22
A CIEMR
By Don Harward
Twenty two is a number of significance to me in a personal way. It is one that I take notice of, just like the number 160. The second seems to come up a lot as well, and I love that number for some very good reasons, but the number twenty two, I seem to have a love-hate relationship with.
Twenty two, regrettably, is a number representing the number of veterans and active duty people who take their own lives every single day. Yea, I know the number must vary, but according to national statistics, it seems to be a running average. But juxtaposed beside that sad reminder the number twenty two is also a calendar date and one that happens to be the birthday of a very lovely daughter of mine. So it is also a joyous number, and when I hear the number my mind usually goes to one or the other ends of that emotional yardstick.
A couple of days ago the number twenty two popped up yet again. Like usual, seeing the number twenty two framed in the headline of a shared article drew me in sublimely to explore further. The headlines stated rather abruptly that 22 retired Generals and Admirals had signed up to endorsing Joe Biden. Now that is a shocker. I know a general or two and an Admiral, and am proud to call them friends. Some of them were previous commanders of mine, one when he was a captain, one when he was a major, then again as a Colonel, and I flew with one when he was a second lieutenant. He was my co-pilot by the way and that thought is a wee bit scary. It implies that I would be older than an old guy…Yikes!!!
Twenty two flag officers are endorsing this basement dweller who often runs out of steam by 0900. Twenty two of our nation’s finest and brightest are lining up behind a man who fondles children and is publically incoherent at times. I am not of the same pedigree as them by a long shot, but I can spot a fake and a liar and that task was not all that difficult with respect to Mr. Biden. These twenty two very senior officers who traditionally would have kept their yap shut as a sign of respect the military shows toward our civilian leaders have decided to become political. By doing so, they have changed the game a bit and have shifted the neutral ballast in our “good ship military” toward the left and have consequently tilted all of us who have or are serving.
Is the military now to become political? Now obviously, I could be found guilty in a New York minute easily being self-convicted as a right aligned political commentator. I do not keep my views held to within the circles of my ex-warrior peers. But to that I might add, I am not a former general, and if you ask some of my former commanders they would likely say they, at times, had a hard time imagining I was even an officer. Never the less, I am not a person recognized by our military and government as being worthy of wearing any stars let alone four of them.
Now you have to appreciate just how perplexing this is for me. I am one of those knuckleheads who did not just work as a soldier, nor serve some time then go off to some other occupation. Nope, I AM a soldier who is currently displaced by age, injuries, and a wife who says, “No more playing Armee for you!” So this stuff is real to me, and I can see that for decades and indeed, centuries we have enjoyed a working formula with respect to how we do military that has delivered, well, everything you can see in all four quadrants and flying overhead. So why then, I ask myself, should we ever want to change something that has worked so brilliantly for such a long time and has been brought to the test in every corner of this big old flat planet.
No, the planet is not flat, just kiddin’ these twenty two flag officers have defected in my view. Number one, they decided to break with tradition on a pretty big scale and endorse a socialist suffering from dementia. Number two, they are openly critical of President Trump! Anyone remember, or know of, or have heard of one General Douglas Macarthur? He was fired by President Truman after he got a bit frisky with our military and decided to expand the Korean War into China. As a combat pilot, I can see his decision to go against the president, I mean why not just kill these communists while we were there because if we don’t we’ll just have to come back and do it again. Err, check that, our sons will have to return and do it! But as an officer, I swore to the same oath as the general did and speaking to that oath, I would have to halt in the chock blocks and follow the directives of the commander-in-chief.
Well this extremely popular General MacArthur did not go whining and complaining, but instead retired and silently entered a private life saying “Old soldiers do not die, they just fade away.” He ended his service in dignity although he was relieved of command, and for that, sir, I honor and respect and thank you.
But these twenty two have said that our enemies no longer fear us. WHAT??? You telling me China isn’t concerned about us or Russia? You saying Iran is now all emboldened and parading their nuclear tipped missiles all over. Oh, that’s right, Trump pulled their cash and they are “Bomb-Net-Zero.”
These generals who have lost their ability to stand up for what is right say that Trump does not care about our military! Oh you mean the military that has nearly doubled in size from the one Obama left us with? Oh and how after the Trump showed up, suddenly our VA starting granting us disability when we show up of a physical missing two legs and a head?
They say Trump’s failure to control the spread of coronavirus is unforgiveable. OK, so when he cut off travel to/from China and Europe, that was what, his wanting people to vacation at his resort in Florida instead? Mr. Trump did a great job considering what he had to deal with. This new disease, the rapid spread and the fact that we knew practically nothing of the disease. If you are content to lay the blame for the coronavirus at his feet, you might as well blame him for the change in position of the jet stream or some algae bloom off the coast of New Guinea. As a friendly reminder, let’s not forget congress was trying to impeach the man and fabricating lies about the man on a weekly basis. Hell for that matter, let’s just blame everything on the man. Just break a fingernail? Darn that president, he should have enacted policies introducing finger nail strengthening foods when he first took office, what was he thinking? A man unable to foresee the decline in fingernail strength is not fir for office!.
It occurred to me that these twenty two generals and admirals have popped up on the radar nearly four years after Obama and his socialist ideas were kicked to the curb by a stirring class of patriotic Americans. So if you do some math (I’m a pilut so’s eye’s gud at cipherin’) The little “o” was in office for eight forgetful years and added to the almost four since the passing of his administration (like the passing during the morning constitutional), these four star folks would have been twelve years earlier in their development. See where I’m going with this? If not, hang on, we’re getting there.
During the little ’o’ years hundreds of senior officers were purged from our military. Yea, not the ones who were lieutenant colonels who longed for days when transvestites would be called on during makeup sessions to fire for effect from a 105mm artillery battery. He purged strong men who had been sending Taliban and enemies of our nation to hell and would openly commit the sin of calling these Muslims they were killing by their rightful name, a terrorist.
You see during that time commanders were promoted based not so much on how many F-16’s they could scramble, but on how energy efficient and green their bases were becoming. In a day when NASA was directed by the little “o” to study means by which the Muslim could be better accepted and understood by their neighbor rednecks, men of bravado and gusto were not so much the thing.
I remember pinching a lady’s butt in the officers’ club one Friday night, and subsequently getting clocked by her a moment later. I recall having to endure both the accompanying headache and the ribbing I took from all my “buds.” I did stuff like that and wrecking rental cars and flying that Chinook like it was a biplane in a barn-stormer air circus. But I kept on getting promoted and being placed in positions of more authority. Why? Because war fighting is a business for the bold and not so much for the more tender crowd. Although I wish that the business of war was not a common reality and that kindness and tenderness was found more commonly, amongst warriors it doesn’t even make the extra baggage list. We don’t have those qualities and if the truth be known I believe the number of causalities increase proportionally with the decrease of bravado.
These generals and admirals were born and grew feeding on the left, err, well the left one, whereas warfighters and strong leaders from the past favored the right one. I can’t imagine going into battle without having the opportunity to speak with my pastor, but today all he can legally say in our military is, “well, good luck son”. Bull frikkin crap! I want to hear, “Son, Jesus loves you and should you find yourself in his loving arms later tonight, know that you have done well by- him and that he will protect and comfort your family in your absence. But know also that he is closer to you than the cyclic in your cockpit and your next thirty round magazine”. Yea, I want to stop playing games and hear the real deal, because all this pandering bull smoke is just a lie. Our good men and women who serve deserve better than flag officers who have turned left and spread their putrid lies all around. Best for our country if they just “fade away.”
I think we are seeing some of the ripples from the poisoning of our sacred military society coming back to haunt us. The Generals I am honored, deeply honored, to know are men of substance. If they indeed have views about homosexuality or President Trump or the little “o” I have not heard it from them, ever.
So folks here we go again. Our very culture is poisoned. That and it suffers from a growing cancer. Trouble for us is that the body is all connected. If California dies, then I’ll bet it kills Maine as well. If any part of our nation gets infected, that infection needs to be dealt with lest it spread all over and kill the body. Obama unleashed a slow acting poison within our culture. We seeing it killing and destroying parts of our nation every day. A city block here an institution there. The truth is perverted and apparently no longer recognizable by a pretty large number of us.
2 Chronicles 7:1414 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
The time has come. Continue to do the right thing, but prepare. Storm clouds gather…
God Bless the United States of America
NSDQ
