I
have been trying to wrap my head around making some sort of cogent
commentary on the grim anniversary of the treasonous Capitol insurrection. Pontification seems to be the order
of the day followed closely by fuzzy prognostication. Barrels of ink have been spilled,
the talking heads of all stripes exhausted, and the internet has
been burning up. Plenty of stupid,
more than a dash of naivety, some calculated misdirection, and
more than anything emotional catharsis.
But there has also been wisdom and resoluteness. Take for example President Joe Biden’s strong
and forthright speech yesterday morning—the best of his career and
the forthright call to justice we have been longing to hear.
But
I find myself with nothing new or useful to say. I have been writing and fretting
over the looming divisions in society and the threat of actual
civil war for more than a decade. By
the time the dress rehearsal played out at the Capitol last year, I was Cassandra-ed
out.
I
ended up with no blog post this morning until by chance I found a meme
featuring a quote by Old Fuss and Feathers, General Winfield
Scott the Commanding General of the U.S. Army in the early
days of the Civil War. A hero of
the War of 1812, a victorious commander in the Mexican-American War,
occasional Indian fighter, sometime diplomat, and a failed
Whig presidential candidate, Scott was Commanding General for 20
years—longer than any other officer.
Even as a fat old man he was the embodiment of the Army. He was also a proud Virginian.
Yet
at a time when other Southern officers were resigning their commissions
in droves—including the Army’s brightest star Col. Robert E. Lee—to
take up arms against the Union, Scott remained not only defiantly
loyal to his nation and Constitution, but explicit in
his scorn for traitors.
Winfield
Scott—live like him!
