Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Do We Have A Crisis of Courage?

Arizona Senator Jon Kyl has an excellent piece here on what he alleges is America's crisis of courage. He quotes at length from a speech given by Alexander Solzhenitsyn to Harvard graduates in 1978: "Should one point out that from ancient times decline in courage has been considered the beginning of the end?" He lamented that "[N]o weapons, no matter how powerful, can help the West until it overcomes its loss of willpower."

Kyle states, "At stake in the war on terror is nothing less than preserving Western civilization, as Solzhenitsyn sensed almost 30 years ago: "The fight, physical and spiritual for our planet, a fight of cosmic proportions, is not a vague matter of the future; it has already started."

Kyl believes that the "fate of future generations depends on how we answer the enemy's challenge today. To do that, we must clearly understand the nature of the threat we face – and we must marshal the courage and character necessary to prevail."

Hat tip Austin Bay

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