A Cancer Called Evil and Soldiers

Those of you who have read my posts in the past know that I come from a long line of American soldiers. That line begins with the American Revolution, encompasses virtually every interim military action and currently ends with the first Gulf conflict. I am intensely proud of that tradition and because of that when I read or hear something I consider derogatory about soldiers I grow angry and incensed, and that brings me to the reason for this post.

I believe there is evil in the world. I say that because I have traveled all over the world and I have witnessed evil up close and personal. I have witnessed evil in the actions of groups, large and small, and I have seen it in the eyes and actions of individuals. I believe evil is a cancer. It can occupy a single person or it can spread and consume an entire group. I have seen this cancer manifest itself in the ability and desire to take a life or torture another human being while relishing the act and I have seen it take the form of pure greed and desire so strong as to enable a person to totally disregard another human life. The historical best example of this type of cancer of course is Adolph Hitler and the spread of evil through the Third Reich. And like a cancer I believe that evil must be treated and or destroyed and removed. During World War II the world had a cancer that was spreading and the world treated itself. Those nations who had the disease under control were able to surgically remove the cancer from and treat the residual malignancies in the other nations of the world.

Today the cancer that is evil still exist but in new and different forms. It exists in small malignant pockets such as al Qaeda and in larger groups such as the former Taliban government of Afghanistan and metastasizes itself in regimes in Africa which results in genocide such as in Dafur. There are malignant cells of evil in every nation in the world and every organization in the world and unfortunately it even exists in the United States military as we saw at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay. But each of these cancers requires a different treatment. Some, such as the Taliban government of Afghanistan need to be removed by radical surgery using total and overwhelming force. Others such as al Qaeda must be searched out and eradicated malignant cell by malignant cell and still others such as those infections in the United States military and the chain of command that resulted in Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo must be examined and treated by being brought to justice.

What is most important to me though is how the physician treats his instruments and medicines. To me the United States military is like a fine surgical instrument or drug that the surgeon should be proud of. Sure, during the surgery or treatment, the instrument or drug can get contaminated with malignant cells but you don’t deride the instrument or drug and throw it away. You sterilize the instrument and prepare it for the next surgery. So I ask that when you hear about the Abu Ghraibs and the Guantanamo Bays don’t ask that they throw the instrument away demand that they sterilize the instrument but don’t condemn it by treating it as though it were the disease.

One last thought I would like share. We need to remember that sometimes the physician can become ill also . Sometimes malignant cells spread into the organs of the body politic. I believe that that has happened to the government of the United States and it is time that the citizens take up the call “physician heal thyself.” We need to remove the malignant cells in our government and allow our nation to heal.

Those Are The Sergeant Majors Thoughts On That.