I’m not sure I would count on the “fundamentally transformed” Armed Forces to defy illegal orders in the future.
I agree.
And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.
This, of course, is the last sentence in our Declaration of Independence of July 4, 1776 when selfless patriots risked it all for their country.
I wonder how many selfless patriots one could find in this country today who would take such a risk as did our Founding Fathers? We now have career politicians in our Federal, State, and local governments who will do and say only whatever it takes to achieve office and then stay in office. This self-serving mindset continues throughout our career military leadership and our Federal workforce where, again, they will say and do only what is good for their career and whats good for the country doesnt even enter into the equation.
Do you really think any of the NPS Police who are on orders from Obama to keep Americans out of National Parks and National Monuments will do anything that will jeopardize their careers? For that matter, if the people resist the government and Obama declares Martial Law, do you think our military leadership will risk their careers by refusing to fire on the American people? Like you, I once thought they would, but life has taught me differently; let me explain.
I remember back to War Zone C in 1966 when I was a U.S. Army Special Forces NCO assigned to a Special Forces A Camp on the Cambodian border. When the weather was clear and intelligence reports indicated the Viet Cong werent in the immediate area, VIPs would occasionally helicopter into our camp for a visit. After our Detachment Commander had briefed them, they would usually stroll around our camp and inspire the troops before they departed. One day a visiting Colonel asked me, in passing, "Hows the war going Sergeant?" Im sure he didnt expect an answer to his inane question, but I gave him an answer anyway, and it was an ear-full. After he wiped the shocked expression off his face, he smirked and replied, "You just dont have the Big Picture, Sergeant." Then, he strutted back to his waiting helicopter, flew back to his big city Headquarters, and left me standing there scratching my head and wondering what he meant by his "Big Picture" response.
It took me a while to determine exactly what the Colonel meant, and when I did figure it out, it was a paradigm-shift that brought the war and the world into focus for me for the first time. That Colonel, and many other officers I served with in Vietnam, only saw the war as a once in a lifetime career opportunity that had to be milked for everything they could possibly squeeze out of it during the brief time they could take credit for its prosecution. As for the Colonel and his entourage visiting our camp, along with other Special Forces Camps along the border, I learned their motive was only to earn Air Medals, as each time they landed in one of our A Camps, they logged it as a Combat Assault.
At first, it was hard for me to understand how these officers could fight a war and nowhere in their agenda would be a priority on closing with the enemy, destroying him and winning the war. History had taught these officers that when the war ended, the ride was over, promotions stopped, the Army downsized, and they would be out of a job. So their priority was to keep the war going until they received their stars and could retire as General Officers. As medals were a sort of insurance against losing their jobs after the war, there were large division sized operations run for no apparent reason other than to justify medals for their senior leadership. Theres no doubt in my mind some of these officers prayed to God every night and beseeched God to Please dont end this war before I get my stars.
I found many, but not all, officers in Vietnam to be career-oriented opportunists who only saw the war as an opportunity to enhance their careers, and they would only do or say whatever was good for their careers. In an officers day to day decision making process he had three basic elements to consider: Whats best for the Mission? Whats best for his Men? And whats best for his Career? When the war ended, I noticed that those officers who had given primary consideration to their careers in every decision they had made remained in the Army and those who had put the prosecution of the war ahead of their careers were caught up in the first Reduction in Force (RIF) and eliminated. Those officers who had protected their careers at every juncture continued to protect their careers, and by doing and saying only what was good for their careers, they rose to become the senior leadership of the Army.
In my day to day interactions with these career conscious officers, I noticed that they considered us Special Forces NCOs to be feeble minded, and they didnt trust us simply because we placed no importance at all on our careers. They couldnt understand how we could be so irresponsible that we wouldnt take care of ourselves above all else. If we didnt protect our careers, we wouldnt have one, and then how would we one day support our family, pay our mortgage, and send our children to college?
No, I dont think there will be many, if any, NPS Policemen who will endanger their careers and threaten their familys security over this. For that matter, I dont think there will be many, if any, Americans with a full time 8 to 5 job, a family, and a mortgage who will risk their familys security over this. And, of course, the 47% arent going to risk their welfare check, EBT Card, and Bama Phone over this either.
Yes, we have become a nation of complacent sheep, and what the future holds for us is anybodys guess, as the American People live out the old Chinese curse, May you live in interesting times.
> Im not sure I would count on the fundamentally
> transformed Armed Forces to defy illegal orders in the
> future.
Good point. I know more than a few Christian men who will not be re-enlisting at the end of their current tours. I believe this is intentional. Christians will recognize illegal orders. Sodomites and pagans are far less likely to do so.