Armchair Pundits

Speechless? Not Quite

Wow.

Pat Robertson. Hey Pat! Thanks for marginalizing Christians everywhere. In case, you don't know what I think, here it is for you. Preachers should preach the word. Teach it verse by verse, that is your job. Sheperd your flock. Commenting on Chavez, in terms of U.S. foreign policy, whether you meant assasination or kidnapping, is beyond your purview. Being a public figure, you should know better. I'm disappointed.

Cindy Sheehan's blog and the coming showdown this weekend between Camp Reality & Camp Casey (you'll love this website-insert snarky little emoticon). A reader forwarded this comment from Cindy's post on the Huffinton Blog. It is written by drbfg on 8/25/05 at 8:25pm.

"It breaks my heart to read the polarized opinions in these posts when there is so much ground available to be shared with respect to the soldiers at war in Iraq.

All soldiers are heroic by virtue of their service to our country as soldiers. Period. It doesn't matter whether they served during peacetime in Nebraska doing nothing more than maintaining our country's readiness, never seeing combat, or whether they were sent to a just war -- or an unjust war. By volunteering to serve, by saying "Yes" to our country's call, each member of our military demonstrates courage and sacrifice, the hallmarks of a hero. Some make the ultimate sacrifice, giving their lives, but all who join up qualify as heroes -- because all know that at any time they might be called upon to make that sacrifice and join anyway. Some exercise poor judgment and dishonor themselves and their service, but most soldiers are heroes, whether they live or die and whether they serve in peace or war -- any war.

Soldiers who die never die for nothing. For their own sakes they know that they have given what they knew they may be called upon to give in the service of their country, and for the rest of us they demonstrate an ideal of selflessness and commitment to purpose to which we can all aspire in our own way. That's why we should support them -- not because of the morality (or lack thereof) of the orders given them -- but because they express in word and deed a willingness to accept any order, even one causing their death. There is nobility in that willingness even if there is nobility in the order.

Whether or not the Iraq war (or Kosovo or Vietnam...whatever) was promoted with lies, planned by incompetents and ordered by greedy opportunists should have no effect on the meaning we associate with the sacrifices of our soldiers. The duty of the President and his advisors is political; the duty of the soldiers is civic. The way we judge the exercise of each duty should not be dependent on the other. A President should not be made more noble by the heroism of the soldiers under his command, and a soldier should not be made more corrupt by the venality of the President. Conservatives believed all of this to be true when Clinton was President, and liberals should do the same with Bush in office."

Well stated, and does the author's politics matter? Isn't this the right thing to do?

Lastly, I am linking to a website you should spend hours on. I mean that. I've been there a few times over the past few months. You MUST read the first post in it's entirety. If your heart doesn't swell with pride or you don't feel an inner compulsion to stand up and say God Bless America, then check your pulse to see if your alive. Permanent links will be forthcoming.

For next week, watch for the Armchair Pundits review of the GoFish Album Superstar. Have a great weekend!

posted by Grisby @ 11:47 AM