THE FOUNDATION: COURAGE

“I love the man that can smile in trouble, that can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection. ‘Tis the business of little minds to shrink; but he whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves his conduct, will pursue his principles unto death.” —Thomas Paine

LIBERTY

“The Democrats deliberately distort their intentions in the current debate on the Iraq War. They say their withdrawal timetable will ‘end the war’ —but it’s ludicrous to suggest that removal of U.S. troops will suddenly stop the fighting. Concerning so-called insurgents, everyone agrees they are ruthless, barbaric killers. So what will they do when Americans leave? Will bloodthirsty bad-guys suddenly turn into pacifists—or decide to retire from their murderous ways? Will they abandon sectarian hatreds and suddenly embrace their Iraqi enemies? General Petraeus, U.S. Commander in Iraq, says American withdrawal would lead to an ‘increase in sectarian violence… It can get much, much worse.’ Islamo-Nazis in Iraq would feel powerfully encouraged not mollified, by removal of the one force strong enough to contain them: the U.S. military. Democratic surrender timetables won’t ‘end the war’ —they’ll only make it longer and more bloody, necessitating the ultimate return of American forces at an even higher cost.” —Michael Medved

CULTURE

“The threat of radical Islam is not merely a few thousand terrorists using small explosives to kill a few dozen people at a time—usually in the faraway Middle East. Rather, it is an historic recrudescence of a violent, conquering old tradition of Islam that almost overwhelmed the world from the Seventh Century until as recently as the 17th century. It is radicalizing the minds of increasing numbers of the world’s 1.4 billion Muslims to be very aggressive culturally, as well as violent—from Africa to Indonesia, to Cairo to Ankara, to Paris, to Rotterdam to London to Falls Church, Va.” —Tony Blankley

RE: THE LEFT

“Veteran political columnist David Broder set off a firestorm recently when he called Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid an ‘embarrassment’ for declaring the Iraq War ‘lost.’ From the assault subsequently directed at Broder—from other journalists, political operatives, left-wing bloggers and even the entire 50-member Senate Democratic Caucus—you’d have thought Broder had had an intimate encounter with an intern. Or, in the spirit of bipartisanship, had broken into Democratic National Committee headquarters. Broder committed no such dastardly deed, but merely did what he has done for the past 35 years. He called it as he saw it—just as Reid claims to have done, and that his defenders seem to find so refreshing. Nevertheless, the 50 Democratic senators felt compelled to respond. Doesn’t the U.S. Senate have more important matters to attend to than David Broder?” —Kathleen Parker

FOR THE RECORD

“The American public is not tired of the war; they are tired of believing that they are losing. They are tired of the daily drumbeat of pessimism and defeat promoted daily by our media and by some in our Congress. They don’t understand that building a democracy is a slow process that takes years, that victory in Iraq will be more like the fall of communism than like VE day in 1945. Like it or not, it is incumbent upon us in the military to correct this misrepresentation of our efforts. We have a duty to convince the American public why we must stay and finish the mission. Should we have to? Did we sign up to do that? The answers are no and yes, respectively. No we shouldn’t have to ask to be allowed to win a war, but yes we signed up to complete a mission. No whining allowed… It is not enough that we are making progress here in Iraq. We must make progress at home as well to ensure we are given the funds, support and time needed to finish the job. There is no doubt that we can create a stable democracy in Iraq—if we have courage enough to do so.” —Lt. Jason Nichols, founder of AppealForCourage.org

INSIGHT

“On the battlefield, when surrounded and cheered by pomp, excitement, and admiration of devoted comrades, and inspired by strains of martial music and the hope of future reward, it is comparatively easy to be a hero, to do heroic deeds. But to uphold honor in ordinary circumstances, to be a hero in common life, that is genuine achievement meriting our highest admiration.” —Booker T. Washinton

ICHTHUS IMPRIMIS

“We are torn by war and politics and government intrusion into virtually every aspect of our lives. We are plagued by terrorism and a level of fiscal irresponsibility that threatens to drown our children and future generations in debt. Our families are disintegrating all around us, while the pop culture bombards our sons and daughters with pornography and messages of violence and hopelessness. Can something—anything—be done to unite our nation, restore our families and heal our land?… On May 3, millions of Americans across the land joined their voices in united prayer and praise as part of what has become a great American tradition: The National Day of Prayer. The message of this wonderful day is powerfully simple: If we who call ourselves believers will humble ourselves, pray, seek God’s face and turn from our own personal ways of sin, then God promises to forgive us and to heal our land. It starts with us—the faithful. We can’t point the real finger of blame at Hollywood, or the media, or the government, or even the terrorists—the fault of our nation’s condition is ours. But God promises to heal our wounds if we first practice what we preach.” —Rebecca Hagelin

POLITICAL FUTURES

“Biblical teaching is clear: God intends government to use law to enforce morality. Informed Christian people are essential to that process because the concept of justice that grounds good government can be twisted by evil men in power. If the Church doesn’t stand in the gap giving substance to the words ‘good’ and ‘evil,’ then nothing prevents leadership from reversing the definitions, praising evil and punishing good. Tragically, this is already happening… Little by little, though, more things have been included under the broad rubric of ‘politics.’ One by one the secularists co-opted the moral issues, called them political, and told us to get off of the playing field… Notice the outcome. When Christians follow a policy of ‘no politics,’ it’s easy to silence the moral voice of the Church. Simply label any issue ‘political’ and followers of Christ wave the white flag. This policy is tantamount to surrender… The myth of political passivity unwittingly makes a Christian virtue out of the vice of negligence. When we ignore our obligation to morally instruct the nation merely because someone labels it ‘politics,’ then it won’t be long before the country teems with injustice as every man simply does ‘what is right in his own eyes’.” —Gregory Koukl

THE GIPPER ON RELIGION AND POLITICS

“Politics and morality are inseparable. And as morality’s foundation is religion, religion and politics are necessarily related. We need religion as a guide. We need it because we are imperfect, and our government needs the church, because only those humble enough to admit they’re sinners can bring to democracy the tolerance it requires in order to survive.” —Ronald Reagan

OPINION IN BRIEF

“Democrats are singing the same socialist tune they have since FDR declared himself Nanny-in-Chief. It goes something like this (especially since the sixties): ”You cannot take care of yourself. You deserve more than others. Rich people owe you. Armed conflict is never the answer, especially when it takes longer than a month. You deserve free medical coverage. If you are gay, non-white, female, ‘transgendered’ or whatever, you need even more protection.“ Here’s the reality: we are Americans. Let’s start acting more like adults and less like Democrats.” —Doug Patton

GOVERNMENT

“’You shouldn’t go around touting that you balanced your budget when your deficit is $44 billion.’ Good advice, no? Well, Sheila Weinberg said it first. Ms. Weinberg has taken on the world’s most yawner of a topic, accounting, and is trying to get your attention. If we don’t (or can’t) follow our governments’ accounts, politicians and bureaucrats will rob us blind. She founded the Institute for Truth in Accounting in 2002. And she’s kicked up a ruckus. According to a recent Institute report, our federal financial hole is over $53 trillion. To fund our politicians’ promises and pay off debt and other bills, everyone in America would have to send a check to D. C. for $176,700. ‘If a corporation did this, they’d have to shut down,’ Weinberg says. ‘But it’s just common practice for the federal government…’ Are states in better shape? Well, take Illinois. Weinberg calls it the worst mess in the country. Sure, the state’s constitution requires a balanced budget, but lawmakers have hid both bills and borrowing, and managed to fabricate a surplus out of a $44 billion deficit. Thankfully, Ms. Weinberg has blown the lid off this story… and she intends to bring her work to a government near you. I call this heroic accounting.” —Paul Jacob

SELECT READER COMMENTS

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“I want to thank Mark Alexander for writing about Channon and Chris. We’re told all the time that whites are ‘privileged’ but for some reason non-white-on-white crime gets little attention. This is strange seeing that the vast majority of interracial crime is committed against white people. What is the media afraid of?” —Louisville, Kentucky

“I am a Home Health RN who was seeing a patient very near where they found Channon Christian dumped in a trash bag. I am so thankful that you have written this article as this has traumatized our community. It is because of this crime that I am now working on days instead of 3-11 pm shift seeing my patients. God Bless you and continue to print what needs to be said.” —Knoxville, Tennessee

“Fellow Patriots. I’ve been a subscriber to The Patriot for years, and greatly appreciate the cogent coverage, particularly of world events. But more importantly, I appreciate your contributions to and support of the U.S. Military men and women, and our families. I’m a United States Marine currently stationed in San Diego, and The Patriot is always a source of inspiration. I thank you for all you do.” —VMFA-121

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THE LAST WORD

“For the sake of argument, let’s say former CIA Director George Tenet is right in his book and that Vice President Dick Cheney pushed too hard with questionable or inaccurate intelligence because of a predisposition to go to war in Iraq and topple Saddam Hussein. So what? We can’t go back and fix the mistakes of the past. Only two choices are available: victory or defeat. Let us assume the Democratic left is right and we should pull U.S. forces out as early as Oct. 1, or perhaps a few months later, but certainly before the next president takes office, because the Bush administration’s policy in Iraq has completely failed and, in the words of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, ‘the war is lost.’ What next? Does the United States not suffer a loss of credibility in the world’s eyes for again failing to finish a job it started? Do the millions who voted for the first elected government in Iraq conclude they risked their lives for nothing? What would be the consequences of pulling out before Iraq is stabilized sufficiently to stand on its own? And, most importantly, what would a U.S. retreat do to the confidence of the enemy that wishes to dominate the world by force?” —Cal Thomas

Veritas vos Liberabit—Semper Vigilo, Fortis, Paratus, et Fidelis! Mark Alexander, Publisher, for The Patriot’s editors and staff. (Please pray for our Patriot Armed Forces standing in harm’s way around the world, and for their families—especially families of those fallen Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen, who have died in defense of American liberty, while prosecuting the war with Jihadistan.)