Despicable
Hattip to John at Powerline. Anthony Maschek, pictured above with his fiancee, is a freshman at Columbia. He decided to speak at a public meeting at Columbia University on bringing back ROTC to Columbia. He spoke in favor of bringing back ROTC. During his speech he was booed and laughed at by other students and taunted with cries of “Racist” which in libspeak I guess means now speaking in favor of ROTC.
Before he entered college, Mr. Maschek was an Army Staff Sergeant serving in Iraq. He was seriously wounded, suffering 11 gunshot wounds. He spent two years in a hospital recovering. Those who jeered at Mr. Maschek, an American hero, are the living embodiment of something written long ago:
A man who has nothing which he is willing to fight for, nothing which he cares more about than he does about his personal safety, is a miserable creature who has no chance of being free, unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself. As long as justice and injustice have not terminated their ever-renewing fight for ascendancy in the affairs of mankind, human beings must be willing, when need is, to do battle for the one against the other.
John Stuart Mill
8 Responses to Despicable
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(1 days ago)
Thanks for sharing that. How sad it is. In an ideal world, one we won’t see this side of Judgment, there would be no need for soldiers. We don’t live in that world. We live in the valley of tears and although our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against powers and principalities of this present darkness; sometimes those invisible forces employ flesh and blood in their prowling to ruin souls and that often demands a violent response. In peace we must prepare for war, not as in jingoism, but in preparation for the inevitable.
Those who jeer at the fine men and women who defend us are deplorable. I disagree with many of the missions (adventures) we have sent our military on, especially since the Korean War. I also dislike the bungling of the prosecution of those ‘wars’, which often only benefit those who finance wars; however, none of that is a reflection on why the men and women we send into battle do what they do.
We should either keep our mouths shut, or thank them for their sacrifice. Additionally, for those who aren’t or haven’t served in our armed forces, please know that the families and friends of our fine soldiers, sailors, marines and yes, airmen too, sacrifice a great deal as well.
Thank you very much for your service Anthony Maschek. To hell with those who booed him, spoiled little brats.
My son would know what to do. He would (as Mr. Maschek) quietly shake his head and contemplate the price for “free speech.”
Me: I don’t think so.
“Greet them ever with grateful hearts.”
AK, I agree with you. I don’t like some of the misadventures our military has been sent to, but to jeer at our men in uniform, such as Sgt Maschek, is wrong. What if we need our armed services for a legitmate threat? Can a demoralized army fight as well as one that is booed and hissed? I don’t even have to answer that one!
I was young once, but never this stupid and never this mean. My children are more naive than I was (the result of comfortable affluence), but they are well-grounded enough to know how much they have yet to learn and experience. I can forgive naivity, but meanness grounded in unearned self-righteousness not so much. Their behavior is evil.
Did this article portray an example of how thoughtful people who don’t suipport the war support the troops? I did not think so either.
Screw academia.
As a former Marine and veteran of the first Gulf War, I would like to thank Staff Sergeant Maschek for his service. I would also like to thank him for his courage in standing up in front of a roomful of people that he no doubt knew held views that were in strong opposition to his own. Never lose that courage Staff Sergeant, it will serve you well.