To Kneel or Not to Kneel - Connecting the Dots

"To kneel or not to kneel - ah, that is the question" that is the latest attempt by the liberal left to divide America.  What is a person to do when our national anthem is played in a public setting?  What is a person to do when our flag is presented?  Is the "Stars Spangled Banner" just another song, another piece of music?  Is the flag simply a piece of cloth?  Of course we should know the answers to those questions.  Both our flag and our national anthem are symbols that represent our nation.  When one sees the flag, one should see America - its strengths and its weaknesses.  When one hears the national anthem being played, one should hear the sounds of America's past: the thump of the gavel in Independence Hall as the Declaration of Independence is affirmed; the roar of cannons on a hot July day in Gettysburg; the powerful thrust of rocket engines launching the Space Shuttle into orbit; the anguished cries as a nation mourns its fallen leader. 


And what were we taught as children about the national anthem and the flag?  We were to show respect for both by standing when the anthem was sung or played and when the flag was presented in a public setting.  Furthermore, we were encouraged to put our hand over our heart when the anthem was played or sung and the flag was presented.  This was to show honor to what our nation has stood for; to show respect for the many men and women who died so that we might enjoy our freedoms.  This was our privilege as Americans. 


But for many Americans today, the flag no longer is a symbol of all the things that made and continue to make America great.  Instead, the flag is a symbol of what divides America today.  It is a symbol of racism, of oppression, of inequality.  It is not to be shown respect, but to be held in contempt.  Rise when the national anthem is played or the colors are presented?  No, instead I will kneel to show my utter contempt for both. 


Allow me to connect some dots.  Dot #1 - the elimination of Columbus Day making it Indigenous Americans Day.  Many states have changed the focus of the Columbus Day holiday.  After all, Columbus did a great disservice to the human race by discovering the New World.  Just look at what Columbus brought with him: weapons of mass destruction - muskets using gun powder; disease - small pox especially; enslavement - someone had to work the gold and silver mines.  But, look at what else Columbus brought: Christianity and the message of the Gospel; civilization and the advancement of learning. 


Dot #2 - the attempted eradication of symbols of the Civil War.  Robert E Lee - has to go because he was a traitor to his country, besides he was a slave owner.  Thomas J "Stonewall" Jackson - well, he has to go as well.  And so we remove those statues, or we at least shroud them in black. 


Dot #3 - the attempted removal of those Founding Fathers - Washington and Jefferson - who owned slaves.  Thomas Jefferson might have been the author of the Declaration of Independence and our third President who expanded our nation with the Louisiana Purchase, but he owned slaves, thus he is not fit to be memorialized.  The same is true with George Washington. 


Dot #4 - the disrespect shown to the flag and the national anthem. 


Dot #5 - the rewriting of American history texts that are used in our public schools.  In these new texts we see a revisionism of history.  The Pilgrims did not come to America for religious purposes, but the greed of gold and silver.  Those writers of the Constitution had as a goal the creation of a government run by men who were white supremacists.  And on and on the list would go.  This is what is being taught to your children and grandchildren as being historical fact. 


Is there a common link between these dots?  I believe there is.  It is the attempt by the radical left to destroy America by destroying its past.  America's greatness is built upon her past.  But, if that past is called into question as to its validity, then the foundations begin to shake and soon the nation will totter and finally tumble. 


Friends, we need reminders of our past - both the great as well as the not-so great.  We need the Mount Rushmores and the Gettysburgs.  We need the Washington Monument and the Jefferson Memorial as well as the Lincoln Memorial.  We need the Trail of Tears as well as the Santa Fe Trail.  America has never claimed to be perfect.  Our nation was birthed as a grand experiment of men governing one another - not via dictates, but via ballots.  Yes, it has had some times when things were not as they should have been - the Civil War and the Vietnam War are two examples.  But, there have been many more times when America rose to the challenge and stood as an anchor for many - the Marshall Plan, following World War II, and the rush to provide assistance for hurricanes, tsunamis, and earthquake ravaged countries demonstrate the beneficent heart of America. 


Let's not erase America's past that we dislike or strongly reject, but let us have a civil dialogue and learn from those periods.  Yes, there is much we can learn from one another when our objective is to truly listen to each other.  We have lost the art of dialogue today and have instead cultivated the art of demonstration which often ends in violence, destruction, and sometimes even death. 


Furthermore, I believe what we are seeing today is part of a larger plan to create a one-world government.  For that to happen, nationalism must be destroyed, thus the continued assault upon President Trump who has a strong national heart.  America is one of the last strongholds remaining of a nationalistic spirit.  But erasing its past and discrediting its founding, that spirit can be destroyed.  And, once it is destroyed or at least severely damaged, I believe we will see the ascent of the Antichrist who will complete the formation of that one-world government and rule all nations who have surrendered their nationalism for globalism and one-worldism. 


So, to kneel or not to kneel - ah, that should not even be a question.  I will rise to my feet when the flag is paraded in front of me.  I will rise to my feet, remove my cap, place my hand over my heart when our national anthem is played or sung.  I will do that because I honor my country and those who sacrificed their lives so that I could live in the "land of the free and the home of the brave."  And I will no longer support any team that shows disrespect to the anthem and the flag of our nation.