Commodore Decatur has a famous maxim that has always inspired me and seems appropriate for Independence Day.
Our country! In her intercourse with foreign nations may she always be in the right; but our country, right or wrong.
I earlier posted about the promise of the Declaration of Independence: that we are all equal and hold the same rights. Decatur's maxim hopes that in our foreign dealings we always do the right thing. We did not always live up to his hope, but we usually did. I'm reminded in World War 2 we sacrificed hundreds of thousands of lives to liberate others. With the Marshall Plan, we invested heavily in foreign countries to rebuild them so that they could choose their own destiny---instead of falling to the fate Stalin hoped (that they would implode and the Soviet Union could intervene). With the Berlin Airlift, we achieved an unimaginable logistics feat to feed a world city to keep its citizens free. I'm not blind to some of our negative actions, but with all our power we did not become an empire. We destroyed empires.
I stand with Decatur.
--
Ben
In tenebris solus sto
I stand with Decatur.
--
Ben
In tenebris solus sto