Anabaptists and Veteran Discounts

I recently witnessed a further slide of Anabaptism into cognitive and ethical dissonance. As the Amish have moved more and more into the mainstream economy (our local paper's 'Service' section is now dominated by them), they are falling into the traps and enticements of mammon. And as a result, they are getting involved in politics - no doubt fostered by the Christian Right's outreach and attempts to woo them.

But recently I was taken aback when I spotted an Amish construction advert that offered a 10% discount to veterans. I wanted to laugh but I was also appalled.

I am of course appalled by all the 'veteran' worship in the culture. As one who formerly was in the American forces (and ashamed of it) I find it absurd as I know full well that few people in the military did anything worthy of accolade - even if I for the sake of argument assume the ethics of the military-combat hero narrative, which I reject. Most people in the military did nothing any different from other civilian jobs and yet in most cases worked less hard and were paid more. And most people don't sign up out of a sense of patriotic duty but to escape their economic circumstances.

To give veterans a discount is to honour them, to proclaim your respect for their deeds, and to vindicate them. I will say this, whether one is an office worker, warehouse worker, or an actual combatant, you're part of the machine. I didn't drop bombs in Bosnia but I made it happen. In my case I actually handled them (many of the 2000lb. variety that have been in the news as of late) and at one time saw the bombs that I had unloaded from a cargo plane take off under the fuselage of fighters - which a few hours later returned empty. I was but two persons removed from the 'button' which dropped them. As such I am responsible and all people in the military play their part even if their deeds are not worthy of some kind of special recognition. They're part of the killing machine.

It's hard to argue even in the ethical framework of legitimised militarism that these people (or even people like me) are 'heroes'. There was no bravery or sacrifice involved and those who are sent to unpleasant places don't embrace it but count down the days and minutes until they can leave.

The Amish and all Anabaptists have historically embraced the ethics of non-violence and non-resistance. While post-war Mennonites have in some cases shifted their thinking and view the military as legitimate, they still view the Christian calling as separate from it. How then can they celebrate it by offering a discount? It's one thing to view the state as a necessary evil in a fallen world but they're going beyond that and offering praise to its bearing of the sword. By offering the discount, they own the deeds they celebrate and thus deny their heritage.

My guess is that like most Amish I have talked to, the businessman in question is not a deep thinker. Their ecclesiology and concept of piety doesn't lend itself to that. But he is a businessman and he's in competition with lots of other Amish crews operating in the area. He's looking for edge and doesn't realize that his quest for mammon has come into conflict with his ethics and that he's compromised. The Amish are entering the mainstream and to no one's surprise are becoming more and more like the worldly Evangelicals they have long looked down their nose at. The horse-and-buggy culture is being left behind, surrendering to pragmatic concerns. The buggy is now for Sunday morning, going to church and for socializing. The rest of the week belongs to a work van and pick-up truck which many Amish now own. They simply hire a non-Amish (or English) driver as a work-around. And yet they miss the fact that they're not escaping the entanglements of such ownership and are now more and more becoming part of the mainstream economy and all the ethical dilemmas it spawns. They are needless to say ill-equipped to handle them and easily manipulated.

And the situation is very dynamic. Most Amish crews do metal roofs, siding, and build sheds. And yet an increasing number are getting into drywall/Sheetrock work and recently I was stunned to see an Amish crew doing spray-foam insulation. That's an occupation that requires a hefty amount of initial investment. You need not only a truck and trailer but expensive compressors and the like. But there is a demand in these parts and its growing as the building codes are calling for more energy efficiency. In some cases unless you're going to build extra-thick walls the only solution is spray foam - but this is generating other problems with air circulation and the like. But I digress.

An Amish-man owning a spray-foam business is trying to live in two worlds - worlds that are incompatible and governed by different sets of ethics. They are becoming frustrated as they clash with authorities and the libertarian arguments of the Right are increasingly appealing to them - all the more as it's no more about growing your vegetables but about earning that cash to keep it all going - to keep the truck running, to pay the insurance bill (there's another dilemma), and the like. This is why during town parades you now see Amish buggies with Trump banners. They are rapidly becoming a farce. They always were to some extent but it's becoming palpable now. Without Kingdom ethics they're just dressed up clowns - silly objects of ridicule.