Raytheon is an international company that makes missiles and outfits armies for slaughter. Not one person, however, who saw articles this week in the newspapers of my hometown of Fort Wayne, Indiana, would know that.
Readers of the Journal Gazette and News Sentinel would see a profile of a charitable technology company that wants to help children learn. They would feel the compassion of a business that cares for humanity and wants to create jobs. They would understand that Raytheon only wants what is best for everyone, especially those in the great city of Fort Wayne.
The newspapers tell you that, yes, Raytheon of Fort Wayne has already done more than enough for the city as a leading employer and creator of 1,200 well-paying jobs. But it wants to do more. Much more.
The Journal Gazette, in its article “Defense companies give teachers real-life lessons,” shows local educators as the beneficiaries of Raytheon’s altruistic largesse. Teachers know about math and science, but Raytheon wants to show them how to present the material in a way students will see as applicable.
Raytheon is “allowing” them to see “how the building blocks they teach students are used to create sophisticated systems,” the newspaper said.
And later:
“The teachers – representing five schools in Allen County and seven from other counties – will tour operations and participate in hands-on lab assignments. Each session will focus on ‘teachable nuggets’ of information they can use in the classroom.”
Nowhere does the article even allude to the fact that Raytheon is a powerful international corporation and actually the largest supplier of missiles in the entire fucking world. Nowhere does it say that Raytheon recently had to recall a pain gun it supplied the U.S. in Afghanistan. Nowhere does it mention the Wall Street Journal just showed Raytheon has been working with the government to set up secretive government spy program.
These are things that happened only this month. These things are not old news.
The News Sentinel, on a lighter note, saw the brainwashing of children by a ruthless murder-for-hire syndicate as a chance to be playful.
“On a Monday morning during summer vacation, 15 area educators headed back to the classroom, with notebooks in hand,” the article begins. “All eyes were on Jeff Marraha, Raytheon hardware center manager, who would deliver the first lesson of the day — educating them about the design work his engineering company does.”
While that sounds delightful, Raytheon is an engineering company like an assassin is a concierge. Raytheon itself explicitly says it in the “warfare business.”
And the newspaper should at least care about public finances even if it doesn’t give two shits about the military industrial complex. Raytheon, as part of that complex, operates through millions and millions and millions of dollars in earmarks and military contracts.
But the News Sentinel would prefer to continue with its tone of hope and summertime fun. It quotes Raytheon employee Dale Anglin saying: “We not only want to attract the best and brightest for future employment. Having those from the area return after completing their secondary education not only saves money in hiring and talent acquisition, but also improves our community.”
Well said, Dale. I can think of no better way to raise the standard of living in Fort Wayne than through the promotion of mass casualties and ceaseless war. It’s what education is about.