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| November 10, 2009. Five thousand of us. At least. Sitting in the air-conditioned, well-fed comfort of the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida. We stood watching the six or seven people on the stage. Our envy at not having been selected ourselves rippling lightly through our ranks with chuckles and grumbles. Not fair! WE wanted to be up there! WE wanted a chance to win a week-long Caribbean cruise! Our applause, ostensibly based upon the enthusiasm of the selectees' dancing, would determine who would be the winner.
Then, as the host and the contestants parted for all of us near the stage to see and for the jumbotron cameras to reveal, there was an audible-but-subdued sound of recognition.
" . . . ahhhhh . . .!"
It was as if some of us had seen one of the famed speakers scheduled for that day. Or maybe some of us saw a friend who they hadn't seen in years, standing before their eyes. For some, it was a lost brother or father who had just materialized - even though you knew he looked different.
But, let's come back to the Orange County Convention Center in a minute or two.
The United States of America is such a fragile thing when you get right down to it. Even as great as it has been, our Constitution clearly had flaws from the beginning. Our people themselves are fickle and petulant, choosing right and wrong with equal frequency. Our economy, based as it is on people's freedom to be greedy and our government's desire for control, is alternately like a freight train or a drunken hobo.
But, always - ALWAYS - there is and has ever been a consistent element to the United States; a steadfast, self-sacrificing, humble entity that recognizes and fulfills both its role as the lowest servant of all humanity and the highest embodiment of global freedom and defense against tyranny.
The Armed Forces of the United States of America.
"I . . . do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God."
Such a simple little oath. Not very wordy or ornate. Almost short enough for anyone to memorize, yet succinct enough not to need be.
Still, it had a precedent. And the precedent for this oath was uttered about 1,800 years before any American took it and lived it . . . and died it. "My command is this: Love each other the way I've loved you. Nobody ever shows any greater love than when he or she lays down their life for their friends. You're my friends if you do what I command. I'm not going to call you servants anymore - because a servant doesn't know his master's plans. Instead, I call you friends. Because everything I learned from my Father, I've taught to you." - Jesus Christ, John 15:13-15
He was telling His "soldiers", His friends, that if they took this oath - if they followed His command - they were becoming His partners. And He knew that it would require giving up their very lives, possibly even to lose them. And, in the end, most of His unit did just that.
That particular Soldier, that Commanding Officer, ended up taking one for His unit, too. And He was never properly recognized for it. Because He can't be. No one who lays down their life for their friends, whether they lose it or not, can ever really be thanked properly. All we can do is try. All we can muster are efforts at acknowledgement, tokens for the sacrifice.
Back to the Orange County Convention Center . . .
As the group on the stage opened and prepared to do their silly dance, standing in the midst of them on stage before thousands of people was a sturdy-but-sheepish looking man in the light desert camouflage patterned fatigues of the United States Army.
That ripple that passed through the crowd became a conversation, strangers turning to strangers, acknowledging a conspiracy of gratitude that they could give to one man in a uniform, hopefully to be seen by all of them in uniform.
The ovation he received was ridiculous. And we might have felt a little bad for the half-dozen other "contestants" who probably knew instantly that they wouldn't stand a chance.
But all were comforted in knowing that at sometime in the not-too-distant future, there would be a man on the deck of a ship in the Caribbean, looking off as he cruised away from a beautiful island on a gorgeous day. He would be wearing khaki shorts, maybe, with a comfortable tropical print shirt and an ice-cold beer in his hand compliments of the ship steward.
And he wouldn't be wearing a uniform anywhere except in his heart. And in that same heart, he would understand that we're grateful for him . . . that we appreciate him . . . and that we love him.
Happy Veteran's Day to all of you who have ever served . . . thank you. | | |
| When Geraldo and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) say he's not a terrorist. Really, Geraldo? Islamofascism might have been "the immediate reason" . . . but it had nothing to do with his actions? As usual, Gerry Rivers is a leading idiot (and, frankly, O'Reilly's not far behind him in that race). Then, there's Sen. Lindsey Graham (about whom it could be asked "When is a Republican not a Republican?" - when he's Lindsey Graham, of course). Graham once again sacrifices truth on the altar of liberal appeasment. The fact that Islam is ineffective in checking its fanatics in their hatred and aggression toward freedom and the West is glossed over by a RINO who wants to make sure he has some pull in the coming Senate health care vote. (Graham will have none, but a girl can always dream, can't she?) Meanwhile, aside from the "Allhu ahkbar!" and the myriad of online threats of violence and anti-American statements, we find that Maj. Terrorist was a student under the same teacher of - and at the same time as - the 9/11 terrorists. Further, we find our first evidence of "politcal correctness" . . . also known as "preferential treatment of Muslims" . . . in a report that confirms this terrorist called for violence against non-Muslims. Now, most of these reports come from the UK (God bless, England, who has learned the hard way how appeasing radical Islam will cost you your culture). American media, as is their lot in life, will lie, kiss ass, turn a blind eye, cover-up and make donations to al-Jezeerah's Eid al-Fitr Weapons and Burkhas drive just for the purpose of seeming superior in their worldly knowledge of other cultures. Of course, the American media and liberals know jack shit about the true nature of Islamofascism. If they did, they would realize that they will be the first ones up against the mosque wall when Shari'a is inititated in the West. I hope to be watching, hidden in the forest hills, with a mixture of satisfaction and sadness. Somehow, saying "I told you so" at that point just leaves kind of a hollow feeling. | | |
| First of all, thanks to all of you for the welcome. I had intended to do a return that would focus on the abject corruption and horror of our current national and governmental condition ("Remember, remember the 5th of November" and all). Events at Fort Hood, Texas, however, interceded and my plans changed. For those of you who have followed me for a while, it should come as no surprise that I suspect this incident to have been a perfect storm of political correctness, Islamofascism and homeland/military security failure. Our "War on Terror" briefly carried the correct name - "War on Islamofascism". That is what the fight we are engaged in truly is. It is the reason our fronts are in Iraq and Afghanistan. It is the reason we have additional operations in the Philippines and southeast Asia. The enemy in our war is radical Islam and all Muslims who tolerate and accept it as a legitmate expression of religion. But Americans are weakest when they are ignorant. And in few areas are the majority of Americans more uninformed than in the area of Islamic history. I highly recommend this book by Bernard Lewis as a primer to understanding why Islam is inherently in conflict with the West (specifically, the Christianized West, but the fact that the atheist Communist government of China also struggles with its Muslim population of Uighurs should tell us a great deal). I'm not going to even print the name of the terrorist who carried out these attacks. I'll tag him to this piece, but I don't want to offer even the acknowledgement of humanity to this scum. May he survive his wounds to spend all his days on earth at Fort Leavenworth to contemplate how he was denied his 70 virgins by a woman who knew how to shoot bastards like himself.
_____________________________________________________________________ *EDIT: My friend Cassandra shared this blog entry via Facebook. It is a blog entry from a soldier who actually went to Iraq, was actually wounded and legitimately suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) . . . unlike the aformentioned Islamofascist scum. | | |
| . . . for the return. 11.05.09 
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| Well, I said a few months back that I'd give it until September. And here it is. I still have no job. I'm to the point where taking that clerk position at 7-Eleven looks pretty good. I'll be disconnecting internet today. Of course, this means that I won't be paying for Xanga Premium - even if I thought it was worth it . . . and it isn't. I'll still have limited access to the web through my cell phone. I can access Facebook through my cell, too, so if you would like to connect with me through that, please feel free. I want to thank all of you who have been so supportive and faithful to spend time with me on this blog over the last four years. It has been a pleasure and an honor to come to know most of you. And, even those who were more of a challenge . . . well, take pride in the fact that you challenged me, for I need challenged frequently. You have been my friends and my conscience. And I thank you for it. Untill next we meet, then . . . The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace. | | |
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