Written At Monday, August 15, 2005, 18:49:43 Hello All,
First off, I just got this from a friend and would like to share it with you all. I am an American and this particular quote made me start thinking. I know we have a lot of diversity on this list, but I would like just to say that I agree with this and thought it would let others know, at least for me, how some of us Americans feel. BRITISH LION ROARS Why does Tony Blairs strength make me worry about my own countrys weakness? Why has the vigor and courage of Englands response to terrorism given me second thoughts about Americas? The contrast has been stark. We were hit and they were hit. We acted one way and they acted another, and their way seems better. Dont get me wrong, Ive been a George W. Bush supporter from the beginning. I believe going into Iraq was the right thing, and I support our efforts and our troops there. But Im beginning to get the idea that were more talk than action, and that we may lack an essential mental toughness, and that we are dangerously bound by nonsensical political correctness. The cumulative impact of these things is to endanger our nation and its survival. As I have seen Englands leaders respond to the attacks against it, Ive been embarrassed by the failure of our leaders to respond with similar resolve and candor. At the top, the British liberal is showing more spine than the American conservative. No one is more proud of being an American than I am, and no one loves this country more I do. But an honest assessment shows that we are lacking, in our culture and in our leadership, and have apparently grown soft in our prosperity and insularity. We dont know how to take a punch, and we dont know how to put up a fight. The characteristics that equipped us to win the Second World War seem now to be in short supply. We still weep over September 11, while the British jaw clenches in resolve. We lost 3,000 and are patting down grandmothers at the airport; they lost 56 and are getting ready to shut down militant mosques. Our president says Islam is a religion of peace; their prime minister says militant Islam will not be tolerated in his country. Our internees get ACLU lawyers; theirs are going to be charged with treason. Our president gives us a diversity lecture; their prime minister says immigrants have a duty to support and accept English values and learn the English language. It scares me. Down deep, I just have the sense that theyre doing things right and were doing things wrong. I wonder if their centuries of repelling invaders and having to fight for their very existence has given them a certain fortitude that our comfort and security have denied us. Yes, after we were attacked we put flags on our cars and our president talked tough. And, yes, we did go into Afghanistan as we should have and we did go into Iraq as we should have, but after we got there we never quite got the job done. Osama is still on the loose, in apparent command of an operational terrorist organization, the Taliban is still in the field and bloodying us, we are presiding over a quagmire in Iraq and we havent figured out how to keep a bunch of savages with bombs from blowing up our trucks and troops. Weve sent our troops out, Vietnam style, and tied their hands behind their backs. Weve taught our Army how to build schools, but we wont free it to kill our enemies. Its almost as if, at the highest levels of our government, weve forgotten how to fight. We seem to be all hat and no cattle. Tony Blair said that people preaching militant Islam and violence would be deported, if foreigners, and locked up, if Britons. He said those found praising or encouraging the terrorists would be tried for treason. Tony Blair said that militant Islamic websites would be shut down, that militant Islamic bookstores would be shut down, that militant Islamic coffee shops would be shut down, that militant Islamic mosques would be shut down. Tony Blair said imams preaching jihad would be imprisoned or deported. Our president is insisting that this is not about religion, it is about terror. George W. Bush is asking for tolerance for Muslims; Tony Blair is asking for accountability from them. One defends Muslim leaders; the other insists that they stand up and denounce their violent fellow believers. Theyre kicking butt, were kissing butt. England is chasing down those who attacked it; were confiscating fingernail files by the millions. Were randomly checking bags on the subway. And ignoring our southern border. And winning hearts and minds. The American response has been one of weakness; the English response has been one of strength. Its really that simple. Theyre fighting and were pussyfooting. And thats become obvious in recent days. Sometimes you dont realize how short you are, until you see how tall the other fellow is. And Tony Blair is pretty tall. - by Bob Lonsberry © 2005 -- Best regards, Michael mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] ________________________________________________________ Current beta is 3.51.10 | 'Using TBBETA' information: http://www.silverstones.com/thebat/TBUDLInfo.html IMPORTANT: To register as a Beta tester, use this link first - http://www.ritlabs.com/en/partners/testers/
