A person with a “Warrior Spirit” is one who is willing to do everything within their power to achieve an outcome. A warrior is fearless, a warrior thinks little about “risks and rewards”, especially as they pertain to themselves. A warrior trains, takes responsibility for their actions, and is truthful to themselves and others. A “warrior’s” motives are unselfish and always he (she) strives to be strong in spirit, mind, and body. Many different cultures have embraced the “warrior spirit”. I think of the Vikings led by Leif Ericson, Spartans led by Leonidas at Thermophili, King David and his army. I think of the Hawaiian Koa warriors and how they are represented in the Haka war dance. I think of the Japanese Ninja tradition, and Sun Tzu. I think of Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull, Chief Joseph, Geronimo, and Cochise. I think of the 400,000 Americans who fought and died to free the slaves, and the young men who stormed the beeches at Normandy and Guadalcanal. I think of mothers and fathers who have fought to support their families in hard times. I think of our country’s Founding against odds that are impossible to understand today and the great patriot warriors who put their lives and “their families fortunes and honor” on the line for liberty. I think of the 40,000 Chinese immigrants who built the California Pacific Railroad through the Sierra Nevada, and the 40,000 Irishmen who built the Union Pacific Railroad across the Great Plains fighting Indians and famine most of the time.
My greatest concern after our most recent political pandemic is that as Americans, we have lost our nerve. It used to be that our leaders in government, in corporate America and in our military—from Washington to Lee and (Grant—Sherman—Sheridan) to Patton, Eisenhower and MacArthur were courageous and when appropriate “fearless” (there is a difference). Today many people in our country choose to look for a reason to be afraid. Y-2K, Global warming, Covid, greenhouse gases, Russian and Chinese collusion in our politics, white male supremacy and entitlement. No matter what name the “boogeyman” goes by, whether the threat is real or not, proceeding from a position of fear only leads to bad decisions.
There have been several times throughout our country’s history when every American had hope for the future. They believed the future for themselves, and their families could always be better. Faith and ambition helped bring Americans of all races and ethnic backgrounds together—a common faith and a common hope. America has always been “wealthy”. The source of that wealth was the labor (sweat equity) of the people, that accumulated capital that could be leveraged by entrepreneurs and businessmen to make new tools that would make labor even more productive.
Much has been written about the uniqueness of the American work ethic. Tocqueville wrote of it—I paraphrase: “the forest had to be raised and the city built”. Americans have always looked at our land, our opportunities, and our people with an eye to the future. Great industrialists, politicians and captains of industry looked to the future and could clearly see in their minds the potential of what “America” could be. Tocqueville also commented on the American spirit of individualism. Every advance in an individual’s economic condition, benefited the whole country. When the whole country’s economic condition was uplifted, the ability for the individual to get richer improved.
In short, Americans have always been optimists. Without the merging of Athenian and Hebrew philosophy and religion, there would have been no Enlightenment. No Enlightenment, no Declaration or Constitution. Without merging of faith and science and the Great Awakenings of the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries there would have been no industrial revolution and without principles of capitalism being deployed by businessmen and speculators the “sweat labor” of American workers” and the ideas of inventors and entrepreneurs would never have come to fruition. All of these “preexisting conditions” had to be in place so that the “American Spirit” could be realized.
Many of our religious, corporate, and political leaders over the last 20 years have led from a position of fear and have embraced uncertainty. Not since Ronald Regan have, we had a President who was optimistic about the potential of The American People and The American experiment. Barak Obama’s “Hope and Change” was the antithesis of the American tradition of the individual being the machine that powered America. The use of government in the most recent “political pandemic” to control the activities of individuals, families and businesses was a step backwards. By placing our hopes and aspirations in government policies, we abrogated our own individualism in exchange for security. When we as a people saw that mandates, masks, restricting access to schools, churches and businesses weren’t working we lost faith in government systems. Not only did we lose our liberties during the pandemic—we lost hope for the future.
No matter how uncouth or rough around the edges Donald Trump (The Orange Man) is, he believes in the American people, and he believes in the American Experiment. He believes in God, our Great Declaration, and Constitution. He believes in capitalism and Federalism—make decisions local and decrease the power of lobbyists and special interests. When was the last time you heard Brandon or Kamila, or Nancy say any of those things? Come to think of it when have you heard any RINOs say those things?
Our governor is a good man, but like many Nelson Rockefeller Republicans “order—as in New World” and process seem to be more important than principle. Contrast his response to the responses of Governors DeSantis, Abbot, and Nome. The difference in leadership styles during the political pandemic is the difference in leading like a middle manager, or in leading like a “fearless warrior”. I believe and pray that we are at the beginning of another GREAT AWAKENING IN OUR COUNTRY. We need “fearless warriors to lead the way in Washington DC and in our State.
