Lex took another run at the National Kneeball
League with the local fish wrap after the Ft. Wayne Journal Gazette awarded its
coveted Golden Pen Award to James Hendon for telling us for 10,000th
time that the NKL players have a first amendment right to act like boobs.
As always, Lex argues go ahead, but that’s not
the point.
For some reason Hendon feels it necessary to tell everyone: “I
was an American fighting man. I was prepared
to give my life. I served in the Air Force for almost eight years. I am a
decorated Vietnam-era veteran.”
If you click here, you can see Mr. Hendon’s
piece and read his bio. I found it
interesting that Mr. Hendon and Lex are the same age – 61. I graduated (barely) from high school in
1974. So I was wondering, how could Mr. Hendon be a “Vietnam-era veteran” of
war that ended in 1973 and most troops were out of country by 1972? My guess is that Mr. Hendon forgot the word “post”
in his description of himself, as in post-Vietnam War veteran.
Oh come on Lex. You’re slicing it a little too thin
here. The guy was just on the other side
of the war. Give him a break. Okay.
I was born in 1956, so does that make me Korean War era veteran?
It’s not this little slip that has me
questioning Hendon. He didn’t star with
the Vietnam-era War veteran claim that I suspect is pure BS. He claims he was, “an American fighting man.” Oh really?
Where exactly did you “fight”? I
suspect he joined after the Vietnam War and he admits he was gone in 8
years. So that leaves the Libyan air
raid, Grenada, Beirut, Panama, the Gulf War and Somalia.
If Hendon joined the Air Force after high
school and was discharged after 8 years, he’d not have been in uniform for any
of those military actions. If he’d gone to college then joined, he’d have been
gone around the Beirut action. Given
those limited actions just where did Hendon “fight?”
Anything is possible but I suspect the only
thing Hendon “fought” during his time in the Air Force was boredom and the line
at the class six store.
Then there’s this. What percentage of Air Force service members
are expected to grab a rifle and fight?
The Security Forces and Parachute Jumpers are gun totters by MOS. If the base is under attack, everyone becomes
a shooter. But what percentage of the
force is expected to ruck up, move out and draw fire?
My guess is that if that percentage is much over
20% something has gone horribly wrong.
Well Lex, he could have been a flyer. I suppose, but when was last time you met a
pilot who failed to mention 10,000 times that he was flyer and where is the huge
pilot's watch in the bio photo? My guess is
that if he were a pilot, that would have been the first line in his bio.
Hendon claims to have been ready to die for
his country. That’s a claim made from the safety of his home in Ft. Wayne. Besides, as Gen Patton so eloquently put it, “the
way to win a war is to make the other dumb son of a bitch die for his country.”
Most service men are resigned to die in the
line of duty doing their job. Short of
saving a comrade’s life, few, if any, are “willing” participants in their own
demise.
Lex, why do you give a $h!t about this guy’s
service? I don’t. I just thought it odd for
Mr. Hendon to mention his service let alone pad his resume to support a bunch of
odd ball athletes.
I dunno maybe he’s a real war hero too humble
to mention it. But then why would he
mention any of it? Let it go Lex. Move on.
Okay, moving on, here’s the response:
For the most part, I share James Hendon’s notion
that, “Americans can do whatever they want during our National Anthem.” As long
as the personal behavior is consistent with the law, have at it.
However, that has never been the point with
regard to NFL players taking a knee during the National Anthem. I have an absolute right, at the moment of
truth during a wedding, when the preacher askes for objections, to stand up and
shout, “Because I had her!”
The law does not prevent any man from pulling
such a crude stunt – honor, good manners, common sense, decency, education, character,
a moral/spiritual underpinning and sobriety, among other things, do.
So it is with the NFL. Few dispute the players’ absolute right to
act like spoiled clownish dolts during the National Anthem. Many think they should just pick another venue
and another song.
Also, the left’s belief that only the protesters
trashing the country have rights in this brouhaha is an indication of how weak
an argument they make. If Mr. Hendon ran a business and employees began
sporting t-shirts that read, “America SUCKS!” whether he believed the sentiment
on the t-shirt or not, outside ISIS controlled territory, it’s bad for business. Therefore, he might be inclined to require
that they stop wearing such t-shirts as a condition of continued employment. Employers, after all, have rights too.
Last, trying to shut others up does nothing to
strengthen a weak argument. In fact, to
say, ”the debate is over” only emphasizes the weakness of your argument. We can and should “condemn” boorish behavior
when we encounter it. It’s still our
right to do so, correct? I assume Mr.
Hendon wasn’t fighting exclusively for free speech rights of ill-mannered, left-leaning
boors. Condemning bad behavior is what
keeps civil society civil.
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