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May 23, 2012
Tony Pugh: More private colleges offering tuition discounts
Mary Beth Franklin: How to Choose the Right Annuity for You
Tina Susman: The wig wasn't enough: Man gets 13 years for posing as his dead mom
The Kosher Gourmet by Emma Christensen:A simple way to do fish right
May 22, 2012
Warren Richey: Can US group challenge overseas surveillance act? Supreme Court to decide
Thomas M. Anderson: Walking Away From a Mortgage
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon: Enjoy a celebration of the most rich and layered flavors: Black bean, sweet potato and quinoa chili
May 21, 2012
Mark Clayton: Cybersecurity: How US utilities passed up chance to protect their networks
Howard LaFranchi: NATO summit: Who will foot the bill for long-term Afghanistan security?
Chris Farrell : Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
Stephen Whiteside, Ph.D. : Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: Social anxiety disorder --- or just shy?
Guy Jackson : Victim's father regrets death of Lockerbie bomber
The Kosher Gourmet by Mario Batali: Famed chef's veal shoulder farsumagru: A festive meat course for late spring
May 18, 2012
Rabbi Berel Wein: Striving: The People of the Book's Book for (All of) the People
Steven Goldberg: 5 Great Stock Picks and the Exchange-Traded Fund that Owns Them
Mary Pickett, M.D.: Ask the Harvard Experts: Don't be forced into gluten-free lifestyle based merely on a doctor's false-positive test
The Kosher Gourmet by Carolyn Malcoun: DIY healthy lunchbox treats: HOMEMADE FRUIT BARS for kids and brown-bagging adults alike
May 17, 2012
Warren Richey: Teacher fired for being unwed and pregnant can sue religious school, court rules
Josh Mitnick: Netanyahu's 'centrist' coalition is already proving it's anything but
Steven Goldberg: Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
Amina Khan: Research links coffee to lower death rates
The Kosher Gourmet by Faith Duran : Cheesy Potato Breakfast Casserole with Cheddar and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
May 16, 2012
Carmen Terzic, M.D., Ph.D. : Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: A variety of exercises can help improve balance
Melissa Healy: National strategy on Alzheimer's disease aims to halt it by 2025
The Kosher Gourmet by Joyce White : GOODNESS GRACIOUS: GREENS! 4 winning recipes that are no longer just for down-home folks (Includes expert tips & techniques)
May 15, 2012
Kristen Chick: Obama administration resumes arms sales to Bahrain despite serious unresolved human rights issues. Activists feel abandoned
Pat Mertz Esswein: Homes are now affordable again and mortgage rates are low. What you need to know before you buy
Kathy Kristof: Our Practical Investor Fights Inflation with These 6 Investments
Sue Hubbard, M.D.: The Kid's Doctor: Lactose intolerant young child? Check again
The Kosher Gourmet by Kathy Hunt: Spread a Little Excitement with EXOTIC CONDIMENTS (4 RECIPES)
May 14, 2012
Lisa Gerstner: How to Protect Your Identity, Finances If You Lose Your Phone
Harvard Health Letters: Heart disease and dementia
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon: MANGO COCONUT OAT MORNING MUFFINS are a bright but hearty delight
May 11, 2012
Jessica L. Anderson: Get the Best Deal on a Used Car
Jett Stone: Forget face-lifts and fake knees. Scientists have seen the fountain of youth --- and it's broccoli
The Kosher Gourmet by Chef Mario Batali: The famed chef's vegetable dish that tastes true to the season: FAVAS AND SUGAR SNAP PEAS WITH POTATOES AND TARRAGON
May 10, 2012
Sergei L. Loiko: Putin sends warning to U.S., NATO in Victory Day speech at Red Square
Mary Rourke: How being a 'mentch' got Vidal Sasoon his start and fighting in Israel's War of Independence provided him with confidence and a strong sense of his own identity
Jeff Bertolucci: Get Home Phone Service for Less Than $10 a Month
The Kosher Gourmet by Betty Rosbottom: Gleaming with its golden, crimson, and snowy white hues, this silken smooth and creamy STRAWBERRY ORANGE TRIFLE looks impressive, but is easy to prepare
May 9, 2012
Sharon Palmer, R.D. How you can reduce your risk -- or delay -- chronic diseases associated with aging
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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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