war
From Under the Rubble…The August Avalanche
Over the years, August has not been good to us. But Mom always said, “try to find something nice to say about everybody.” So, to paraphrase Richard Nixon, “let me say this about that.” Congress goes on recess in August. That’s good. Thanks, Mom! And now, getting back to Nixon, and August. My southern liberal…
From Under the Rubble…Catholics, War, and Unintended Consequences
The recent unpleasantness in eastern Ukraine recalls a nagging truth: Wars always bring unintended consequences, and Americans have seen plenty of them, firsthand. In 1916, Woodrow Wilson won reelection on the slogan, “He Kept Us Out Of War!” But Wilson wanted war, and, five months later, he got it. In October 1940, late in the…
From Under the Rubble…Cal Thomas’s Learning Curve
The British parliament has defeated Prime Minister David Cameron’s motion to join Obama’s proposed attack on Syria. As of this writing, the U.S. Congress has not acted, but the prospect of another U.S. war in the Middle East has brought some old issues back to life. And some old players — the most interesting of…
Just War is An Act of Charity
I recently had a brief exchange with a friend over the Obama Administration’s posture towards Syria and the recent words of Pope Francis at his Sunday Angelus where he echoed the words of his predecessor Pope Paul VI, “War never again!” My friend who is an astute and brilliant attorney, was dissatisfied with the pope’s…
The End of the Soldier
Chesterton famously commented, “The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him.” In this pithy statement, Chesterton encapsulates the end or purpose of a soldier. We saw this honored with the posthumous awarding of the Congressional Medal of Honor to Army Chaplain…
From Under the Rubble…Should Catholics Join the Military?
Ten years ago, on March 25, the Feast of the Annunciation of Mary, Most Reverend Edwin F. O’Brien, Archbishop for the Military Services, wrote the chaplains under his command. His letter focused on the question, whether Catholics could morally take part in the invasion of Iraq, which had just begun. The Catholic answer was not…
