Thought for Today

"President Obama scrapped the missile defense system designed to protect Poland from Russian attack Thursday on the seventieth anniversary of Russia's invasion of Poland. This explains why Obama removed the bust of Winston Churchill from the Oval Office and sent it back to the British Embassy. He wanted one of Neville Chamberlain."

~~~~~ Argus Hamilton

Seeing Evil: The Arms of John McCain

Over in The American Spectator, Jeffrey Lord has just come up with another must-read masterpiece, "Seeing Evil: The Arms of John McCain." This magnificent piece begins with these almost child-like questions:

What did Chamberlain do? What is appeasement?

And what happened to John McCain's arms?

Lord then proceeds to answer the questions in simple, clear, elegant words that should – but won't – be able to penetrate the skulls of even the most doctrinaire liberals.

Read it for yourself, and see if you don't agree. But then picture the reaction that this piece would elicit from, say, a Jimmy Carter, a Nancy Pelosi, or a Barack Obama. THAT's our problem. The liberal mind is different from yours and mine. It operates solely upon emotion, being impervious to both facts and logic. It never learns from its mistakes. Worst of all, it craves power above all else – the kind of power that allows liberals to tell the rest of us how to live our lives.

I suppose some of us could accept that if the results of their meddling were positive. The trouble is, though, their results inevitably range from ineffective through counterproductive all the way to disastrous. The history of the 20th century is strewn with the wreckage of calamities which were allowed, encouraged, or even directly caused to happen by disastrous liberal policies. As Jeffrey Lord reminds us, those liberal policies were directly or indirectly responsible for the deaths of tens of millions of people – because liberals cannot or will not recognize evil when they see it. Nevertheless, given the opportunity, their remedy for our present afflictions would be more of the same.

For several reasons originating from their inordinate love of government, the majority of politicians are liberals. No doubt, it was that type of politician that the inimitable P.J. O'Rourke had in mind when he wrote "Giving money and power to politicians is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys."

Frustratingly for those of us who helped to elect them, even the majority of conservative politicians, who generally go off to Washington or their respective state capitals full of idealism and imbued with conservative common sense, tend to become more and more liberal with time. Apparently, it takes an uncommon degree of strength of character to resist the many temptations and pressures that motivate the majority of "our guys" to gradually become "their guys."

Despite his unusual strength of character as proven by his heroic behavior in circumstances few of us can even imagine, John McCain has most definitely been affected by this liberal drift. Nevertheless, come November, I intend to give him my vote because he is far more likely than his opponent to recognize evil for what it is, then act accordingly.

Churchill on the ROP

Old Salt's Winston Churchill quotation reminded me of something else he wrote during that same year concerning the Religion of Peace. His words seem uncannily prescient today.

How dreadful are the curses which Mohammedanism lays on its votaries! Besides the fanatical frenzy, which is as dangerous in a man as hydrophobia in a dog, there is this fearful fatalistic apathy. The effects are apparent in many countries. Improvident habits, slovenly systems of agriculture, sluggish methods of commerce, and insecurity of property exist wherever the followers of the Prophet rule or live. A degraded sensualism deprives this life of its grace and refinement; the next of its dignity and sanctity. The fact that in Mohammedan law every woman must belong to some man as his absolute property‹either as a child, a wife, or a concubine‹must delay the final extinction of slavery until the faith of Islam has ceased to be a great power among men. Individual Moslems may show splendid qualities. Thousands become the brave and loyal soldiers of the Queen; all know how to die; but the influence of the religion paralyses the social development of those who follow it. No stronger retrograde force exists in the world. Far from being moribund, Mohammedanism is a militant and proselytizing faith. It has already spread throughout Central Africa, raising fearless warriors at every step; and were it not that Christianity is sheltered in the strong arms of science‹the science against which it had vainly struggled‹the civilisation of modern Europe might fall, as fell the civilisation of ancient Rome.

~~~~~ Winston Churchill, The River War, First Edition, Vol. II, pages 248-50 (London: Longmans, Green & Co., 1899; original out of print)

Being Shot At

Hillary has justifiably received ridicule for her tall tale about being under sniper fire in Bosnia. As a retired military man I am outraged that she would try to further her own interests with such a blatant lie. Her claim was insulting to every military man who has actually faced hostile fire.

I did my time in Vietnam and had a few rockets fired in my general direction. But I don’t feel worthy of making a big deal out of it. I spent a year-and-a-half on aircraft carriers living beside brave men who flew, sometimes three times a day, into the strongest air defense system and most concentrated anti-aircraft fire in the annals of warfare.

I remember vividly one evening when the missions were over and we were all relaxing in the wardroom, watching a movie called “Young Winston”. It was the story of Winston Churchill who as a young journalist covered the Boer War in South Africa in 1899. He was captured by the other side, but escaped in a fusillade of bullets.

“There is nothing quite as exhilarating in life as being shot at to no effect”, he announced. The pilots and crewmen erupted in laughter and cheers..

Inoculate128 adds: Here's more on this subject from National Review editor Rich Lowry: Hillary's strange affliction.

Inoculate128 again: And now Paul Greenberg, the Editorial Page Editor of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, who knows the Clintons as well as anyone, weighs in with False Memory: The Strange Case of H. Clinton.