Posted on 09/02/2014 5:49:30 AM PDT by Kaslin
Is history going to repeat itself?
I recently read the book "The Miracle of Freedom: 7 Tipping Points That Saved the World," by Chris Stewart and Ted Stewart. The Stewarts describe how radical Islam came within a hair's breadth of taking over the world.
As I read that chapter and reflected upon my recent columns on the Islamic State's proliferation and atrocities, I thought again: If we don't get leadership in Washington that can deal with such matters, history will repeat itself, except radical Islam could possibly win this time.
As The Blaze explained, "Chris and Ted Stewart ask a question: How unusual is freedom in history? The answer may surprise some of you. The Stewarts estimate that fewer than 5 percent of all people have ever lived under conditions we in the Western World would consider free. The book explores a series of critical events, 'obvious forks in the road leading to very different outcomes that resulted in this extraordinary period we live in.'"
The Stewarts also discuss how only 22 of the 195 countries around the world have had a democratic government that has lasted for more than 50 years.
And to what do those few countries owe the great privilege of freedom? The Stewarts say not merely our own efforts to fight for it but also the efforts of others throughout history. A few noteworthy examples include:
--A small band of Greek soldiers and their naval officers in a life-or-death conflict with the Persians in 480 B.C.
--Our allies in Great Britain who refused to surrender to the crushing power of Adolf Hitler's Third Reich.
--A handful of Frankish soldiers who opposed the conquering armies of Islam more than 13 centuries ago.
In my previous two columns, I discussed how President Barack Obama's foreign policy of appeasement has only emboldened our enemies, especially in the case of Islamic extremists.
No president is perfect. But compared with Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush, Obama's laissez-faire foreign policy plan -- namely, ignore or negotiate with our enemies -- is only causing their expansion and empowerment. They have spread like wildfire while he has coddled them and played the passive, retreating giant. And he is not the first in recent history to make this calamitous mistake.
The British prime minister from 1937 to 1940, Neville Chamberlain, was also known for his appeasement foreign policy. Despite Chamberlain's signing the Munich Agreement in 1938 and conceding the Sudetenland region of Czechoslovakia to Germany, Hitler continued his blitzkrieg and invaded Poland. Rather than divert war, Chamberlain exacerbated its conditions and therefore had to work triple time to fight a stronger Germany in the first eight months of World War II. Only when Britain hit its tipping point did it even declare war on Germany in September 1939.
President Jimmy Carter is another example of the failure of appeasement foreign policy. In reaction to the Vietnam War, Carter downgraded the role of the U.S. military and sought a more peaceful path on the planet by downplaying the threat of our enemies, too.
Dr. Robert G. Kaufman, a professor of public policy at Pepperdine University, summarized Carter's plight well. In his May 1977 speech at Notre Dame University, Carter dismissed what he called "our inordinate fear of communism." As a result, the Soviets invaded Afghanistan in 1979. The revolutionary government of Iran held 52 American hostages for 444 days, something that also bolstered the strength of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's oppressive anti-American Islamist regime.
Moreover, the refusal of U.S. military and economic aid to Grenada strengthened its relationship with communist Cuba and heightened tensions with the U.S.
And not to be forgotten is Adm. Bobby Ray Inman, the director of the National Security Agency under Carter. Inman's communications were intercepted, which uncovered that Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi had made a "loan" of $220,000 to Carter's brother, Billy, to gain influence inside the White House.
It took a tough president, Ronald Reagan, to right the international wrongs of Carter and regain America's place in the world.
As far as Obama is concerned, Kaufman compared his ineffective foreign policy to Carter's and wrote, "Obama also has reprised Carter's mistake of offering too little, too late."
Because of Obama's foreign policy of appeasement, the Islamic State has seized Syria and Iraq -- and is spreading around the world; Hamas and Hezbollah are greater enemies of Israel; Russia is invading Ukraine; North Korea is more vigilant against the West; and Egypt and Libya are in political and military disarray.
Remember, early in Obama's presidency, when supporting the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt during the so-called Arab Spring was the new U.S. path for world peace?
Understanding the end result of Obama's appeasement foreign policy is like looking into a historical crystal ball. Radical Islam has spread over the past seven years; the global community is more volatile than ever; and the U.S. is in a more unstable and vulnerable position and inching closer and closer to another world war.
As the old adage goes, if we don't learn from history, we are bound to repeat it.
The seven tipping points that the Stewarts discussed remind us that each of those who fought for freedom through the ages has -- in some way or another -- made it easier for us to grab the baton of liberty. But the fact is that each country must fight to preserve freedom; otherwise, it will unravel one thread at a time. Like a frog in a kettle, we won't realize it's over until it's too late. That is exactly the boiling point the U.S. is at with radical Islam and other extremist powers in the world, and the only way out is through stronger leadership in Washington.
Kaufman noted the only way out: "Count on worse to come until Americans elect a neo-Reaganite president who will renounce the Carteresque foreign policy of Barack Obama."
That reminds me of a video that my wife, Gena, and I made in 2012. We cited these words from Reagan, which are truer today than even back when he said them:
"You and I have a rendezvous with destiny. We will preserve for our children this last best hope of man on earth, or we will sentence them to take the first step into a thousand years of darkness. If we fail, at least let our children and our children's children say of us we justified our brief moment here. We did all that could be done."
I ask again: Is history going to repeat itself? Is it already doing so?
I would agree with you, but the “OP” I believe was not downplaying the threat ISIS/ISIL pose to our population...I believe they understand the threat, and until they decide to change their tactics, the conventional battle field will be won by our side eventually...
The asymmetrical battlefield, will be coming soon to a neighborhood near you...
And to be honest, there is nothing that will stop it...We will try to mitigate the risk, but we are about to get a serious bloody nose, and the country will become unglued...
It is only a matter of time...On that you are absolutely correct...
The ultimate “gut-check” (rhetorical) question, not needing details in a public forum here is:
“What are YOU prepared to do about it??? And, what are YOU prepared to sacrifice to achive this victory???”
Those old foagy guys in wigs realized what they were proposing would bring a bigger fight than the one they debated with, with their friends and colleagues...They might have not seen eye to eye on details, but they did know one thing was coming...
After they finished debating the merits of this experiment we now all “These United States of America”, they went to the local pub, tossed back a few pints, went home, and with their families, by the firelight, cast musket balls...
Because they knew a fight was coming...
They knew they could not stop it from happening, because the enemy was determined to bring the fight to us...
And if we are to be victorious, then the question really is what I asked...
People want to believe this is not going to happen, those are the people that need to get out of the way...
3% of the population of the “states” in the revolution fought for our independence...
I believe we will have a few more than that...And we are better prepared, and equipped to take care of this...
The options are limited, the results of capitulation are unacceptable...
We’ll see you in the trenches...Think of the wonderful Winston Churchill speeches he gave to rally his people in their finest hour!!!
We need a Churchill to rally with these days...
Please re-read what I said then get back to me.
Thank you.
What we have here is so precious. The left doesn't understand the world is full of 'quick' dictatorships that can get things done ... BECAUSE they're not free. One more reason to hate liberals...
What gripes me is that we are going to shoot ourselves in the foot again. We need to get 6 seats to control the senate, but already we see stupidity where libertarian candidates are slated again against some of our incumbants, which will give the vote to the Democrat.
I don’t care if our candidates are not 100% concervative all the time. We need to control the Senate.
It is written by author and military historian, William Fortschen. He put it out out on Kindle before the dead tree version because he feels it is so important to get out there. I agree. It is chilling.
Trey Gowdy.
Sorry, but we don’t have twenty plus years to overhaul our school systems, they will be madrassas by then.
LOL, good point, but I try to be optimistic and speak optimistically in the face of this ocean of negativity we face under the Democrats!
Civilization is never more than one generation from catastrophe. Israel reached its peak under David and his son Solomon. Where were they after Solomon’s death? What was Germany like in 1913 in the middle of the Kaisar’s reign? Where were they 25 years later?
We cannot afford to take wealth and power, or even safety, stability, and freedom for granted. We have to earn each of those blessings; inheritance is not enough to pass them on to our children’s children. If we choose not to earn freedom, then we will pass on to our children what the Germans of 1910-1930 passed on to their children, what the Jews of David’s generation passed on to their grandchildren, and what the Romans finally passed on to those of the Dark Ages. The scary thing is how many people like that idea or don’t care - there are lots of them, including most Obama voters.
Honestly, the only guy right now that has my respect would be Rick Perry.
When the enemy is ISIS, we won’t win if we play by
some rules. They have to be ELIMINATED like roaches.
That means gas, poison, nuclear, whatever I don’t want history to say the USA fell because they wanted to obey
the rules set up by the UN. It’s survival, man!! Have you ever been attacked in an alley? That is not a time to follow the Queensberry (sp) rules. We need someone like
DRACULA THE IMPALER.
He saved his country from them.
Pure fiction...
Our country will never NOT play by some sort of rules...What you suggest is close to an anarchical type existence “after the fact”...
This country will not be won over without some serious hits to its population...So, therefore, the survivors WILL be doing some adjustments to our system of response, and the quality and quantity of that response will be determined by how hard we are hit...
The U.N. will be confirmed to be the feckless wannabe club for losers very soon...They will never be a factor in any significant plans the people in this country will adhere to by “their” rules...You are dead on right about that...
Have I ever been attacked??? You betcha, I took a knife in my side waiting in line with my GF at a movie theater in San Diego...I learned a lesson that evening, I was not invulnerable...I learned it could happen to anyone, at anytime...This country, its people, at least a great majority of them know there is a threat out there, but they do not believe we are close to any form of physical danger, before it is too late...They have not learned the lesson yet...
Until then, I do not see us, you and I having to do anything but have to wait and see how the people handle the next attacks in our homeland...
You probably should go back and read up on “Vlad, the Impaler”...I’m not sure that analogy works for the situation we are facing now...A colorful analogy, that I will give you, but one wrought by legend, based upon myth, and Hollywood...There is not a lot, most could apply to our situation based upon that story...
A scholarly report. I think we have taken a sufficient hit
with 2 beheadings. The 2 atomic bombs against Japan was
certainly some payback for Pearl Harbor & the Bataan Death
March, but it took nearly 4 years. Rules work for civilized people but not for zealots. They are like dogs who have rabies.
I have read parts of the Koran.
Many inconsistencies. Mohammad couldn’t read/write so he dictated every morning the night messages from Allah. So
a few days later he would have a new message which
contradicted an earlier message. He was a sex fiend and
the Koran paradise sounds like a sex orgy for the men.
So what you are saying is that one beheading is reason enough to take the fight to ISIS/ISIL, declare war of them, no one else, and get ‘r dun...Right???
Ok, sure, I’m with you on this...I have no reason to not support that reaction...
So is our military might only in a reactive mode??? We will only utilize that force when we are attacked??? Never preemptively???
I can dig that as well...
You know, on a side note, we hear and are being told we need to build a coalition of nations to combat this evil...I have no quarrels with that approach...
But when you have a leader of the ONLY nation that could build a coalition, that fails to lead, what do you have at that point???
Obama is never going to go hawkish on anyone for any reason...He’s got 24 more months to screw the pooch which is this country, and damage it enough to the point where the next administration, if it manages to be Republican (conservative) will be too busy repairing the damage that nothing really will ever be done...And what is done will be so demagoged, and without ANY credibility, it only makes sense that we might as well NOT repair anything...That will be the domestic and international position even before it happens, if the situation presents itself...
I could care less about the eccentricities we all know so well about Mohamed and his Islamic “made up” religion...I do not sweat their goon squads even today...
We know what we have to do, the question is, are there enough of us to get it done???
Kosovo Albanian Leads al Qaeda/ISIS Army in Fallujah
Additionally the entire world came down on Russia for going after the chechen scum terrorists, and now guess who is leading the way in ISIS/IRAQ?
I really don't know how much more stupid Clinton and Obama can get. History keeps repeating itself and no one gets it....
"For example, in 1993 statements were issued by a number of Roman Catholic, Protestant, and Anglican spokesmen in the United States urging military intervention on behalf of the Islamic regime in Sarajevo. "We are convinced that there is just cause to use force to defend largely helpless people in Bosnia against aggression and barbarism that are destroying the very foundations of society and threaten large numbers of people," wrote the chairman of the U.S. Catholic Conference, at a time when the Muslim beneficiaries of the called-for intervention were not only roasting alive Serb POWs impaled on spits but were slaughtering Roman Catholic Croats by the hundreds in an offensive in central Bosnia."
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