"DO NOT FORGET"
I sat in a movie theater watching "Schindler's List," asked
myself, "Why didn't the Jews fight back?"
Now I know why.
I sat in a movie theater, watching "Pearl Harbor" and asked
myself, "Why weren't we prepared?"
Now I know why.
Civilized people cannot fathom, much less predict, the actions of
evil people.
On September 11, dozens of capable airplane passengers allowed
themselves to be overpowered by a handful of poorly armed
terrorists because they did not comprehend the depth of hatred
that motivated their captors.
On September 11, thousands of innocent people were murdered
because too many Americans naively reject the reality that some
nations are dedicated to the dominance of others. Many political
pundits, pacifists and media personnel want us to forget the
carnage. They say we must focus on the bravery of the rescuers
and ignore the cowardice of the killers. They implore us to
understand the motivation of the perpetrators. Major television
stations have announced they will assist the healing process by
not replaying devastating footage of the planes crashing into the
Twin Towers.
I will not be manipulated.
I will not pretend to understand.
I will not forget.
I will not forget the liberal media who abused freedom of the
press to kick our country when it was vulnerable and hurting.
I will not forget that CBS anchor Dan Rather preceded President
Bush's address to the nation with the snide remark, "No matter
how you feel about him, he is still our president."
I will not forget that ABC TV anchor Peter Jennings questioned
President Bush's motives for not returning immediately to
Washington, DC and commented, "We're all pretty skeptical and
cynical about Washington."
And I will not forget that ABC's Mark Halperin warned if
reporters weren't informed of every little detail of this war,
they aren't "likely -- nor should they be expected -- to show
deference."
I will not isolate myself from my fellow Americans by pretending
an attack on the USS Cole in Yemen was not an attack on the
United States of America.
I will not forget the Clinton administration equipped Islamic
terrorists and their supporters with the world's most
sophisticated telecommunications equipment and encryption
technology, thereby compromising America's ability to trace
terrorist radio, cell phone, land lines, faxes and modem
communications.
I will not be appeased with pointless, quick retaliatory strikes
like those perfected by the previous administration.
I will not be comforted by "feel-good, do nothing" regulations
like the silly, "Have your bags been under your control?"
question at the airport.
I will not be influenced by so called,"antiwar demonstrators" who
exploit the right of _expression to chant anti-American
obscenities.
I will not forget the moral victory handed the North Vietnamese
by American war protesters who reviled and spat upon the
returning soldiers, airmen, sailors and marines.
I will not be softened by the wishful thinking of pacifists who
chose reassurance over reality.
I will embrace the wise words of Prime Minister Tony Blair who
told the Labor Party conference, "They have no moral inhibition
on the slaughter of the innocent. If they could have murdered
not 7,000 but 70,000, does anyone doubt they would have done so
and rejoiced in it?
There is no compromise possible with such people, no meeting of
minds, no point of understanding with such terror. Just a
choice: defeat it or be defeated by it. And defeat it we must!"
I will force myself to:
-hear the weeping
-feel the helplessness
-imagine the terror
-sense the panic
-smell the burning flesh
- experience the loss
- remember the hatred.
I sat in a movie theater, watching "Private Ryan" and asked
myself, "Where did they find the courage?"
Now I know.
We have no choice. Living without liberty is not living.
-- Ed Evans, MGySgt., USMC (Ret.)
Not as lean, Not as mean, But still a Marine.
Keep this going until every living American has read it and
memorized it so we don't make the same mistake again
Clean
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Steve
When reading the policy I too found the reference to site
damage very damaging to geocaching. To an outsider that statement makes it look
like geocaching is destroying archeological sites and any individual. Is
there a way of getting that statement removed and replacing it with something to
the fact that cooperation is needed to remove the possibility of caches being
placed on or near archeological sites to avoid possible damage to these
sites. This will put an emphasis on the need for coordination in placing a
cache while at the same time not shedding a bad light on
geocaching.
Loran (Team Sand Dollar)