Ted Nugent’s commentary earlier this week struck a bit of a chord with me, so I’m going to re-post it here.  I happen to agree with him, 100%.  Of note, he wrote this shortly after playing for our United States Marines in Okinawa – yes, those who still stand so that we may be free to kneel, speak, worship, and live in this great country.

As disappointed as I’ve been with many friends’ commentary of recent days, I’ve not called them out on social media, or otherwise.  And so, to those who may disagree and wish to call me out here, I say this…If we can have productive dialogue absent of venom and intolerance for the informed perspective of others, let’s talk.  If not, then please recall that inasmuch as you have a right to speak, you also have the right to remain silent.

When I hear the National Anthem, I choose to stand.  Hand over heart, I use that time to remember my heroes – known and unknown.  I think about loved ones Chet and Russ and their comrades who were spit upon and jeered as they returned from Vietnam with eternal burdens they carry to this day.  I think about names like Hoos and Groover among the 58,282 on that humbling wall of black granite in D.C. – those who were lost and those never yet found.   I think of the Greatest Generation – among them the fine men I was once blessed to sit with outside the FDR memorial on the anniversary of D-Day as they reminisced their experiences at Normandy.  And I think of LTC Williams – never one to talk much about where he flew those rotary craft, nor to complain about his battered frame after a career of landings in less than ideal conditions.

And so…consider the perspective of The Nuge, as re-posted below.  And when in traffic tomorrow, look for that proverbial Subaru emblazoned with stickers promoting anti-establishment agendas and inviting you to “Ask Me About Art History.”  Pull up alongside, give ’em a friendly wave, and crank up some Stanglehold.  Mr. Nugent…

Take a Knee
Ted Nugent   24 Sep 2017

Take a little trip to Valley Forge in January. If you don’t know where that is, just Google it from the sidelines. Hold a musket ball in your fingers and imagine it piercing your flesh and breaking a bone or two. There won’t be a doctor or trainer to assist you until after the battle, so just wait your turn. Take your cleats and socks off to get a real experience. Then take a knee.

Then, take one at the beach in Normandy where man after American man stormed the beach, even as the one in front of him was shot to pieces…the very sea stained with American blood. The only blockers most had were the dead bodies in front of them, riddled with bullets from enemy fire.

Take a knee in the sweat soaked jungles of Vietnam. from Khe San to Saigon… Anywhere will do. REAL Americans died in all those jungles. There was no playbook that told them what was next, but they knew what flag they represented. When they came home, they were protested as well..and spit on for reasons only cowards know.

Take another knee in the blood drenched sands of Fallujah in 110 degree heat… Wear your Kevlar helmet and battle dress… Your number won’t be printed on it unless your number is up! You’ll need to stay hydrated but there won’t be anyone to squirt Gatorade into your mouth. You’re on your own.

There’s a lot of places to take a knee. Real Americans have given their lives all over the world. When you use the banner under which they fought as a source for your displeasure, you dishonor the memories of those who bled for the very freedoms you have. That’s what the red stripes mean. It represents the blood of those who spilled a sea of it defending your liberty.

While you’re on your knee, pray for those that came before you, not on a manicured lawn striped and printed with numbers to announce every inch of ground taken…but on nameless hills and bloodied beaches and sweltering forests and bitter cold mountains…every inch marked by an American life lost serving that flag you protest.

No cheerleaders, no announcers, no coaches, no fans…just American men and women…delivering the real fight against those who chose to harm us…blazing a path so you would have ‘the right to take a knee.’

You haven’t an inkling what it took to get you where you are; but your ‘protest’ is duly noted. Not only is it disgraceful to a nation of real heroes, it serves the purpose of pointing to your ingratitude for those who chose to defend you under that banner that will still wave long after your jersey is issued to another…

If you really feel the need to take a knee, come with me to church on Sunday and we’ll both kneel before Almighty God. We’ll thank Him for preserving this country for as long as He has. We’ll beg forgiveness for our ingratitude for all He has provided us. We’ll appeal to Him for understanding and wisdom. We’ll pray for liberty and justice for all…because He is the one who provides those things.

And there will be no protest. There will only be gratitude for His provision and a plea for His continued grace and mercy on the land of the free and the home of the brave It goes like this…
“GOD BLESS AMERICA!”