Our Lone Ranger Heritage

After the attempted terrorist attack on Northwest flight 253 from Amsterdam to Detroit on Christmas Day, our head of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano got on television to tell the American People that "the system worked” according to plan.

I happen to agree with her, although not in the way that she meant. Everything “worked”. A terrorist, who managed to get on the plane buying a 3000 dollar one-way ticket in cash, minus a passport or any identification? Got past security with chemicals in his underwear. The system definitely worked for the terrorist. Even his father called the embassy in Nigeria to let us know that his son was a terrorist. I guess someone didn’t get the memo.

The level of incompetence should leave us all speechless. This man was on the “watch list” but not the “no-fly” list. Now we find that the watch list is meaningless, that no one is watching those on that list. What good is it to have these lists of names when it comes to nothing?

The primary purpose of government is to protect the citizens of the country – not give us universal healthcare, not to bailout companies, not to give legislators millions for their state in return for their vote … but to protect each and everyone of us from enemies – foreign and domestic.

Rather than do what is necessary – profile and catch these terrorists before they manage to put a hole in the side of an airliner – they’d rather hope that these “isolated incidents” come to naught. Maybe they’re not sure who they should be looking for? White women in their 70s? Nope. Haitian nuns? Nope. Who could it be? Perhaps Middle Eastern/Muslim men ranging in age from 18-40? Yes.

This terrible situation reminds us that when push comes to shove, we’re on our own. The government cannot and will not save us. Each individual is responsible for their own life. A gentleman from Amsterdam realized what was happening, jumped over his seatmates and stopped the terrorist – saving his own life as well as almost 250 others.

There is a very valuable lesson to be learned here from all of this. We have to start behaving like Americans of not-that-long-ago. This European reminds us of our own proud heritage – the Lone Ranger heritage. Doing what is right. Jumping out of our seats, confronting evil and stopping it head on.

During the 9/11 attacks, we saw the bravery of those who were able to do just that – confront evil and stop it. We see the results in an empty field in Pennsylvania.

Government cannot be depended on to protect us – nor should it. We see how well the system worked for us on Christmas Day. I don’t expect it will get better anytime soon.

Terrorists Must Go

This past Saturday the Israel Defense Forces tracked down and killed three terrorists that were responsible for the drive-by-murder of Rabbi Meir Chai, 45, father of seven children.

According to the Associated Press,

Abbas' prime minister, Salam Fayyad, rushed to Nablus in an apparent attempt at damage control, paying his respects at a large communal wake and condeming Israel. "This attack was a clear assassination, and I believe it is targeting our security and stability,"

The raid took place in the early hours, and the those killed were long time members of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades. When asked if it was necessary for the soldiers to "open fire", Major Peter Lerner, IDF spokesman said that troops "had to operate under the assumption that they (the suspects) are dangerous."

There are two questions to be asked here.
1. Taking a look at Prime Minister Fayyad's quote we need to wonder about him. Yes, of course it was an assassination but how does this effect your "security and stability"? It only effects the Arabs "security and stability" when Israel has to do the dirty work that the "Palestinians" won't do. It effects "security and stability" since everyone knows that the Palestinian Authority, Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades are all one and the same - all terrorists. Terrorists that are in Israeli crosshairs - and they know it. The "security and stability" of the terrorist state are in danger.

2. I would love to know who asked the question if it was necessary to "open fire". The reporter who had the nerve to ask this question should have his credentials taken away from him. These are known members of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, known for suicide bombings and murder - why wouldn't the soldiers go in with the assumption that they are dangerous? It would be stupid of them not to.

This whole situation is insane. Why is it necessary for these Arabs to have their own state? Aren't there enough Arab states in the Middle East neighborhood? I think that we're up to 22 of them. What is to be gained by creating another terrorist state in Israel's back yard? Rockets are still coming from Gaza - an area completely under Hamas control, given over by Israel, not one Jew living there. The area of Judea-Samaria (slave name: West Bank) is a haven for terrorists under the PA.

These are terrorists - they may have different club names, but all murder innocents. Rabbi Chai, along with so many others, will never see his children grow up. Why does Israel allow these people to live in the Land? Anyone who does not want to live peacefully there should be made to leave. They have plenty of places to go to - 22 other places. Let them go.

Resettlement works.

Scare the Kids and Kill the Dog

According to Build-A-Bear global warming scientists - there may not be a Christmas holiday this year. In fact, they are so sure of that "fact" that they are warning children on their website that since the polar ice cap is melting, Santa's home (as well as the elves' homes) will be no longer.

Some of the dialogue:

Girl Elf: Santa, it’s gone!

Papa Elf: It’s gone, It’s gone!

Santa: What’s gone?

Girl Elf: Tell ‘em, Dad!

Papa Elf: The North Peak.

Santa: A mountain? A mountain’s gone? How is that possible?

Ella the polar bear: Santa, sir, that’s why I’m here. That’s why we’re here. The ice is melting!

Santa: Yes, my dear, we know, the climate is changing. There’s bound to be a little melting.

Ella: It’s worse than that, Santa, a lot worse! At the rate it’s melting, the North Pole will be gone by Christmas!”

Santa: My, my…all of this gone by next Christmas? I don’t think so.

Ella: No sir, not next Christmas, this Christmas! The day after tomorrow!

Yes, we must scare the children that Santa and his merry little elves will have nowhere to live - and no more Christmas.

Next, we must kill all our pet dogs. Say good-bye to Lassie and Toto, dogs are the worst polluters in the fight against global warming.

Man's best friend could be one of the environment's worst enemies, according to a new study which says the carbon pawprint of a pet dog is more than double that of a gas-guzzling sports utility vehicle....The Vales, specialists in sustainable living at Victoria University of Wellington, analysed popular brands of pet food and calculated that a medium-sized dog eats around 164 kilos (360 pounds) of meat and 95 kilos of cereal a year.

Combine the land required to generate its food and a "medium" sized dog has an annual footprint of 0.84 hectares (2.07 acres) -- around twice the 0.41 hectares required by a 4x4 driving 10,000 kilometres (6,200 miles) a year, including energy to build the car.

Global Warming science can be boiled down to these two basic ideas.
* North Pole melting - no more Christmas.
* Keep the car - kill the dog.

And the world will be a better place for it.
Merry Christmas!

Funny... Sort Of

It's wedding season in Yemen and traditionally, that's meant three things: music, dancing and joyously firing an array of pistols, assault rifles, rocket-launchers, anti-aircraft mortars and grenade launchers into the air to celebrate the occasion.

But in the past few years, that last part has been nixed from the program....

For the most part, urban Yemenis are in favor of the disarmament campaign, and are willing to simply adapt their old traditions to a new, gun-less environment. Most urban weddings now feature deafening fireworks displays, which are said to sound remarkably similar to an assault rifle being unloaded into a cement wall. Most urban grooms now pose for pictures with an ornamental assault rifle instead of the real thing. (A least one particularly entrepreneurial vendor in Sanaa has begun renting out bedazzled, gold-inflected AK-47s for just that purpose, Jaleel, the store owner, said.)

"It's a lot better now — it's safer, at least. Before, people would sometimes get hit by bullets accidentally," said Mufudh Said, who sells bouquets of fake flowers for weddings from his small store in Sanaa. "It was terrible."

I came across this article and was glued to the screen. It's funny, sort of. (I'm still chuckling.) Liberals are all freaked out about Americans with semi-autos (which means when you pull the trigger - one - bullet comes out) and revolvers (one bullet at a time) ... Yemenites are only happy when they get to shoot fully automatic rifles, rocket-launchers and grenades. Ha. I wonder if a liberal can excuse the trigger happy Yemenite because it's their tradition.

The Godfather is Displeased

So after bashing Fox News and attempting to sideline their reporting, the Don Obama has moved on to other targets. After reporting lower approval numbers than the Godfather would have liked, the Gallup Poll was attacked by the Don's flunky Gibbs.

I am sure a 6-year-old with a crayon could do something not unlike that.” He continued: “I don’t put a lot of stake in, never have, in the EKG that is the daily Gallup trend. I don’t pay a lot of attention to the meaninglessness of it.

There we have it. Don Obama is displeased with anything that doesn't portray him as the important, world-changing figure he thinks he is and tries to marginalize the research that proves the fact that he's an ordinary Socialist mortal.

December 7, 1941 - A Day Which Will Live in Infamy

Sixty-eight years ago 2,390 men, women, and children were killed and another 1,178 more wounded in a surprise attack at the Pearl Harbor military installation bringing the United States into World War II.

Eight years ago over 3,000 people were murdered in the attack on the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. 2,749 of the total were murdered in New York - civilians and first responders.

Sixty-eight years ago the United States was attacked. We identified those who were our enemies - went to war - destroyed them and their dangerous ideologies.

Eight years ago the United States was attacked. We never fully identified those who were our enemies - went to war against a few of those with dangerous ideologies - and we still haven't destroyed them or their ideologies.

It's time to recognize why the United States won World War II.
1. We identified the enemy - and their ideology clearly.
2. We destroyed them without apology.
3. We reconstructed their countries in our own image.

We will not win this "War on Terror" until we do the same.

News of the Week + Commentary

The Kennedy Family in the News -

WASHINGTON — Providence Bishop Thomas J. Tobin has forbidden Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy to receive the Roman Catholic sacrament of Holy Communion because of his advocacy of abortion rights, the Rhode Island Democrat said Friday...

Kennedy said the bishop had explained the penalty by telling him “that I am not a good practicing Catholic because of the positions that I’ve taken as a public official,” particularly on abortion. He declined to say when or how Bishop Tobin told him not to take the sacrament. And he declined to say whether he has obeyed the bishop’s injunction.

These are the rules of the game. If you belong to the Church and you are a strong advocate of abortion - don't expect the two to mix well. Don't blame the Church for not changing their rules for you.

* * * * *

Global WarmingGate - Yes Dorothy, there are Scientists with Political Agendas.

What happened to the good ole days of Global Cooling? That's the disaster scenario that I grew up with.

* * * * *

Israel gives cold shoulder to Hamas' rocket-cessation statement

JERUSALEM, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- Hamas announced on Saturday it reached an agreement with other Palestinian factions in the Gaza Strip to only fire rockets against Israeli targets in response to any future Israeli military incursion into the coastal enclave.

Just hours after the Hamas statement, Israel responded to a rocket attack fired from Gaza earlier on Saturday. Israeli aircraft targeted what the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said were two weapons-making facilities in northern and central Gaza and one smuggling tunnel under the border between Gaza and Egypt.

What rockets officer? I didn't see no rockets! And for sure I didn't know about any weapon-making facilities!

* * * * *

President Obama the Stand-Up-Comedian

Obama did not mention the looming decision in his remarks to U.S. troops, referring to the Afghan conflict only by thanking South Korea for its efforts and expressing gratitude to the American soldiers who have served there.

But he did discuss the region in his meeting with South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak, whose government has is sending 150 civilian aid workers to Afghanistan.

Obama arrived on the base 3:19 p.m. local time (1 a.m. Eastern Standard Time), and received a rousing welcome from 1,500 troops in camouflage uniforms, many holding cameras or pointing cell phones to snap pictures.

"You guys make a pretty good photo op," the president said.

Standing on a riser wearing a blue suit and red tie, with a cluster of troops and a large American flag behind him, Obama expressed "the gratitude of the American public" and said his meetings in four countries over eight days in Asia will help deliver a "safer more prosperous world for all of us."

He got a huge cheer when he told them he was increasing military pay. "That's what you call an applause line," he said, before boarding his jet and taking off at 4:11 p.m.

The military is one big joke - he's looking for the photo-op and the applause line. That's what you call a good Commander-in-Chief.

Hasan is NOT a PTSD Victim!

Along with President Obama "not jumping to conclusions", the media has been very careful to steer clear of Malik Nidal Hasan's Muslim religion when reporting on the Fort Hood massacre. Rather than focus on the obvious fact that the attack was perpetrated by a Islamic terrorist, the media decided to create a new and novel condition - Pre-Traumatic Stress Disorder (rather than Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder). Amazing, since there was no such condition until the media had to find a direction away from the obvious.

While discussing the attack National Public Radio's reporter Tom Gjelten gives us background on the attacker.

GJELTEN: Nidal Hasan was born here in the Washington, D.C. area in Arlington. His parents were Palestinian immigrants, it seems. He went to local schools, graduating from Virginia Tech, joined the Army. He spent basically his whole adult life in the Army. That's where he received his medical education. He was trained as a psychiatrist by the Army and served for several years at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, ironically specializing in the treatment of combat stress. He was then transferred to Fort Hood earlier this year. He was due to be deployed, apparently to Afghanistan. We've heard from various sources that that bothered him, for whatever reason. We know he was a devout Muslim, took his faith very seriously. We can't say, of course, that that was relevant, here.

Right, religion is never relevant.

The ability of the media (and the President) to ignore the obvious is mind boggling - especially when it effects the security even in our own military bases here at home.

I wanted to bring to our readers the reaction of a real hero - J.R. Salzman - a wounded Iraq War veteran who lost his arm while fighting for our freedoms overseas when he heard about the media's contortions. I recommend reading the entire post by clicking on the above link.

I’m more than a little angry right now. Yes, I’m irate that some sh-tbag Major (“sh-tbag” is often used as a technical term in the Army) opened fire on a group of his fellow Soldiers killing 12 and wounding 30. But that’s not even what is under my skin right now. What is bothering me is the general reaction of our media and those stupid enough to think this was not an act of terrorism, but was caused by supposed PTSD caused at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

You want to know what PTSD is like? I'll tell you. You have nightmares that go on for weeks. Mine would always be the same. Wherever the window was in the room in which I was sleeping I would see a bright white flash. I would wake up screaming to my wife “Get up! Get the f-ck up! An IED just went off!” Sometimes I would just wake up screaming in agony as I relived the moment where my right arm was ripped from my body by an Iranian shape charge....

If you can get PTSD from treating soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center then why the hell haven't more people snapped? Why haven't all the therapists in physical therapy and occupational therapy, and all the staff on Ward 57 ran around shooting up the place? They have seen far more wounded Soldiers than this POS ever did. My occupational and physical therapists, like many of the civilian personnel at Walter Reed, have been there since the beginning of OEF. They have taken care of countless (probably hundreds) Soldiers with a variety of different injuries.

Let us not dishonor those who serve by lumping Hasan with them by claiming he has a form of PTSD. It's dishonest to do so. Hasan is a terrorist - plain and simple.

The Arab Occupied Territories

In honor of the recent threats of the "Palestinians" to unilaterally declare a state I am revisiting here an article I wrote back July 2003. This article gives us a very clear idea of who the "Palestinians" are.

***

It is only in Israel that I am lucky enough to travel in a bulletproof bus. This week I went to visit a good friend and her very cute children in the city of Beitar. This trip took me into the Arab occupied territory of Judea/Samaria (aka West Bank). I decided not to take my car into the occupied territories because I was afraid that my rental car would not be able to make the trip due to unforseen circumstances ie. molotov cocktails, snipers, and other "problems". Instead I took the bulletproof bus.

On my 15 minute trip out of Jerusalem to Beitar I thought about being under "occupation". Occupation is another word for being held hostage. Jews living here in Israel are being held hostage by the Arabs living in this country. We are afraid to ride the buses, afraid to go shopping, and afraid to drive the roads.

I have been doing a lot of traveling while here in Israel. When I first arrived, I was getting directions to a outlying suburb of Jerusalem when the woman giving me directions gave me a shocker. She said to make sure not to miss my exit because I would end up in the Arab city of Ramallah. This means sure death. As I was driving that evening I made sure to pay attention to all the signs pointing me to that particular suburb, I was scared to miss my exit. I was scared to be murdered because I am Jewish.

We saw the blood frenzy several years ago when two Jews made a wrong turn into Ramallah. The Arab police there picked them up and took them to the police station supposedly for their own safety. News traveled quickly and the entire city showed up at the station. The police did not bother doing their human duty - to protect innocent lives. They instead beat the two Jews to death, then threw their bodies out the window to the crowd outside. There was almost nothing left to identify the bodies with when the Arabs later returned the bodies to Israel. Instead we see the inhumanity of it all when one of the Jews cellphones rang while all this was happening. One of the murderers answered the phone and found that it was the wife of one of the Jews. He told her that he was busy murdering her husband. Occupation means that you cannot travel your own land for fear of making the wrong turn on the highway. I cannot assume anything different if I should G-d forbid make a wrong turn.

On the other hand, we need to keep in mind that Arabs can walk freely in any city in Israel without a worry of being murdered in the street. Every day I see Arabs going anywhere they want in any city going along their business. They are still allowed to ride the buses, still allowed to go shopping and drive the roads. There have been no instances of Jews lynching Arabs like was done to the Jews in Ramallah. Who is under "occupation" here?

How did we come to such a situation here in Israel? Israel won a defensive war against her Arabs neighbors in 1967, when they announced to the world that they were going to drive her into the sea. In the span of a week, Israel won the eastern half of Jerusalem as well as Judea and Samaria. There has been no other country that hands back the land that it wins in war. Especially not back to the enemies that tried to destroy her in the first place. Especially if doing such a thing would make your country an indefensible 9 miles wide.

As a result of winning this war, Israel has inherited the Arabs living in these areas. Of course none of these Arabs wanted their own state when they were occupied by Jordan before 1967. Only when under Jewish control does it become important. We can see Arab priorities clearly here. Arab statehood becomes a must when it comes to displacing the Jewish identity with the Land of Israel and not before.

I am glad that I have come to visit in the Land of Israel. It is only here that I can understand what it means to be a people under "occupation".

Cultural Sensitivity Gone Mad

All of us have been taught to be culturally sensitive to others. The question is how far this sensitivity extends. To the clothing someone wears? To the food that someone eats? Or does it include other things?

Fellow students knew Major Malik Nidal Hasan as a strong and vocal defender of suicide bombings and being against U.S. involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan. He even provoked arguments with other soldiers who supported the wars. Why wasn’t anything said?

"The system is not doing what it's supposed to do," said Dr. Val Finnell, who studied with Hasan from 2007-2008…"He at least should have been confronted about these beliefs, told to cease and desist, and to shape up or ship out...."

But Finnell said no one filed a formal, written complaint about Hasan's comments out of fear of appearing discriminatory.

"Out of fear of appearing discriminatory". Thirteen soldiers are now dead, 30 more are wounded because Hasan's classmates were scared of looking culturally insensitive to his Muslim beliefs. It wasn't worth it to make a fuss.

Some may point to this as an extreme example. It isn't. Cultural sensitivity has gone mad. We look to our educational system to learn how we should be viewing other cultures.

The goal of multicultural education is not only to teach children about other groups or countries. It is also to help children become accustomed to the idea that there are many lifestyles, languages, cultures, and points of view…[and] to attach positive feelings to multicultural experiences (Dimidjian, 1989).

Indeed. There are "many lifestyles, languages, cultures, and points of view" around the world. Shouldn’t these cultures be considered valid, even if different from our own?

Slavery in the United States had to be abolished. Why? The South had a "cultural tradition" of slavery going back two hundred years. Why couldn't the Southern states be left to have their way of doing things – live and let live - and chalk it up to cultural differences? The reason is because the United States stands for freedom and liberty for everyone - a person can not be property. To have slavery in a free country was antithetical to the founding.

What about countries without the traditions of freedom? Can we absolve them of their obligations because they have their own "cultural traditions"? What if their "traditions" include slavery? The subjugation of women? Honor killings? Polygamy? Should we respect their "traditions" as equal to our own? And in the words of multicultural education, should we "attach positive feelings" to these "traditions"?

Canada has recently been struggling with the polygamy issue. British Columbia has been attempting unsuccessfully to prosecute a break-off Mormon sect for polygamy. The issue has recently been sent to the Province's Supreme Court for their judicial opinion.

Isn't it the right of a man to have more than one wife? Why should it matter to us... it's their "tradition".

Another "tradition" Canadians are being forced to confront is child rape. Some in the Canadian military in Afghanistan haven't successfully reconciled their Western values with those of the native population. A former Canadian soldier, Travis Schouten, was so disturbed by what he witnessed, he began drinking and almost destroyed his own life.

Should we be "attaching positive feelings" to this "tradition" as well? Was Schouten not being sensitive enough to Afghani “culture”?

What about the "tradition" of female genital mutilation dating back 1,400 to 2,000 years. Does it matter how old a "tradition" is? Shouldn't we show more sensitivity toward that "tradition"? Why not?

A letter responding to a BBC News story about female genital mutilation says,

It is wrong for us to take the moral high ground and condemn the cultural practise of others as barbaric...We must first understand the role of circumcision in those African societies that practise it before we result in outright conclutions [sic] and condemnation.

Really? The writer is declaring it "wrong" to take the "moral high ground" as he puts it. If so - our values must be equal to those who value female genital mutilations. If we are not willing to condemn such acts, we must be giving our tacit approval of them.

This writer must also want us to give our approval to slavery as well. There are at least 27 million people enslaved around the world. Is slavery now acceptable?

We can bring example after example of monstrous "traditions" from around the world. Who are we to take the "moral high ground"? Perhaps these slave owners would like to immigrate to the United States or Canada with their "property" - are we going to stop them? Will we turn a blind eye to all these abhorrent "traditions" when they occur in Africa or the Middle East, but put up a roadblock to them when they approach our shores?

Where are the limits to cultural sensitivity? At what point can we say “enough”?

The Declaration of Independence makes it very clear what Western Civilization stands for: Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. We must make it clear to all people around the world that we are not ashamed of our Western values. We believe that all people, wherever they may live, are given these rights by their Creator - that we have no interest in importing their "traditional" values - and are willing to take the "moral high ground" and condemn their "traditional" values as barbaric, and not welcome here or anywhere else in the world.

Cultural sensitivity is fine and wonderful when restricted to food and other inconsequential things, but not when it comes into conflict with basic Western values of human life and dignity. Calling these terrible acts what they are - barbaric - rather than pretending they are equal to our own Western values costs people their lives around the world. We saw at Fort Hood the results of cultural sensitivity. This ‘sensitivity’ has gone too far.

Islamic Terrorism at Fort Hood

These are the 13 brave soldiers who were murdered by Malik Nidal Hasan, an Islamic terrorist, at Fort Hood on November 5th.

It is impossible to ignore the fact that Hasan is an Islamic terrorist. All who knew Hasan were aware of his extreme Muslim views.

His presentations for school were often laced with extremist Muslim views, one source said.

"Is your allegiance to Sharia [Islamic] law or the United States?" students once challenged Hasan, the source said.

"Sharia law," the source says Hasan responded.

It is truly a disgrace that Hasan was allowed to remain in the military. This was a terrorist act - plain and simple.

Amazingly enough - there are still some who are not aware that the attack on Fort Hood was conducted by an Islamic terrorist. Here are a few tips to help you out if you're "not sure" you know a terrorist.

1.) If your neighbor begins giving away his belongings, including multiple copies of the Koran, while suggesting that he is "going away," you might know a terrorist.

2.) If your health care professional suggests that the answer to your depression, marital ills, loneliness, or post-traumatic stress is to begin praying to Allah and attending the local mosque, you might know a terrorist.

3.) If a colleague from your department leading a seminar veers off topic and begins suggesting that infidels should be decapitated and have boiling oil poured down their throats, you might be working with a terrorist.

4.) If a guy dressed up like Osama bin Laden shows up at the local convenience store, or appears at the office wearing a shalwar-kameez, you might be in store for some live ammunition directed your way. And you are probably in the presence of a terrorist.

5.) If the subject of your electronic surveillance repeatedly attempts to contact an Imam who is also an Al-Qaeda recruiter known to be in contact with suppliers to Osama bin Laden and associates of the Blind Sheik al Rahman and whose phone number is found in Ramzi Binalshibh's apartment, you might be surveilling a terrorist.

6.) If someone in your office, shop, store, mall, street or stadium yells "Allahu Akbar!" you had better run or seek cover. At this point you definitely know a terrorist.

This would be funny if it weren't sad in the wake of the Fort Hood massacre. It's time to bury our honorable dead and identify this attack for what it was - an Islamic attack on American soil, no "ifs", "ands" or "buts" about it.

Veterans Day

Yesterday was Veterans Day. I hope that everyone took a moment to thank the amazing people who put their lives on the line for the rest of us. If you didn't - go ahead and do that today.

The Things That Make A Soldier Great - Edgar Guest

The things that make a soldier great and send him out to die,
To face the flaming cannon's mouth nor ever question why,
Are lilacs by a little porch, the row of tulips red,
The peonies and pansies, too, the old petunia bed,
The grass plot where his children play, the roses on the wall:
'Tis these that make a soldier great.
He's fighting for them all.

'Tis not the pomp and pride of kings that make a soldier brave;
'Tis not allegiance to the flag that over him may wave;
For soldiers never fight so well on land or on the foam
As when behind the cause they see the little place called home.
Endanger but that humble street whereon his children run,
You make a soldier of the man who never bore a gun.
What is it through the battle smoke the valiant soldier sees?

The little garden far away, the budding apple trees,
The little patch of ground back there, the children at their play,
Perhaps a tiny mound behind the simple church of gray.
The golden thread of courage isn't linked to castle dome
But to the spot, where'er it be — the humblest spot called home.
And now the lilacs bud again and all is lovely there
And homesick soldiers far away know spring is in the air;
The tulips come to bloom again, the grass once more is green,
And every man can see the spot where all his joys have been.

He sees his children smile at him, he hears the bugle call,
And only death can stop him now — he's fighting for them all.