"Churchill served with distinction under fire in the in Afghanistan, at Omdurman, escaping from the Boers, and in South Africa, and in the trenches of WWI."
I'd add Cuba, spending his 21st birthday under fire. If it's not manly to leap into battle when you're supposed to be a reporter observing, and charge across an open field no less towards an enemy in heavy cover who you cannot see, I don't know what is. The Spanish awarded Churchill the Cruz Roja (Red Cross) Second class for his heroism. Of course, he was not allowed to wear that on his British uniform. He rode to the sound of the guns his whole life. I don't see how he would not be manly, but perhaps Carol has a different sense of what it means to be a man. That's a broader topic. Being tender -- loving animals, loving his wife, loving his children -- does not preclude manliness. It's another side of being a man. Whatever you call it, certainly escaping a POW camp and making your way from the capital of your enemy with a Dead-or-Alive bounty on your head (when you don't speak a word of the local language or have a map, money, and only some chocolate to live on) and spending days on the run, is manly. Certainly being entombed in a coal mine in the dark while hiding, with mice (they weren't rats, were they?) crawling all over him, was manly. Certainly reaching for his Mauser when two mounted Boers were aiming rifles at him after the train escape, was manly -- not to mention that he only consoled himself about surrendering by quoting Napoleon: "When one is unarmed and alone, a surrender may be pardoned." Even the act of riding through Hyde Park on his way to work every morning during The Troubles was a brave and manly deed. One day, when in the back of his car, he spotted two men set to ambush him. Did he run? No. He said, "If they want trouble, they'll get it," and it was only his bodyguard who prevented a firefight -- by knocking Churchill to the floor of the car and shouting, "Drive like the devil!" to the driver. Churchill was angry at having missed out on the action. Not manly? Remember too he wanted to be on a ship to watch the D Day landings, and only a personal appeal from the King finally convinced him to stay home and not risk his life. I think perhaps these are people having a bit of a joke on us all, and that it's simply the word "manly" being out of fashion. One thing is for sure: Churchill knew what it meant, and those who aren't afraid to know what it means today know what it means, too. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "ChurchillChat" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/ChurchillChat?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
