An Indian court has handed down the death penalty for three terrorists convicted of lethal bombings in Mumbai in 2003. That’s another nail being driven home in the global fight against against terrorism. Real success will never come till all the countries in the world come down hard against their own terrorists. The real test of fortitude in that part of the world will come when Pakistan finally has to try some of their homegrown terrorists. It’s looking better there since they took back the Swat Valley; the army finally flexed its muscles, but they still have show some guts in their courts.
The Jihad Keeps Spreading August 4, 2009
It seems like the radical Muslims are everywhere there are Muslims. Now we have a new front in the eternal jihad. Nigeria is ready to burst apart along religious lines, but at least there the Muslim don’t have an overwhelming numerical superiority. With enough internal opposition, we probably won’t have to worry about getting involved directly, and a good thing that is, what with Pakistan about to implode. We will have to stand tough in Afghanistan, or Pakistan (and its nuclear bombs) will fall into the radicals’ hands. But no matter what we do, we can’t end this thing: radical Islam will only be controlled when the moderate Muslims stand up to them. Maybe Nigeria will be the first place this will happen.
Better Late Than Never August 3, 2009
Well, they finally found the body of Capt. Michael Scott Speicher after 18 years. At least that’s one nail finally driven home. One of the things our military promises is never to leave one of its own behind on the field of battle. Now that might not sound like much, but it means a lot to our service personnel, and not finding Capt. Speicher’s body (the first casualty of the First Gulf War) was letting a very necessary shoe remain loose. Recruitment is all we have to keep our military forces up to fighting form, now that the public has lost its stomach for national service. If we aren’t willing to draft soldiers, then we have to induce them to join, and one of the ways we do that is by letting them know the military feels an obligation to them. Not finding Capt. Speicher’s body was letting doubt creep in, and doubt will erode confidence. But now that chapter is closed, that nail is driven home, and that shoe is securely in place: we won’t lose the kingdom for want of that nail, at least.
Ignore the T Shirts and Sweat the Small Stuff July 31, 2009
You know how it goes—and we can’t be caught wanting. Not this time. Not with so much at stake. There are those among us who, for the sake of the horizon, never look at what lies at their feet. They wish to see the “big picture” and by doing so, miss the details. But the horizon never gets any nearer, and the big picture never gets any clearer, so for want of a nail, the kingdom was lost.
Well, I’m here to see that the nail isn’t forgotten.
Yours truly,
The Smith
