My Heart on the Line

the Washington Post ^ | November 26, 2002 | Frank Schaeffer

[dansangel]

Excellent post. We, as Americans, must be reminded on a daily basis that it is because of men and women who have chosen to make the sacrifice of serving in the military that we enjoy the freedoms we have today.

Many of these fine men and women gave their lives for us. For no other reason than they love this country.

May God bless and hold each of these fine young men and women close to His heart. May those that gave the ultimate sacrifice rest for all of eternity in His arms. May God comfort the family and friends of those lost while serving their country. May He give the rest of us the wisdom and compassion to support and pray for our military.

[joesnuffy]

Make sure we elected leaders who were actually in combat and didnt seek to avoid it at all costs..

[MP5]

Great Post!

[savedbygrace]

GASP! You mean freedom ain't free?

(As Will Rogers used to say: "A lot of people who ain't sayin' "ain't" ain't eatin' as good as I am.")

[Pippin]

Thanks for the ping, Tonkin!

It is a great read!

[sneakypete]

Great read however, and points to one of the major disconnects in our country today.

AND highlights one of the prime reasons the draft needs to be reinstated.

[sneakypete]

The other thing that struck me immediately is that he writes like a woman.

I noticed that also,and I too was surprised to see the author is a male.

[prognostigaator]

Bump for the young men and women in the military today...

They are a breed apart..

[mountaineer]

I believe this writer is Franky Schaeffer V, the son of noted Christian writers and missionaries Francis and Edith Schaeffer. (Dr. Schaeffer died in 1984). They collaborated with Dr. C. Everett Koop in the late 1970s for the outstanding pro-life book and film series "Whatever Happened to the Human Race?"

It's probably not accurate to call Franky a liberal, in the usual political sense. Growing up in Europe, as he did, the arts and religion - not the military - were the focus of his life.

In any event, I appreciate that he now realizes the value of his son's choice.

[sneakypete]

When I was discussing my son's desire to serve in the military a friend looked at me and said, none of my brothers ever served, that's for the 'lower' classes.

I hear the same thing fairly often,and it's not the rich people I hear saying it. It's the middleclass,some of the recent immigrants who still speak with a accent,and whose sons hold dual citizenship. They flat-out say their sons will never enlist,and if they are ever drafted,they will "send him back to the home country".

[SkyPilot]

bump

[mountaineer]

I should clarify that this writer, Frank Schaeffer, was the director of the pro-life film I mentioned. His father and Dr. Koop wrote the book and appeared in the film, which was very well done and should be rented by any pro-life group or church.

[aBootes]

The other thing that struck me immediately is that he writes like a woman. (I am a woman, but I've been trained to write like a man, at least for publication.)

Yeah, me too.

I thought the piece WAS written by a woman, and a weepy emotional one at that, until I looked back at the byline. That tells me something about where this guy's head is at, I'm just not sure what or where.

Dunno where you're writing from, but I'm writing from a university library while [not] working on a Ph.D. Strange as it seems, there's a fair amoung of pressure on the gentlemen here to moderate their self-expression in directions formerly considered exclusively feminine. And even more remarkably, the source of this pressure is always male. Really weird. I'm never quite sure how -- or if -- I want to deal with it.

[SAMWolf]

Bump!

[OldFriend]

Liberals everywhere seem to have the same philosophy......it's good enough for others to make sacrifices while they sit in their over heated homes, drive their SUVs and rant against the rest of us in general and in particular the President for wanting a war for oil.

[OldFriend]

One of my husband's cousins is married to an Iraqi. We recently were in their company and listened to all the ranting against President Bush. When he began is assert that the only reason one of the WTC buildings fell was because Rudy stored diesel fuel there, he took one look at my face and changed the subject. Suddenly, the terrorists were absolved of all blame and it became Rudy's fault.

A little careful listening revealed that the family sent their sons out of Iraq so they wouldn't have to serve in the army there. IMHO, people like that are all cowardly bastards.

[OldFriend]

Frankly, I would much rather have people who have volunteered to be in the military than some of the 'protestors' subverting the process from the inside. Let them roam the streets with their assinine slogans.....

[Hemingway's Ghost]

In any event, I appreciate that he now realizes the value of his son's choice.

As one from the same area, and as one who's seen firsthand the "elite's" opinion of anyone who serves---even as a commissioned officer---I'm glad he has too.

[AnAmericanMother]

I'm no longer cluttering up the groves of Academe, but I spent a good deal of time there both as a student and later as an adjunct professor. I was teaching research and writing to first year law students, so I was able to attack this ugly trend at the source, so to speak.

That sort of feminized writing style is useless for good legal writing, which requires precision, clarity, and a spare style. Of course, those lawyers who seek to obscure the facts might find such a style useful in the short run . . . in a limited way. And I guess in academic areas where the outcome isn't as plainly expressed in dollars, muddy thinking is o.k. or at least more easily overlooked.

[borisbob69]

Thanks for the PING!

During my 20 years in the Air Force I had the opportunity to discuss military service with my children as they moved and adapted to my many duty assignment locations.

Imagine my surprise when they both chose to enlist in the Marines. I was no less proud of them than this writer was of his son...in fact I was filled with American pride at the Graduation for my youngest son at MCRD San Diego. His graduation ceremony and the many tales of "Boot" inspired my oldest son to enlist.

Unfortunately, my oldest washed out halfway through due to (previously)undiagnosed knee problems and he came home supremely disappointed. His younger brother served 4 years, including the obligatory 6 months in Okinawa (where coincidentally I had been stationed in the mid 70's), and separated from The Corps at the end of his 4 year enlistment.

During this war on terror...our citizens should remember that we as Americans are the ONLY people in the world that care about the survival of our country and our way of life. Isn't that knowledge worth supporting a strong military and lending the past/present/future our sons and daughters for a few years?