"Let's roll" has been used a long time before the heroes of that flight decided to indicate an irrevocable decision that wound up ending their lives. What other phrase has been enshrined the way Mr. BartCop insists that this one be?
As for his Jesus reference, he wants to trivialize that act of faith and sacrifice the same way he accuses others of trivializing his "sacred" phrase. Jesus had to live as a man, suffer as a man, and die as a man - because he WAS a man - if only for only 32 years. And his "uncomfortable weekend" was far more than that. There were several days of torture leading up to that "uncomfortable weekend". During this time he had to be 100% man - suffering just as much as any other man - to the point of having his Heavenly Father apparently turn His back on him because of what had to be done. A soldier's sacrifice to save a few of his buddies is an example of "no greater love". But the sacrifice of Jesus was for ALL of mankind - including warts.
I'm don't know what Todd Beamer's spiritual condition was, but, he had to exercise a certain amount of faith to convince himself that he could make a difference - and he did. And a grateful nation appreciates that.
As for the President of the US, I'm sure he recognizes that when that phrase is used, it means to encourage the best that one can do - not because of the rewards others can provide, but for the reward that comes from inside - knowing that YOU have done your best to make a difference. Maybe it didn't mean that before. Others may use it as an alternative to, "Let's go". In any case, it means to DO SOMETHING, GO SOMEWHERE, GET SOMETHING DONE - not sit on your well-padded posterior and do nothing.
As for the actions of the President of the US on September 11, 2001, they were the actions that I would expect of my president in this situation: survive to lead our country. He does us no good dead. Many accounts I have read relate that Mr. Bush WANTED to get back to DC sooner than he actually did - but his aids wouldn't let him - and rightly so. We needed our leadership then as well as now. Since DC was a target, we had to get our leadership out of there so we could continue to run our country. The last thing we needed was for a lucky strike to cut off our head - no matter what we think of it.
Mr. Giulinani was not the target of a terrorist bomb - the President was. As far as the terrorists were concerned, he was a nobody. Before 9-11, I had no idea who the mayor of New York City was. The bombs had already hit Mr. Giulinani?s city and he proved himself in spite of his contentious and questionable past. Mr. Bush will probably serve another term as President as there doesn't seem to be anyone to challenge him. When 2009 rolls around, he'll fade away into obscurity just like Mr. Giulinani and the senior Mr. Bush.
As for courage, it takes courage to stand up in front of a wounded nation and say, "The state of our Union is strong!" And then DO something - unlike a certain past president...
You may not like our president. I'm not real sure about him myself. He appears to be a simple man - not a slick, suave politician. Is that bad? When he talks, it's usually to the point - and he actually SAYS something. Is that bad? He makes mistakes proving that he's a man just like me. Is that bad? He makes decisions - and sticks to them even when attacked by petty, self-important wanna-be's. Is that bad?
Well, I've run down. Not real sure why this struck such a note with me, but, here it is. Tear it apart.
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