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It's time again...

August 19, 2005 | | Comments (11) | TrackBacks (2)

...to trot this out. I posted it on the Flight Ops wall in Boz on 17 September, 2001.

In times when the MSM pontificates that the only thing we're accomplishing with the GWOT is the bloody downsizing of our Armed Forces, and disheartened relatives of the slain moan that every extra day we're in battle dishonors the memories of their loved ones, remember this:

War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling, which thinks that nothing is worth war, is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself. —John Stuart Mill (1868)

And unless we remain willing to fight this war and win it, there will, in time, *be* no personal safety...

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Friday offenders! from The Politburo Diktat on August 19, 2005 8:36 AM

Zd`rastvuyte Comrades! Around your so-called “blogospehere” many are taking breaks! and resting! Ch`to `eto???! Ya nee paneemayoo, such laziness! Da Commissar would never stand for such thing! Where he not on vacation he would place the... Read More

Understanding the culture from Righty in a Lefty State on August 19, 2005 9:55 AM

The MSM is a source of frustration as we try to gauge progress in Iraq, but there are other barriers that we need to understand as well. Read More

11 Comments

By FbL on August 19, 2005 12:35 AM
Wow! I didn't realize you guys left NJ for Bosnia so soon after 9-11. That must've been a really hard trip--feeling like you were headed to the wrong foreign country! And thanks for reminding us of that quote. It's one of my favorites, but it always seems to fade a bit in my mind. But then when I encounter it again, those first two sentences never fail to inspire me--and I move forward still with heavy heart, but reminded that sometimes hard and ugly things cannot be avoided.
 
By cw4(ret)billt on August 19, 2005 5:32 AM
FbL - It turned out that we actually *did* go to the right country. There's a TINS in it and what we did shortly after we arrived is open-source, but I have to verify that what we *found* is, too...
 
By John on August 19, 2005 6:51 AM
I've always liked that quote from Mill. It sums up the difference between right and left. John Lennon alludes to it in "Imagine" when he wishes that the was "nothing to...die for."
 
By John on August 19, 2005 6:51 AM
I've always liked that quote from Mill. It sums up the difference between right and left. John Lennon alludes to it in "Imagine" when he wishes that the was "nothing to...die for."
 
By John on August 19, 2005 6:52 AM
Oops, sorry for the double post. I double tapped the mouse.
 
By Dad29 on August 19, 2005 7:11 AM
"War is not 'the best way of settling differences; it is the only way of preventing their being settled for you." G K Chesterton Same author: "The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him."
 
By AFSister on August 19, 2005 7:12 AM
Awesome quote, Bill! I've never heard it before. Isn't it amazing that it was spoken in 1868 and still applies today? WOW.... so cool.
 
By BloodSpite on August 19, 2005 7:24 AM
Well Said Bill!!
 
By Barb on August 19, 2005 9:58 AM
That's a great quote. The day after 9/11, a friend and co-worker sent me that quote in an email which was quite moving. I still have it - to re-read now and again.
 
By Boquisucio on August 19, 2005 1:36 PM
Though not necessarily a big fan of that Large Pompous Windbag, sometimes referred to as: Rush Limbaugh, on this subject, he nailed it down on a Monologue that he streamed out of his conscience last Monday. Here is the MONOLOGUE.
 
By Cricket on August 21, 2005 9:12 AM
Ditto. Heh. I dislike Rush for a great many reasons, but at least he has supported the military and deplored the horrific cuts Clinton made in the 90s to increase the welfare state. It is a hot weekend and grilling and baking are on the agenda. While I can relate to Cindy Sheehan's pain of losing a loved one, I find it rather odd that she demands an explanation of her son's ability to make a choice and follow through with it. He signed. There are a great many fifth column type pieces out there that deplore recruiting practices, or how 'Bush lied and men died.' Uh, and I don't mean to step on the Chief's toes here, but I have a rant about Bosnia coming on. I supported the military there but not the reasons or the CIC who sent them there in the early 90s. Bill check your email for incoming questions!
 
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