I have been to the jungles so thick
with hard woods and vines our machetes became nicked from trying to
cut it through. Tolerating swarms of mosquitoes, wading through
putrid swamp waters as poisonous snakes swam by. Sleeping in humid
jungle so thick that even in daylight the light was colored dark
green; the night so dark and ominous with every creature found in
nightmares coming out to feed. The humidity like a smothering blanket
that quickly turned steel to rust.
I have trained to fight in mountains
and northern climates where winter is extreme and the snow so deep
that snowshoes and skis were the only way to traverse the cold and
bitter terrain; at night sleeping in a warm arctic tent to be awoken
to serve watch in subzero temperatures that make the mind numb and
the breath frozen.
I have trained and fought in streets of
urban development where an enemy may hide to ambush, making it as
dangerous as any thick jungle.
I have traversed around and sometimes
through rice paddies, meant to grow staple food that feed the people,
and witnessed simple people who just want to live life in peace see
their land and homes destroyed by friend and foe alike.
I have witnessed starving children
crying and people wounded in body and soul wondering when the
suffering will end.
In the final analysis, no matter who
starts it, war is ugly and wasteful – and most often senseless.
Young Americans have joined the
military, some drafted by order of the government, during the last
seven decades to fight in foreign places for other people who in the
end never, for the most part, appreciate the sacrifice of American
military personnel in the name of stopping tyranny and oppression.
Those wars after World War II were fought to prevent tyranny that
could spread and cause another Pearl Harbor; but on September 11th,
2001 it happened again. It was a declaration of war that Americans
never fought before against an enemy who wear no specific uniform,
and like the Imperial Japanese soldier, gladly die in order to win
favor in the afterlife- all in the name of a God that is universal
with different names in over 80 languages and dialects and does not
separate humanity by region, race or politics.
The United States of America began with
war, a conflict to gain independence because options had run out and
patience with it. It was a war against tyranny, and an unwritten code
was formed that culminated into future promises to other people of
other nations that We the People, American citizens, would send our
youth to fight tyranny, allied troops fighting for freedom of all.
We can no longer afford economically as
other nation's peace keepers; nor should we ask our soldiers to fight
in other nation's wars unless that war is declared constitutionally
by the United States Congress. Our record of foreign affairs has not
fared well in ending for the reasons our government involved our
soldiers from the beginning. We should remember what Ronald Reagan
said about strength in defense helps keep peace and deters tyrants.
The United Nations has forgotten who
initiated its founding and why it was created. Its record shows
little good results to the point that if it was a private enterprise,
it would have been dissolved. The goal of its committees is to form a
world government, something that has been called the New World Order;
but would not be formed by wisdom and lessons learned in history the
founders of the United States had accomplished.
While we send our troops to fight in
foreign lands, the enemy enters our homeland, not to assimilate, but
to subvert; while Americans and those we elect to operate our
government avert their attention elsewhere, and through naivety,
treachery, and political blindness allow the United States to be
literally invaded – adding to the corruption of a society that has
chosen to corrupt itself.
I do not regret the long period of time
I served in the US military, but I do condemn our government from not
learning from past mistakes. It is insanity, said Albert Einstein, to
continue on the same path and expect different results.
I detest war and would seek any means
except capitulation to tyranny to prevent it; and readily train for
it in case it should come – all the while praying that training
would not be applied.
How can the people of any nation think
they can remain strong from enemies from without when they ignore the
enemies from within, setting aside the principled values, moral and
civic, that made our nation so great from the beginning?
How can people of any nation think that
a divided nation can stand?
How can people of any nation think that
without the benefit of a family nucleus raising children with virtues
and the international agreement of the Golden Rule that their nation
can remain civilized and strong?
Common sense was the key factor that
bound the strength for the foundation of the United States, and what
people can think that without it there can be a strong nation?
We have allowed those who operate our
government form factions that have created educational institutions
that do not inspire freedom of choice, teach that truth can only be
revealed by those that govern us, and truth is not allowed if it
offends others who believe that government can run their lives better
than they can themselves.
It is said that the value of something
is not realized until it is lost, and in most cases, the loss can
never be recovered. Such is the story of the rights and liberties
established by the wise men we call the founders and written clearly
on parchment in the Declaration of Independence and the
Constitution of the United States and its amendments; the
first ten amendments being called the Bill of Rights. The
founders knew that democracy in its purest form is merely the rule of
men and the mob, while a republic with a strong constitution can
withstand the sands of time if it is not polluted and diluted by
those elected by the People.
All of this is lost to a generation and
the words of Ronald Reagan who had faith in the people of the United
States, ring ever so true in these troubling times – freedom is
only one generation away from being lost.
After all, the tyrants know that if
lies are big enough and told often enough they become believed; and
so the generation who cannot dwell or comprehend lost liberties if
they are not aware of or never experienced them. Loss of freedom is
not always lost because of revolution or coups; because tyrants know
that the loss is more binding if the populace loses it slowly –
always in the declaration to be beneficial to the People.
If I was young enough to be called to
war undeclared by Congress and based upon corrupted foreign affairs
today, I would have to refuse – not out of fear, but of principle
and the rule of law. And I would ask fellow citizens to do the same,
because if the United States is to truly help other nations, it must
first take care of itself.
Another revolution is called for, but
this time it must be fought with the voice of the People and
determination to adhere to the oaths to preserve and protect the rule
of law – the Constitution of the United States. That is worth
fighting for. It can only be attained by a united people, not divided
by skin pigmentation, political correctness, or the mechanization of
socialists and communists or people who naively accept collectivism
over individualism.
It would be a loss not just to the
American people, but to the world, if we allow our constitutional
republic that became so successful in such a short period of a long
history of civilization to fall into the dusty bin of history.
The “ME” generation does not
understand what JFK meant when he said ask not what your
country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.
Your country is not the government, an
instrument to be wielded By the People; but it is the People – a
people united under one flag representing the people and one language
having the same principles that makes a great civilization.
Think about it.
Exactly what I said about the Kennedy quote.
ReplyDeleteI've missed your posts. Good to hear from you again.
Generation ME does understand this as the generations before it have. They struggle day in and day out to understand what they can do for their fellow man rather than what they can do to help the Government. Many people understand that the Government is just people at desks like the rest of the workforce who are Millenials, myself included. Collectivism, however, enables the people to bargain for rights from companies and organizations they previously could not except through government which enables and enforces laws that allow said corporations and organizations to milk the people to the bone.
ReplyDelete- The Blogging Boss
Blogs:
aletterofappreciation.blogspot.com
aletterofsympathy.blogspot.com
willeventuallybecomecurrent.blogspot.com
Our republic is unique in that we believe (We the People did believe) in individualism, yet realize that we must also be united under rule of law that provides true equality. Griffin, author of Jekyll Island and other books, explains collectivism versus individualism better than I. (search YouTube for Griffin)
ReplyDeleteYes, I was "burning the candle at both ends" so to speak. My contact email address: kalehman49@gmail.com
ReplyDelete