Slamming the box closed.
The wisest parable of Greek mythology, really.
By Moe Lane Posted in War — Comments (5) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
And it looks like I'll be about the last one to speak. Fitting: my cobloggers wrote more eloquently than I, and more to the point. Academic Elephant said what I would have about the history of it all, Pej summed up nicely my own reasons for supporting this war, streiff handily dissected the folly of our alternatives - and Thomas ably described the danger that we face, if history plays out as it's being forecast.
As the Spartans once said: If.
Read on.
Feel free to laugh at me - especially if you're the sort who has spent the last week scratching whatever itch it is that makes you delight in the pain of your political opponents - but I do not despair. I came very close, Election night. You see, I have a new wife, as many of you know; but what most of you do not know is that at some time at the end of May I will have a son or daughter. Obviously, I wish (like all sane men) to keep my loved ones safe - but if Washington DC is ever destroyed, my wife risks being murdered in the attack. And so I was up to all hours that night, unable to sleep for fear of my family*.
But then, of all things... I went to traffic court the next day, and felt better.
It sounds silly, but what I needed right then was a reminder that the machine was not broken now, and never in fact was to begin with. The judges and the cops and the security guards were all there, trying to get through the day and keep the schedule running. The world had not ended. And when I took my turn at court (as a witness, by the way), the judge thanked me kindly for doing my duty as a citizen and sent me on my way.
As I said, silly - but this simple, almost banal counterpoint to one of my worst nights in recent memory reminded me of something. Hope may be the thing with feathers, or just Woody Allen's nephew overdue for a trip to Switzerland; and (as we've been solemnly assured by individuals, ah, uniquely qualified to say) it's certainly not a plan. But it is our surest shield from despair. These are not the worst times of our history, or even our lifetimes. It will get darker, yes - but it will also get lighter. We will prevail, because evil does not triumph over good. It is not permitted to - and if you cannot allow yourself to believe that, then I am very sorry to tell you that I can do nothing to help.
And, yes, we were and are on the side of good in this struggle - and you may safely assume that I've heard the words 'Abu Ghraib', 'Haditha', 'extraordinary rendition', 'Gitmo' and all the rest, and that I will still say that and sleep like a baby. Likewise, while last week's election have made my opinions politically irrelevant, it did not make them retroactively wrong.
So I'm going to stick around, like a good little naive dupe of the VRWC, and I'm going to keep the quite irrational stance that we will, somehow, get to the point where we will win. I may have to do this in the face of a hostile and fearful Democratic legislature, a despairing Republican opposition and an exceptionally tired and weary Administration... but nobody ever said that being right was supposed to be easy. If it was going to be easy we'd have already won.
And for those who find all of this pathetic, sad or funny; well, I suppose that a strong belief would look that way to people who don't share it, or who don't have any of their own.
And that's my statement. Thanks for reading this far.
Moe Lane
*Yes, please, those scratching that itch I mentioned before: feel free. Savor this moment. Your entire life was lived for this point in time, where you could hear a conservative admit to fear. You've accomplished what 9/11 couldn't, so be proud and happy.
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Slamming the box closed. 5 Comments (0 topical, 5 editorial, 0 hidden) Post a comment »
And while I agree these are not the darkest of times as yet, we must never abandon hope for the good that will ultimately triumph in times ahead. I believe many here are of this same conviction. I hold fast to that hope.
He toucheth the mountain - and it smokes.
on your soon to be new baby. Fatherhood is a wonderful thing!
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad - "We did not have
a revolution in order to have democracy."
Good post, Moe, and congratulations on your looming fatherhood. My first is nine months old, and almost every day has been better than the last.
As the Spartans once said: If.
Pedantic compulsion requires me to note that the only good thing the Spartans ever did was Thermopylae. But it was a really, really good thing: without it, there would have been no Athens and (likely) no one to author my tagline ...
For we have a peculiar power of thinking before we act, and of acting, too, whereas other men are courageous from ignorance but hesitate upon reflection.
I also felt sick the night of the election turns out I gave myself ulcers over the politics of this election. I must admit though I have become quite serene and believe that we will be able to block a lot of what the Democrats will attempt to do because I watched the Democrats do it to us. I do not believe the American people want us to fail in Iraq however I also believe that the majority really do not get the history of this enemy either. Ignorance is bliss to the masses. We are a good people and with time and no one likes time we will win as every other enemy of these Islamic Facists have, history shows us we will. So God Bless the United States of America and mostly god bless your new baby and family.
Peace through superior fire power:)