One of my closely held beliefs is that we will be held accountable for the heritage left us by those who have fought and bled, and came before us. When I see the farrago that has become Afghanistan, the ineptitude of Vietnamese legacy, the current condition of the White House, politics in America, and the politicians refusing their jobs. I am always left asking, “What will our forefathers say?” With hundreds, possibly thousands of Americans abandoned in Afghanistan by the sitting US President, a complicit Congress, and the spineless Joint Chiefs of Staff, I cannot help but wonder what the President Generals of the United States will say to these people.
Before we hear from the US President’s, let us first clear our minds with the following from Mark Twain.
“The statesmen will invent cheap lies, blaming the nation that is attacked, and every man will be glad of those conscience-soothing falsities, and will diligently study them, and refuse to examine any refutations of them; and thus he will by and by convince himself the war is just and will thank God for the better sleep he enjoys after this process of grotesque self-deception.”
The fraudulent president, Joey, and his Joint Chiefs are in this position right now. They are deceived, they deceived themselves, and if America is not careful, their self-deception will mean enemies on Main Street. No hyperbole, no scaremongering, no warmongering; simply truth simply stated. Joey and his Joint Chiefs are blaming America for being in Afghanistan for too long, and the chaos in leaving is America’s fault. Their self-deception should not be our problem, our lie, or our “conscience-soothing falsity.”
President (Colonel) Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt has the next word, and he declares and details our problem precisely:
“Political parties exist to secure responsible government and to execute the will of the people. From these great tasks, both of the old parties have turned aside. Instead of instruments to promote the general welfare, they have become the tools of corrupt interests which use them impartially to serve their selfish purposes. Behind the ostensible government sits enthroned an invisible government, owing no allegiance and acknowledging no responsibility to the people. To destroy this invisible government, to dissolve the unholy alliance between corrupt business and corrupt politics is the first task of the statesmanship of the day” [emphasis mine].
Do we understand the problem? Are we clear about the issues facing our nation? Is the mission clear? The current crop of politicians have purposefully turned from their roles, like dogs to their vomit, and refused the people who elected them for personal power and individual success. Well, what do you do when you catch your dog rolling in its vomit? What do you do when you find a toddler crayoning the walls after telling them no? Will the adults in the room, please stand? You are needed!
President (Lieutenant) John F. Kennedy provides a caution pertinent to this discussion, and a word of timely caution is worth gold and silver to those who heed and follow its counsel:
“The very word ‘secrecy’ is repugnant in a free and open society; and we are as a people inherently and historically opposed to secret societies, to secret oaths, and secret proceedings. We decided long ago that the dangers of excessive and unwarranted concealment of pertinent facts far outweighed the dangers which are cited to justify it. Even today, there is little value in opposing the threat of a closed society by imitating its arbitrary restrictions. Even today, there is little value in ensuring our nation’s survival if our traditions do not survive with it. And there is a very grave danger that an announced need for increased security will be seized upon by those anxious to expand its meaning to the very limits of official censorship and concealment. That I do not intend to permit to the extent that it is in my control. …
For we are opposed worldwide by a monolithic and ruthless conspiracy that relies primarily on covert means for expanding its sphere of influence–on infiltration instead of invasion, subversion instead of elections, intimidation instead of free choice, and on guerrillas by night instead of armies by day. It is a system that has conscripted vast human and material resources into building a tightly knit, highly efficient machine that combines military, diplomatic, intelligence, economic, scientific, and political operations. Its preparations are concealed, not published. Its mistakes are buried, not headlined. Its dissenters are silenced, not praised. No expenditure is questioned, no rumor is printed, no secret is revealed” [emphasis mine].
There are lots of questions about who has been pulling Joey’s strings. Who is president right now, as senile Joe is not in charge, Kamala is not in attendance, and Pelosi is silent and retiring shortly. The Afghanistan farrago is humiliating, devastating, and despicable; yet, none of the politicians are willing to be publicly outspoken, convening investigations and using their powers to lead and rescue Americans. Why? Congress has the War Powers Act; they can act independently of the US President and demand that the US Military enter Afghanistan, rescue US Passport holders, and destroy American hardware, munitions, and other war materials. Congress could depose the US President legally, through impeachment proceedings, and install a new president. Yet, nothing is happening. Why?
President (General) George Washington provides guidance, counsel, and direction worthy of consideration in the following panacea of quotes:
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- “The power under the Constitution will always be in the people. It is entrusted for certain defined purposes, and for a certain limited period, to representatives of their own choosing; and whenever it is executed contrary to their interest, or not agreeable to their wishes, their servants can, and undoubtedly will, be recalled.” … “Be Americans. Let there be no sectionalism, no North, South, East, or West. You are all dependent on one another and should be one in union. In one word, be a nation. Be Americans, and be true to yourselves.”
- “Religion and morality are the essential pillars of civil society.” … “It is impossible to govern the world without God. It is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the Providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits and humbly implore his protection and favor.”
Herein is a call to action, from a general mustering both his troops and citizenry, calling all able-bodied people to learn two great truths. First, we are the owners of government and hold the reigns of power. Second, we cannot make the changes needed without the help of almighty God, regardless of the name we call Him. For too long, we have been divided on the first and not allowed to perform the second, and it is time to end the power that divides and separates.
While not a military president, his cunning mind is a powerhouse of wisdom that provides essential ideas and insight, and I am pleased to quote President John Adams. Again we find a panacea of quotes:
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- “Every problem is an opportunity in disguise.” … “It should be your care, therefore, and mine, to elevate the minds of our children and exalt their courage; to accelerate and animate their industry and activity; to excite in them a habitual contempt of meanness, abhorrence of injustice and inhumanity, and an ambition to excel in every capacity, faculty, and virtue. If we suffer their minds to grovel and creep in infancy, they will grovel all their lives.”
- “Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There never was a democracy yet that did not commit suicide.”
Are we allowing the suicide of the American Republic through the groveling in the infancy of our children’s minds? Look at K-12 education and how ideas from the late 1800s and early 1900s continue to shape your child’s classroom experiences — producing functionally illiterate products at state-run schools, abusing your child of their God-given potential, and robbing them of a lifetime of learning through labels, invented science, and drugging them into submission.
Yet, President Adams is correct; the problem of K-12 education is an opportunity in disguise. The opportunity to learn is an individual one; it is an opportunity for the community to step in and demand the politicians go away; it is an opportunity for citizens to awake and arise and refuse the cruel gruel of oppression and require the fruit of liberty be fed to their children.
There are two pieces of wisdom passed to us from President Thomas Jefferson also apt for this discussion:
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- “Timid men prefer the calm of despotism to the tempestuous sea of Liberty.”
- “If you want something you’ve never had, you must be willing to do something you’ve never done.”
With these thoughts, we come to the brief conclusion of this article, but not the conclusion of the need for learning, teaching, and action. The destruction of America has progressed sufficiently that none of us now living have experienced the tempestuous sea of liberty due to the calm lakes of despotism that has overtaken our land. Desire something you have never had, real liberty, and let’s be willing to do everything we need to possess this gift for ourselves and pass something better to our children!
© 2021 M. Dave Salisbury
All Rights Reserved
The images used herein were obtained in the public domain; this author holds no copyright to the images displayed.
The story is linked in case you missed the news on 
I have not viewed the series; I have barely scraped the surface of the curriculum offered. What I have seen of the curriculum worries me. I call it “whitewashing” history, to glance over the actions of one group to reflect how other groups were treated, with the intent of stirring the racial divides and creating more chasms based on race alone. What I see in this curriculum does nothing to “ … teach students about the rich culture and important contributions of the Asian American community throughout history” or to “combat false stereotypes.” I ran a search engine using the string, “Violent migrant worker strikes, involving Asian people,” and the first item on the list returned originates with the 
Think about this quote for a moment, who are the biggest race hustlers in America? History has taught that when race is the only concern worth knowing people care only about race, to their demise. Focusing on race is the sole reason why I have questioned, and continue to question, the validity of the arguments for National “Name your Favorite Minority” Month celebrations. There are absolutes in this world; focusing solely upon race as a choice, will breed racial tensions as a consequence, is an absolute. Recent history under President Obama reflected this exact issue to the Nth degree, yet nobody wants to have that discussion. Why; because of race!
When your focus is solely upon an individual’s race, race will be the only thing learned, the only lesson absorbed, and the fruit of that lesson are bitter. Have people from various races achieved great things; absolutely, but why should their achievements be diminished by focusing solely upon their race? Why should their achievements only be mentioned during “Name your Favorite Minority” monthly celebrations? Has the 1960s taught us nothing about the character, knowledge, talents, curious minds, and the work performed where race was NEVER an issue? I have books galore in my home; I continue to collect books about famous people of great accomplishment; I have never cared a whit about that person’s sex or gender. Why; because their sex and gender, race, skin color, religion, handicap, or heritage have never been a factor. As a kid, a thrill ran through me when I read the preamble to the US Declaration of Independence:
From the National Archives website, we find the following regarding the Declaration of Independence:
Recently, Atheist Republic posted a question on LinkedIn that was intriguing and promoting a multi-week discussion. As I seemed to have kicked over an anthill, I figured I would expound on the principles discussed to more fully detail why atheism is just another religion. Agree or disagree as you choose; however, all I ask is your consideration of the ideas discussed. Through the use of language and the accepted definitions from reputable sources, I posit that atheists and theists are closer together than they are apart. Atheists have taken for their religion the only belief that separates, a cognitive refusal to believe in god, God, or gods, as supreme authorities in the cosmos. Other items that can be considered religions include daily routines. When taken too far, consumerism becomes a religion to those thus engaged, as do sports, debt, and any other belief that creates enthusiasm in the individual. Many theists will find significant support among atheists regarding these different beliefs.
Atheists do not have a belief structure in god, God, and gods. An absolute insistence that there are no supreme beings is a belief structure and an organized belief system. Consider for a moment that a particular religion believes that a gigantic beet runs the universe; the atheist would automatically reject this for lack of evidence. Star Trek: Next Generation had “Q,” a potent being in the galaxy; again, a supreme power the atheist will reject out of hand. I met an atheist and a theist who both insisted that their belief systems allowed them to be rude, crude, disrespectful, and so forth as a method of worshiping and acting — proving, to me, that individual belief is stronger than training and the traditions of their parents, communities, and society. Two more miserable people I have never found an equal; yet, together, these two people found and lived after their manner and understanding of happiness.
I have found that atheists have a specific personal belief structure regarding god, God, or gods that then is projected onto others. While many times the atheists are not finding their expected belief structure reflected, the atheist becomes hostile to all others they come in contact with and attempt to change other people’s beliefs through legal or other force mechanisms. Individual belief, even if not shared, can be considered a religion to that person; hence, Webster’s definition is very accurate and applicable to this discussion. Regardless of the belief in god, God, or gods, there are other beliefs of supreme importance to the atheist that makes up their religion. The Cambridge Unabridged Dictionary carries a similar definition, “an activity that someone is extremely enthusiastic about and regularly does.”
Henry Chester is quoted as saying, enthusiasm is the greatest asset in the world; it beats money, power, and influence; it is nothing more than faith in action. Not believing in, or following, a god, God, or gods is of supreme importance to atheists. Other beliefs are based upon the personal theology and behavior, dogma, mantra, etc., of the person. Thus, those beliefs range from abortion through environmental activities and feelings to the power of food, science, and so much more. Without a core written tenet, the only belief that is universally accepted as distinguishing atheists from theists is the belief in god, God, or gods.
One of the most egregious issues in our world today is the plasticization of words to exclude all definitions, but the “common” definition, usually known as the first definition found in a dictionary. Common definitions do not provide the complete etiology of a word; thus, closing minds to the language’s glory. As a noun, theology defines as “religious beliefs and theory when systematically developed.” Hence, when taken together, religion being beliefs that are of supreme importance, when systematically considered and developed, can be attached to any belief one chooses to raise to the level of devotion. Even non-belief is regarded as a religion and theology. People have chosen belief structures that include thousands of different topics, including, but not limited to, people, animals, and methods of living. I have met footballers, American and European, whose devotion to their sport is a religion! I know one religion that worships making beer; thus, belief and non-belief in god, God, or gods is not so farfetched.
Atheists and Theists have a belief structure centered around god, God, or gods. I have met many beautiful people who were raised in homes with a belief structure that was absent a centrally recognized god, God, or gods, whom theists would term “non-believers,” atheists would term “atheists,” and both terms would not apply. To first be a theist or atheist, one must have been taught about a god, God, or gods. The people I discuss have a belief structure and system made from their fathers/mothers, tribes, and society’s traditions. Thus, they are not unbelievers or non-believers, as they have a belief structure and system. They are not atheists as they have not been taught god, God, or gods; thus, the only term I know to use is “person.” We choose the labels we call ourselves.
Inherent to understanding Freedom of religion, by necessity, requires understanding “Freedom from religion.” However, a specific set of beliefs that a person is enthusiastic about forms a religious belief; thus, the phrase “Freedom from religion” itself is a misnomer and fallacy. The separation of church and state is meant to protect your right to believe and not believe in a supreme being, defending your beliefs from government oppression. Then no religion can claim authority over others, and all are equal and free to exist without fear. Atheists are covered by the Freedom of religion, as are theists. The Freedom of Religion clause in the US Constitution implies a people can rid themselves of all religion as a personal choice and ritual, without cause to fear reprisals from any government body.
Dogma, “a principle or set of principles laid down by an authority as incontrovertibly true.” This definition is straight from Webster and a congruent description found in the Cambridge dictionary. By experience, every atheist I have ever crossed paths with, takes upon themselves the authority to lay down the principle of no supreme being, as incontrovertibly true, plus belligerently insists that all others must bow to this belief structure. I am not saying this makes the atheist right or wrong; I am saying that atheism has a dogma, and is very much a religion, and a religious belief, based solely upon not believing in a supreme being.
DNC-Consulting 