Sheepdogs

"This letter was written by Charles Grennel and his comrades who are
veterans of the Global War on Terror. Grennel is an Army Reservist who
spent two years in Iraq and was a principal in putting together the first
Iraq elections, January of 2005.

It was written to Jill Edwards, a student at the University of Washington
who did not want to honor Medal of Honor winner USMC Colonel Greg Boyington.

Ms. Edwards and other students (and faculty) do not think those who serve
in the U.S. armed services are good role models.

To: Edwards, Jill (student, UW)
Subject: Sheep, Wolves and Sheepdogs


Miss Edwards, I read of your "student activity" regarding the proposed
memorial to Col. Greg Boyington, USMC and a Medal of Honor winner. I
suspect you will receive a bellyful of angry e-mails from conservative folks
like me.

You may be too young to appreciate fully the sacrifices of generations of
servicemen and servicewomen on whose shoulders you and your fellow students
stand. I forgive you for the untutored ways of youth and your naiveté. It
may be that you are, simply, a sheep. There's no dishonor in being a sheep
- - as long as you know and accept what you are.

William J. Bennett, in a lecture to the United States Naval Academy
November 24, 1997 said: "Most of the people in our society are sheep.
They are kind, gentle, productive creatures who can only hurt one another
by accident." We may well be in the most violent times in history, but
violence is still remarkably rare.
This is because most citizens are kind, decent people who are not capable
of hurting each other, except by accident or under extreme provocation.
They are sheep.


Then there are the wolves and the wolves feed on the sheep without mercy.
Do you believe there are wolves out there who will feed on the flock without
mercy? You better believe it. There are evil men in this world and they are
capable of evil deeds. The moment you forget that or pretend it is not so,
you become a sheep. There is no safety in denial.

Then there are sheepdogs and I'm a sheepdog. I live to protect the flock
and confront the wolf. If you have no capacity for violence then you are a
healthy productive citizen, a sheep.
If you have a capacity for violence and no empathy for your fellow
citizens, then you have defined an aggressive sociopath, a wolf. But what if
you have a capacity for violence, and a deep love for your fellow citizens?
What do you have then? A sheepdog, a warrior, someone who is walking the
unchartered path. Someone who can walk into the heart of darkness, into the
universal human phobia, and walk out unscathed.

We know that the sheep live in denial, that is what makes them sheep.
They do not want to believe that there is evil in the world. They can
accept the fact that fires can happen, which is why they want fire
extinguishers, fire sprinklers, fire alarms and fire exits throughout their
kids' schools. But many of them are outraged at the idea of putting an
armed police officer in their kid's school.
Our children are thousands of times more likely to be killed or seriously
injured by school violence than fire, but the sheep's only response to the
possibility of violence is denial. The idea of someone coming to kill or
harm their child is just too hard, and so they chose the path of denial.

The sheep generally do not like the sheepdog. He looks a lot like the
wolf. He has fangs and the capacity for violence. The difference, though,
is that the sheepdog must not, can not and will not ever harm the sheep.
Any sheep dog who intentionally harms the lowliest little lamb will be
punished and removed. The world cannot work any other way, at least not in
a representative democracy or a republic such as ours. Still, the sheepdog
disturbs the sheep. He is a constant reminder that there are wolves in the
land. They would prefer that he didn't tell them where to go, or give them
traffic tickets, or stand at the ready in our airports, in camouflage
fatigues, holding an M-16. The sheep would much rather have the sheepdog
cash in his fangs, spray paint himself white, and go, "Baa." Until the wolf
shows up. Then the entire flock tries desperately to hide behind one lonely
sheepdog.

The students, the victims, at Columbine High School were big, tough high
school students, and under ordinary circumstances they would not have had
the time of day for a police officer. They were not bad kids; they just
had nothing to say to a cop. When the school was under attack, however, and
SWAT teams were clearing the rooms and hallways, the officers had to
physically peel those clinging, sobbing kids off of them.

This is how the little lambs feel about their sheepdog when the wolf is at
the door. Look at what happened after September 11, 2001 when the wolf
pounded hard on the door. Remember how America, more than ever before, felt
differently about their law enforcement officers and military personnel?
Understand that there is nothing morally superior about being a sheepdog; it
is just what you choose to be. Also understand that a sheepdog is a funny
critter: He is always sniffing around out on the perimeter, checking the
breeze, barking at things that go bump in the night, and yearning for a
righteous battle. That is, the young sheepdogs yearn for a righteous
battle. The old sheepdogs are a little older and wiser, but they move to the
sound of the guns when needed, right along with the young ones.

Here is how the sheep and the sheepdog think differently. The sheep
pretend the wolf will never come, but the sheepdog lives for that day. After
the attacks on September 11, 2001, most of the sheep, that is, most citizens
in America said, "Thank God I wasn't on one of those planes." The
sheepdogs, the warriors, said, "Dear God, I wish I could have been on one of
those planes. Maybe I could have made a difference." You want to be able
to make a difference. There is nothing morally superior about the sheepdog,
the warrior, but he does have one real advantage. Only one. And that is
that he is able to survive and thrive in an environment that destroys 98
percent of the population.

There was research conducted a few years ago with individuals convicted of
violent crimes. These cons were in prison for serious, predatory crimes of
violence: assaults, murders and killing law enforcement officers. The vast
majority said that they specifically targeted victims by body language:
slumped walk, passive behavior and lack of awareness. They chose their
victims like big cats do in Africa, when they select one out of the herd
that is least able to protect itself. Some people may be destined to be
sheep and others might be genetically primed to be wolves or sheepdogs. But
I believe that most people can choose which one they want to be, and I'm
proud to say that more and more Americans are choosing to become sheepdogs.

Seven months after the attack on September 11, 2001, Todd Beamer was
honored in his hometown of Cranbury, New Jersey. Todd, as you recall, was
the man on Flight 93 over Pennsylvania who called on his cell phone to alert
an operator from United Airlines about the hijacking. When they learned of
the other three passenger planes that had been used as weapons, Todd and the
other passengers confronted the terrorist hijackers. In one hour, a
transformation occurred among the passengers - athletes, business people and
parents -- from sheep to sheepdogs and together they fought the wolves,
ultimately saving an unknown number of lives on the ground.

"There is no safety for honest men except by believing all possible evil of
evil men." - Edmund Burke. Here is the point I like to emphasize,
especially to the thousands of police officers and soldiers I speak to each
year. In nature the sheep, real sheep, are born as sheep. Sheepdogs are
born that way, and so are wolves. They didn't have a choice.

But you are not a critter. As a human being, you can be whatever you want
to be. It is a conscious, moral decision. If you want to be a sheep, then
you can be a sheep and that is okay, but you must understand the price you
pay. When the wolf comes, you and your loved ones are going to die if there
is not a sheepdog there to protect you. If you want to be a wolf, you can
be one, but the sheepdogs are going to hunt you down and you will never have
rest, safety, trust or love. But if you want to be a sheepdog and walk the
warrior's path, then you must make a conscious and moral decision every day
to dedicate, equip and prepare yourself to thrive in that toxic, corrosive
moment when the wolf comes knocking at the door.

This business of being a sheep or a sheep dog is not a yes-no dichotomy.
It is not an all-or-nothing, either-or choice. It is a matter of degrees, a
continuum. On one end is an abject, head-in-the-sand-sheep and on the other
end is the ultimate warrior. Few people exist completely on one end or the
other. Most of us live somewhere in between.

Since 9-11 almost everyone in America took a step up that continuum, away
from denial. The sheep took a few steps toward accepting and appreciating
their warriors, and the warriors started taking their job more seriously.
Its ok to be a sheep, but do not kick the sheep dog. Indeed, the sheep dog
may just run a little harder, strive to protect a little better and be fully
prepared to pay an ultimate price in battle and spirit with the sheep moving
from "baa" to "thanks".

We do not call for gifts or freedoms beyond our lot. We just need a small
pat on the head, a smile and a thank you to fill the emotional tank which is
drained protecting the sheep. And when our number is called by "The
Almighty", and day retreats into night, a small prayer before the heavens
just may be in order to say thanks for letting you continue to be a sheep.
And be grateful for the thousands - - millions - - of American sheepdogs who
permit you the freedom to express even bad ideas.

- quoted from arboristsite.com

[Many thanks to Mark for calling this to my attention]