The Genius of George W. Bush - Restated

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We are at War. This is an obvious statement, yet a fact lost on a surprising number of people, especially in the media and the Democratic Party. And the war is no small matter, either, but a true World War in every meaningful sense. And it’s not World War Three, either, but number Six.


World War One did not, in fact, begin between Austria and Serbia in 1914 as many people believe, but between the Empires of England and France in the 18th Century. Simply put, France held more territory, with Canada to the North and Louisiana (and in the Caribbean) to the South of England’s little strip on the East Coast of what is now the USA, while England ruled the waves with an unstoppable navy. A series of conflicts during that time all have in common the fight for control of influencing the New World. Spain, the Netherlands, and Russia also took part in the fracas, but were soon forced to accede to a place behind the French/English domination. The First World War ended with the defeat of Napoleon, subsequent as well to Britain’s loss to the United States in what we call “The War of 1812”.

World War Two was an action that, amazingly, many people don’t even recall as a war. Pirates rose from the development of shipping routes, seizing boats the way carjackers take cars today. They reached their heyday in the late 17th Century, and died out as navies began to protect important vessels, but the pirates were canny, and some were able to reach Letters of Marque, agreements to act as ‘privateers’, auxiliary navy ships hired for the harassment of a nation’s trade shipping. This is W2, because Britain hired a lot of these in 1812 to harass the United States, but immediately after the war, entered into negotiations with the US for an alliance to rid the oceans of pirates, especially slave traders. This treaty was especially offensive to Southern states, which considered slavers legitimate shippers of goods, and the treaty therefore a clear example of oppression by the North against the South. During the American Civil War, pirates were again hired by both Britain and France as privateers, but once the war was over, again the American and European governments united to wipe out piracy on the open sea. Between 1875 and 1992, open sea piracy became virtually unknown.

World War Three was the European-based war from 1914 to 1918, though it also sparked the Russian Revolution of 1917, and the White Counter-Revolution of 1920.

World War Four was the truly global conflict, which began with Italy’s invasion of Ethiopia in 1936, and Japan’s invasion of China in 1937, and so convinced Hitler that there was no effective force to stop his own fascist campaigns.

World War Five was the Cold War, which the Left would now like to pretend they fought, though that was not at all the case. WW5 is remarkable for the fact that this was the first war where the entire world could have been destroyed, yet it was managed with relatively little damage and few casualties, given the stakes. The Left in the United States acted as a 5th Column against the Constitution and American values, but fortunately their strength and influence was not enough to gain control of a major political party, until Ronald Reagan had already beaten the Soviets in a masterful handling of economic and military initiatives the Soviets could not possibly match.

We are now engaged in World War Six. It’s a true World War, as Terrorism threatens every nation on the globe. We know this, because of the insidious effect of the Taliban’s control in Afghanistan, and state-sponsored Terrorists holding policy positions in many Middle East governments. Just as Fascism and Communism, in their day, enjoyed support from people who really should have known better, there are millions today who accept Terrorism as a political measure, unaware that this is a diet of poison, with no final result but death. Strangely, while many world leaders oppose Terrorism in theory, few indeed understand the threat of Global Terrorism, and the truly appalling possibilities which would become reality, were WMD to be gained by such groups, or a major government to be controlled by one of them. Fortunately, just as Hitler undid his own opportunities and successes through his own madness, the leaders of the extant major Terrorist groups have blown significant opportunities through their own arrogance and foolishness, but we cannot count on this continuing forever. And just as people had to understand the prescience of Winston Churchill in his crisis, so today people need to recognize that President George W. Bush has the only effective vision and plan and resources and fortitude for this time. This is why Tony Blair sided with Bush, and why world leaders, even as they complain about his methods, hold back from interfering with the mission; they know Bush is doing the hard work, without which we would have seen repeats of 9/11 in Paris and Berlin by now, as well. European leaders are used to doing what looks good in a campaign, but Bush is doing what protects the United States, and by extension, the World.

I bring all this up, because the Democrats still don’t seem to grasp what is going on, and that’s too bad for them. In 1932, Americans sensed the need for drastic change, and went with Franklin Roosevelt. The GOP refused to face this fact, and so lost again in 1936 and 1940. By 1944 the world remained in crisis, and people knew they could depend on FDR, so they kept him in the White House. Republicans understood that sense by then, and rebuilt their party to deal with the new Reality, so that in 1952, they were ready to reclaim some portion of the national leadership. The Democrats today are much like those Republicans in 1933; still in denial, they are unwilling to take the hard steps back to responsible politics, because the early steps would include admitting Dubya was and is right. Until they get that part into their heads and hearts, they will remain noisy and unstable, but they will also remain out of power, unless the Republicans prove greater fools somehow. It’s a losing game, to base your hopes on the notion that your opponent will somehow fail badly enough to make you look good in comparison, but for now that defines the Democrat’s strategy.

But the war continues, with higher stakes than most people know, though many sense that truth. I hope that one day soon, the Democrats will return to sanity, and the United States will again have two strong political parties, devoted to the liberty and freedom and security of her people.