Price of Naiveté Could Be Millions...of Lives

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Americans have long been a very tolerant and altruistic people. No doubt this is in no small part because of the Christian foundation of this nations founding. I have long felt personally that Christians have too often misinterpreted the 'turn the other cheek' tale of the Bible. Perhaps that is another post someday but for now suffice it to say that it is my belief that God expects His children to stand up for what is right and good, and yes, even fight for it. Showing personal humility and suffering personally to show others the promise of God's love is wholly good. However, failing to stand up to evil and aggression which results in injury or death to others is wholly wicked.
How many times must history repeat itself before intellect will prevail over emotional naiveté? How many lives will be lost by future naiveté? There is of course no way to tell how many lives might have been saved had Chamberlain (England 1938) not been seduced by Hitler's false proclamations concerning Germany's expansionist dream. More recently, when Mohamar Qaddafi of Libya was engaging in terrorist activities and causing international strife, President Ronald Reagan launch attacks on him personally. His office, his house and even his tent were targeted. Some of his family was killed in these strikes. Qaddafi has been very quiet since those days. How many airplanes were saved from his terror? How many of his own people were saved from his extremist agenda possibly causing all out war against them? Yet this same president, when Marines were attacked in Lebanon, retreated forthwith, rubbing his bloody nose. This event was cited by Osama bin Laden as a reason that a war of terror on America would succeed. It showed, he inferred that America didn't have the stomach for a protracted war. How many lives did that cost us? All of the 9/11 lives lost, all of the embassy bombings, the war in Afghanistan; all lives lost because of naiveté when facing a threat. President Jimmy Carter was faced with a threat when Iran took Americans hostage after storming our embassy. We all know the history of his weak response and abject failure to adequately respond to naked aggression. We were afraid of the lives that may be lost in fighting Iran in 1979. Well, now Iran has nuclear ambitions and a fundamentalist, possibly insane, president who has promised to wipe Israel off the map. How many lives will be lost if nuclear weapons are used against Israel? All because of a weak response in the face of aggression.
Often times we assume that dealing with nations is different than dealing with individuals. However, the opposite is true. It is not hard to understand, after all nations are run by people, with all of the ego and fear and other flaws we all have.
This is even more so with dictatorships as they are run by one personality alone. So when the bully at school shows aggression and you do nothing what happens? Well, he continues to show more and more; until one day you've had enough and you lash out in anger and the fight is on. But what happens after that? The bully leaves you alone and moves on to the next weakling he can find. It is no different with nations. And if the weaklings all band together and threaten, and carry out the threat, to punish the bully for his behavior he will cease altogether.
We now live in a time when America is the biggest baddest toughest kid on the block; and yet we cower to small bullies who show aggression because of a very naive and ignorant belief that we are saving lives by not engaging them. The exact opposite is true. We are condemning future peoples to death by our own cowardice. Just as no greater love is shown by laying ones life down for another, so too no greater contempt is shown, than by forcing another to lay down their lives for your cowardice. America must stand against aggression in all possible cases, sooner rather than later. To do otherwise is to earn the contempt of future generations who must fight much larger and bloodier battles in our stead. May God have mercy on our souls, our grandchildren may not.

by: Keith D. Rodebush