush in his new movie, it got the U.S. Marines to co-sponsor a free concert? Or that the Phoenix would get pissed when one of the bands objected?

... And then TV on the Radio had to go and ruin the good vibes by ending their set with a salvo against the Marines, who had signed on as one of the event's sponsors. Now this is no place for a political rant, but it's worth noting - no, it's crucial to understand, lest we fully repeat the mistakes of Viet Nam - that the Marines, Army reserves, and Navy and Air Force pilots currently fighting George Bush's wars in the Middle East are doing just that, carrying out plans handed down by their commander in chief and doing their best not to get the asses blown to hell in the process. Soldiers take orders: they don't make policy. To blame them for the mess in Iraq is to tacitly let the bureaucrats and politicians really responsible for the debacle off the hook. ...

Via Joe Keohane, who, granted, has his own axe to grind, being editor of the Weekly Dig and all, but still:

... OK, deep breath. This is idiotic cant, and does nothing to change the fact that last night you guys basically acted as a recruiting tool for the war machine you decry in the editorial hole every week. I have no problem with the actual soldiers, but, man, seems like you wouldn’t want to help facilitate the swelling of the ranks of cannon fodder. ...

My disclosure and I both stayed home last night.