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REQUIEM

Below are the two final essays to be posted on Allegiance and Duty Betrayed. The first one is written by a friend -- screen name 'Euro-American Scum' -- who, over the past four years, has been the most faithful essayist here. He has written about everything from his pilgrimage to Normandy in 2004 to take part in the 60th–year commemoration of the invasion, to his memories of his tour in Vietnam. His dedication to America’s founding principles ... and those who have sacrificed to preserve them over the past 200+ years ... is unequaled. Thank you, E-A-S. It has been a privilege to include your writing here, and it is a privilege to call you my friend.

The second essay is my own farewell. And with it I thank all of the many regular visitors, and those who may have only dropped in occasionally, for coming here. I hope you learned something. I hope a seed or two was planted. But, even if not, I thank you for stopping by ... 25 March, 2010

12/01/2006

America's 'Play Station'
Generation Will Not Endure


America increasingly is accepting the notion of a "cut-and-run" response to Islamic terrorism. Post-election talk on Capitol Hill, from both sides of the aisle, focuses ever more on the notion that America ought to simply accept the "futility" of the Iraq situation and sound "retreat." It has been done before, and the country survived, so why not now?

In certain respects, America did indeed back away from its frontal opposition to Communism when it pulled out of Southeast Asia in 1972. And while that action was followed by genocide in Vietnam and Cambodia, those leftists who had caterwauled incessantly over the dozens of Vietnamese who had been killed in My Lai, suddenly reverted to absolute indifference over the millions who were slaughtered in that region after America had abandoned them.

Moreover, the waving of the white flag across the Pacific was not followed by North Vietnamese tanks rolling through the streets of America, purges of anti-Communist "dissidents," or the establishment of a Gulag on our soil. So, in the eyes of the anti-war protestors, nothing bad came from the defeat.

In truth, this nation kept up its valiant fight against Soviet Communism, though it had to do so on a different front. And within a generation of the Vietnam debacle, the USSR collapsed in the face of Ronald Reagan's resolve, and much of the danger it posed to the United States substantially faded.

Unfortunately, those on the left took the absolute wrong message from the events, as they invariably do. Since the advances and retreats of the Cold War unfolded in a theater that was far removed from the common citizen, liberals were afforded the luxury to bask in their ignorance. Thus they naively presumed that their fawning "peacenik" philosophies had won the day.

Far from such sophomoric and simple-minded postulating, the harsh truth is as it always was. America will prevail, or it will fall, based on its strength. And as was the case in Vietnam, where a wholly capable military was betrayed by cowardice from inside the Beltway, the moral/spiritual component of the nation's strength is ultimately the determining factor in the nation's success or failure.

Since the dark days of Vietnam, America's military capabilities have only increased. Yet concurrently, other events within the culture of the nation have opened a grim possibility. Although from a purely military and logistical standpoint America is far more able to fight and prevail in a war while sustaining far fewer casualties among its own forces, the public at large no longer has the "stomach" needed to do so.

The courage and resolve among the nation's citizenry, so necessary to underwrite a military venture and remain committed to it until its completion, has apparently been leached from the souls of the American people. In vain hope that they can simply conjure up a false sense of security and thereafter live free of danger, Americans are now unwilling to consider the looming possibility of more attacks by the Islamists or other rogue regimes.

Worse yet, a significant portion of the population appears to be staunchly committed to remaining in such a state of denial at virtually any cost. September 11 should have been the only "wake up call" the nation ever needed. From that point forward, the single national response ought to have been an iron will to overcome any who had participated in the horror, and all who might aid and abet a sequel to the event.

Unfortunately, the message being trumpeted by America's leftists has been heard, loud and clear, throughout the world. Reaction to it is as ominous as it is predictable. America's overt enemies, such as Iranian "President" Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez, are increasingly emboldened to actively undermine American interests, and ever more belligerent in their antagonism towards us.

Far from presenting a united front to our enemies, and thus persuading even the marginally rational among them that they would decisively lose in a military engagement, the constant laments from liberals, who only see America's shortcomings, has taken its toll. The result is an America with a broken morale and growing pessimism. This message has not been lost on those who seek our demise.

In response to the mid-term elections, America's enemies throughout the world have been reinvigorated and are voicing their commitment to drive this nation into oblivion. The fronts on which we face hostility are many. Across three continents, one unavoidable simmering cauldron after another has begun to boil.

Through their meddling, self-serving liberal politicians have further constrained America to wage the terror war within the perverse framework of "political correctness." Thus, they have shown our adversaries that, as a nation we are indeed weak, and moreover that such weakness can be exploited. Yet this is not a weakness of armament but a weakness of the soul.

Much of the world is at present, either too cowardly to admit that a clash of civilizations is going on, or has concluded that collusion with Islamists and other thug rulers is the most pragmatic approach to the danger they pose. It is certainly easier to denigrate America while it carries the torch of freedom, with no fear of reprisal, than it is to stand firm against the tides of militant Islam, which will most certainly reap a backlash of hate and violence.

Yet despite any futile hopes of clinging briefly to its past comfort and indifference, no such option exists for this country. Regardless of their recent electoral gains, those who would cower from the fray cannot be allowed to set policy.

An America that increasingly bends to the wishes of an effeminized culture, and is afraid to mete out whatever is necessary upon its enemies to achieve victory, is an America that will ultimately bear the scars of battle inflicted on itself in defeat.

by Christopher Adamo

(Mr. Adamo is a freelance writer and staff writer for the New Media Alliance. He lives in southeastern Wyoming and has been active in local and state politics for many years.)

link to article

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

Worse yet, a significant portion of the population appears to be staunchly committed to remaining in such a state of denial at virtually any cost. September 11 should have been the only "wake up call" the nation ever needed. From that point forward, the single national response ought to have been an iron will to overcome any who had participated in the horror, and all who might aid and abet a sequel to the event.

Amen! Brilliant commentary!

Anonymous said...

An America that increasingly bends to the wishes of an effeminized culture, and is afraid to mete out whatever is necessary upon its enemies to achieve victory, is an America that will ultimately bear the scars of battle inflicted on itself in defeat.

It's hard to keep any optimism in reserve, especially after the last election. The American people are frittering away their freedom and security because they're too busy to pay attention to what's going on in the world and too easily swayed by the media.

Anonymous said...

Well said!

Anonymous said...

An America that increasingly bends to the wishes of an effeminized culture,

and is afraid to mete out whatever is necessary upon its enemies to achieve victory

.

Anonymous said...

How the Schools Shortchange Boys by Gerry Garibaldi

"...it is boys’ aggressive and rationalist nature—redefined by educators as a behavioral disorder—that’s getting so many of them in trouble in the feminized schools. Their problem: they don’t want to be girls."

Dems to gut missile defense

"The incoming chairman of the Senate’s Armed Services Committee is Carl Levin. Levin, a Michigan Democrat, has long been a foe of missile defense. In 1980s, he worried that President Reagan’s Strategic Defense Initiative — which aimed to develop technology to destroy Soviet missiles during all phases of flight — was “destabilizing.”

Today Sen. Levin sings the same tune in a different key. “They’ve not done the operational testing yet that is convincing,” said Senator Levin during a post-election press conference. He was referring to the Ground based Missile Defense [GMD] system being installed in Alaska and California, to defend against North Korean missiles. He added that he favors stalling purchases of interceptor missiles - vital for missile defense — until after testing is complete."

Time to start thinking about that fallout shelter in the back yard...

Anonymous said...

The incoming chairman of the Senate’s Armed Services Committee is Carl Levin. Levin, a Michigan Democrat, has long been a foe of missile defense. In 1980s, he worried that President Reagan’s Strategic Defense Initiative — which aimed to develop technology to destroy Soviet missiles during all phases of flight — was “destabilizing.”

I remember Levin’s railing against SDI. He was like a yapping dog at Reagan’s ankles. And, had the Clinton administration not gutted the post-Reagan era (but SDI-initiated) Brilliant Pebbles system, odds are we wouldn’t be nearly as vulnerable to the threat of eventual attack from either Iran or North Korea today.

And I suspect that, now that both houses of congress are controlled by a majority of avowed leftists still seeking ‘stability’ in our relationships with rogue states lead by murderous madmen, any hope of a space-based battle station is bleak, at best.

I agree with the premise of your fallout shelter advice, John. But, once America sits in the crosshairs of rogue states like Iran or North Korea, and no longer possesses the wherewithal to defend against them, I suspect that neither of us will want to hang around, post-confrontation.

~ joanie

Anonymous said...

WOLVERINES!

Anonymous said...

We’re having a serious, intelligent discussion about the means to defend against nuclear attack and you suggest A TANK????????

I’m tellin’ Terri to cut off your beer.

And you can forget the Bar Harbor stuff.

Not on my dime!

{g}

Anonymous said...

Joanie, Joanie, Joanie...

The Wolverines! referred to the cry of the armed patriots who fled into the mountains and fought a guerilla war against the invading Russians and Cubans in the movie Red Dawn.

Can I have my beer back if I post something on topic?

...like a portion of Franklin D. Roosevelt's speech to Congress in which he asked them for a declaration of war the day after Pearl Harbor?

------

"Always will we remember the character of the onslaught against us.

"No matter how long it may take us to overcome this premeditated invasion, the American people in their righteous might will win through to absolute victory.

"I believe I interpret the will of the Congress and of the people when I assert that we will not only defend ourselves to the uttermost, but will make very certain that this form of treachery shall never endanger us again.

"Hostilities exist. There is no blinking at the fact that our people, our territory and our interests are in grave danger.

"With confidence in our armed forces - with the unbounding determination of our people - we will gain the inevitable triumph - so help us God."

------

Unfortunately for the future of America, the response of our modern "leaders" in congress has been mostly a disgusting, cowardly, sniveling, belly-crawling appeasement of our enemies and craven betrayal of our allies.

Anonymous said...

...and another thing:

------

"After watching the Iraq Survey Group press conference today I am a firm believer that all politicians are idiots...

"The Iraq Survey Group’s findings or rather, recommendations are a joke and could have only come from a group of old people who have been stuck in Washington for too long. The brainpower of the ISG has come up with a new direction for our country and that includes negotiating with countries whose people chant "Death to America" and whose leaders deny the Holocaust and call for Israel to be wiped from the face of the earth...

"I feel like all of my efforts (30 months of deployment time) and the efforts of all my brothers in arms are all for naught. I thought old people were supposed to be more patient than a 24 year old but apparently I have more patience for our victory to unfold in Iraq than 99.9 percent of Americans. Iraq isn’t fast food--you can’t have what you want and have it now. To completely change a country for the first time in its entire history takes time, and when I say time I don’t mean 4 years.

"Talking doesn’t solve anything with a crazed people, bullets do and we need to be given a chance to work our military magic. Like I told a reporter buddy of mine: War sucks but a world run by Islamofacists sucks more.

--Sargeant Boggs

Anonymous said...

The Arab media has a better grasp of reality than most members of the U.S. Congress and the State Department. Some comments on the recent report by the Iraq Surrender Group:

------

Mustafa Bakri, an outspoken critic of the U.S. and editor of the Egyptian tabloid Al-Osboa, told a state-run television show that the report indicated "the end of America."

Bakri, who supports Syrian President Bashar Assad and the former regime of Saddam Hussein, urged Arab countries to "capture the moment as America now is in its weakest period."

The Iraq Surrender Group’s report was the top headline in many Arab newspapers on Thursday, including the Egyptian opposition daily Al-Wafd, which declared: "Bush confesses defeat in Iraq." The paper’s editor-in-chief, Anwar el-Hawari, predicted that at the very least, the Middle East will not hear from Bush for the coming 24 months.

..."Al-Qaida must smell victory, but its a negative victory that comes from the defeat of America in Iraq."

Anonymous said...

No Substitute for Victory - The Defeat of Islamic Totalitarianism by John Lewis:
------
"When the enemy balks at the ultimatum, atomic bombs are dropped on his cities. He surrenders, thus acknowledging the reality of his defeat and making a political decision to cease fighting. He orders his reluctant soldiers to lay down their arms. The American military occupies the defeated nation. We censor the media, impose reforms on schools, dismantle economic cartels, efface militaristic language from discourse at all levels, and write a political constitution which they are forced to accept. We tell them, pointedly and publicly, that they are defeated, and that we have no obligations to them. When they face starvation, we remind them that their miseries are their own fault. We charge them for many of the costs of the occupation. Not one dime of aid arrives until they demonstrate their complete surrender, in word and in action, including their repudiation of the militaristic ideology that motivated their attacks."

I like this Lewis guy...