Blinded by Hatred

Do we not marvel at the capacity for hatred by some on the hysterical Left? Isn’t it difficult to imagine summoning the energy necessary to maintain the debilitating obsession to despise George Bush to such a degree? They cannot see how foolish they look, and what dumb things result from their all-encompassing hate. They are blinded by it.

One result spilling over is contempt for our military. Perhaps they remember and are proud to recreate the scorn and derision shown to Viet Nam vets upon their return to the States. Oh sure, they pay lip service to today's returning service personnel. But it is evident that the underlying sentiment is one of contempt, and that contempt is magnified by a rising tide of patriotism across America. They are unable to understand how so many Americans can fail to recognize that their country is an evil force in the world, and are baffled that so many regard our military as heroes, not mindless robots under the control of a wicked President.

The same failures of perception and recognition that so confuse the Left’s ability to evaluate the November election fog their efforts to properly interpret not only the reasons for the war in Iraq, but also for the high regard in which our military is held by a majority of Americans.

Wesley Pruden addresses this patriotic uprising in today’s column in The Washington Times, citing three instances of spontaneous appreciation for military personnel returning from Iraq.

One traveler tells the Wall Street Journal Online: "Last Thursday I was on a flight from Dallas-Fort Worth to Portland, Ore. There were four soldiers returning home for a two-week leave from Iraq. As the plane arrived at the gate in Portland, the pilot mentioned and thanked them for their service and asked that they be allowed to disembark first. As each of them walked toward the front of the plane, the rest of the passengers erupted in spontaneous applause."

Another traveler reports a similar experience: "In the past two weeks I have witnessed American Airlines giving empty first-class seats to soldiers and an entire terminal in Denver giving a plane full of disembarking soldiers a standing ovation on a busy Friday night." Still another traveler: "I, too, was spit upon and called a 'baby killer' in September 1971, in the San Diego airport, while wearing my Navy uniform. ... The Super Bowl ad brought me to tears, not of pain remembering my experience, but from pride in today's American patriots."

Pruden goes on to illustrate the attitude of real Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines, who face their duty bravely and solemnly.

My cousin Chris Sarris died the other day in New Orleans at 80. The most momentous four years of his life were reduced to a single line in a modest obituary in the newspaper: "He was a Marine Corps veteran of World War II." … he said: "The only mark I got in four years was a small burn when a piece of shrapnel hit my hand." Enough, maybe, for a Purple Heart for John Kerry, but he was chagrined to talk about it.

Americans make lousy imperialists. We don't do Nuremberg rallies. Americans make pretty good soldiers, as a lot of men in Valhalla could tell you, but when the shooting stops the American GI only wants to come home, marry the girl next door, pop the top on a cool one and watch the Patriots clock the Eagles. It's what makes him distinctively American.

So here's another round of heartfelt applause for the lousy imperialist: This Bud's for you.

Our brave military personnel deserve much more than the second-guessing of their actions by armchair generals. They deserve our undying respect and admiration.

Wesley Pruden's complete column