Charles Austin at Sine Qua Non has written about the issue of the lack of Presidential candidates on the horizon that have served in the US Military. He points to this article by Grim Beorn at to why it might be important.

The Grim piece is outstanding, and you should go read it first before reading Austin’s piece. In it, Grim makes the case for the necessity of “dangerous old men”:

Very nearly all the violence that plagues, rather than protects, society is the work of young males between the ages of fourteen and thirty. A substantial amount of the violence that protects rather than plagues society is performed by other members of the same group. The reasons for this predisposition are generally rooted in biology, which is to say that they are not going anywhere, in spite of the current fashion that suggests doping half the young with Ritalin.

The question is how to move these young men from the first group (violent and predatory) into the second (violent, but protective). This is to ask: what is the difference between a street gang and the Marine Corps, or a thug and a policeman? In every case, we see that the good youths are guided and disciplined by old men. This is half the answer to the problem.

And how does Grim suggest that we solve this problem? Dangerous old men:

If we would have a stable society, we must have dangerous old men. This means that, if you are yourself on your way to becoming an old man, you have a duty to society to begin your preparations. The martial arts are not the only road–my own grandfather did it through a simple combination of physical strength, personal discipline, and an accustomed habit of going armed about his business. There was never a more impressive figure–or, at least, there was never a boy more impressed than was I.

I have already heeded this advice, and already consider myself a part of that necessary demographic.

But back to Austin’s piece, and how it relates to Presidents who have chosen not to serve in our nation’s military:

The cultural shifts alluded to above are going to continue to make it more and more difficult for someone to come out of the armed services and get nominated or elected to the highest office in the land. Our politicians are as much a reflection of society as vice versa. Honestly, it makes me almost wish we would reinstitute the draft. Otherwise, the folks in uniform and the ethos they represent are going to continue to be further and further marginalized by the halls of power and Big Media.

I find this a little troubling.

I find it a lot troubling.

I’ve made it very clear that I won’t ever vote for a President who has not served in our nation’s military because 1) if you want the power to send our troops into battle, you had damned-well have been willing to go yourself, and 2) there is no more honorable or selfless calling than that of military service to your nation.

Have there been some outstanding Presidents who did not serve? Absolutely — look no further than FDR and Lincoln. Have there been some shit-ball Presidents who did serve? Yep — Jimmy Carter and Richard Nixon come immediately to mind.

I would still rather a man have served in the military before getting into a lifetime of politics — it shows that for at least one moment in their lives they weren’t all about their own personal advancement — that they fought for something bigger than themselves and that they (and, for at least once in their lives they earned an honest days pay for an honest days work).

Since 1948 only two one Presidents have has not served in the US Military — LBJ (thanks for the correction, Jim) and Bill Clinton. I hope Sen. John McCain wins the presidency to continue what I believe should be a requirement for the Presidency.

And I can only hope the brave and honorable men that have served in Operation Desert Storm and the current war on terror will eventually find their way into political office and continue the fine example of men and women who truly understand what duty, honor, and service means.

Posted by Robbie Cooper on Tuesday, April 8th, 2008 | Trackback |