irateplatypus

well... if my door closing comments hurt any feelings... well, i'm sorry feelings were hurt from a personal standpoint. however, try spending a month or so in the shoes of a genuinely sincere conservative on this board... i know it's only an online bulletin board, but i've had to toughen my own skin a bit. considering what is too-often usual fare... it's hard for me to be very empathetic.

i think that it's just too hard for a lot of people to take seriously the feeling that someone is so despondent about the state of the nation that they feel the best course of action is to leave. in fact, my brainwashed sheeplike lockstep military mentality tells me that there are worse things than going down with a ship if it is indeed sinking. i see a challenge for our country. i see exciting, turbulent, dynamic and dangerous times. this is when the fight for justice in the next century is being fought. my nation isn't perfect, but i love the things she stands for. political correctness be damned, the United States is the greatest good the world has yet seen when she is true to her founding principles. we've been blessed with untold resources and given unprecedented responsibility. jumping ship will not change that.

for all that love our Constitution and believe that we can do good with all we've been given, it's beyond my comprehension why someone would choose to leave when so much is at stake. perhaps it is my military voice speaking... but i feel dutibound to do what i can to promote the good i see and the judicious application of the power we wield... whether my voice has a majority behind it or not. it's somewhat out-of-fashion to believe in something, i know i sound silly being so unapologetically idealistic about all this.

if you don't agree with my chosen career, religion, or politics... that's fine. to anyone who loves freedom and will do what it takes to promote human dignity in whatever way they sincerely believe is best... i entreat you to stay however rough the seas for however long we stay afloat.

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If you will not fight when your victory will be sure and not too costly, you may come to the moment when you will have to fight with all the odds against you and only a precarious chance for survival. There may even be a worse case. You may have to fight when there is no hope of victory, because it is better to perish than to live as slaves.

~ Winston Churchill