This election year has generated a lot of talk about the role of America’s military in the Middle East. Less frequently does the conversation turn to what’s really at the heart of the matter – whether we, as Americans, are committed to a world blessed with freedom for all humankind.
The microscopic critiquing of what went wrong, what went right, and how well we’re doing is all very important, particularly if we want to continue to conduct a successful military campaign. But often we forget to “zoom out” and take in the larger picture. Two nonprofits, the LOOC (Lives Out of Combat) Foundation and Freedom Is Not Free, have teamed up to remind Americans what this larger picture looks like.
The LOOC Foundation has created a feature-length documentary and a beautiful hardbound portrait book called Warriors …In Their Own Words. As the title indicates, the book and DVD are a compilation of sentiments from men and women in uniform about what their service means to them and what they believe it means to the world. These works contain snapshots of insight from service personnel in every American military branch, and even testimonials from servicemen in the United Kingdom. Many of the men and women interviewed are currently serving in Iraq or Afghanistan, while others recall their service in World War II, Korea or Vietnam.
Watching the documentary evokes a spectrum of emotions, from awe for what these men and women are willing to endure in the name of freedom to humbled thankfulness for their sacrifices. The portrait book drives home the timelessness of our need for warriors by opening with historical figures from the Peloponnesian War (431-422 BC), the Battle of Hastings (1066) and the French and Indian War (1731-1795).
The Warriors project is to show that our men and women in uniform – our warriors – hear a calling. They believe in the validity of their mission, and they know the difference they make in the world is palpable. They have volunteered to serve a higher purpose than themselves. As Colonel James D. McGinley of the Marine Corps states: “Those who have never worn the Cloth of our Nation may call it the military, but those in uniform will always say The Service.”
Our warriors understand that America has a special calling to promote freedom and democracy. In the words of one Marine, “the United States is a beacon of light, whether we want to admit it or not.” America’s strength is further echoed in the confidence with which one soldier speaks of his calling: “There’s no danger abroad that our troops can’t handle.”
Warriors also acknowledge personal betterment as an incentive to serve. One naval officer describes the personal fulfillment that his service has given him: “There’s nothing better than knowing that you have served your country and answered your calling.”
Another Marine attests to the sensation of a calling: “I felt it was my duty to do something. Because I can, I need to. Because there are so many who can’t and want to …” As one airman describes it, his calling comes from a sense of duty: “It was just something that you needed to do, and you did it because it was expected.”
All of the warriors interviewed communicate their belief that, at its core, the mission of their calling is to defend America and freedom, both here and abroad.
The calling to spread freedom and champion democracy did not originate with President Bush, or even with our Founding Fathers. The mission of democracy is much older than that, as Warriors reminds us through its selection of the famed funeral oration given by Pericles in commemoration of fallen Athenian soldiers for its foreword:
“Our form of government does not enter into rivalry with the institutions of others. Our government does not copy our neighbors’, but is an example to them. It is true that we are called a democracy, for the administration is in the hands of the many and not of the few. But while there exists equal justice to all and alike in their private disputes, the claim of excellence is also recognized; and when a citizen is in any way distinguished, he is preferred to the public service, not as a matter of privilege, but as the reward of merit.”
Everything that is at stake now -- in Iraq and Afghanistan, in the threats posed by Iran and North Korea, in the insolence demonstrated by Russia in its invasion of Georgia -- is the same “everything” that has always been at stake for as long as men have made war. Our Declaration of Independence cites freedom as an unalienable right, not just for Americans but for all human beings. Our way of life, our very right to exist, is the “everything” for which our service men and women are willing to give so much of themselves. They fight to defend America’s freedoms, and they fight to grant the gift of freedom worldwide.
You can order Warriors, the book and the DVD, at the LOOC Foundation’s Web site. All the proceeds benefit Freedom Is Not Free, a 501(c)3 organization dedicated to aiding wounded troops, their families, and the families of the fatally wounded.
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Wearing of a uniform does not make one a warrior. 3/4 of all military jobs do not involve combat. In the Navy and Air Force, over 90% of the jobs are non combat. Sci Fi author Robert H Hienlin once referred to the Navy as a "Non combatant service force"
Even serving as a "Worker Bee" Instead of a "Warrior Bee" Will teach you something. Your comic book image of the military will be the first casualty. Next, even as a worker (And perhaps even more so) You will learn what it takes to project power and occupy even a small country. Once youlearn this, it will become obvious that there is no nation which can project enough power to occupy even one of our smaller states much less all 50 so your myth of our freedom being threatened is just that, a myth.
The truth is that our own depravities are a much greater threat to us than any of "Your enemies" (Not mine because I refuse to share your fear and hatred of them).
As a 26 year veteram myself, I cannot embrace your worship of a corrupt self serving military industrial complex.
In the words of Teddy Roosevelt "Anyone who calls for war should present his own body with which to fight it!" This has gotten to be the first time the chickenhawk has recieved so much acclaim. The loudest voices come from those who never served.
Combat veterans are the first top question the need for war. Back when I was 19 and eager myself, I had a former Marine get in my face and warn me "Pray for war one more time and I'll kill you!" 25 years later folowing 9-11, we had to dive under a real ship looking for a real bomb. I learned how that former Marine felt. Join up and put this comic book vision to rest. Click here to reply to this post
Dominionism in unBiblical
Posted On: 10/02/08 12:02:32 PM
Age 39, FL
"Scripture tells us that God is over the nations and places in power those whom He chooses-men of base nature (Daniel 4:17).
Those who wish to change the world are in for a sore disappointment. They decry the awful condition of mankind, and feel that it is their duty to clean things up. They are with good reason horrified at the evil that is manifested today. And each generation perceives that evil as increasing.
The United States is especially marked for its sins. Cries abound that crime is epidemic, divorce is rampant, immorality pervades society, America's inner cities are filled with anger and hopelessness, our moral foundation is weakened.
But that is how it is in every city all over the world. The United States is still the most civil country on earth in spite of its many shortcomings. Yes, America is going to be judged for its sins, but so is every nation on earth.
Does this mean that we should not care? Of course not. But to decry the state of a fallen world for the purpose of mobilizing Christians in the hope of transforming that world is futile. Sin will continue to wax worse until Jesus Himself returns to judge the nations. And even then, during His righteous reign on the earth, many hearts will not bend to him even if the knees do bend out of fear or force."
'Spreading freedom/democracy'? True freedom comes through Christ as your Savior, and will never come through man's effort to 'save the world'. That's fluffy communist idealism, it's not based in reality. Click here to reply to this post
I would like to add.......
Posted On: 10/06/08 11:30:33 AM
Age 49, CA
Even in the cases where we are right, the world will not bow to us. Jesus warned "Light has come to the world but men prefer darkness" And this is when we are right on something. All too often, our rightious deeds come with fine print where we demmand payment. If we were the christian nation some claim we are, we would be known by our fruits. As it is, our divorce rate, abortion rate, teen pregnancy rate, and other vices of the world are little if any different. Talk about salt which has lost its saltiness. We boast about our standard of living. Did not Jesus warn "You say I am rich and have need of nothing but I say you are poor!"? Once again, material wealth does not mean God has blessed us.
The late Dr. J Vernon McGee once preached "The Lord punished this nation in Southeast Asia because we went in there with bombs instead of Bibles!"
The world will not bow to us. Nor should it. Click here to reply to this post
