ONLY THE DEAD

The Rev. Dana Prom Smith, S.T.D., Ph.D. (11/13/10)

“Only the dead have seen an end to war” is a statement often attributed to Plato, but it was actually coined by George Santayana, the philosopher, in response to President Woodrow Wilson’s infamous fatuity that World War I was the “war to end all wars.”

Another infamous fatuity is the medieval theological concept of a “just war.” Actually, the genesis of the idea goes back to Cicero. Some say that World War II was a just war; however, a “necessary evil” is more accurate. The bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was a necessary evil to end the war sooner, but righteous it was not.

Using the concept of a “necessary evil,” the Vietnam War wasn’t necessary or even useful. The Korean War may have been necessary since we had promised to defend the South Koreans. President Reagan’s Grenada War wasn’t necessary, it was silly. The Gulf War may have been necessary to protect Saudi Arabia and our oil supplies, but the Iraqi War clearly wasn’t. It was the result of a steroid-fed testosterone frenzy of politicians who’d never seen combat. President Eisenhower said, “Preventive war was the invention of Hitler.”

Genghis Khan, Alexander the Great, the British, and the Russians all failed in Afghanistan. After nine years of trying to prove we haven’t, it’s time for us to realize we’re on a fool’s errand. It isn’t necessary to conquer Afghanistan and alienate Muslims to defeat Al Qaeda. There are smarter ways than sacrificing our best and bravest.

SEND IN THE CLOWNS

Dana Prom Smith

As I was listening to Dame Cleo Laine sing Stephen Sondheim’s “Send in the Clowns,” it brought to mind the recent Republican electoral victories. This is the same gang that brought on the present catastrophe, and, so, we’ve decided “Send in the Clowns” once again as if to say that a failure repeated will lead to a success.

Admittedly, as charming and admirable as is Barack Obama, he was no match for the old Republican pols, partly because he is a decent human being. He’s not a dirty rotten politician which makes him ill-equipped to fight dirty rotten politicians. If a person is going into a knife fight, it’s essential to know how to fight with knives.

He forgot that “It’s the economy, stupid.” People on the dole or in bread lines aren’t interested in comprehensive health insurance. Also, he never seemed to be a fighter, slugging it out with Republican sluggards. He kept going for the cranium while he should’ve gone for the guts.

And so, now, the ship of state has become a “ship of fools.” Let’s hope that the President decides to take a firm grip on the helm. Other than that, it’s time to get on our knees and pray for the Republic, bemused by the absurdity of it all.