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February 13, 2012
Binyamin Rose: Back to the Bunker: How a life-risking act by a Christian family during the Holocaust saved a family and built a thriving community a world away
Menachem Wecker: Business Schools Teach Real Estate Despite Troubled Housing Market
February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
June 9, 2004
/ 20 Sivan, 5764
It's called victory
By
Tony Blankley
http://www.jewishworldreview.com |
In Shakespeare's version, the English King Henry V rallies his badly outnumbered, ragtag troops against the flower of French chivalry before the battle of Agincourt with the reminder that in later years: "Gentlemen in England now abed, shall think themselves accursed they were not here, And hold their manhood's cheap whiles any speaks, that fought with us upon Saint Crispin's Day."
But now, the accolades come rolling in for Ronald Reagan from journalists and politicians who, when Reagan's battles were raging, were either bystanders or his opponents. Rather than holding their manhood cheap, they step forward to share in the glory. As one of Reagan's many foot soldiers from the old days, I started to grumble to myself, then to my wife about these people who weren't there when it mattered.
I was about to get on the phone with some fellow old-timers to continue my grumbling, when I suddenly realized how un-Reaganite I was being. I actually said out loud to myself: "Blankley, have you learned nothing from the old man in four decades?" Reagan would have been delighted that they were now on board. He was always prepared to lead anyone who wanted to follow. I realized that there is a word for later gaining the support of those who opposed or stood by during the battle. It's called victory.
More to the point, the battle didn't end on Jan. 20, 1989. It did matter what we did between 1966 and 1989. But it continues to matter in 2004. And, in fact, that battle is still raging. Great men not only affect their own time, but in death remain a force to be reckoned with and fought over. We are seeing the opening round of that continuing struggle.
As a young White House staffer in 1983, I had a similar mission over another great dead man. I was assigned the job of working the media to stake our claim on George Orwell for the Right. We expected that the arrival of the date 1984 — the title of his most famous book — would unleash a battle between the Left and the Right for possession of the iconic political writer's fundamental commitment. Both Left and Right found evidence in his public writings, private letters and comments to support each claim. But George Orwell turned out to be too big to fit into one category.
I suspect the same may be true of Ronald Reagan. While he was heart, soul and mind a conservative — and on an analytical basis always will be a conservative — it is instructive to contemplate on the phenomenon of so many non-conservatives beginning to grab a piece of him.
Of course there are many motives for saying nice things about him this week. For some it will be simple, sincere and honest reflection on a fine life. For some it will be the almost irresistible human instinct to aggrandize one's own ego by identifying with something larger than one's self (despite my best efforts at restraint, I plead guilty).
Some of his former opponents are merely doing what all civilized people do at a death — find a nice thing to say about the departed. Some cunning opponents carefully limit their compliments with the intent to minimize him. This can be seen in the statements that it was just Reagan's breezy personality that accounted for his success — not the ideas he championed and they opposed. A few partisan sorts are trying to build up Reagan in order to, they hope, belittle George Bush.
This is all to be expected. But what are we to make of former opponents who speak with sincere appreciation of his foreign policy style and substance? Ronald Reagan was a genuine radical in foreign policy. He broke with all his Cold-War predecessors who sought stability in U.S./Soviet relations. He sought destabilization and victory — and he gained it. We have heard, this week, increasing admiration from leading people who opposed him at the time on this matter. They would not consider themselves conservatives even today. But they would consider themselves Reaganites — at least on foreign policy methods. This, of course, has great implications for the war on terror.
We have also heard major media figures admire and embrace Reagan's vision of United States as a religious nation. A managing editor of a famously unconservative major national news magazine has said, it is simply foolish and ahistoric to deny the correctness of Reagan's vision on this matter.
When important non-conservatives start embracing big pieces of Reaganism while not thinking of themselves as conservative, something historic may be happening. I can imagine a time when some future young Republican White House staffer may be assigned the job of making sure that the voters remember that Reagan was at heart a conservative Republican — even as the opposition in that future campaign may be claiming Reagan as their own. That, too, would be victory.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in Washington and in the media consider "must reading." Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Tony Blankley is editorial page editor of The Washington Times. Comment by clicking here.
© 2004, Creators Syndicate
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