Once again I am digging into the Radarsite vaults and returning with an oldie, but goodie from Roger W. Gardner. This one originally was posted on January 27, 2008. -- Findalis
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A note from Radarsite: This short essay on America garnered more controversy than any other article on Radarsite either before or after. It had begun by my asking myself how "Old Blood and Guts" Patton would address our current generation if he were still around. Thus this Brief Message to America was written with the sound of General Patton's inimitable voice in my ears. I received so much hate mail from this small article that it spawned a whole
new article just to deal with the spiteful comments, which was subsequently published by the Chicago Sun Times. I hope you will find the time to also read this follow-up piece. We live in interesting times, don't we? - rg
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America -- it's time to stop what you're doing for a minute and take a good long look in the mirror.
You have allowed other people to delineate your image for too long now. You have uncritically accepted their skewed portraiture as truth and bought into their self-serving lies. You have been bullied by cold-hearted cynics and wrong-headed critics into believing that you are something that you are not, and never could have been.
It's time to stop all that now, America. It's time to remember who the hell you are. In the words of our late great Ambassador Jeanne Kirkpatrick, "Americans need to face up to the truth about themselves, no matter how pleasant it is."
You seem to have forgotten that the world is weak and envious of your strength. They want what you have and deride you because they need you. But your detractors are small and petty and vicious; and you are great and beautiful.
You are nothing less than the light of the world, and the hope of all its people. Without your stalwart protection and the selfless sacrifice of your courageous fathers and sons who have fought and died on foreign soil to protect other people's liberties, the glorious achievements of this whole wondrous Western Civilization would have long ago crumbled into dust and been trampled under the feet of the barbarians.
So listen up now, America. The world needs you once again. Take a good hard look at yourself. And stand tall and be proud. You are quite simply the bravest, most noble, most generous, most high-minded and judicious nation the world has ever known.
And we love you.
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I do wish our current President Barack Obama would read those words. Instead of showing the world the strength of the United States (spiritual, moral, and physical), our President has shown himself and this nation to be morally weak, without the resolve to lead the world (passing on that responsibility to Europe at best, the UN at worst). I think that old Blood and Guts Patton would have slapped Obama silly for his cowardice!
On a more personal note:
If you enjoy reading these old posts of Roger's let us here at Radarsite know. Just use the comment form here. Hopefully you do enjoy reading them and want us to continue to repost other fine articles by Roger.
-- Findalis
