Posted by
Buster Foghorn on Sunday, November 05, 2006 10:34:49 AM
Broken windows left unrepaired in a neighborhood can be a signal of crime and disorder; they are evidence that standards have deteriorated and are not being enforced. Mayor Rudy Giuliani acted on this insight, the “broken-window theory” by Professor James Wilson, in cleaning up Times Square and New York City. Gradually Times Square and New York City turned around as the consistent enforcement of standards made it difficult for panhandlers, prostitutes, drug pushers, and various other underclass elements to thrive in the City. Enforcing standards made a difference.
Community standards or norms aren’t always enforced, however, as evidenced by the current popularity of out of wedlock births in Hollywood, total body tattoos, and body piercing tantamount to mutilation. In fact, it is hard to identify any criticism of the old social taboos today that would have been unacceptable a generation ago.
The good news is this past week a pro-military community once again found its voice and stood up for the brave military men and women fighting for their country during wartime. They said insults, personal attacks, or lack of gratitude for our military troops is unacceptable. This marks the second time in a short period that a senior Democratic Senator has been forced to recant a critical statement about our troops.
First, Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois, the number two ranking member of the Democratic Party in the Senate, in June 2005, compared the U.S. military’s treatment of prisoners assigned to the Guantanamo Detention facility to the Nazis, Soviets in the gulags, “or some mad regime -- Pol Pot or others -- that had no concern for human beings.” Second, this week Senator John F. Kerry, the party’s 2004 Presidential nominee, was not permitted to get away with a comment that on its face was a clear insult to the intelligence of our military forces serving in Iraq.
In the past, such negative comments about our troops by leading political figures went unchallenged or failed to cause a community response. For example, during Vietnam, the personal attacks toward our troops built up and eventually like a black plague spreading over the body politic, our military members were criticized, spit upon, and attacked for their service to our country. Their response to a call for duty at great risk to personal safety was treated shabbily. If the myriad experts predicting a long war against radical Islam are right, it is important that a community speak out; we must maintain the morale of our forces and nurture our warrior class.
The fact that a significant community was able to mount an effective message of outrage is very good news. These two cases demonstrate that with the advent of talk radio and the Internet our military members will be defended. For example, in Senator Kerry’s case multiple sources reported his initial statement. In fact reports were on the Internet long before the White House weighed in. Senator Kerry lashed out at his supposed antagonists, perhaps unaware of the on line “network’ that brought his comment to millions of readers before Rush Limbaugh even took to the airwaves. Internet news sites like Drudge, PowerLine, Free Republic, Pajamas Media, and Hugh Hewitt, quickly had the report of the Senator’s Pasadena comment posted and circulating throughout the net. Even more impressive is the fact that Senator Kerry was forced to apologize despite any criticism from “old media” which generally tried to carry water for him while he made repeated efforts to explain away his insult.
An early reply such as the response to Senator Kerry’s attack on the military is a good thing contrary to an argument that criticizing the military should not be a third rail. While individual misconduct is open to criticism and punishment, the act of service and the patriotism of our forces should only be recognized with gratitude. Fortunately, the abuses heaped on returning Vietnam veterans will no longer be tolerated. There is an active community today that can communicate quickly and effectively and just like Mayor Giuliani they can force the “broken windows” to be repaired before disorder (loss of faith in our military forces) is allowed to gain a foothold.