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1/7/2022

Fighting our War Together

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PictureThe author’s father, Corporal Joseph P. Anthony, circa 1940 in Hawaii.
Joe Anthony, of Lexington, Ky., wonders whether Americans have what it takes to defeat our 21st-century enemy. If you would like to submit a post to Clearing the Fog, please contact us here. 

During the 1940s, do you think our parents and grandparents would sometimes complain to each other? “I’m so tired of news about the war. Can’t we talk about something besides the Pacific Front or Allied landings?” 

I’m sure they did, occasionally, but they knew the war was center stage.

Covid is our war. It doesn’t matter if we’re “over it.” Our enemy, Covid, is endlessly crafty, energetic, and vicious. I know. I recently spent 16 days in the hospital and nine days in a rehabilitation facility after contracting the virus. I was fully vaccinated and boosted, and it nearly broke me.

As in all battles, it’s ourselves that matter even more than our opponents: our vanities, our fears, our prejudices, our malice. If we can manage ourselves, we will vanquish the enemy.

George Will, the conservative columnist, wondered if our country, as constituted now, could win the Second World War. I wonder, too. It isn’t only the reluctance to sacrifice for the common good; it’s the refusal to believe the credible. Millions indulge themselves with fantastic speculation backed by no evidence and sometimes no logic and reject that which comes with freight-loads of scientific proof or that which they witnessed—re January 6th—with their own eyes. 

That refusal to acknowledge basic reality breaks down community, too. We can’t even get to the point of disagreeing. A sub-group of Americans in the ’40s, die-hard America-Firsters, pushed the theory that FDR had been behind the attack on Pearl Harbor. But they were called nuts by the huge majority. Now there is no “nut” theory that doesn’t get a hearing and eventually, it seems, a substantial following.

Our parents and grandparents may have grumbled, but they collectively pulled themselves together: gathered scrap, rationed, and sent their sons to fight. They accepted hard truths, facts they didn’t like. They knew the news wasn’t always going to be good and didn’t reach for a scapegoat to blame. Well, not usually at least. 

And when the dreaded telegraph arrived, they grieved but knew their sacrifice went beyond themselves—went out to the country they loved. They got some comfort from knowing that. Though death is always solitary, the country they sacrificed for came back to them in a collective embrace. 

We love the same country. And if we truly love that country, it will love us. Can we do less than our previous generations? Can we even imagine loving our fellow Americans?
​

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8 Comments
Joan Cullen
1/7/2022 08:49:27 pm

I've been contemplating the same questions/issues/concerns. It's so demoralizing. My only consolation, and a way to fall back into love of life, as really messy as it is.... several laws of the universe....things will change (or as the Beatles mantra goes.. "something is going to happen"). Soon. Some amazing discoveries in astronomy for sure thanks to the new space telescope launched a few days ago. Genetics as well. Chemistry, biology,..we will be discovering so much new stuff, about plants and animals, bacteria, and viruses
And health.
Politics really suck for me right now. My vote hasn't counted for much for years living in Kentucky. While there's a lot of suffering, there is also so much awesome stuff going on in the world. That's how I stay sane, with a little help from Cabernet Sauvignon!

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Tom Martin link
1/8/2022 08:04:52 am

I share your concerns, Joe. As much as I miss them, terribly, part of me is relieved that my parents, grandparents and in-laws who did sacrifice so much of their lives for the common good are not here today to see what became of all of that effort. That a significant proportion of Americans could turn against democracy is dumbfounding enough. But that so many seem so unwilling to consider the consequences of their actions, ie: risking others' well-being and lives by refusing to mask in public while we have nothing less than a deadly pandemic happening right here in our home state and towns, is beyond comprehension. I am vaccinated, including a booster. And Omicron does seem less threatening than Delta. But Delta remains among us and I have no reason to believe that I could not unwittingly spread this virus to others. So I mask. I hate the things. But the discomfort seems a very small price to pay.

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Sallie Showalter
1/8/2022 08:28:08 am

"You took the words right out of my mouth," Tom. How many times have I wondered how my parents, who sacrificed some of the best years of their lives to defend this country, would respond to our current unwillingness to sacrifice the smallest comfort to protect our fellow citizens. Every day I seem more aghast at our selfishness.

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Dudley Hanks
1/8/2022 11:28:08 am

So well said. What else can we do but talk to our children so they will talk to their children.. and pray we're not too late.
Train up a child in the way he should go: And when he is old, he will not depart from it.
Proverbs 22:6

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Leslie Dodd
1/8/2022 01:56:02 pm

Some folks believe in learning from facts. Others believe in discerning the truth from outside influences like fake news. It’s difficult to listen to Daydream Believers, except for The Monkees. It’s easier to walk away in wonder.

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Tessa Hoggard
1/8/2022 07:03:31 pm

Joe, I'm thankful that you are a survivor who has a testimony to share with others, particularly the unvaccinated. If only they would listen. Because they are unmoved to protect themselves and others, I fear we will never conquer the Covid war.

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Michael Benton link
1/9/2022 02:39:39 pm

Good to hear you are doing better Joe! Thoughts on your post and the comments. I'm going to focus on this mythologizing of the so-called "greatest generation," and by implication, how later generations have failed. It will be rushed as I have to get back to course building for the new semester.

1) It sickens me when I see people from older generations pointing fingers at young generations as being clueless, untrustworthy, dangerous, lazy, criminal, spoiled, hedonist, distracted, not up-to-snuff, etc... When I was a grad student I studied back two centuries of how this played out in the USA and the UK elite media - always the same complaints and hand-wringing. The elders/elites of the WWII era were saying similar things about the young people who would be sent to war.

2) Perhaps it would be more constructive if we reflected on this seriously messed up world we have provided them. This world we are currently living in was built by the so-called "greatest generation." If they were so great, why did they leave such a dysfunctional and divisive world? How was this toxic society constructed by these earlier generations? What led to this point?

3) I do lament the dissolution of a common reality, some form of consensus, and a complete lack of trust in any of our elite institutions. At the same time I recognize that it is the logical result of a system that provides no coherent messaging (think about the two parties on COVID), two venal political parties that consistently lie and steal, a corporate structure designed to exploit and denigrate workers (literally suck the last drop of blood out of them and cast their empty husks aside when they are done with them), an economic system that thrives on destruction/deaths. Lets be frank, older generations built a raging kleptocracy with a strong hypocritical, self-mythologizing front - "look at us we are so good, you are so bad."

4) Billionaires are flying rockets into outer space while large swathes of America go hungry or lose their housing during the year. We waste trillions of dollars on foolish military invasions/occupations (planned and executed by older generations) while any sane social program is deleted from consideration/legislation because it would be too costly. Both parties lie constantly to the country, not in an I.F. Stone "all governments lie to their citizens way," more like they are pathologically incapable of speaking truth about the major issues that threaten our society. Our communities are torn apart by predatory real estate interests - North side of Lexington is a textbook example, but really it is taking place across the nation.

I'm frustrated, so many people hurting ...

I'm not saying you are doing this Joe, but your post and the usual cheerleading comments are a part of this larger denigrating discourse. It says why can't you be like our great and holy forefathers. I call bullshit. It is disturbing to see this kind of shuffling of blame for our current society, onto people that haven't even had the chance to live their lives, the blame for a world they did not have a hand in creating.


Once again, I am so happy you are doing better. My heart ached when I heard you were ill. You mean a lot to me and your community. Solidarity!

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Bob Patrick
1/9/2022 05:17:53 pm

Joe, I join with everyone in wishing you the best. It’s wonderful that you are recovering and (although I’m sure you wish it were otherwise) your experience is an example of the perniciousness of this particular virus. I am amazed at how many people at Kroger do not wear masks even though the PA system continuously asks even the vaccinated to do so.

There was a lot of resistance to entering another European war even when Britain was fighting alone until Germany invaded Russia. But after Pearl Harbor attitudes changed quickly. And that generation had the support of WW I veterans. (The Yanks are coming!) Those who might be called to fight today would be looking back at Viet Name, Iran, and Afghanistan — perhaps not so inspiring. The Viet Nam lesson is that if the US is attacked conscription is essential, otherwise smart people will figure out how to avoid service.

Stepping away from armed conflict, I think many people are moving to the right because they believe government has forgotten them. Without getting into media propaganda (watching the “education” of Tucker Carlson), the mainstream media drowns the viewer with problems — Afgans freezing in the winter, children without medical insurance benefits, Carolina summer homes threatened by sea rise. And for each of these, there’s a call for a government response. For most viewers: (1) there is nothing they can really do to resolve the problem, (2) the US Congress and state legislatures are unlikely to act effectively, and (3) the viewers feel their own problems are not being addressed. The media believes it’s reporting the news, but many viewers feel accused of being inept or uncaring. It’s more relaxing to watch For news where you won’t feel bad.

Again Joe, all the Best and thank for kicking off such a lively conversation


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    Between the debilitating effects of age and the 24-hour crush of mind-bending news, my brain is frequently in a fog. Nonetheless. I'll occasionally try to sweep aside the ashy gray matter and shed some light on what's going on at Murky Press. Perhaps together we can also gain a little insight into how we can better use words to organize and clarify the world around us.

    Cheers! 
    Sallie Showalter, Murky Press 

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