The general population does not even see capitalism as a specific system, but rather "natural" like the birds or the trees i.e not anything to give a second thought about.
Leftists treat the military in the same way. Despite being aware that it has always acted as the primary tool of the ruling classes throughout history, too many leftists, even "revolutionary" ones, think of it as an institution that must necessarily exist.
This explains why there is no serious materialist or Marxist analysis of the military itself in academia. This is a mistake, in my opinion. No military = no ruling class. It's that simple. We should focus our ideological and practical efforts on forming a people's militia and taking real power(guns, tanks, planes etc) in our hands. That is true "revolutionary" action.
This is not me being blackpilled and I'm not a fed, I'm simply stating the truth. Any leftist political action that isnt arming and organising itself with the open intent of military action is useless. Thanks for listening to my FED talk.
Negative consequences are not a valid excuse against necessary actions. Yes COINTELPRO will try to wreck, but their tactics are well known, and can be countered.
Mass movements don't arise magically from nowhere. They begin as small movements. The same is true of mass militias.
Negative press is not a bad thing for socialists. The default opinion of the population is already negative. Bad press will lead to curiosity and involvement. You can utilize bad press as propaganda, to get the message further ahead. Bad press is not fatal.
I'm not saying that we should actively take over the military, I'm saying that we need to begin a militia with the long term plan of doing so. So mass support is not a necessity for the moment.
All I'm saying is, you have to start at some point, and there is no real reason not to right now.