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this post was submitted on 25 Sep 2025
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I don't exactly have high faith in the US military to even look after their own interests, but do you think there's ever some point where a coup would be considered? If they tried to purge enough of the ranking leaders, that they decided to do an alternative rather than take it?
I doubt it, as there isn't really a tradition of coups in the country, and I doubt there's a wide ideological push in the generals. But maybe I guess, if they're going to lose everything, or if like Trump would torpedo the military through something incredibly stupid?
I'm doubtful of that at all really, but the they are also the only ones other than the executive branch with any actual power in the country. Maybe a few ambitious ones will figure that out, that if they do it, they'd probably instantly succeed.
A true coup seems out of the question for the reasons you gave, but I think some sort of "quiet coup" where the military leadership mass refuses purges is possible. A sort of leadership 'strike', where they openly or covertly shut this effort down and restrain the executive by not going along. Hegseth has absolutely no legitimacy among brass, who see him as a drunken loser with no right to the top spot, and among the rank and file, who see him as a drunken loser with no concern for their safety or well being.
unrelated question: what's the highest rank that's ever been fragged?
Had to be General Harold Greene. He got killed by an Afghan National Army guy working in cooperation with the US in Afghanistan. Not sure if this "counts" because he was an ally but not an American soldier. Also he was shot not literally fragged (like with a grenade).
The highest rank I saw killed directly by actual fragging was a major and a captain in one event. That was an American soldier killing other Americans in Vietnam. I assume it's incredibly rare for anyone over the rank of major to be literally fragged because they won't be staying out "in the field" with the regular soldiers the way a lieutenant or captain would be. A major would also not be near regular soldiers for the most part, not in a war scenario, so that must've been quite the opportunity that person took to nail a major and captain at once.
Here's the funniest story of "purposeful friendly fire" I could find. Heinrich von Breymann he was a lieutenant colonel serving under a British officer when they were fighting to put down the American revolution (Battle of Saratoga).
From the Wikipedia article: "On 7 October 1777, Breymann's unit was driven behind a redoubt by American troops; he grew frustrated with his own men and began attacking four soldiers with his sabre before Breymann was shot and killed by one of them."
Lol.
Ideological, no. But for practical reasons? It's possible. I don't think we're at a point where the crisis has reached the necessary acuity for this however.
This has all been memory-holed but the US military displayed fears of a coup around January 6th, going so far as to deploy ships to the US shores and to actively prevent deployment of anyone they knew was pro-maga.
Whether any of that was based on legitimate fears we will never know. But the US military seems to consider it realistically possible for a coup to happen by some elements of itself against the US.
Pretty sure it was confirmed (I don't remember the details and am lazy) that like as the capitol was being actively taken over (which is regarded as funny because it is. But in that moment it surely wasn't for the 535 legislators and their staff) Pelosi, Pence, whoever else were on the line with the nearby National guard leadership like "Hey, we need police backup" basically. Some form of emergency police to stop the riot. They were trying to get Trump do authorize it too I believe but he just sat there like "hmm. Nope. There's nothing going on, folks." It was hours before he finally told the people to stop and go home. It seems fairly clear he was deliberately waiting to see an outcome. The incredibly cucked thing is how he wasn't immediately arrested for what he obviously did (instigated a coup attempt- even if it was farcical). What a joke-ass nation. When someone attempts and fails a coup you don't put them in prison (Lula! Wtf?! Firing squad now!). You definitely don't just "let them get away with it." Zero self preservation. Full idiocy.