First published at TownHall.com in Dec, 2007.
From time to time it wouldn’t hurt if conservatives pundits compiled and published a list of just what makes up American exceptionalism. I say this for two reason. One, progressive bloggers seem unable or unwilling to provide a list of just what their banner stands for, yet there seems to be this understanding among their believers that they are all on the same path. I doubt they are, and I doubt most know it. But Lenin knew exactly what he was talking about when he used the term “useful idiots”…which incidentally, is what they think of conservatives.
So I think conservatism should go them one better. For novitiates especially, it’s important to know just where our train’s going before getting on board.
More importantly, however, even amidst a wahr that has been going for several years now, the most prominent aspect of American exceptionalism, the one that really hushes the Left, I’ve found, is almost never mentioned anymore.
Let me explain.
As you may know, we try to engage both progressives (lefties) and their bottom feeding filth-mongers in a war of words about the true meanings of their cause as well as the Constitution’s purposes.
What we look for are real weaknesses in their armor, i.e., hidden hatreds, fears, and guilt, then, like a scab, pick at it. No, this is not pretty work, and yes, many conservatives have demurred from joining us for this reason alone, saying this is not the “proper” way to fight them. Maybe so, for it is not for the timid of thin-skinned.
But what we have found are a few subjects that move them quickly into total silence, after which, the confrontation suddenly ends. These are subjects they are in total denial about, points they dare not answer even to themselves…in their closet.
For instance, many anti-Christians, posing as anti-religionists, posing as atheists, have a type of road-to-Damascus moment when we suggest that they don’t really disbelieve in God, but rather hate Him. It’s not for me to say whether they saw the light, or didn’t like the light, but the retreat is always hasty and final. What happens to them after that we don’t know.
Comes now another stopper, the last full measure argument, which I raise here among conservatives, for I rarely see popular conservatives in the radio, print or internet media directly mention it, yet it is the one thing that separates Americans from all other people in all the history of the world. It is why the comfort class around the world despise us.
Below is an excerpt from an exchange Bernie Chumm began with two smarmy Canadians a few years about the war in Iraq on the Glumbert video site. I’ll let it speak for itself.
That said, about the war in Iraq: In the Civil Rights days here in America the liberals (VB:not yet then of the Left) used as a regular mantra a corrupted version of a Bible verse, John 15:13, that stated that no greater love has a man than he will lay down his life for his brother. Being apparently anti-religious, you may not know this verse, but many of your forebears will have known it well
From reading your scat, I doubt if you would agree with the sentiment expressed, even had it been uttered by say, Princess Di rather than some Jewish carpenter in the Middle East. But that is my question to you here. You will need to answer it, or this discussion cannot proceed.
I note this because, while we all share many types of shoulders, Americans stand on other sets of shoulders Canadians and Europeans do not, or at least are not taught to acknowledge or respect. For instance, our Declaration and Constitution, which you say you hold up to honor (thank you), were bought and paid for by the lives of tens of thousands of Americans wishing to be free of a royal yoke it seems Canada was content to live with.
The green fields of France and Italy and the barren hills of Korea are painted with the graves of nearly 250,000 Americans who died liberating those and other countries…none of whom ever shot at us first. It is true many Canadians are also buried there, but I’m at a loss as to what Canadian history books say as to why they died. For king? The allies? The UN? Or liberty and your fellow man?
In America we still know why our men die and it wasn’t for the bleeding Commonwealth or the f’ing United Nations.
For you see, above all, during our Civil War, nearly one million Americans died, of which approximately 600,000 for trying to liberate a color of people most had never even seen. Of course I am happy that Canada has no such history of slavery, the Empire having banned it earlier. I wish we had been able to do so in 1776.But the question still lingers, if Canada had had slavery in 1860, would it still not have it today?…for there is nothing in your words that signals to me that either of you would lift a single finger, much less a rifle, to remove the boot of tyranny from the neck of your closest neighbor, much less a random host of black souls you don’t know?
Indeed, would Canada? After all, a sovereign Canada has never lost lives defending its own shores, nor have any Canadians died procuring liberty for themselves, and depending on what your public histories and schools say about Canada’s actions in the world wars and Korea, or even in Afghanistan, perhaps no Canadian ever died for someone else’s liberty.
In any case, spare me your whiny pieties about war. I like Canada and Canadians so will leave your nation alone in this debate, but it is clear to me that neither of you would have done a whit to end slavery anywhere in the world. You would always have had the status quo ante argument of legalism…built, if necessary, on laws that germinated in your own minds alone. Under such a strict legal regimen you would not have as much as lifted yourselves from your couch to stop Hitler from roasting the Jews, Mao his reactionaries, Stalin his wreckers or even Genghis Khan all the people who just got in the way of his horses. And you’re already on record what you’d have done to save Iraqi lives from Saddam. Nada.
I never got a response from either on this subject.
Why is it conservatives never come right out and say that the willingness of American men and women to die for the cause of not just liberty, but other men’s liberty, is a defining characteristic of American spirit? I know Ron Paul doesn’t agree, nor do Libertarians, for that matter.
But I can say this…go tell Putin’s new generation of America-haters that those 250,000 white crosses in Europe are shoulders they stand on as well. While Europe bears even more Russian graves than American, no slander ever accused any Russian of dying for the liberty of the French. But the fact that Americans have, and have shown in recent history they are still willing to ensures that none of their generation will ever die trying to repeat what their forbears did so well.
For that you owe America, not Putin, moi priyatyel.
