The Great War

The history of America is decorated with some of the great conflicts that have ever been fought by civilizations and for great ideals.  This was never truer than in World War II which was sometimes called the Great War.  As is so often the case, it was not a war that America wanted to become part of.  So often, it is when aggressors bring war to America that she is forced to respond.  But in all cases when America responds, it is with a fury that her enemies will seldom forget.

When you think about it, the very idea of a world war is terribly frightening.  And in every way, World War II was a world war because it caught up virtually every country and every continent in a global conflict that went on for years.  The enemies of America and her allies were well armed, intelligent, determined and powerful.  But America was up to the challenge and it will be up to the challenge again if the likes of Hitler dare to threaten civilization like this again.

World War II was also virtually a textbook case of flawless collaboration with our allies.  Working together with them almost like we were one country and one army we deployed our forces across multiple theaters of combat from Europe to Asia to Russia and across the globe.  We had to fight more than one enemy.  Hitler’s Germany alone was a frightening enemy as it spread its evil influence across Europe capturing country after country and threatening to swallow up the continent whole and then move on to capture lands in central Asia and even America.

But we also had powerful enemies in German’s allies, particularly Japan.  When this frightening enemy struck our forces at Pearle Harbor, it was a blow to America that could not be ignored.  For Japan, they had hoped to cripple the American military and remove all hope from the American heart to be able to strike back or become part of the conflict.  They got exactly the opposite as every man, woman and child in America rallied to build the kind of war machine that would bring the Axis powers to a crashing end, no matter what the cost.

But the most important thing that America said to the world when it took on Hitler’s armies and defeated them was that totalitarian rule of free peoples would never be tolerated.  Hitler had dreams of world domination like the great kings of ancient Rome of the early Germanic empires.  But America had thrown off dictators when we founded this country and declared that we would not become the pawn of kings or tyrants.  We were not going to turn over that hard fought freedom to a madman while there was a fighting will left in this country.

It was not an easy battle or one without cost.  Thousands of America’s youth gave their lives to preserve the freedoms that had been won by our forefathers.  Our leaders had to show a resolve and a unity that they would not blink in the face of a challenge and they would not let down the brave American soldier or the civilian population that stood behind them until Hitler and his allies were in defeat. 

The world saw what America was made of in that great conflict.  It saw that a country that was gifted with great wealth and prosperity was also willing to turn those resources to defend its borders and defend its allies.  It was a stern lesson for our enemies to learn that America was not a country to be trifled with in combat.  But then we showed that we were not a vindictive country when, even in defeat, we reached out to Japan, Germany and other defeated peoples and helped them rebuild from that awful war.  This too is a testimony to the American sprit and the American sense of fair play.  Let’s hope that an enemy never rises up again to test that will because they will find as Hitler did, that America would not fail to respond to the call to battle or the call to honor which is her legacy.

Thomas Jefferson

Thomas Jefferson is one of those almost mythic figures from early American history that stand tall as one of the great heroes of the revolution and the early definition of what this country was going to become.  Sometimes it’s easy to look at a figure that stands so tall in history and think, perhaps some of that is myth.  But when you look at the history of the times, he was every bit as great as our adoration of him suggests he was.

Thomas Jefferson’s service to the new American union lasted over fifty years.  He not only contributed to the core philosophical underpinnings upon which our democracy I based, he served in a variety of offices and made some phenomenal contributions to the developing country including…

*    1775 - Served in the Continental Congress
*    1776 – Wrote the Declaration of Independence
*    1779-1781 - Governor of Virginia
*    1783 – Elected to Congress
*    1784-1789 – Commissioner and minister to France
*    1790-1793 – America’s first Secretary of State under George Washington
*    1797-1801 – Served as Vice President of the United States
*    1801-1809 – Third President of the United States
*    1803 – Approved of and helped launch the Lewis and Clark Expedition
*    1803 – Purchased the Louisiana Territory for the United States
*    1815 – Launched the Library of Congress
*    1825 – founded the University of Virginia

This phenomenal record of achievement is virtually unmatched in any public service record of comparable public servants.  But Jefferson’s contribution were more than just offices served, he was one or two or three key philosophical thinkers of his time that laid the ideological foundations of America.

It is impossible to overemphasize the accomplishment he writing the Declaration of Independence.  This document has taken on such a central position in American history that it is viewed with the reverence usually reserved for religious documents.  It so eloquently communicates the beliefs and the values of the American system of government that Jefferson can be seen as a true minister and prophet of those ideals.

Thomas Jefferson also believed strongly in Manifest Destiny and the westward expansion of the country as far as the Pacific Ocean.  He provided the inspiration, the funding and the political muscle to launch the famed Lewis and Clark Expedition that was responsible for discovering vast new lands and treasures in the heartland of America and providing inspiration to a country to “go west young man” and to achieve that dream of becoming a nation that stretched “for sea to shining sea”.

Jefferson had a thirst for knowledge that was virtually unquenchable.  He passed that passion for learning on in the building of the University of Virginia.  But his contribution to education that has made such a huge mark on American society was the building of the American library system by which citizens of any community can have access to large volumes of information at no cost.  It was an amazing experiment in public education.  But today few of us can imagine a world where we cannot at any time just “go check it out at the library”.  Libraries have become that central to the American way of life.

It seems that Thomas Jefferson made an impact on every aspect of society from the educational systems of the growing country to government and even making his viewpoints on religious freedom an important part of how America approached this crucial topic.  The entire concept of “separation of church and state” was one that Jefferson championed. 

It should be noted that in his writings it was clear that the separation of church and state works because it is there to restrict government from illegally restricting the religious rights of citizens.  Sometimes we misinterpret Jefferson’s concepts that this governmental restriction is there to limit religious freedom when in fact, it is there to encourage all the religious freedom that the citizens of America need to honor and worship with complete openness and to never fear that the government will hinder who, what, when, where or how they go about expressing their religious ideas.

It’s important to look back at the genius of this man, Thomas Jefferson and be grateful that he was the man of the hour for such an important time in the development of the great nation of the United States of America.

American Inventions

The history of how America emerged as the premier superpower in the world is about more than just a great military or a homeland so rich in natural resources that we were able to become the breadbasket of the world.  There are many forces that combined in the American experiment that has made this country so great.  One of those great forces is the phenomenal inventive minds that have graced America virtually since its inception.  Starting with the powerful mind of Benjamin Franklin, the history of inventions that started in America and transformed the world is lengthy indeed.

The computer has become so much a part of our lives that we forget that it was once invented.  The history of the development of this “futuristic” device is long and filled with genius.  The actual first prototypes of the computer were developed by the Defense Department, which is oddly the source of a lot of the great innovations in American history.  But it was the early PC developers including Steve Wozniac, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates that took the computer to the level of familiarity we know it to be now and made computers a part of our everyday lives.

Most world changing inventions have a profoundly positive influence on mankind’s quality of life.  But an invention that did not improve life but destroyed it is also an American invention that changed the world.  That invention, of course, is the Atomic Bomb.  Developed by the fabled “Manhattan Project”, this bomb changed everything about war, diplomacy and the way nations relate to one another.  And to find a positive amongst all the death the bombings in Japan brought about, that bomb may be one of the key elements that brought an end to a horrific war, World War II.  And in the long run, that is a conflict that the world breathed a sigh of relief when it came to an end.

There is a joke that makes its rounds frequently during political jesting that “Al Gore invented the internet.”  If he had invented it, he would be a world changing inventor for sure.  But it is not out of line to declare that America invented the internet.  Again, the original primitive retypes for what became our modern internet was the work of the American Defense Department as a measure to insure that America’s computer security was guarded by decentralizing the network.  From this simple goal, the vast World Wild Web has emerged that has transformed everything about how we look at communication, information and knowledge.  We have American ingenuity to thank for that.

But of the thousands of American inventions that have done so much in the fields of medicine, technology, research and communications, none can compare to an invention by a brilliant thinker by the name of Henry Ford.  That invention, obviously, is the automobile.  Just like with some of the other inventions we have talked about, we can hardly imagine a time where there was no such thing as an automobile. 

Mr. Ford’s amazing invention literally transformed society not just in America but around the world.  From it came the freeway system and an overhaul to how cities and towns are organized and linked together.  And while there are downsides to the widespread use of automobiles, it has been a huge leap forward for America and civilization as a whole.  And Mr. Ford, like any of the inventors we have talked about and thousands we have not, would see the betterment of mankind as their greatest calling.  America has hosted this great calling for centuries and will continue to produce brilliant inventors such as these for a long time to come.

George Washington

It is impossible to reflect on the truly great leadership that has been one of the real blessings of this nation without including the name of George Washington in that list.  In fact, in almost anyone’s “top ten” list of truly great presidents, Washington would almost certainly top the list.  His stature in American history is legendary and the respect Americans have for this their first president borders on adoration of myth. 

In fact, there is a lot of myth and some humor about our first president that reflects the love people have for this great leader.  From the many quips about his supposed wooden teeth to the thousands of places around the nation that proclaim “George Washington slept here”, to the mythical story of how he threw a silver dollar across the Potomac as a child or his response when he was caught cutting down a cheery tree and responded to the accusation “I cannot tell a lie”, Washington’s myth is strong in the national memory of this great leader.

Washington never set out to become the greatest president of all time or even to be in a position of leadership in the new country he helped to start.  He was the one who originated the concept of a “citizen president” and he believed so strongly in that concept that he refused to run for a third term because his time as citizen leader was over.  This tradition was sustained with little exception until it was codified into part of our constitution in the form of the 22nd amendment.

But before Washington was a great political leader, he showed his tremendous leadership skills on the field of battle.  He learned the art of warfare serving honorably in the French and Indian war and his influence and the respect he had earned during that conflict netted him the title of commander and chief of the American Army when the continental congress created that role in 1775.  Small wonder when he ascended to the presidency some years later, he carried the responsibility of commander and chief with him to the presidency where it continues to reside today even though few of our modern presidents have the military credentials of Washington.

When commanding the troops during the revolutionary war, a famous incident that has been captured beautifully by artists was his decision to cross the Delaware in New Jersey to stage a surprise attack and win the battle against the British.  It was yet another brilliant maneuver that showed his firm grasp of military strategy and only served to add to his fame and reputation as an outstanding leader of men.

After the war, Washington again was interested in retiring from public life but he was never one to turn away when his nation needed him.  And needed him it did as he presided over the Continental Congress to assure the successful drafting of the US Constitution.  Of the many great accomplishments of his life, his ability to provide leadership and inspiration to that assembly to produce this masterpiece of American political ligature would certainly be ranked as perhaps his finest hour.

George Washington was rewarded for his superior leadership skills when he was given the awesome responsibility of serving as the nations first President of the United States.  His wisdom and insight into what the nation needed at east stage of its early development made him the man of the hour for a struggling republic.  Few recognize that one of his greatest contributions to the presidency was recognizing that the nation was torn and weary of war.  So using his considerable influence and negotiating skills, Washington signed a number of important treaties that resulted in years of peace that were needed to turn the country from thoughts of war to thoughts of building a great nation.

Washington never tired of providing leadership for two terms as the first American president and it was he who decided not to serve a third term and returned once again to private life.  But his impact on the nation and the world was profound and long lasting.  It was the kind of nation shaping influence that truly earned him the title associated to him to this day of “father of the nation.”

John F. Kennedy

In the life of this great nation, a few of its presidents have emerged from the pack as truly historic and memorable even more than others.  Of course, the presidents from the generation of the founding fathers certainly fit that bill including George Washington and Thomas Jefferson.  And presidents that served the country in times of great crisis also are deeply honored in memory.  But in recent memory, there probably no other president that brings up emotions of respect and admiration as much as that of John F. Kennedy.

Kennedy seemed to capture the hearts of the American people in a way that was unique in presidents before or since.  Part of it may have been the era in history that the country was in when he became the President of the United States.  The historic time between 1950 and 1970 was a time when the largest generation of youth, now known as the “baby boomers”, was coming of age.  With them a new youth movement brought a sense of optimism, a “can do” attitude and to some extent a sense of revolution.  They were looking for new ways of seeing things, a new vision of the future and new leadership and John F. Kennedy was the perfect man of the hour to provide that leadership.

So much about Kennedy’s presidency has an aura of romance and almost a fairy tale excitement of it.  From the naming of his family estates “Camelot” to the love affair that the public had with the strikingly beautiful presidential couple, Jack and Jacqueline Kennedy.  That touch of magic extended to everything he did and virtually everybody in his family including his younger brother Robert who was idolized as well and almost certainly would have served as president had he not been tragically assassinated during his early bid for that office.

But this was not to say that Kennedy was not a phenomenal leader.  He faced serious challenges.  The Cuban Missile Crisis may have been one of the most frightening show downs between a nuclear Russia and a nuclear America that has ever happened in history.  When it became clear that Russia was beginning to build bases in Cuba and arm them with those terrible weapons, this was no time for a weak president.  Had Russia been able to bully Kennedy or intimidate the young president and put those missiles in Cuba, it seems certain that the outcome of the cold war would have been one of failure rather than success.  But Kennedy was not bullied or intimidated and using the power of his office, Kennedy stood his ground and stood ground for all Americans and forced the Russians to remove those missiles. 

But this was not the only great accomplishment of Kennedy’s administration.  It took a leader who had great vision and ability to inspire a nation as nobody else than John F. Kennedy could to set the sights of the nation on landing on the moon.  But Kennedy put that desire and that high calling in the hearts of his people and the nation rallied to finally see that man step out on the moon and declare, “This is one step for man, a giant leap for mankind.”  That was one of the proudest days in American history and it was Kennedy who inspired us to that kind of greatness.

As much as the life and leadership of John F. Kennedy perfectly exemplified the optimism and youthful zeal of a generation, his tragic assignation changed the country forever as well.  On that sad day of November 22, 1963 when Lee Harvey Oswald gunned down America’s beloved president, the hearts of Americans changed forever.

This was one of those days that almost everybody who was alive at the time, from school children to grandfathers remembered where they were when they heard the news.  Since we laid to rest this great leader, the presidency itself has never been the same.  While Americans will always respect their presidents, that sense of adoration for the man in the White House disappeared forever.  But the thing that did not disappear was the ongoing adoration of the man, John F. Kennedy, who inspired a generation and a nation to look forward to greatness and in the famous words of his inaugural address in 1961…

"Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country."

Remember the Alamo

America remembers many great battles that represent a turning point in a conflict that helped shaped our history.  We think of D-Day in World War II that turned the tide of victory toward the allies despite horrific losses.  But it is a unique battle that is remembered with pride and patriotism but is also a battle that was lost and almost everybody on our side brutally killed.  But that was the case in the battle for the Alamo in 1863.

The battle for the Alamo was not a conventional battle in the sense of two equally matched armies fighting back and forth to retain property.  It was, to put it bluntly, a slaughter.  But the brave stand of those few hundred Texans against thousands of Mexican soldiers continues to inspire us today because it was a stand against impossible odds but it was a stand that reflected the American ethic of never giving up or surrendering when there is a principle to be defended.
The siege at the Alamo actually lasted thirteen days.  It began on February 23, 1863 and it was over by March 6th.  It is hard to imagine today, with Mexico to our south a trusted ally of the United States but this was a battle to stop that attempts by Mexico to invade the newly forming country of the United States which was an act of war to be sure.  The brave men who stood against that vast army have become American icons of bravery and the American spirit and the names listed among those killed in that fort included Davy Crocket, Jim Bowie, the commander of the unit Lieutenant Colonel William B. Travis.  It was Travis that inspired his men to fight against insurmountable odds and his courage is what we celebrate whenever we say that famous rallying cry that come out of this battle which was “Remember the Alamo.”  Travis wrote in a letter how he defied the Mexican attackers on the eve of the final siege.

I am besieged, by a thousand or more of the Mexicans under Santa Anna.  I have sustained a continual Bombardment and cannonade for 24 hours and have not lost a man.  The enemy has demanded a surrender at discretion, otherwise, the garrison are to be put to the sword, if the fort is taken.  I have answered the demand with a cannon shot, and our flag still waves proudly from the walls.  I shall never surrender or retreat.  I am determined to sustain myself as long as possible and die like a soldier who never forgets what is due to his own honor & that of his country.  Victory or Death.

It was this brave stand that actually turned the war against this invading army to the advantage of the Americans.  The outrage from the slaughter of these men inspired that famous rallying cry that we remember even now centuries later when we hear those words “Remember the Alamo”.  Their stand against Santa Anna gave Sam Houston the time to organize a much more potent army which went on to deliver to Santa Anna a stunning defeat at San Jacinto which was the turning point for Texas which went on from there to victory in this war.

The spirit of Texas was never the same and to this day, Texas prides itself as a people of particular courage, boldness and a unique independence that even sets them apart from the already fiercely independent American spirit.  Moreover, the entire nation looks to this battle as an example of how a few good men helped deliver a victory, even if it was at the cost of their own lives.  That indeed is the true spirit of patriotism.

The 22nd Amendment: A Balancing Act

The 22nd Amendment to the United States Constitution limits the number of terms a president can serve to two. This amendment was ratified in 1951, and it has been the subject of much debate ever since.

There are several reasons why the 22nd Amendment was passed. First, it was a reaction to the rise of a "cult of personality" around President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Roosevelt served four terms as president, and by the end of his time in office, he was seen by many as a near-deity. The 22nd Amendment was intended to prevent any future president from becoming too powerful or too popular.

Second, the 22nd Amendment was seen as a way to promote democracy. By limiting the number of terms a president could serve, the amendment ensured that there would always be new blood in the White House. This would help to prevent any one person or group from becoming too entrenched in power.

However, the 22nd Amendment has also been criticized for limiting the choices of the American people. If a president is doing a good job, why should they be forced to step down after two terms? Additionally, the 22nd Amendment can create a situation where a vice president who is elected to the presidency is unable to run for re-election. This could lead to a situation where the country is forced to choose a new president in the middle of a term, which could be disruptive.

Ultimately, the 22nd Amendment is a balancing act. It tries to strike a balance between the need for a strong and stable presidency and the need for democracy and fresh ideas. Whether or not the amendment is a good thing is a matter of opinion.

Arguments in favor of the 22nd Amendment

There are several arguments in favor of the 22nd Amendment. First, it helps to prevent the rise of a dictator. When a president is able to serve for an unlimited number of terms, they can become too powerful and too entrenched in office. This can lead to a situation where the president is able to rule without the consent of the people.

Second, the 22nd Amendment helps to promote democracy. By limiting the number of terms a president can serve, the amendment ensures that there will always be new blood in the White House. This helps to prevent any one person or group from becoming too powerful.

Third, the 22nd Amendment helps to ensure that the president is always accountable to the people. When a president knows that they can only serve for two terms, they are more likely to make decisions that are in the best interests of the country, rather than their own interests.

Arguments against the 22nd Amendment

There are also several arguments against the 22nd Amendment. First, it limits the choices of the American people. If a president is doing a good job, why should they be forced to step down after two terms? The American people should be allowed to choose their leaders, regardless of how many terms they have served.

Second, the 22nd Amendment can create a situation where a vice president who is elected to the presidency is unable to run for re-election. This could lead to a situation where the country is forced to choose a new president in the middle of a term, which could be disruptive.

Third, the 22nd Amendment can actually lead to a more powerful presidency. When a president knows that they can only serve for two terms, they are more likely to try to pack the courts and other government agencies with their own supporters. This can give the president more power than they would have if they could serve for an unlimited number of terms.

Conclusion

The 22nd Amendment is a complex issue with no easy answers. There are valid arguments on both sides of the debate. Ultimately, it is up to the American people to decide whether or not the amendment is a good thing.