David Petraeus would be a good start. Colin Powell wouldn't be bad. HR McMaster would also be good. The truth is, with the all volunteer military, only less than 1 percent of our citizens under the age of 50 have any military experience. Few in Congress do. Look at the questions asked about Benghazi? They were not very sophisticated...like WHO ordered the stand down, was it Gen. Ham's initiative or did it come from DC? No aerial refuelers available? Why couldn't F-16s refuel at Italian air bases in Southern Italy or Sicily? Italy is in NATO and the fuels are compatible for all NATO jet aircraft. The administration either in inept on a historic scale or it's craven...take your pick...probably both.

After he resigned following his courts martial, he rented a large auditorium in Texas to tell truth to power. Two thousand people showed up. It took December 7, 1941 to revive his memory.

During the Vietnam War there were "heroes" who stepped forward and were dubbed as such by the left while being excoriated by the right. These included Army LTC Anthony Herbert who wrote in the 1960s about the illogical application of force and firepower in Vietnam. Air Force MAJ Hal Knight blew the "secret" bombing of Cambodia. The left praised Harrison Salisbury's attempts (misguided as they were) to reveal "truth" about the bombing of North Vietnam---even though what was "revealed" largely turned out to be North Vietnamese propaganda. Wayne Thompson, the Army Huey pilot who first lodged charges against William Calley that led to revelation of the Mi Lai Massacre was heralded by the far left (and others as well) for his heroism...and HE WAS a hero. In the 1960s and 1970s, much of the military hierarchy simply was ignorant of the kind of war we were fighting. Careerism was also a problem. Today, at the very pinnacle of the JCS, we have abject careerism evident. Some four-stars need to resign and call a news conference. They won't be "resigning" but retiring with their six figure pensions secured and openings at board rooms of various military-industrial companies. Will they do it? Doubtful. They have been co-opted, sold their souls for four small stars.

As a historian who taught courses on World War II, I think the exercise isn't entirely bad. I would have assigned my students to construct TWO arguments, one for dropping the bomb and one against dropping the bomb. I would have put the exercise in the larger context of "Moral Issues and War" in which we also would have addressed "Should the Eight Air Force have diverted B-17 missions to bomb the mechanisms feeding the German Work Camp System?" using the same comparative "pro and con" approach. That makes students think. Otherwise, you're propagandizing rather than educating.

Agitator, we are "justified" by faith in Christ, that is redeemed. Being made righteous is a process that continues until we are in heaven, by faith saved through grace, and that a gift despite our fallen state. One cannot fall from grace, at least not in Pauline terms as elaborated upon by Saint Augustine and refined by John Calvin. Reread the book of Romans. Obeying the ten commandments is something all Christians, Moslems and Jews should do. it may not save your soul but it would make for a more ordered society.

Part of the expense for many schools is the large administrative overload needed to track federal and state funding, equal opportunity, etc. Another is the plethora of "fad academic" programs like Women's Studies, African-American Studies, Gay Studies, and American Studies. This started with American Studies in the early 1960s and burgeoned as the decade continued with the spread of "Experimental Colleges on many campuses offering non-credit courses, some of which ultimately became real courses on masturbation and things like that. A few colleges have it right: Hillsdale College in Michigan and Grove City College in Pennsylvania, among them. They offer solid educational experiences at a reasonable price in a safe environment.

When we give up the concept of eternal truths, as those found in the Ten Commandments, for the relative truths of human discernment, what results is confusion based on our limited capacities for knowing right and wrong, perspectives that result from our flawed education, prejudices not only of parents but also of teachers instilled in us throughout the educational process from kindergarden through graduate school. Ultimately, two or more things cannot be "true.," certainly not when these are contradictory; something cannot be and not be. When a people reject God, this confusion is what results.

A North Korean attack, although ultimately doomed to failure, could also be very costly in terms of South Korean and US lives. If the North has usable nukes, they don't need missiles to deliver them to be militarily effective. Nukes delivered by fishing boats or mini-subs to the harbors of South Korea and detonated would make it impossible to land reinforcements. Short range missile strikes or artillery with chemical-biological warheads could render air bases unusable, thus complicating a US response. We have the air power and naval power to respond, but there will be a bloody first quarter in this war. In the end, we prevail...if we have the determination and will. Our capacity to endure casualties is part of their thinking.

There are, of course, several kinds of flag officers: warriors (and damn few...HR McMaster leaps immediately to mind...political generals such as Eisenhower...and careerists i.e. Wesley Clark. I'm thinking Dempsey might be the latter.

The United States has not won a conflict so clearly as depicted here since 1945, not counting the take down of Granda during the Reagan presidency. If RWR was in the White House, maybe the US military probably would be allowed to do what it has the capability to do. Two things, however, trouble me. First, BHO isn't anything like RWR. Second, the world's greatest military is like the Scots' Grays at Waterloo...the best in the world but also poorly led. BHO, who has fired as many generals as Lincoln did with much better cause, has gelded our top leadership. The troops can do it from the brigade commanders and wing commanders on down, but I'm not sure about the flag officers. Some may still have fire in their bellies. I hope so.