Do you understand what war means? How are we to respond to war? Did we
experience an act of war on September 11, 2001? Did other countries celebrate
that act of war against us? Do we have expectation of further attacks? Should
we defend ourselves against attack, whether realized or perceived? Does our
president have any right to ask our young men and women to defend us? Should
we hate our president for asking or expecting our enlisted people to defend us?
I ask these questions because of a brief visit to a local nursing home. Two of
the ladies who are residents there were ready to attack me (verbally) for
asking for prayer for our president. Somehow they had gotten the idea that
president Bush was wrong to ask our young people to go to war on our behalf and
on the behalf of people who were victims of tyrannical regimes. With all the
news that's been broadcast on the television in the past three years, they had
somehow been persuaded that this president has no right to declare war against
those who threaten us or delight in the deaths or our innocent citizens. They
were horrified that our president would expect our young people to fight for us.
What do you think of when you think of war? It depends on your age, doesn't
it. If you're like me, in your 50's or 60's, we think of the Soviet Union or
Viet Nam. If you're a bit older, perhaps in your 70's, you think of Korea. If
you're like my dad or these ladies I spoke with today, you think of World War
II. In all these cases, our country perceived a threat and we set out to
defend ourselves against that threat. What would have happened if we hadn't
defended ourselves? What would have happened if the president who was in power
at those times had listened to the dear ladies in the nursing homes and
withdrawn any show of force? Where would we be today?
Where would we be if there had been no president courageous enough to send
troops out against the seceded states of the south or against England? We
would have been speaking in a clipped accent or perhaps Cockney and we would
still have expected black people to wait on us. How shameful to think of such
a scene. We could also be speaking German, torn down all the churches and
become Shinto worshipers or something else. Where would we be if our
presidents hadn't had the expectation and respect for younger people this
president has and known they would fight the Patriots' fight?
One of the ladies declared to me that the people of Iraq are Christians just
like us. I had to explain to her that the Islamic faith does not worship the
God of Love as we do, but a God of hate. I tried to be gentle, but I could
tell she was troubled to think her hatred of our President had come from a
wealth of false information. Where has she gotten the idea that the god of
Islam is the same God we worship? Where did she or the other lady who was so
angry get the idea that our people are not supposed to fight for what we
believe? Where is their patriotism? Where is yours? Will you vote?
Will you vote for a president courageous enough and respectful enough of our
young people to ask them to fight? Will you vote for a President who is not
ashamed to pray with whoever would like, right there in the Oval Office or
outside a meeting? Will you vote for a President who will love our way of life
enough to speak and act against those who threaten to outlaw traditional
marriage? Will you vote for a president who loves our children enough to
appoint judges who will replace those who think nothing of killing the unborn
or subjecting our little ones to pornography in the name of free speech?
Will you vote for a president who knows that the followers of Islam in Iraq
have one agenda only, and that is to kill Americans, as hideously as possible
because they worship a prophet and a God who hates Christianity and this
country represents Christianity. Are you a patriot and will you vote for a
patriotic president?
