Monday, March 19, 2007

Needed: Real Men of Principle and Conviction

I greatly admire and support General Peter Pace for taking a stand on his convictions about homosexual activity and today's military. I'm not the only one to do so, either. General Pace has found a hailstorm of criticism for his remark, but he has also found the strength of conservativism. Conservatives have a well-earned reputation for having a spine and sticking by their convictions. It's written into the definition. Liberals, conversely, have a tendency to adopt a number of positions on a single issue over time. After their failed attempt to dismantle objective truth in the 80s and 90s, the current liberal movement has run aground on its shoals. It's a break-up that few have any ideas of fixing. Were it not for the ongoing war in Iraq, liberals would have very little to rally around.

God has not abandoned the United States or its leadership. God chooses leaders for his purposes and uses them to accomplish his will. Pace is clearly on course by standing up for what he believes is best for his nation and his military. Yet, we have a lot of corruption in both. As a friend of mine pointed out, we have fallen a long way from when the vice of cursing and swearing was a great concern in our nation's military, as evidenced by the quote of Washington below.
The General is sorry to be informed that the foolish, and wicked practice, of profane cursing and swearing (a Vice heretofore little known in an American Army) is growing into fashion; he hopes the officers will, by example, as well as influence, endeavour to check it, and that both they, and the men will reflect, that we can have little hopes of the blessing of Heaven on our Arms, if we insult it by our impiety, and folly; added to this, it is a vice so mean and low, without any temptation, that every man of sense, and character, detests and despises it.
- General George Washington
August 3rd 1776
According to another source, a retired officer in the US Air Force, his quote was once memorized by cadets. This practice has discontinued, and such an absence of such moral training has contributed to the horrors of Abu Ghraib and the rape and murder of civilians. Oddly, liberals will point to this immorality when they themselves fight against the moral instruction for today's citizens and soldiers. One can only hope we can reverse this trend and reinstate such training and moral discipline. Only then can we retain "the blessing of Heaven on our Arms" and the hope of prevailing in future conflict.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Another interesting thing is that not only have American men become emasculated, but American women (even, sadly, Christian women) have also. By that, I mean that many women have lost that pioneer backbone and true feminine strength (as opposed to feminism, which is a reactionary and artificial construct) that helped build this nation. Thus, we have two-dimensional, superficial females who lack a core of moral courage, perseverance and appropriate initiative. When I was in Israel in 2005 and 2006, I was struck by the knowledge that I was in a pioneer nation—and it was exhilarating. Both the men and the women (in general) were strong and assertive—and yet thoroughly masculine and feminine. When a culture loses its masculinity (which is appropriately possessed by both genders but expressed differently), both genders lose their way.