Unity And Strength
Published: Mon, 12/07/15
definite and unambiguous.
74 years ago today, the Japanese
attacked Pearl Harbor.
It unified a country behind a cause.
For survival. For a way of life we
felt was being threatened.
It gave us "The Greatest Generation,"
and turns out, it really was.
A generation of men willingly fought
and died for their country.
And a generation of women supported
them in every way imaginable....including
keeping the war effort and country as a
whole running.
I salute that generation. This past February
my father and I had the privilege of sitting
with a World War II veteran in a Chinese
restaurant in southern Florida.
Long story how that happened, but when
you have an opportunity to listen to
living history, you take it.
*** ***
There is a threat to our way of life now,
but it's a lot more ambiguous than anything
from the past.
There is a group of people, actually several
groups that want to kill out of religious fervor,
weaken our resolve, and establish their own
entity based on a belief system that is impossible
to reconcile with anything that includes human dignity.
There is also an undercurrent of fear, of blind anger
of a desire to get rid of "them."
That trend is more dangerous to our way of life
than terrible but isolated incidents of terrorism.
I don't have the answers. I don't "do" politics
or religion on my blog or to my subscribers.
The only thing I know for sure is you don't conquer
hate with more hate...fear with more fear.
You conquer it with love. And strength.
And commitment to your best self.
And for your neighbors. And your fellow citizens.
Be smart. Be strong.
Be compassionate.
Insist on accountability from your elected officials.
Listen critically to what's being said.
Get involved. Don't be content with taking potshots
from the sidelines.
That's how we beat back evil 74 years ago.
And that's how we'll do it now.
Your Friend,
Larry