Billy's Silly Blog

On Courage

We have just passed Remembrance Day and on that day we certainly remember the courage of countrymen, generally young fellows, who have been sent off to fight on our behalf, some of whom may not return. They have a job to do.. their responsibility is to ensure they discharge their responsibilities effectively and honourably. Their raw courage demands a huge sacrifice on our part, that we have clearly thought out WHY we have put them there. Given the huge stakes, this should be done VERY carefully, with great honesty and courage, and I would argue we are not doing a particularly good job of it. We have people fighting in Afghanistan. If they are there:

- to ensure females can go to school, perhaps it would be more effective to spend the money building schools in Africa.
- to liberate people oppressed by thugs, then we should be careful NOT to support thugs in our haste to rid the war of terrorists, socialistic governments, communists, etc.
- to counter religious fanaticism, perhaps we should first ensure that it plays no part in our domestic decisions.
- because the US indicates that our trade is tied to their aid, then that should be openly discussed and assessed.
- for reasons of GREED (ensuring that the west has open access to the world's resources), let's openly discuss that as well. The ethics of supporting international privateers is hard to defend, but our presence in the Americas itself speaks to the effectiveness of this strategy. Being honest takes courage.

A friend recently reminded me that the war in Vietnam was a result of FEAR, fear that the war was required to forestall world dominance by the communists. The current wars are fuelled by fear as well.. fear of terrorism such as befell New York City. While basic responses to fear include fighting and flight, there are other options, such as talking, obtaining information, and obtaining respect from our "adversaries" while reducing THEIR fear. The only real antidote to fear is COURAGE. It is we at home who need the courage to do a proper job in support of our soldiers overseas.

Some say it takes courage, BIG courage to fight,
Whether off in a war, or to battle for right
In our courts and our parliaments! I would agree
But that’s only a part of it, it seems to me.

There’s everyday folk who have courage to burn,
The ones who give out and get less in return!
The ones who can open their wallets and share
With less fortunate folk when there’s little to spare.

The ones who give love to unlovable folk,
Who treat grumpy old farts with a hug or a joke!
My wife is a saint! I would say openly
It takes maximum courage in dealing with ME.

posted by bill @ 11:54 AM