War and Peace and Courage and Cowardice

    Some people are peacemakers and others are warmongers. Most of us are somewhere in between.

    Similarly, some of us are courageous and brave, while others are cowards and pusillanimous. I would say that most of us fall in between the two things. We can be valiant in some things but timid in others. This can reflect our values and beliefs.

    I am not sure how brave I am. Some folks who are brave, or certain courageous people are able to confront things with good vigor and spirit because they have a really good capacity to deal with smaller details and seemingly mundane tasks or skills so that they end up being heroic in their abilities and outcomes as a worker, servant, or leader. They do the small things in great ways so that the big things come easier, or efficiently, and great results occur.

    Hence, we have brave folks in many industries and pursuits. Those who come up short and fail in small things and big things, might be considered less than, and cowardly. Perhaps not by intention, but by overall standards, a person not valiant enough to get the job done is the weak one, the loser.

    Donald Trump called John McCain a loser. Not a winner. Brave, maybe, but a fool? A fool for being shot down in the heart of the enemy we were fighting. He survived, as many would not. John McCain, by almost any definition, is an amazing, resilient, survivor, and therefore, a winner, a champion.

    Who is the fool? Who is the fool, characterizing the life and status of others? Those that survive and advance without being shot down, captured, and tortured, for the service and loyalty of their country, or the person who lives a long time, cutting deals left and right, making and losing millions, even billions of dollars? But who got out of the was as a young man for bone spurs in his feet.

    Maybe his lack of physical ability led to him becoming who he is today, avoiding the worst of it and growing empires of real estate and entertainment. And now elections.

    Who starts wars? Who ends wars? Who wages peace? Who sustains peace?

    Who is brave, and who is cowardly? Who is a fool, and who is the most clever. Or wise?

    The devil can be in the details, as they say