The War on War
Last night on the CBS show 60 Minutes President Obama made the following statement regarding the war in Afghanistan:
“One of the mistakes that was made over the last eight years is for us to have a triumphant sense about war. There is was a tendency to say, we can go in, we can kick some tail, this is some glorious exercise. When, in fact, this is a tough business.”
This has to be one of the most revealing insights into this President’s mind-set as well as the mind-set of most liberal-progressive anti-military people out there. Is the President suggesting that we should not want to win a war? Should we be fighting to lose? Are we looking to just break-even?
Imagine if we had leadership in office like this during World War II.
Another telling part of his statement is that he views the war as a tough business. There is a great difference between the business world and the military. But then again we have been beaten over the head for the last 40 years with the War on Poverty, the War on Drugs, and the War on Cancer. This has weakened the actual meaning of what war really is. To the liberal-progressive, war is just another social program. Well, it is not.
I would love to explain to the President – just as I did to my son – what the difference is between a loser and someone who did not win. If you go out and give your best effort and come up short, then you just didn’t win that day. If you go out and don’t even try, and get beaten anyway, then you are a loser.
Mr. President, I understand the responsibility you have and the burden that you face when you state, “because I was looking out over a group of cadets, some of whom were going to be deployed in Afghanistan, and potentially some might not come back.” My question to you then, Mr. President, is that do you want to be seen as someone who gave it every effort and still might come up short of victory, or do you just want to be someone who went into this half-hearted?
Well here at the Castle, we would like to see every effort made to get the job done. If not, Mr. President, just blame the prior administration and bring home the troops.
The Mandarin, whose real name is 吏恆, joined the order in 1309, and introduced the Gormogons into England during the 18th Century.
The Mandarin enjoys spending time with his pet manticore, Βάρἰκος, or Barry (who can be found in the Bestiary). When not in the Castle…well, frankly, nobody is quite sure where he goes.
The Mandarin popularized the fine art of “gut booting,” by which he delivers a powerful kick to the stomach of anyone that annoys him. Although nearly universal today, the act of gut booting or threatening someone or something with a gut boot is solely due to him.