Monday, October 23, 2006

Cartoonish, I Mean Cartoonist, Ted Rall Hates the Military

Newsbusters has a recent cartoon--go look at it here--and Noel Sheppard wonders how Rall can sell his "vitriolic scribblings to anyone other than the Nation and Keith Olbermann." In true, nuanced Leftist fashion, Rall calls Bush a "Psycho Fascist Moron."

This comic strip was written in response to this letter to the New York Times:
The strip was apparently fashioned after a letter written to the New York Times by a Major Gary P. Brickner who wrote of his experience walking through Newark airport, and asked the question: “For every person in the airport who thanked me for my [military] service, there was one who conspicuously avoided eye contact. Was it because I reminded him of his own lack of sacrifice in this war when others have sacrificed all?”
Did I tell you guys about my military experience on the Disney ship? I'll tell you again. After dinner at the fancy restaurant Palo, we finished at the same time a highly decorated Air Force pilot. As we were walking out, I said admiringly to him (my husband and sister were with me):

"I love to see a man in uniform. You look great!"

He said, "Thanks."

Then I said, "You know, don't believe what you read in the newspapers and hear on the news. We Americans are behind you 100% and believe in what you're doing. We are so thankful. So, thank you."

I was a little embarrassed to say something. Soldiers must feel like celebrities these days. He was on a ship for much deserved R/R after two tours in Iraq. I didn't want to bug him. But I wanted him to know, you know?

If it were me, I'd be discouraged some days, I think, because you hear from friends and family who say, "Don't pay attention to all that you see and read. We're behind you." But do regular people really believe that, or is that what my family and wife and friends want me to believe to keep me going?

It must have been the right decision to say something, because I saw him later (in civies) with his wife (she had been in the bathroom and he was waiting when I said something) and pointed to me and my family and smiled. "They're the ones," he said.

Back to Ted Rall. These guys write and say horrible things knowing full well the military reads them. They express mock outrage that someone would question their patriotism. Why? They should be honored to have their patriotism questioned. They are far from patriots. They are angry that anyone would sacrifice themselves willingly for an ideal they enjoy with scorn--freedom.

Because of the Left's own unresolved authority issues, they cannot, will not ever embrace power used to enforce an action. They hate the military. They hate soldiers. They hate authority. They hate the notion that there is a right or wrong. They hate the notion that the U.S. might be the enforcers of right and wrong when so many injustices are imbedded into the fabric of American society. Really important things like the pushback against Gay Marriage and Abortion, for two examples. Wrong takes on such important social issues prove, without a doubt, that average Americans are stupid rubes intent on killing anyone who doesn't see things like them.

Have I summed up the position well enough? The only problem of course, is that the Terrorists are using the Western press and share the same motivations. Rage, jealousy, the desire for prominance, a finely honed sense of injustice which justifies the most outrageous acts in return--together, these perverse allies would like to undo everything America stands for. Nevermind, that in the Media's case they take suicidal action.

6 comments:

  1. obviously you are overstating things a little and being a little simplistic... That said, the Left is lacking most in reason and rational thought. I readily admit that I do not like cops. I have a general distrust and disdain for them. At the same time, I am not so far gone that I would claim the LAPD (no matter how corrupt or ignorant they are/were) went out and tried to falsely accuse and convict OJ of murder. Any thinking, reasoning person would be able to put two and two together and convict that guy.

    In the end, any attacking of the US military is ultimately a bad thing for freedom. To attack the President for being a philanderer or a dumbass is one thing, calling all US solidiers "mass murderers" is very much different. Our men and women in the military are, for the most part, great people making an even greater sacrifice. No one should ever discount or disrespect that!

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  2. The Left is full of people whose driving emotion is a sense of contempt toward their fellow citizens. Just yesterday, I saw a car with two bumper stickers. The first one said:

    "If ignorance is bliss, then why aren't more people happy?"

    The second one was a campaign sticker for a Democratic candidate.

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  3. I have a bumper sticker that says "If you are not outraged, you are not paying attention." Thing about it is, I see it as an indictment of the entire system. Funny thing is, people that lean Right will assume it is about the Left and vice versa.

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  4. matthew...I tend to assume that people with that particular bumper sticker are on the Left. What on earth does "the entire system" mean? The US system of government? Capitalism? The nature of human life? The laws of nature?

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  5. David,

    I would say the "entire system" in the context of the conversation would refer to the elected officials in Washington, at least that is the way it was intended. Bush, Cheney, Pelosi, Kennedy, Reid, Foley, et al make me sick. The US would be better served if 100% of incumbant elected officials lost. That is not to say that 100% are bad, only that the net impact would be positive for the US and the world.

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