SEALS in Benghazi – The Chiles Files

Jonah Goldberg is right on target, as usual:

…a man who came into office hell-bent on restoring faith in government is on the verge of inspiring a libertarian revival.There have always been (at least) two Barack Obamas. There is the man who claims to be a nonideological problem-solver, keen on working with anybody to fix things. And there is “The One”: the partisan, left-leaning progressive redeemer.

…

The dilemma for Obama is that neither is panning out because both incarnations rely on trust. The president never had much trust among Republicans, and he lost what he had when he opted to steamroll the stimulus and, later, Obamacare, on a partisan basis.

Of course, that’s not how most Democrats have seen things. They’ve seen the last five years as a tale of Tea Party–fueled madness and racism. The conviction that conservatives are crazy, stupid, and/or bigoted in their opposition to Obama is what has allowed the two Obamas to exist side by side. Both iterations could blame the Republicans for any shortcomings or failures.

…

And then the floodgates opened. The IRS compromised the integrity of the domestic agency that is supposed to be the most immune to politics. Worse, the White House’s best defense was that it was simply asleep at the switch as the agency went rogue — in ways that just happened to align with the president’s oft-expressed ideological and political preferences.

This one’s hard to clip from because every paragraph is worth reading. So hop to it!

Perhaps the most succinct instruction that anyone could give our military. If only it had come as marching orders from the CinC instead of a eulogy from the widow of a fallen SEAL:

“It is easy to write a book about being a Navy SEAL, but it is very hard to write an obituary for one.”

“To all the Operators here today I give you this charge: Rid the world of those savages. I’ll say it again, RID THE WORLD OF THOSE SAVAGES!”

(H/T: Ace of Spades)

Now if you will allow me a little self-indulgence…

I was an active-duty Marine for six years. Nothing special, but I did my job and am proud of that service. Between that and the military college I graduated from, the martial virtues have left a lasting impact on my life.

Parris Island was no treat, but the additional training Spec Ops guys endure almost defies comprehension. The one trait they share that has always impressed me is their quiet confidence and humility. They carry a respect for their own abilities and those of their comrades, and don’t feel a need to show off.

If only more of us in less hazardous professions were like that. God bless the men and women who don’t hesitate to run towards the sound of gunfire.