Dear Friends,
We are a civilization facing many serious challenges. So, naturally, people seem very upset that a professional football player has a very famous and very photogenic girlfriend who attracts camera lenses and they keep showing her during television broadcasts. I think I’m going to pull out one of my favorite Frasier Crane bits. A caller named Roger asks him to settle an argument with his wife about what to name their new sailboat:
Roger, at Cornell University they have an incredible piece of scientific equipment known as the tunneling electron microscope. Now, this microscope is so powerful that by firing electrons you can actually see images of the atom, the infinitesimally minute building blocks of our universe. Roger, if I were using that microscope right now... I still wouldn't be able to locate my interest in your problem. Thank you for your call.
Back to the real challenges.
Secretary of State Blinken said the other day that tensions in the Middle East have not been this high since the early 1970s. An Iranian-backed terrorist militia launched a drone attack on a U.S. outpost in Jordan, killing three American soldiers and wounding dozens more. And the Biden Administration, once again, seems to be making “not escalating” the conflict the highest priority. Look: sometimes you may not want a fight, but a fight wants you. A very stout response is required.
President Biden’s predecessor dealt with Iranian attacks on American soldiers by executing Iran’s top general.
And I remember back when Libya was sponsoring terror attacks against Americans around the world. Ronald Reagan dropped a bomb on Muamar Gaddafi’s house.
Something along these lines will go a long way to reestablishing a little law and order. And before you email me with some J.D. Vance talking points about “endless wars” or sending me the video of MSNBC’s Joy Reid’s “hot mic” moment wailing about Joe Biden “starting another f—ing war,” here’s a little reality check: this is how you avoid wars. Strength. The carrier groups in the region are not museum pieces. It is useless to “project” strength by their presence but never, ever use them.
I cannot imagine how demoralizing it must be to be an American service member watching our enemies kill your comrades with total impunity. It ought to demoralize all of us.
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