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[SOLTC]

In 1776 Thomas Paine wrote in a pamphlet, "The Crisis", those famous lines about "summer soldiers and sunshine patriots". Those who quit when the way gets rough, as opposed to those who stand and stay. On that cold December night of the same year, when the Continental Army crossed the Delaware, Washington knew he would prevail because he didn't have the summer soldiers. He had the Winter Soldiers. Since June 14, 1775, they have never let this country down, no matter what the cost.

In the last five years we have gone through a time of national spiritual crisis, when the demagogues and rabble rousers claimed to know "the will of the people" and spewed forth false promises and vitriolic lies. Now the nation needed the Winter Soldiers again to remind all Americans what principles this country was founded upon. Their bloody footprints go before us as they did in the snow and mud from Trenton to Chosen, leading the way.

After many years of internal disagreement, strife, and polarization, restoring unity could not be an easy task. We have become too used to incivility and personal attacks in our debates. Many believe that an end will justify any means, and will vilify and demonize any who oppose them. Honor and integrity have been all but erased from our vocabulary. Duty and country are no longer esteemed, and are generally forgotten. When Americans in uniform gave their lives in service at Mogadishu and aboard the USS Cole, they were just another media headline, to be pushed aside in a day by the latest celebrity scandal or sports contest.

But terrorists have not reckoned on the American spirit. Our country was born of ideas and contention. Yes, we each have different ideas of how things should be done and we argue about those ideas. Some small and vocal groups are self-serving and misguided. This "American Dynamic" would make our enemies think that our people are divided and weak. We are just the opposite.

Witness how Americans come together in time of crisis. The bravery, compassion, selflessness, and unity come through. So has it been throughout our history.

On December 8, 1941, Franklin D. Roosevelt addressed Congress asking for a declaration of war. At the end of this address, he said that "the American people in their righteous anger" would conclude this war. Not the government, not the country, but the American people. And they did!

In 2000, when reminded that questioned absentee ballots were mostly from Americans serving away from home, a prominent voice of dissent quipped that some of the "undervotes" were from Holocaust survivors. In answer, I think the sculptor and survivor Nathan Rappaport would point to his statue in Gateway National Park. It's of an American soldier carrying a death camp inmate to safety. Mr. Rappaport never forgot.

On November 19, 1863 at Gettysburg, Abraham Lincoln dedicated a "final resting place" for those who fell in that great battle. In his address, Lincoln challenged Americans to rededicate themselves to our basic principles and believed "that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom". Today, 142 years later, after two contentious and critical presidential elections, Americans need to rededicate themselves to this nation again. Not as partisans of any one party or any one interest, but to the United States of America, its founding principles, its constitution, and each other.

Let those who have always done so lead the way. At Valley Forge, New Orleans, Bataan, or Khe Sanh, the Winter Soldiers didn't care about race, creed, national origin, or other variation. They forged bonds beyond all differences. They all served and that was enough. Let every American stand beside his fellow American and again pledge their "sacred honor" in the way of the Winter Soldiers.

Let the American people again come together, remembering all who have gone before them to create this nation. Let us each look into our hearts, and ask what have we done to further the national spirit. We can do not better than to follow those who wear the uniform. Again the Winter Soldiers will lead us.

For many years, some have wanted to change our national anthem. "It's too difficult to sing." "It's melody was a drinking song." "It's too warlike." They would replace "The Star Spangled Banner" with another patriotic hymn.

But in the days after 09/11/01, we have seen our brothers and sisters in the United Kingdom perform the anthem. And they knew every word!

We all were taught the story of how Francis Scott Key wrote the poem. But do we think about its meaning. In his novel "1812" Historian David Nevin, paints the scene of a dinner given by President Madison. Scott, the well-know poet, was asked to recite his latest work. He said he had been writing something, and it wasn't really finished. But he recited "The Star Spangled Banner" anyway. At the conclusion, there was not a sound or a dry eye in the group.

The anthem is a challenge.


[Note - I wrote this after 09/11. However, I've done some updating. I think the message is still applicable.]

[DLI78]

A good read. Thank you for posting it.
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DLI 78
Army Linguist
1978-1986

[lonevoice]

Thanks for posting this.

Let us pray for all those in harms way...
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It is a poverty to decide that a child must die so that you may live as you wish.
-Mother Teresa

If it's not a baby, you're not pregnant.
-me