“I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me.”
Hold on to your hats, because I’m about to go ten kinds of geeky up in here.
Someone just told me in an email, “Do not despair.” Which instantly made me think of Galadriel from Lord of the Rings when she was mind-talking to the hobbits after Gandalf was seemingly killed and they were thinking we’re so fucked and we’re all gonna die. Which is pretty much how many of us here feel right now because of the election and the economy.
Well I think we’ve all got a fevah, and the only prescription is some Tolkien.
If you’ve never read the LOTR trilogy - or even watched the movies - now is the time. Even if you already have, maybe do it again if you’re curled up fetal with your thumb in your mouth like I’ve been for a few days.
Because the entire point of the tale, in my estimation, is that the only honorable thing to do, ever, is to fight until you cannot fight any more. Even when you are horribly outnumbered, outgunned, outwhatevered - you must never give up because if you do, you’re handing victory to the enemy.
Why hand it to them? At least make them work for your total annihilation. At least make them spend blood, sweat, and tears to defeat you and everything you believe in.
As Aragorn shouted when it seemed all was lost and the last decent folk were about to be crushed into oblivion:
Hold your ground! Hold your ground!
Sons of Gondor, of Rohan, my brothers,
I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me.
A day may come when the courage of men fails,
when we forsake our friends
and break all bonds of fellowship,
but it is not this day.
An hour of wolves and shattered shields,
when the age of men comes crashing down,
but it is not this day!
This day we fight!!
By all that you hold dear on this good Earth,
I bid you stand, Men of the West!!!
I told you I was gonna get all geeky on your ass. I meant it so hard.
I’m just saying, I think it’s pretty good advice there from ol’ Aragorn.
Shit. McCain should write an entire campaign speech consisting of nothing but quotes from LOTR. I’m telling you, it’s what we need. If he won’t do it, hell, I will.
Samwise Gamgee:
I know. It’s all wrong. By rights we shouldn’t even be here. But we are. It’s like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger, they were. And sometimes you didn’t want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it’s only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer.
Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something, even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn’t. They kept going. Because they were holding on to something.
Yes, as a matter of fact, I DO feel like a totally lame gaywad right now for actually quoting a fantasy novel on my blog. Tough shit; my point is solid. And I’m not done, either.
Galadriel:
Even now there is hope left… But this I will say to you: your Quest stands upon the edge of a knife. Stray but a little and it will fail, to the ruin of all. Yet hope remains while all the Company is true.
And there’s so very much more that Tolkien wrote along these lines, ultimately always coming back to the biggest idea, the idea that until you are actually dead and gone, there’s still something you can do to protect what you believe in.
I am in NO WAY drawing any other parallels to the story, though. McCain is very definitely not King Aragorn, and Obama isn’t Sauron, and nobody is taking up swords or mounting oliphants. Not yet, anyway. It’s all to do with the war of ideas and the battle over outcomes, honesty versus dishonesty, loyalty to what you hold dear versus capitulating to people who are meaner than you just because it’s too much hard work to keep fighting them.
Your opposition wants your spirit crushed, and they’re not shy about saying so. I was feeling pretty defeatist myself lately, but after reading that kind of shit from Kos, I just got pissed off.
I was worrying about the polls, but then I started thinking objectively and also reading things people send me, like this, and you know what? Screw the polls. The polls don’t tell the whole story. Have you EVER been polled? I haven’t and neither has anyone I know, ever.
And don’t forget, if the polls have one guy way up, what are a lot of people on that guy’s side going to do? They’re going to save themselves the trip to the polling place because they “know” their guy is gonna win. It is the truth. I know TONS of right-leaning people here in Texas who say they won’t bother voting because “McCain’s got Texas, there’s no need for me to bother.” Take that out on a larger scale and buh-bye to Obama’s lead. Especially when you remember that a lot of people voting Democrat are lazy. That’s why they like socialism so much.
I’m just saying. I won’t be defeatist and crying while curled up under my bed anymore. There is work to be done. Ace has ideas for concrete action. Me, I don’t have any extra money because of college, but I can still blog and quote Tolkien and hopefully at least make people feel better so they don’t just give up and stay home.
I can’t possibly end this post without a picture of one Mr. Karl Urban:
OMG.
Nerdgasm.
Just pop in some Faramir and I’m headed “to my bunk”
October 16th, 2008 at 4:12 pmESTChurchill said it best…
“We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.”
Rachel, you are spot on. The only honorable thing to do, EVER, is to fight. To never surrender.
October 16th, 2008 at 4:18 pmESTI’m not a big Viggo fan, but he sold the hell outta that line in the movie.
The soundtrack probably didn’t hurt.
October 16th, 2008 at 4:20 pmESTThis post is a hundred billion shades of awesome.
Good on ya mate.
October 16th, 2008 at 4:20 pmESThell yeah.
October 16th, 2008 at 4:21 pmESTBeyond reading the LOTR, it might do well further to read about Tolkien himself…
Oh, and once again, Ann Coulter has an encouraging word today for McCain supporters…
October 16th, 2008 at 4:21 pmESTRachel, great words are great words no matter where they come from. And Tolkien was a man with gift. That line, “By all that you hold dear on this good Earth, I bid you stand, Men of the West” has always given me chills. The good kind.
And a big thanks for the Karl Urban. He’s always a pick-me-up.
Fight on, friends.
October 16th, 2008 at 4:29 pmESTThis is a complete coincidence, but a few days ago I bought my fiance a replica of Galadriel’s ring, Nenya, and I’m taking it over with me when I fly to the US tomorrow morning. Yes, we’re both nerdy like that.
Ride! Ride now! Ride for ruin, and the world’s ending!
DEATH!!! YAAAAAARGH!!!
October 16th, 2008 at 4:32 pmESTWoo Hoo! Go Rachl Lukus!!! Where’s that oliphant!! He only counts as one!
October 16th, 2008 at 4:33 pmESTHeh! I had a hankering just last night to shut off the debates and watch LOTR . . . now I see why my subconscious was prompting me.
What do your elf eyes see? Hopefully they see a surprise McCain/Palin victory!
October 16th, 2008 at 4:34 pmESTWill you please, PLEASE kick the asses of the people you know who are saying that, and if you must, DRAG them to the polls on November 4. They damn well better vote!
Other than that, just remember: Even the wise cannot see all ends.
October 16th, 2008 at 4:35 pmESTRachel, I love you.
You, and the rest of you guys, know that these are movie quotes and not written by JRRT, yeah? Except the Galadriel thing, that’s vintage Tolkien.
Just checking because I’m a jerk like that.
October 16th, 2008 at 4:39 pmESTWoot! Thank you Supreme Leader Rachel!!! =D We need this kind of pep talk sometimes.
I LOVE that speech. I definitely need to re-watch that movie.
I “know” that McCain won’t win in Washington but you better believe I’m going to still TRY. And I’m sure as hell going to VOTE. And volunteer. We’ve got bumper stickers and yard signs. We refuse to give in.
October 16th, 2008 at 4:40 pmESTPhew, you scared me there for a minute. I thought you were going to go through a whole LOTR post without any Eomer. At which point I’d know you’d been abducted by aliens, and would
October 16th, 2008 at 4:40 pmESTcall the copssend some possum burgers down there to feed your dogs.Very nice, Rachel. And, I could not agree more. Tolkien wrote this stuff in the shadow of european fascism. Perhaps more timely than ever.
There is a huge life lesson here. One that I have often repeated to my kids when they get down on themselves. Just take one more swing, just stay in the game for one more minute, and then another… and then another. Pretty son you are back and it’s the other fella sitting on his heels!
Seperately, I’d love to see one of those motivational thingee’s with Theoden. Heck, he was the real hero… only soon dead, most of your realm overun by those dunlander and orc dudes. He is the reason they won at Pelennor fields.
And, yes, I am a major LOTR geekoid.
October 16th, 2008 at 4:41 pmESTAs a reader so eloquently put it, “Do not despair.”
Please take out your Critical Thinking books, look in the mirror and say, “Barack Obama, a known socialist–and in my opinion–a liar who has no clue about what running a business and making money entails, President?
No way!! Absolutely no way!!
Those who choose to vote for the guy have no idea what will happen.
In essence, they won’t like it. At. All.
October 16th, 2008 at 4:44 pmESTThankfully all the right-leaning people I know VOTE. Early voting begins here in Collin County on October 20th - my husband and I will be taking the kids to the polls when we vote. Easiest way to program our little conservatarians to do their civic duty.
LOTR rocks! I was ecstatic when they finally did the movies and own both the “short” copies that came out first, and the extended version. One of my favorite scenes is Gandalf and the Balrog, Gandalf is holding onto the bridge - “Fly, you fools!” then he’s pulled down into the abyss.
If you enjoy LOTR, Dennis McKiernan was originally commissioned to write in that world by the Tolkien estate. They pulled the contract, but he wrote the books anyway in his own “world” that heavily resembles Middle Earth.
Not nearly as good as the originals, but still enjoyable.
October 16th, 2008 at 4:46 pmESTOh, great, now I’m going to have to have a LOTR festival this weekend.
All 3 movies.
Director’s cut.
Must. Buy Beer.
October 16th, 2008 at 4:47 pmESTWhat a heartening post. Thank you, Rachel. I watched LOTR a few weeks ago and really saw it with new eyes - the eyes of someone who is staring betrayal and defeat in the face, but still hungering for the fight.
Think I’ll watch 300 tonight…
October 16th, 2008 at 4:47 pmESTI’m a Republican in Texas who won’t be voting, but it’s not because McCain’s got Texas. It’s because McCain’s a goddamn phony conservative who’s selling us out.
I totally dig the LOTR reference, Rachel. The problem is not that we’re outnumbered and outgunned, the problem is that our own leadership is corrupt and broken and doesn’t believe the same things we Hobbits do. We’ve got no Aragorn, no Gandalf, no Galadriel, no Elrond — only McCain, who is King Theoden before the exorcism.
October 16th, 2008 at 4:49 pmESTOh, and just to prove my geek creds, I own a first day, first edition of The Silmarillion.
Top THAT!
October 16th, 2008 at 4:49 pmESTPresident Barack Obama sends his thanks.
October 16th, 2008 at 4:50 pmESTNo matter how many times I see it, that speech by Aragorn affects me.
October 16th, 2008 at 4:56 pmESTThe only poll that matters is the one on November 4. The rest of them are bullshit. I’ve already voted, so I’ve done that much, but I’m giving money to some of his suggested 527’s so that both of those commercials are seen (and they need versions for the House races in Maxine Waters’s and Bawney Fwank’s districts). That smarmy Communist bastard 0bama is going to have to win this over our dead bodies.
October 16th, 2008 at 4:59 pmESTFor Rohan!!! Excellent advice.
October 16th, 2008 at 5:02 pmESTCan we go deeper into geekiness than LOTR?
Obama should beware rule one.
October 16th, 2008 at 5:03 pmEST“Dojo! What is Rule One?”
Even the cowering challenger mumbled along to the chorus: “Do not act incautiously when confronting little bald wrinkly smiling men!”
- T. Pratchett, Thief of Time
If not for yourselves, do it for that kid Rachel had with Eomer back in the day, on an earlier incarnation of RL. It was one of her great lines, that sealed me as an RL fan forever: ‘I just watched Eomer in LOTR, and I think I’m pregnant.’ How old is that kid now, Rachel?
October 16th, 2008 at 5:04 pmESTJust letting my mind wander here…
October 16th, 2008 at 5:13 pmESTwouldn’t it be a lovely thing to see Obama and Michelle, er, I mean, Saruman and Wormtongue, locked up in Orthanc, with a bunch of bitter clingers, I mean, ents, flicking rocks at their windows all day?
Though I love me some of that LOTR, my personal favorite quote for times like these is:
We shall defend our land, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.
Winston Churchill
Whatever the outcome of November 4th, it will be in spite of the fact that I voted, not because I failed to vote. This election may be stolen, but I will not give it away by not exercising my duty as a citizen.
October 16th, 2008 at 5:13 pmESTOk now you have me charging about the house with the sword from the wall. Once more into the breach my friends until we fill the polling stations with our conservative dead! AAAAAAARGH!!!!
October 16th, 2008 at 5:18 pmESTI’m going further into geekiness: Into the Libertarian geekiness: Rush, Anthem
Rachel Lucas = Awesomeness to the 10th power.
Go forth and Vote — Destroy the socialists
October 16th, 2008 at 5:18 pmEST(–edited)
Oops, I got moderated. It must have been too far then. LOL
October 16th, 2008 at 5:19 pmESTHey you might be onto something here:
(shamelessly edited)
ONE to rule them all, ONE to find them,
October 16th, 2008 at 5:23 pmESTONE to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
Thank you Redhead Infidel,
The mere number 300 conjures images of a oily half nude Gerard Butler. I have class tonight, I need a cold shower.
Thank you lots.
October 16th, 2008 at 5:26 pmESTSince we’re being geeky… I’ll see your LoTR references and raise you a video game concept.
It’s times like this that I wish life was like a video game, where you can save the game at a certain point. You save, then continue playing in a certain style, perhaps very aggressively. If playing that way turns out to be a disaster, you can reload the saved game and retry the scenario, playing in a different style, perhaps with more caution.
It allows you to see the consequences of following certain inclinations. If you’re inclined to jump right into battle, but you’re not strong enough and your character(s) die, you have just learned the valuable lesson of better planning. You reload the saved game and do things differently, until you succeed.
If life were like a video game, we could save the game right before the election, then let the lefties win their Dear Obama presidency. We play the game the way Obama and his fools want to play it and let them destroy the nation. Once they all see how BADLY their policies work out, we reload the last save and show them how much better everything works when we’re not trying to turn the U.S.A. into the U.S.S.A.
Thus people learn, but nothing is truly ruined (except some people’s adoration of socialism).
October 16th, 2008 at 5:27 pmEST/my fantasy world
wheatly - I was just about to post that! It’s the real deal.
October 16th, 2008 at 5:28 pmESTWhee, baxtrice, I got caught too! We’re just fabulous like that.
October 16th, 2008 at 5:29 pmESTI dropped the f-bomb, so I KNOW why I got moderated. But yeah, we’re fabulous.
October 16th, 2008 at 5:32 pmESTRachel,
Best. Post. EVER. And no, its not “gay” to quote LOTR. There is never anything wrong with quoting one of the greatest pieces of literature as an example of the bravery necessary in dire times.
October 16th, 2008 at 5:33 pmESTI find it hard to believe that this blog moderates out cuss words. That’s crazy. Lemme try. fuck poopoo jesus marimba.
October 16th, 2008 at 5:34 pmESTRight ON, Rachel! “By all that you hold dear on this good Earth, I bid you stand, Men of the West!” Amen, Sistah! Enough fetal-curling, it’s time to show the socialist swine that we’re not going to roll over and die so easily. Polls are crap anyway.
For inspiration, methinks it’s time for a LOTR marathon — director’s cut, all three movies, back to back. And Eomer didn’t have nearly enough camera time, dontcha think?
October 16th, 2008 at 5:36 pmESTI do believe that this is my favorite post of yours. If you want to read another Lord of the Rings nerd (who doesn’t), go to this guy:
October 16th, 2008 at 5:37 pmESThttp://theoneblog.brendanloy.com/
Ok, time to wheel out my 300 joke:
Did you hear they’re making a kinder, gentler version of The 300?
It’s going to be called Brokeback Mount Olympus.
October 16th, 2008 at 5:39 pmESTThis week, in a particularly weakened state (before the debate), I was a bit down because my husband’s employer was more than a little worried (and down) himself. You see, my husband is employee #1 out of 100. I know he’ll be the last to go, but his boss was actually worried they might have to close the doors after 28 years if B.O. is elected. In the construction industry, it will be difficult to find another position…everyone will be looking for work, even management. We are a one income family, and to say that would be devastating is an understatement.
So here I am in my pity-bag, albeit temporarily, and my 12 year-old asks me whats the matter, Mom? So I told him I was afraidy of Obambi, and he spouts off, word-for-word, the Aragorn speech. We are big, fat, hillbilly-moron geeks in this family, and we take our LOTR seriously. I sent da boss this picture to cheer him up.
So today, I gently poked fun at you people, and DUG IN. Called up my local BOE to volunteer to check suspected phony addresses (if our SoS ever gets her ass out of Washington and ponys up those 200,000 frauds she’s been sittin’ on), and donated to the RNC. I went and stuck yard signs out in the right-of-ways in my area, and signed up to make phone calls at the local HQ.
I realize you all might not have time to do all this being college students and all, but maybe one or two things will help getchya outta the dumps and into the fray.
And Miss Rachel, thank you with big kisses for the gratuitous stud-photo posting. (Well, ok, the big kisses went all over the screen where Eomer’s face was.)
Creepy old-lady love & hugs, (with the requisite kick in the pants) from Ohio.
October 16th, 2008 at 5:39 pmESTOh wheatly I LOVE that quote. I think it is Hugh Hewitt that plays it (or did) at the beginning of his show sometimes. Hearing Winston Churchill say that gives me goose bumps.
October 16th, 2008 at 5:40 pmESTHmm, I used “socialist swine” and “crap”, did that get me stuck in moderation?
October 16th, 2008 at 5:42 pmESTaaawwwww YEAH!!!
You are so right Rachel! If they win it, they win it hard. I know you thought “300″ was 47 kinds of gay, but I’m thinking about that movie as the election nears. Can anybody photoshop Obama as King Xerxes? Heh.
You want the Presidency? MOLON LABE, BARACK.
October 16th, 2008 at 5:54 pmESTThank you for that. . .
October 16th, 2008 at 5:54 pmESTI can think of no accolades to heap upon you that were not already said by others (and well-deserved, at that!).
Just wanted to quibble minor-ly with Ace of Spades on one point, that I believe lies at the heart of your argument:
If honor and integrity (with or without quote marks) are not the well spring of everything you do, no amount of 401Ks or pretty houses will make you a human being truly worth knowing, and no financial advantage will ever be able to save your soul (I am not meaning that by its strict religious definition).
October 16th, 2008 at 5:57 pmESTWhile I loved the movies (in fact, think them the best of all time), I found the depiction of Aragorn before the Black Gate troubling. First of all, he intentionally allows his men to be enveloped before fighting. This is tactically moronic. He should have rushed the gate the moment it was opened wide. (In the book he is enveloped, but has no choice given the terrain, and the facts that orcs are in the hills as well as behind the wall.)
Secondly, the speech is poorly timed and too complicated for the setting. He should have given the speech before approaching the gate himself, not just after he hauled a88 back from it. (”Hey, the boss stopped running long enough to make a speech….”) Further, the wording is far too cerebral to inspire the kind of mood it will take to smash Orc brains. “Maybe some day we will lose, but not this day. I think. Unless it’s Tuesday….”
Far superior is Theoden’s speech just before the Ride of the Rohan onto Pellenor Fields. Something like “Today is a Red Day! Spears will be shattered! Shields will be broken!”
(I wrote this in a hurry, sort of like Aragorn delivered his speech, but “a88″ was an intentional misspelling.)
October 16th, 2008 at 6:04 pmESTRachl Lukis, that Samwise speech you quoted is RACIST. It talks about darkness and stuff. You hillbilly neocon Joo.
October 16th, 2008 at 6:13 pmESTGREAT! Recently talking to a disheartened republican who said why vote, I replied if your in a fight and don’t land a blow, what kind of a person are you?
October 16th, 2008 at 6:17 pmESTHow about the final sortie at Helm’s Deep? Our heroes sound a mighty horn blast, only the echoes don’t die - they are answered by the horns of thousands of horse and foot soldiers arriving with Gandalf, attacking with the rising sun at their backs. The orcs turn to flee, only to see the valley filled with huorns. Many go instantly insane and fall on their own weapons. Others flee into the trees and are never seen again.
If B-HO loses, the Left isn’t going away, but temporary insanity at least is guaranteed. A vote for McCain is a vote for Spectacle! I want that show.
October 16th, 2008 at 6:19 pmEST.
For all the Urban fans, he’s going to be Dr. McCoy in the new Star Trek movie coming out next year. At this rate, he’s gonna be to nerds what Cher is to gays.
October 16th, 2008 at 6:20 pmESTBut, really, Kipling is more like it -
. . .
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
October 16th, 2008 at 6:23 pmESTTo serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: “Hold on!”
. . .
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything in it,
And–which is more–you’ll be a Man, my son!
.
I could kiss you lady.
October 16th, 2008 at 6:27 pmESTWSChurchill:
Never give in! Never give in! Never, never, never, never! In nothing - great or small - large or petty — never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense.
If you don’t vote, remember:
On the plains of hesitation lie the blackened bones of countless millions, who - at the dawn of victory - sat down to rest, and resting, died.
And:
Small souls who seek power over others first destroy the faith those others might have in themselves.
Remember our heritage:
In the Heroic Age, our forefathers invented self-government, The Constitution and Bourbon; and on the way to them they invented Rye Whiskey. And that shows our proper place in the international order: NO other nation ever gave mankind two whiskies.
–Bernard de Voto
And, of course, as Opus said:
October 16th, 2008 at 6:31 pmESTYou can lead a Yak to water, but you can’t teach an old dog to make a silk purse out of a pig in a poke.
Rachel, you had me worried at first. I feared you had fallen into the apocalyptic mindset that thinks the loss of an election means the end of the Republic.
On nearly everything of substance I agree with you, but fear not. The grand old nation will stagger on another four or eight years. The American system is too resilient to fall under the fumbling ministrations of the left.
And another thing: Some of us hold an allegiance not of this world. We try hard in this one, but we also remember the cynical old warning, “Put not your trust in princes.”
October 16th, 2008 at 6:32 pmESTOkay Rachel I am officialy deeply and madly in LOVE with you! I am such a LOTR nerd. I adore the movies and have both the 2 disc verions & the 4 disc versions of the trilogy! Such masterpieces and that speech by Aragon, just reading it now got me all teary eyed I kid you not. Not geeky or nerdy at all to qoute or be a LOTR fan. IMO if you aren’t a fan THEN you would be a nerd.
October 16th, 2008 at 6:34 pmESTOne of the PUMA sites declared an “Eeyore-free Zone”…and it’s a good essay.
I’m calling the local HQ to see what help they need; hopefully I can drive some folks who couldn’t otherwise get to the polls. It’ll make me feel better and I’ll get to meet some people and get my bearings around town better.
Never read Tolkein, but I did like the movies…even before I discovered the visual effects director was a guy from a college I’d lost contact with when I left L.A.
And thanks, Rachel!
October 16th, 2008 at 6:37 pmESTTo borrow, and bastardize, a phrase from some Johnny Depp character, “are you a RepubliCAN or a RepubliCAN’T?!”
Keep up the good fight. This race is FAR from over, and FAR from lost.
October 16th, 2008 at 6:49 pmESTYeah, Rachel, I read that post too and it only confirmed what I really already knew: that polls are just a media tool to manipulate us voters and attempt to dishearten us. Problem is, I’ve been taught to never, ever give up on something that I have strong convictions about. I think most good people, and I believe they are the majority of the population, feel the same way. I read one poll that gave me pause. It said it was taken from a survey of 852 people. Doesn’t that number seem odd to anyone else here? Why that number? I suspect that in reality they actually decided to poll 1,000 and that a certain number of those, if counted, would have showed McCain either dead even or in a lead against Obama and that wouldn’t have bode well for the message they were trying to get to us poor, stupid, barefooted, snaggle-toothed hicks in fly-over country to believe. They forget that there are triple-digit IQs all over the nation. On second thought, shhh, don’t tell them. Let’s let it be a surprise.
October 16th, 2008 at 6:49 pmESTLove LOTR! Yay and great post.
I had become grim after learning what the MSM is doing to Joe the plumber for asking Obama a question. More investigations in Joe’s taxes, voting, work etc. have happened in the last 24 hours it is crazy.
Chill Wind indeed.
So thanks for the post. It is not over yet.
October 16th, 2008 at 6:57 pmESTThanks for the “Eeyore-free Zone” link, Schrodinger’s Other Cat. Important read.
October 16th, 2008 at 6:58 pmEST(And by PUMAs, no less.)
I’m glad that you read Zombie’s post. It was a keeper. As for me, I’m trying to keep my blood pressure down while getting an eyeful of the brown-shirted future of this country should the Chosen Piece of Shit win. Check out how fully the left is vetting a plumber, chosen at random by Obama, who dared to ask a question that Bambi answered…poorly. I swear to God that I’m seeing red right now. Those fuckers want war? Good. Tell them to bring it. Whatever issues I have with McCain seem insignificant to having Kostapo tactics writ large on this country.
Yeah, this has probably been mentioned ad nauseum already, but I haven’t got the time to read the comments, as I’m putting the kids to bed right after they brush their teeth. Just let the left know that they are no longer my opponents, they are now my enemy.
October 16th, 2008 at 6:58 pmESTHell yes! Finally, the Rachel we all know and love is back.
I myself as not going to lay and die without a fight. I plan on hauling my ass to vote on the 4th and I am going to make the lefties fight to TRY and get their “messiah” elected. With a bit of luck, at the end of the day, their “messiah” will be defeated and I will finally get to see lots of liberal heads explode.
I have warm fuzzies just thinking about it.
October 16th, 2008 at 7:01 pmESTCan I assume, dear Rachel, that I am redeemed in your eyes? I was not in my post of a week ago offering “happy talk.” Nope. I was modeling the only appropriate response: defiance! I am sincerely glad that you have shaken off the poison. See now what a positive attitude can do? I know that the odds are long and the battle ahead will be difficult. Do we have a choice? We are in for the fight of our lives, win or lose, but fight we will. And not succumb before the battle even commences, because that is the road to certain defeat. I think you grok it now. No retreat, no surrender. That is Spartan law. And by Spartan law we will fight, and die.
Well, gulldernit Vern, them old mythologies what I learned in junior high still got some rez-o-nence. Fer a bunch a ole inbred hillbillies we got ourselves a pack o’good stories to fall back on. An I dunn learn em good. And them dern professers done taught me to ’spress myself with er-u-di-tion. And to speak the truth. And to discriminate between lies and falsehood. And to recognize virtue. That’s what they taught us back in the olden days.
The strength of any republic resides in the provinces just as the true measure of a man resides in his heart. Reader now, look into your heart. Can you feel the pulse of liberty? If you answer yes, then prepare yourself. We will win this battle at the polls or we must be prepared for a much harder fight later on. Prepare yourselves. The foundation of our republic is about to be rocked to its very core.
We face two possible outcomes in this election: Obama loses and our cities burn, or Obama wins and the republic burns. Got it? Go forth and arm yourselves. Republics have faced through history civil disorder and even civil war. Ususally a republic survives as long as the citizenry remains loyal to basic principles and armed to defend them. I think America has that much down. See you to it my fellow citizens, see you to it.
October 16th, 2008 at 7:02 pmESTYou know what? I watched the debate last night and was imminently depressed. Having not watched any of the previous debates, I was shocked at how inarticulate McCain is. He did not make his case on any issue. I turned it off after about 30 minutes and just wanted to drink. Heavily.
The battle is likely over. I, too, live in Texas and there really is no point in voting. It is a Republican state so I can sit on my butt and conserve energy. Energy, for what? To me, it is time to fight an insurgency. A non-violent insurgency that trades territory for time. The territory will be just about everything, taxes, civil liberties (including free, political speech), and the (won) war in Iraq. We will be hurting, big-time for a long time as the socialists take over my country.
So, what do we do while they drill us in a butt-hurtin’ way? Insurgency. We withdraw financial capital from the market and watch it crash. We withdraw our intellectual capital from society a-la John Galt. You want to raise taxes on the “rich”. OK, I will join the “middle class” and work at Home Depot instead of “middle management”. I can help you find the two-cycle engine oil better than the high school drop-out. Of course, who needs oil when the engine of the world stops? I’ll sell my house for a loss and live in a small apartment.
OK…all of that is not going to happen, because I like my house with a lawn so I can have my dogs. I like my high speed Internet and DirecTV with the NFL package. I like my microbrew beer and Rodney Strong Chardonnay (almost a bottle down the hatch tonight). So I won’t quit my job nor sell my house. But you know what? I will watch as the stock market goes to hell. I will watch as the economy goes to hell. I’ll fight like hell to keep my company profitable (at least productive) and keep my job. And I will chronicle every misstep of the current-day liberalism. And the day will come when free people will learn the lessons of our time and throw off the shackles of wealth redistribution and government control and divert from the “Road to Serfdom”. We all see the darkness for it is coming. And we will all fight for the reversal back to true Liberalism and Freedom.
It is not going to be easy. It is not going to be soon. We are going to be fighting for a long time. It is going to get worse than it is now. There are dark days ahead of us when all hope will appear to be gone. Perhaps it will not be as bad as I think it will be. Perhaps it will be worse. Regardless, there must be enough of us insurgents to make the difference.
Whatever you do, don’t give up hope in the long-term outcome, because history is on our side. We will prevail. Just hang in there, because it will be a long fight.
October 16th, 2008 at 7:23 pmESTI’m glad you and Misha (and the PUMAs too) are getting fed up with the Eeyores. I was getting depressed from all the depression floating around the ’sphere. But now people like you are kicking us in our asses (now that you’re no longer an Eeyore). I’m gonna vote the SHIT outa that ballot! Yeah!
oh, and I’ve been reading LoTR (third or fourth time don’t remember) and am just about done. I’m coming up to Scouring of the Shire.
October 16th, 2008 at 7:24 pmESTPhysics Geek, the left has ALWAYS been your enemy. Your mistake was in thinking that they were just like you, but with minor political differences. The left has always wanted to rule you.
October 16th, 2008 at 7:24 pmESTGood God this article is making my jeans tight! Good advice from all of you! Thank you!
“To the last, I grapple with thee; From Hell’s heart I stab at thee; For hate’s sake I spit my last breath at thee!”
October 16th, 2008 at 7:24 pmESTBest post ever.
My favorite has always, always, always been Eowyn. For donning armor and sneaking out with the fellas:
Then out of the blackness in his mind he thought that he heard Dernhelm speaking; yet now the voice seemed strage, recalling some other voice tht he had known.
“Begone, foul dwimmerlaik, lord of carrion! Leave the dead in peace!”
…
“Hinder me? (said the Nazgul) Thou fool. No living man may hinder me!”
Then Merry heard of all sounds in that hour the strangest. It seemed that Dernhelm laughed , and the clear voice was like the ring of steel. “But no living man am I! You look upon a woman. Eowyn I am …For living or dar undead, I will smite you….”
A small part, but she was the best. I always wanted to be her more than any other of the few girls in the book. Arwen never did anything.
October 16th, 2008 at 7:30 pmESTRight on, Rachel!
Here’s a blog I found about a week ago: Stolen Thunder. I’ve been linking it everywhere I go. I don’t remember if I’ve linked it here yet or not. If I have, well, here it is again.
It’s written by an accountant and he analyzes the polls. He maintains that the media is over-weighting Democrats in the polls, and so the results are skewed. He says this election is a lot closer than we’re being led to believe.
He also says that turnout will be the key to this election, and the worst thing we can do is lose heart.
Meanwhile, I’ve been volunteering for the McCain/Palin campaign. I’ve been stopping by the local headquarters after work and putting in an hour or two filling bags of literature and assembling yard signs. I’m 50 years old and this is the first time I’ve ever done this.
I am not going to give up Pennsylvania without a fight.
October 16th, 2008 at 7:30 pmESTHeh.
edit: I had a ‘ting with a picture of Kirk screaming, but my HTML-fu is teh sucketh today.
October 16th, 2008 at 7:36 pmESTSo…this makes Andrea Mitchell the Mouth of Sauron?
October 16th, 2008 at 7:39 pmESTOff to Krav Maga class this evening and afterward brews at a local pub surrounded by my Obamunist classmates. Multiple attacker drill in spades, I tell you! But I really piss ‘em off by not backing down and taking on thier arguments with facts, data, logic, sense and reason.
I am a fool, but meh, it’s what i do.
October 16th, 2008 at 7:48 pmESTExerpt from Rachel’s link to “The Left’s Big Blunder”:
“So, while the Left might (unconsciously) imagine they have the ability to pull an Asch on the whole country, the deception fails to work, because there is always a Rush Limbaugh or a Little Green Footballs or a Fox News or a Michael Savage whispering in the subject’s ear, “It’s all a trick! Don’t believe the lies!” And under those conditions, the level of informational conformity would almost certainly drop to near zero.”
What no mention of our beloved Rachel’s blog? What is she…chopped liver? ;o)
I hope every person who looks at this blog will take the time to read every bit of that link AND watch the dorky video (that was so obviously filmed in 1979) regarding the Asch research…I did.
Then, send the link to every down in the dumps McCain supporter you can…I’m going to.
Don’t bother sending it to Democrats. Most Democrats I know have too much ADD going on to make it all the way through through such a long read. I’m just sayin’…
In honor of Mr. Nixon with whom I share my home town, I propose we rename our band of brothers and sisters “The Silent Majority Who Refuse To Curl Up In The Fetal Position Sucking Our Thumbs” or maybe just “The Silent Majority” is easier to remember.
Hey Rachel -
THANK YOU! You have a lot of influence on those of us who post and probably even more on those who lurk here. Thank you for bucking up once again.
Let’s all try to keep a positive attitude, and we will prevail.
October 16th, 2008 at 7:56 pmESTWell done Rachel.
October 16th, 2008 at 7:59 pmESTYou’ve inspired me to my own post (with due credit, of course)!
Go Team!
Good luck Rick! Wish I could come back ya up. =)
October 16th, 2008 at 7:59 pmESTBest hands down cavalry charge ever: the Rohannim crashing into Orc infantry in the final battle of Gondor in the best battle scenes ever filmed. Made this old armoured cavalryman’s heart beat hard and fast. Cavalry shock action at its most awesome.
I feel for you folks down south. We managed to get our conservative Prime Minister re-elected, so we’ve staved off total socialism for a while longer - time enough to attempt to re-educate a folk that used to be pround and self-reliant. Y’all look like you’re headed for a real meltdown with Obambi as president. Good luck. We’ll welcome to Canada anyone who believes in self-sufficiency, small government and freedom - the more of us there are, the better we’ll be able to save half of North America from leftwing fascism. It’ll make a nice change from the usual parasitic deserters and draft dodgers who’ve fled across the border.
October 16th, 2008 at 8:01 pmESTOn October 29, 1941, Winston Churchill addressed the students at Harrow School. The following paragraph is from the middle of his speech. I can not imagine what it must have been like to have been in the audience and heard these words in his thundering voice. Just reading these words nearly 67 years later gives me goose bumps.
…never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never-in nothing, great or small, large or petty - never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense.
October 16th, 2008 at 8:05 pmESTOr we could do a Picard from First Contact: “The line must be drawn here! This far, no farther!”
I finally let my daughter watch Star Trek II (much as I love the soundtrack from The Motion Picture, I was very tired of watching the movie). She was fascinated by the whole thing but sorry that Spock died. We had to watch Star Trek III the next day and then all was well with her again.
She’s almost 5 and we skipped the whole Ceti eel sequence. She’s seen the original episode “Space Seed,” though.
I don’t think she’s old enough for LOTR. She’d probably be bored with it quickly.
October 16th, 2008 at 8:06 pmESTYahooo!!!
I just saw my first 527-funded commercial here in Vegas where they kicked the crap out of Obama!!!! Finally!!! The ad mentions that Obama received campaign funds from the middle East and ended with the awful “Reverend” Wright doing his G** D*** America” speech.
Yippee! More mud!! More slinging!! It’s about time.
(Am I immature or what?)
October 16th, 2008 at 8:08 pmESTMy husband & I are going to volunteer at the McCain rally in our central Florida city tomorrow. Because we are volunteers, we will be standing on the stage during McCain’s speech. I cannot wait!
October 16th, 2008 at 8:34 pmEST“I know TONS of right-leaning people here in Texas who say they won’t bother voting because “McCain’s got Texas, there’s no need for me to bother.”
Well, there are other people on the ticket too.
My feeling about the Democrats this year is that I am going to vote a straight Republican ticket this time.
Even if Obama gets in, I’ll have done my damnedest to insure that he has one or two less Senators and Congressmen with him.
October 16th, 2008 at 8:44 pmESTDo I REALLY believe McCain still has a chance?
In a word (two, actually), HELL YES!
I have noted that, in watching Obama and Biden, they both come off like car salesmen, while McCain and Palin seem more like real people.
I would commend to you The Value Of Experience
( http://wizbangblog.com/content/2008/10/16/the-value-of-experience.php )
And, finally, after pushing other people’s opinions,
let me bore you with some of my own …
My greatest hope remains with the “Silent Majority”.
It is very real, comprised of folks who abhor confrontation and arguing with loons, and are apt to respond to the left’s “get into their faces” tactic by going into the voting booth with “Vengeance is mine!” in their hearts.
They probably don’t get polled all that much as they are busy with working and LIFE (and possibly skipped for fear they might give the wrong answers).
They aren’t big on demonstrations or political stickers (I suspect the likelihood of people actually going to the polls and voting is inversely proportional to the number of stickers on their cars), but they DO go out and vote.
(Obamaphiles: note how many cars are free of political stickers; and be afraid, be very afraid
I also suspect that the Bradley Effect will be in play here, because many people may have serious doubts about this guy’s totally non-existent resume but choose to tell pollsters what they want to hear rather than argue about whether they are racist or not.
This could apply to exit polls as well, resulting in discouraging news when they are reported, followed by “WTF?!!” when the actual numbers come.
At least, that’s my hope, and I don’t think it an unreasonable one.
Don’t lose heart. That’s precisely what they want us to do; be so worn out and sick with despair, that we don’t even go and vote election day.
I’m tempted to accommodate them this far; skip election day by early voting for McCain/Palin if I get the chance.
Think THAT will make ‘em happy?
Nah… Not even remotely possible. Ever notice how many of his supporters go around looking as if they just swallowed something particularly nasty? If it wasn’t for who they are, I’d probably feel sorry for them; it must really suck to BE them sometimes.
October 16th, 2008 at 9:00 pmESTthank you Rachel for the post and thank you readers and commenters…i will continue to look for a silver lining in the world BHO wants to create…
October 16th, 2008 at 9:02 pmESTRachel,
You need to rent “The 13th Warrior”. It got mediocre reviews, but I thought it captured the spirit of “Beowulf” much better than the execrable “Beowulf” movie with Angelina Jolie.
“Lo there do I see my father,
October 16th, 2008 at 9:02 pmESTLo there do I see my mother and my sisters and my brothers,
and the long line of my people back to the beginning.
Lo they do call to me, they bid me to join them,
In the halls of Valhalla where the brave will live forever!”
Nice post Rachel, thank you!
Now go gallop down the line and smack you some spears Rohan-style!
That was a very …”Whittley” little essay there
October 16th, 2008 at 9:07 pmESTby the way.
Bring a plunger!
October 16th, 2008 at 9:15 pmESTSorry for the OT, but that story at Ace’s has my blood boiling.
I think you’re right. As Gandalf said, “That is a chapter of ancient history which it might be good to recall; for there was sorrow then too, and gathering dark, but great valour, and great deeds that were not wholly vain.” They didn’t win a once-and-for-all victory against the dark, but they stepped up and fought, and that was enough.
October 16th, 2008 at 9:21 pmESTI first read LOTR 25 years ago, and have probably read it about 15 times through since then. Without ever seeing the movies I always saw it as damned inspirational. I know (from my 12 Disc super duper box set) that they needed to do certain things in the movies that didn’t quite jibe with the books, but I could always tell when lines got lifted from other characters or other scenes (Gandalf told the Men of the West to stand and watch the doom of the Enemy about to happen).
That said, I think the movies very well conveyed the heroism that Tolkien wrote about (except when they did a temporary 180 on Tolkien’s Faramir- I will never forgive them for that!), and mixed it with true human (and hobbit, elf, and dwarf) weakness.
I am very optimistic about America, regardless of who wins this election. Our enemies, both here and abroad, have always doubted her resiliency, yet within 11 1/2 years of Reagan taking office, our biggest enemy was dismantled without a shot fired. We will go through dark and tough times, and if Obama wins, we will lose the judiciary for a long, long, time. But America will not see what it saw in the great Depression, at least not yet. Too many have discovered that government is the problem, not the solution, and that they can get on just fine without having too much interaction with it.
Finally, from The Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy I give you the first thing:
Don’t panic!
October 16th, 2008 at 9:32 pmESTI was so DAMN mad and didn’t know what to do and you showed up with this post.
I was angry that our side wasn’t angry.
I was angry that McCain wasn’t angry.
I was angry that the only person angry was Rush.
But you showed up when we most needed it.
I just married you!
October 16th, 2008 at 9:41 pmESTDeanna,
Although your 5 yr old would probably love most of LOTR, Gollum may scare her. He’s very creepy to young children.
When I saw The Two Towers in the theater, a dad and his 5 yr old daughter sat two rows up. The poor girl curled up in her seat and cried every time Gollum was on the screen for all three hours - he scared her more than the Orks or the battle scenes. Her Dad never seemed to notice.
October 16th, 2008 at 9:45 pmESTJohn Paul Jones faced a British Frigate which outgunned him, in battle, his ship sinking Jones was
called upon by the British Captain to surrender.
To which he replied, “I have not yet, BEGUN To Fight”
He won.
He and his crew boarded the British Frigate and watched their ship sink beneath the waves
THAT was an AMERICAN
PS Imagine having to explain these events to the British Admiralty?
October 16th, 2008 at 9:49 pmEST**SLAP**
Thanks Rachel, I needed that!
October 16th, 2008 at 9:52 pmEST“Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more.”
Shakespeare, from Henry V (before Britain surrendered, of course.)
October 16th, 2008 at 10:00 pmESTLo, there, do I see my Founding Fathers.
Lo, there, do I see my people,
back to the foundations of a republic.
They do call to me.
They bid me defend liberty.
And I do hear them, and I will fight.
Lo, there, do I hear the voices of free men from Rome and Greece.
And I will stand fast.
Lo, there, do I stand in the shoes of Greek hoplites
and Roman legionaires,
and yeoman infantry, and minutemen.
And I will not dishonor my lineage.
Lo, there, do I hear the call of history.
The horrible muse of the past bids me stand.
And offer my flesh for ravens and jackals.
“Good deal,” I say, “lay on.” Let’s have at it then.
In the Halls of Valhalla
October 16th, 2008 at 10:37 pmESTwhere the brave
may live
forever.
Polls? I don’t need no steenkin’ polls!
Here’s the deal. I’m currently unemployed (not stressed about it…just “in-between”) and I’ve been traveling all over (3980 miles in 8 days). I went from Mississippi to Indiana to Wisconsin to Florida. (polls about economy? All are GREAT jobs, good pay, good prospects…and I’ve got three hard hits–and two offers in less than three weeks of looking).
I hardly saw any Obama bumper stickers or yard signs at all. Saw LOTS of McCain/Palin stickers and yard signs. Saw one dumbass acting the fool driving like an idiot with an Obama sticker…gave him a solid “thumbs up” for acting like an ass with an ass’s sticker on his car…I figure every time he pissed someone off…the last thing they saw was that Obama sticker LOL!)
Case in point. Stopped at a Starbucks in an expressway Oasis in CHICAGO. OBAMA COUNTRY, right?
There’s a McDonald’s in there and I’m ordering an apple pie to go with my Mocha (yes…I’m screwed up…I just like the damned things), and they’ve got this “guilt charity” thing going. See, they’re asking for a dollar whenever you buy something to go to “feed the poor” charities, and then they give you this little card to put your name on…which they post behind the register.
I’m looking at all the signs and I notice something really odd. People are buying them and putting PALIN’S name on them! Dozens of them! I saw two OBAMA and about a half-dozen MCCAIN cards.
I bought a card…put McCain’s name on it and told the girl I did it because I was feeling sorry for him because Palin was kicking his ass.
Obama wasn’t even outpolling McCain in a friggin’ MCDONALDS IN CHICAGO!
I’m thinking…polls are shit.
EDIT:
Oh, yeah. I should mention that I’m making these observations not only driving down the interstate…in all locations (Evansville, Green Bay, and St. Petersburg) I also spent the day driving around town looking at rentals (I’m sure not buying a house as soon as I get a job…learned that lesson…and I’ve got a really big dog and somehow that seems to make renting houses a little harder).
These areas aren’t what you could call conservative redoubts. The MOST Obama presence I saw was in St. Petersburg FL (go figure, huh?)
See? Polls=Shit
October 16th, 2008 at 10:45 pmEST“…never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy. ”
Freaking awesome! Where are our leaders like that today? Perhaps coming up…Palin? Petrayus? (how do you spell his name?)
All I know is that I love this blog. =D
October 16th, 2008 at 11:09 pmEST“I do not love the bright sword for it’s sharpness, nor the arrow for it’s swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend”
J.R.R. Tolkien quote
and this one from Theoden, which might be us if we loose:
“Where now the horse and the rider? Where is the horn that was blowing? Where is the helm and the hauberk, and the bright hair flowing? Where is the hand on the harpstring, and the red fire glowing? Where is the spring and the harvest and the the tall corn growing? They have passed like rain on the mountain, like a wind in the meadow; The days have gone down in the West behind the hills into shadow.”
-Theoden King, The Two Towers
I like this quote from Tolkien himself, in a letter, thanks for the post Rachel, it cheered me up a great deal.
October 16th, 2008 at 11:14 pmESTOh, Rachel, you are the best — just the tonic this day needed!
I was in the process of uncurling from assorted woes, Hobbit fashion, by baking a batch of bread. Had to do something while it rose, so of course I looked here.
Now I’ve got fresh-baked bread, Tolkien, Kipling, Churchill, Shakespeare, and the combined wit and wisdom of the commentariat — Rachel rocks!
October 16th, 2008 at 11:19 pmESTRachel…this post goes to 11
October 16th, 2008 at 11:22 pmESTI will see thee on the battlefield, my brothers and sisters. Night may well come, but not while I yet live. Hold the line!
October 16th, 2008 at 11:40 pmESTThanks for the geeky emotional rescue, Rachel - I totally needed that. The Kos Kidz can kiss my shiny, non-spirit crushed backside. Freakin’ Easterlings.
BTW, I can’t believe no one has yet finished the Sam quote:
“…Because they were holding on to something.”
“What are we holding on to?”
“That there’s some good in this world, Mr. Frodo, and it’s worth fighting for!”
Now I’m going to go watch the last 20 minutes of 13th Warrior and go to bed happy.
October 16th, 2008 at 11:53 pmESTWhenever I watch those movies, I’m always struck by how much the liberals I know sound like Wormtongue: “Can’t you see how the king is wearied by your malcontent, by your warmongering?”
Yup yup.
October 16th, 2008 at 11:59 pmESTI think it’s a real possibility that McCain can still pull it off, especially if other conservatives do what I did.
The other day the local news called asking who I thought I would be voting for, I told them Obama just to mess with their numbers.
October 17th, 2008 at 12:30 amESTKeeping the middle-earth theme….
October 17th, 2008 at 12:43 amESTBOOYAA!!
Julie: That’s actually warmonglering. There is a subtle yet important difference.
October 17th, 2008 at 12:49 amESTGreat point, Zoot! That post was Whittlian, Rachel.
October 17th, 2008 at 1:01 amESTAmazing! I’m right in the middle of The Two Towers right now, and will finish the trilogy after that. I love these movies. A couple more quotes for you:
and
Finally, a short poem dedicated to all the liberals out there:
October 17th, 2008 at 1:47 amESTOh, yeah, I think I can out-geek you here. Considering the way Obama’s followers act, they remind me of the Borg. That made me think of Captain Picard’s speech in First Contact:
October 17th, 2008 at 2:28 amESTI’ll skip my LTR story to tell my voting story.
2004 was the first year all three of my children were eligible to vote. Each of them, independently, in their own ways, for their own reasons decided to vote for Bush.
My only advice to them was that even though they would hear that Bush would carry Texas no matter what, their vote still counted. I explained the noise about the popular vote as opposed to the electoral college in 2000.
This year, two of them are studying in Ireland and have both requested absentee ballots. If they can go to the trouble to vote, maybe you can shame some of your friends into stopping by their polling place.
October 17th, 2008 at 2:30 amESTI know this will sound harsh, but I believe that the American intelligentsia(99%) is waging an existential war against America 24/7. They are writing articles day and night trashing free markets and capitalism, saying that’s what caused this current crisis. Nobody is pushing back against them. They along with the MSM literally threw this election to Obama by scaring the shit out of the swing voters. Just listen to the nonsensical reasons given by focus groups. To me the left are the Orcs and must be destroyed.
October 17th, 2008 at 2:54 amEST“It is not the size of the dog in the fight,
October 17th, 2008 at 3:05 amESTit is the size of the fight in the dog.”
and
Adapt, overcome, improvise.
We are living The Two Towers right now.
Complex things are happening - massive shifts in power, changing loyalties, etc.
The consequences will not be clear until Nov 4th, but on that date we will look back and wonder how we ever thought victory was NOT inevitable.
Stay strong, fight the good fight and struggle through the second movie/book. The King WILL return - we just have to make sure the path is set for him!
Rich
October 17th, 2008 at 3:48 amESTIf you have the hots for Eomer, could you inroduce me to his sister?
October 17th, 2008 at 3:57 amESTWatch this:
When UN Negotiations fail (LOTR).
October 17th, 2008 at 6:04 amESTWhy assume a McCain defeat before the vote?
Chicago papers got it wrong when in 1948 they eagerly published headlines “Dewey Defeats Truman”
http://www.seanet.com/~jimxc/Politics/dewey_defeats_truman1.jpg
During WW2 when Britain was being blitzed and relentlessly bombed by the German air force, Laurence Olivier mounted Henry V play to bolster the morale of the British public.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAvmLDkAgAM
Henry V- Speech - video
http://www.chronique.com/Library/Knights/crispen.htm
“From this day to the ending of the world,
October 17th, 2008 at 6:38 amESTBut we in it shall be remembered-
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne’er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition;
And gentlemen in England now-a-bed
Shall think themselves accurs’d they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s day.”
Oh yes he is.
October 17th, 2008 at 7:21 amESTThank you. I needed to read that this morning, after coming in to our book drop decorated with the Fairey Face. And many more thanks for not taking the analogy into the personal realm. McCain wants the ring too.
And for the ultimate LOTR political reference, go here:
October 17th, 2008 at 7:59 amESThttp://anarchyinyourhead.com/2007/12/14/no-more-kings/
Yes, not even Ron Paul is Frodo! Destrou the Ring!!
A most powerful post and incredible input from all you magnificent contributors.
October 17th, 2008 at 8:07 amESTAnd in the immortal words of Josie Wales:
Now remember, things look bad and it looks like you’re not gonna make it, then you gotta get mean. I mean plumb, mad-dog mean. ‘Cause if you lose your head and you give up then you neither live nor win. That’s just the way it is.
October 17th, 2008 at 8:09 amEST“Even when you are horribly outnumbered, outgunned, outwhatevered -”
but we ARE’NT outnumbered-not if you eliminate all the fraudeulent votes ACORN keeps coming up
October 17th, 2008 at 8:10 amESTThis post made me remember that my husband & I read the LOTR trilogy to our son as his bedtime reading when he was 6 yrs. old. It took many months, but we finished all three books. He loved the stories and could not wait to hear more every night. Granted, our son was a very precocious child. My only regret was that I believe that Shelob the spider contributed to his fear of spiders. He saw the first two movies but would not see Return of the King because of the scene with Shelob!
October 17th, 2008 at 8:14 amESTGreat spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds.
October 17th, 2008 at 8:20 amESTAlbert Einstein
A few more excellent speeches for the occasion:
Someone mentioned this earlier, but it’s appropriate. When Theoden made his pre-battle prepspeech to the Rohirrim before they charged the orc army on Pellenor fields, he knew that they had no hope of winning, their numbers were too great. The conversation between Gamling and Theoden at the mountain was this: Gamling: He leaves because there is no hope.
Theoden: He leaves because he must.
Gamling: Too few have come. We cannot defeat the armies of Mordor.
Theoden: No. We cannot. But we will meet them in battle nonetheless.
Then comes Theoden’s Speech on Pellenor Fields:
“Forth! And fear no darkness! Arise! Arise, Riders of Théoden! Spears shall be shaken, shields shall be splintered! A sword day… a red day… ere the sun rises! Ride now… Ride now… Ride! Ride for ruin and the world’s ending! Death!”
Even better than a fictional speech, love them though I do, is one given by our own Patrick Henry on March 23, 1775, his “Give me Liberty or give me Death!” speech.
Here is an excerpt:
There is no longer any room for hope. If we wish to be free–if we mean to preserve inviolate those inestimable privileges for which we have been so long contending–if we mean not basely to abandon the noble struggle in which we have been so long engaged, and which we have pledged ourselves never to abandon until the glorious object of our contest shall be obtained–we must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight! An appeal to arms and to the God of hosts is all that is left us! They tell us, sir, that we are weak; unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it be the next week, or the next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed, and when a British guard shall be stationed in every house? Shall we gather strength but irresolution and inaction? Shall we acquire the means of effectual resistance by lying supinely on our backs and hugging the delusive phantom of hope, until our enemies shall have bound us hand and foot? Sir, we are not weak if we make a proper use of those means which the God of nature hath placed in our power. The millions of people, armed in the holy cause of liberty, and in such a country as that which we possess, are invincible by any force which our enemy can send against us. Besides, sir, we shall not fight our battles alone. There is a just God who presides over the destinies of nations, and who will raise up friends to fight our battles for us. The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave. Besides, sir, we have no election. If we were base enough to desire it, it is now too late to retire from the contest. There is no retreat but in submission and slavery! Our chains are forged! Their clanking may be heard on the plains of Boston! The war is inevitable–and let it come! I repeat it, sir, let it come.
Read the whole thing here.
October 17th, 2008 at 8:25 amESTHell yeah! This was an incredibly well-timed for me, not so much because of the election (because I’m not THAT scared of Obamaphiles, they’re pot-smoking hippies who can’t remember when election day IS), but because of things of a more personal and immediate nature.
October 17th, 2008 at 8:32 amESTThat being said, if you need some good, solid, ass-kicking music to lift your spirits, may I suggest Albannach?
Well, in keeping with the tone of this post, I will add a speech that exemplifies said tone: the St. Crispin’s Day speech from Henry V.
If that doesn’t inspire you, nothing will.
October 17th, 2008 at 8:39 amESTI needed that this morning, yes I did.
And if we lose this battle, we fight on. Obama may even seize the Presidency, but he will NOT take this country.
Never.
October 17th, 2008 at 8:44 amESTI am one of those rare beings, a conservative that works for the State of Michigan I’m a Criminal Investigator. I have to contend with the sneering, I’m better, more enlightened than you crap every day from lots of the wonderful all inclusive Dems/Obama supporters. They know they have won, and maybe they have. But, as I have told my friends who are Obama supporters, (yes I can call some of his supporters my friends, they honestly believe he is the best choice for the country, good people can have different views),I may tilting at windmills but I’m going to negate at least one of their votes on Nov.4. As you so eloquently stated Rachel, I will not, (to quote another poet)go gently into the night. I will rage against the dark. With the help of bloggers like you, Bill Whittle, Powerline, LGF, and the rest that also deserve to be mentioned. We will fight with our words and our votes. The comming days may be dark but the sun will always shine again. I understand the hyperbole of stock up on Firearms, etc. But we must remember that warfare waged for the soul of our county will be one of words, laws and ideologies. And, I believe of class as well, as other bloggers have pointed out it appears that many of Conservative Writers have switched allegence due to the addition of Sarah Palin, she is not of the Elite class that they believe should be leading us. She did not graduate from Harvard or Yale etc. she is just a normal hard working person like the rest of US not them.
October 17th, 2008 at 9:06 amEST“Have you forgotten, Mamoru? Victory belongs to those… WITH COURAGE!”
-Gai Shishioh, GaoGaiGar Final
October 17th, 2008 at 9:19 amESTLongtime reader, first-time commenter here. Usually I keep to myself and my friends, but this post has compelled me to reply thusly.
First off, Rachel, you rock! Geeky conservative solidarity!
Second, months ago I was discussing politics with my boyfriend (also an LotR nerd) and we realized exactly who Obama reminded us of- Annatar, the fair-seeming Lord of Gifts. He talks a good game, claims he only wants to help, offers all kinds of enticements for “free”… but what IS the real price? What is he brewing up in the fires of Orodruin as soon as your back is turned? We’ve since been calling him Obamatar amongst outselves, and parodying little bits of dialogue like (showing my Silm here) “Alas! For a mighty veteran is Lord McCain, and wise in all frontier lore is Mistress Palin, and yet they will not aid me in my labors to create more entitlement programs! Can it be that they do not desire to see all, whether they will work or no, be as blissfully gifted as they with home ownership, healthcare, college tuition, digital cable, yea, and as many other supposed ‘rights’ as I can devise?”
Just thought that some of the rest of you might enjoy that. Thank you for reminding me none of us are alone.
October 17th, 2008 at 9:23 amESTHaven’t read all the comments but frankly I was never an Aragorn fan. But I have said since I was a kid that I would have jumped at the chance to ride to the death with Théoden King of Rohan.
The only thing the Riders really needed was a bunch of Mossberg 500s to augment those bigass swords. That would have fucked up many an Orc before its time. But anachronisms aside, I’d have gladly ridden with sword alone.
October 17th, 2008 at 9:29 amESTRachel,
Of all the blogs and all the posts I’ve read over the past 10 years, this one is my official, all-time favorite post! I don’t have any kind of hidden gusset award, but if I did, this post would get it.
October 17th, 2008 at 9:32 amESTnever could stand movie aragorn. aside from that whole “he doesn’t look like he could lead lemmings over a cliff” issue, there was the fact he never washed his hair. (”daily washing and good hygiene dilutes the body’s essential oils and is clearly a tool of the dark sinister forces!!”) difficult to get worked up over the return of *that* (batshit-crazy and needs a bath) dirtbag king, know what i’m sayin’?
also: eomer. yes yes yes, i know, you girlies think he’s just *dreamy*. bah! it’s all MARKETing, i tell you! would you be sighing and having burning thighs over him if his name were - say - HOmer?? or elmer? waldo? “yonder rides prince buford!” “prince larry joe gazed deep into her eyes, and she felt as if her heart might burst with desire.” “prince shemp rode into battle, his back straight and steel sharpened, to avenge the deaths of his brothers, lord moe and duke curly.”
i think not.
October 17th, 2008 at 9:37 amESTDamn, asset, what’s up with that? Eowyn still not returning your calls?
October 17th, 2008 at 9:40 amESTDearRachel,
One of the commenters mentioned John Paul Jones’ refusal to surrender during his battle with the British SERAPIS. There are many such examples from the Navy’s history (US as well as Royal, and other Services as well).
One example, that has always had a big impression on me, was a gun crew on a US Navy destroyer in WWII that continued firing at the Japanese as the ship sank - the last shot was actually fired just before the water closed over the barrel. Which meant that the gun crew went down with the ship to get one more shot off at the enemy.
In the immortal words of Tim Allen in Galaxy Quest, “Never give up. Never surrender.”
v/r
October 17th, 2008 at 9:51 amESTmike
Milton said it best:
“Better to rule in Hell than serve in Heaven!”
Politically not theologically speaking, of course.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:05 amESTWhen LOTR came out, everyone was saying that the ring was symbolic of the bomb, the ultimate weapon, or of power itself. but I always thought the ring was socialism. Not necessarily intentional on Tolkien’s part. It just worked out that way. The main points are that the ring corrupts. Gandalf and Galdriel both are afraid of it out of a desire to do good, but know that in the end they’d end up evil as well. And Obama? No, he’s not Sauron…he’s Saruman.
Mark
October 17th, 2008 at 10:14 amESTI had to post this:
October 17th, 2008 at 10:15 amESTI feel a little like “Crazy Cora” right now (okay, quit laughing — I know I should have said “a little more than usual”):
October 17th, 2008 at 10:31 amESTYou made me feel better.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:32 amESTThanks, I needed that!
In the writers’/ director’s commentary for The Two Towers (how’s THAT for geeky!), they say just after the speech of Sam’s you quoted that it “sounded like something George Bush would say.” They sounded a bit chagrined, but to their credit, they left it in.
2008 will look very strange in, say, twenty years.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:55 amESTSince mhuete has brought up our Navy and some of its many heroic moments, one that has always stuck with me is the story of the Liberty Ship Stephen Hopkins. On her maiden voyage on Sept. 27 1942, Stephen Hopkins encountered the German raider Stier and her supply ship Tannenfels. The crew of the Stephen Hopkins were much surprised when the apparent cargo ship began firing at them. However, Master Paul Buck and the commander of his Navy Armed Guard, Lt(jg) Kenneth Willett, decided to put up a fight though the Stephen Hopkins carried only a single 4″ gun, two 37mm AA cannons, and some machineguns against the six 5.9″ guns of the Stier.
By the end of the fight, the Stephen Hopkins sank, but she had so damaged the Stier that her captain, Horst Gerlach, ordered his crew to scuttle her.
Captain Buck, Lt. Willett, and all but fifteen of the Stephen Hopkins‘ crew of forty Mechant Marine sailors and fifteen USN personnel were lost.
Stephen Hopkins was the only US ship to sink a German surface combatant during World War II.
http://www.usmm.org/hopkins.html
October 17th, 2008 at 10:58 amESTThis isn’t really on point, but I am still mad about stuff and I have to put my comments somewhere and this thread looks like the place:
Joe the Plumber put his hands and arms into elbow-level SHIT for years, trying to make something of his bidness. Obama will force Joe to “help” those who are “coming up behind” Joe. Those who didn’t put their arms in shit. Joe did. They didn’t.
Every time I think about this I am enraged and outraged anew.
Anon.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:59 amESTHoly Crap! There’s another Kit!
October 17th, 2008 at 11:04 amESTbaxtrice, can I have your babies?
October 17th, 2008 at 11:12 amESTI must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing.
Only I will remain.
-Bene Gesserit litany
October 17th, 2008 at 11:17 amEST“I would say to the House, as I said to those who have joined this Government, I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat. We have before us an ordeal of the most grievous kind. We have before us many long months of toil and struggle.
You ask what is our policy. I will say, it is to wage war with all our might, with all the strength that God can give us, to wage war against a monstrous tyranny never surpassed in the dark, lamentable catalogue of human crime.
You ask what is our aim? I can answer in one word: Victory. Victory at all costs. Victory in spite of all terror. Victory however long and hard the road may be. For without victory there is no survival.”
- Winston Churchill
October 17th, 2008 at 11:19 amEST—First speech as Prime Minister, House of Commons, 13 May 1940
The ones that are “coming up behind” Joe are the ones trying to steal his wallet, in a sense.
October 17th, 2008 at 11:20 amEST- - - Lady Astor (to Winston Churchill)
- Winston Churchill, in reply
October 17th, 2008 at 11:21 amEST-Lady Astor
-Winston Churchill
October 17th, 2008 at 11:22 amESTI must admit though, this post kind of scares me. It puts off the same mood the Dems have. “Do anything to win!” kind of thing. They’ve obviously taken that to a new level.
…But I think that is why Repubs haven’t really taken to being too outspoken. They don’t want to end up like the Dems- lying, cheating, self-promoting little bastards.
‘Could just be me though…
EDIT: alright, I reread through the post, and although it is a “We must win!” post, it doesn’t in any way promote cheating or the like. I feel better now. lol.
October 17th, 2008 at 11:26 amESTDid somebody say “Whittle”???
October 17th, 2008 at 11:27 amESTI’m not ashamed to admit this post - as well as the comments thread - has gotten me a little choked up. I’m listening to the LotR soundtrack right now. So - I will just add this exchange:
Forth Eorlingas!
October 17th, 2008 at 11:27 amESTWith all due respect, there is a HUGE difference between “Do anything to win!” and “Don’t give up yet, it’s not over ’till it’s over!” (which is what Rachel is saying, IMO).
October 17th, 2008 at 11:29 amESTTolkein fought in WW1, and that is where a lot of his never-die attitude comes from. Scholars widely agree that the books were a metaphor for that war.
October 17th, 2008 at 11:30 amESTYeah, i realised that. (and even edited my previous post before i saw yours MightySam) The idea is similar, but the way that it is said is different. Focused on being positive, to overcome- rather than to destroy the opposition and ‘break spirits’ of the opponent.
October 17th, 2008 at 11:37 amESTMy version of thinking, from Gimli:
Gandalf: He’s suffered a defeat, yes, but… behind the walls of Mordor, our enemy is regrouping.
October 17th, 2008 at 11:37 amESTGimli: Let him stay there. *Let him rot!* Why should we care?
Gandalf: Because 10,000 Orcs now stand between Frodo and Mount Doom. I’ve sent him to his death.
Aragorn: No. There is still hope for Frodo. He needs time… and safe passage across the plains of Gorgoroth. We can give him that.
Gimli: How?
Aragorn: Draw out Sauron’s armies. Empty his lands. Then we gather our full strength and march on the Black Gate.
Eomer: We cannot achieve victory through strength of arms.
Aragorn: Not for ourselves. But we can give Frodo his chance if we keep Sauron’s Eye fixed upon us. Keep him blind to all else that moves.
Legolas: A diversion.
Gimli: Certainty of death, *small* chance of success… What are we waiting for?
Dear God, I love each and every one of you. And Rachel you are one strong-willed and tough lady and God love you for it. You have me fired up and I’m ready for whatever may come.
I know as cheesy as all of this sounds, despite all that has gone on in the past several months, I still love this country. I love being an American with all my heart, soul, and everything that makes me.
I am the granddaughter of a WWII veteran and the daughter of a Vietnam Vet. I know without a shadow of a doubt that anything worth fighting for will not be easy, neither will it be pretty or fast won.
I know that this country still has good people in it who care about what is best for their country and not about what is best for them. Those of us that are still concerned about this country MUST NOT quit. The enemy can only claim total and complete victory if his opponent lays down and gives it to him.
I for one REFUSE to go quietly into the night. I REFUSE to make those actions of the men and women that fought, shed blood, and died for my freedom, mean nothing. I REFUSE to give up on this country. I REFUSE to turn this country over to socialist, lazy bums, and loonies without one hell of a fight.
That is all.
October 17th, 2008 at 11:37 amESTA quick note:
http://stopgloballaming.com/2008/10/17/quick-note-to-the-elite-inside-the-beltway-conservative-pundits-youre-not-martyrs/
That’s absolutely must read
October 17th, 2008 at 11:38 amESTWell shit, I had a pithy retort half-formed but the pix of His Hotness blank’d my mind.
Yowzer.
October 17th, 2008 at 12:05 pmESTI now have officially fallen in love with you.
October 17th, 2008 at 12:23 pmESTLast night I was watching the Sox/Rays game (the Red Sox came back from a seven run deficit to win) at my local bar with a young man who had done two tours in Iraq, his second one in Mosul during the height of the insurgency. We got to talking a little about the race and I said I’m voting for the Constitution and not Socialism, he agreed and added that he will never pick up a gun again due to the killing he had to in Iraq, unless it’s to defend the Constitution.
If you want to get a little more fighting mad, watch this news clip:
Mentally Challenged Man Forced to Vote for Obama
October 17th, 2008 at 12:52 pmESTAmanda — I take it you’re a Rush fan?
October 17th, 2008 at 12:56 pmESTMa’am:
You should have been a Marine. You’ve definitely got the spirit for it.
Defeatists = just another form of propagandist working to assist the cause of an enemy.
October 17th, 2008 at 1:26 pmESTThanks a bunch Rachel–I better dig out my LOTR DVDs for the coming weeks. Here’s more things to do I think (especially if Obama wins):
Warren Buffett is right to think about buying stock in american companies;
If you are feeling like pulling a “John Galt” (you know, the hero of Atlas Shrugged I think–which I haven’t read but probably should because I’ve been feeling very Libertarian/anti-government lately), check out Dr. Helen’s website for a long list of posts about doing this–I continue to be impressed by the smarts of alot of Americans out there who aren’t (Thank God) part of the drive-by media who have anointed The One;
Support your local businesses (ie plumbers!!!), and charities, and any everyday American just trying to realize his or her personal dream;
Give the max to your pre-tax retirement accounts to minimize your tax bill as best you can–less money for that awful Congress to redistribute;
Send a donation to the Buckeye Institute, which has filed a lawsuit against ACORN in Ohio charging racketeering in their voter (fraud) registration efforts. I doubt we can get our Congress to quit giving our tax dollars to ACORN despite their efforts to create chaos in elections everywhere. It will have to be up to non-profits and ordinary citizens to try to destroy ACORN, and civil lawsuits may be one strategy.
Fight on!!!
October 17th, 2008 at 1:41 pmESTThis call to arms really ought to link this video, which takes Ms. Lucas’ point and puts it to the original theme song of OIF:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iPbjX2Qd74
Since we’re being nerd-riffic & all…
October 17th, 2008 at 2:02 pmESTToo freakin’ right!
October 17th, 2008 at 2:43 pmESTIf you don’t like fantasy novels, how about some stone cold reality from one of Tolkien’s drinking buddies: C.S. Lewis. His essay, “Men Without Chests” is a helpful tonic for times such as these. Western civilization needs men who love the good and hate the evil.
His native England seems to have forgotten this. So too have our oh-so-wise columnists such as Peggy Noonan and Christopher Buckley. A pox on their houses, I say. We must stand for what is right and let the dogs crawl away.
Gideon was vastly outnumbered by the enemy. So he sent away all the cowards. Then he sent away all those least likely to fight with awareness. Then he fought and he won.
October 17th, 2008 at 3:02 pmESTFrom “The Outlaw Josey Wales”:
October 17th, 2008 at 4:49 pmESTNow remember, things look bad and it looks like you’re not gonna make it, then you gotta get mean. I mean plumb, mad-dog mean. ‘Cause if you lose your head and you give up then you neither live nor win. That’s just the way it is.
I am Conservative, no modifier needed. Your LOTR speech was a breath of fresh air. I do not read blogs because without exception they are meaningless. The Internet is just porno, pot and prejucice and overwhelmingly socialist and vacant libertarianism. But in an effort to support good thinking and clear speech this needs to be said. There is no continum of Radical political philosophy and practice with Conservative thought and action. The left of Radicalism is Socialism then Communism and the right of Radicalism is Facism (Islamic Caliphate) then totalitarianism. Conservative thought and action has no connection with Radicalism. Conservative principles maintain the good and improve the parts that fail or are lacking. Radicalism always destroys to build up a new oppression no matter what lies they tell about any intention to take care of the less than elite.
October 17th, 2008 at 5:38 pmESTB.O. is a product of the Radical Left worldwide attempt to destroy the outstanding and successful refuge of sanity and humanity in America. You vote for B.O. you vote for your own death in slavery.
Ms. Lucas,
Thanks so much for the post, and I think I pulled a muscle somewhere deep in my chest laughing over the Eomer poster.
I can’t quote the speech from Steven Pressfield’s Gates of Fire, but consider me Polynikes the night before the final battle, and accept my shield in exchange for yours.
October 17th, 2008 at 6:47 pmESTOutGeek this:
“Out of commission, become a pillbox. Out of ammo, become a bunker. Out of time, become heroes.”
Daskal, “The Beast”.
October 17th, 2008 at 8:47 pmESTBecause this thread needs a little more hot blood to go with all this courage…
“Go beyond the impossible and kick reason to the curb! That’s the path real men choose!”
October 17th, 2008 at 9:20 pmEST“If there’s a wall in our way, we’ll destroy it! If there’s no road, we’ll pave one with our own hands!”
“Our hearts are hot like magma, burning like fire!”
“Supreme Unity! Gurren Lagann!”
“Who…”
“…the hell…”
“…DO YOU THINK WE ARE?!”
The Quest
R. Kipling
THE KNIGHT came home from the quest,
Muddied and sore he came.
Battered of shield and crest,
Bannerless, bruised and lame.
Fighting we take no shame,
Better is man for a fall.
Merrily borne, the bugle-horn
Answered the warder’s call:—
“Here is my lance to mend (Haro!),
Here is my horse to be shot!
Ay, they were strong, and the fight was long;
But I paid as good as I got!”
“Oh, dark and deep their van,
That mocked my battle-cry.
I could not miss my man,
But I could not carry by:
Utterly whelmed was I,
Flung under, horse and all.”
Merrily borne, the bugle-horn
Answered the warder’s call!
“My wounds are noised abroad;
But theirs my foemen cloaked.
Ye see my broken sword—
But never the blades she broke;
Paying them stroke for stroke,
Good handsel over all.”
Merrily borne, the bugle-horn
Answered the warder’s call!
“My shame ye count and know.
October 18th, 2008 at 4:39 amESTYe say the quest is vain.
Ye have not seen my foe.
Ye have not told his slain.
Surely he fights again, again;
But when ye prove his line,
There shall come to your aid my broken blade
In the last, lost fight of mine!
And here is my lance to mend (Haro!),
And here is my horse to be shot!
Ay, they were strong, and the fight was long;
But I paid as good as I got!”
And, of course, here’s another classic:
“From this day to the ending of the world,
October 18th, 2008 at 7:40 amESTBut we in it shall be remembered-
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne’er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition;
And gentlemen in England now-a-bed
Shall think themselves accurs’d they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s day.”
I’m prolly about to have my head handed to me, but I must disagree with Kim; The Chosen One is too empty a vessel, too unformed. His power does not flow from his own merits for he has none.
Obama is Smeagol, at heart a pathetic creature endlessly at war with himself. Tricksy he is too; skillfully using the netroot Orcs and MSM Uruk-hai to destroy those who oppose or are no longer useful in his quest for power; but like Pelosi’s Saruman, he is only a tool.
There is a dark force in the East; the Lord of Hedgedom, George Soros, he is Sauron and our economy is the Ring…it is almost in his grasp.
October 18th, 2008 at 10:18 amESTThe hell with the polls. The One is supposedly up by a bunch here in PA but he sure the hell is advertising an awful lot on TV.
October 18th, 2008 at 10:37 amESTI had a younger brother with heart. He’s the one who taught me to fight. As a kid I was geeky and kind of chicken. I grew out of it a little by my teen years but it was only veneer. My little brother had real guts. He’s the one who told me, “Hurt ‘em as bad as you can, try to kill them; no matter how big they are they don’t like getting hurt and they’ll never mess with you again. You may get your ass kicked, but they won’t fuck with you again and neither will anybody else.” I saw a crowd on the playground one day and pushed through to see what was happening. There was Rick, my little brother, on the ground on his back, bloody, with one of the school assholes holding him down hitting him; the asshole looked pretty beat up himself, but he was bigger and a lot stronger. I walked in just in time to see my brother work up a big gob of bloody spit and let it fly in the motherfucker’s face. Of course, I jumped on the fuckhead’s back and a general melee broke out. The asshole never fucked with these boys again. In fact almost nobody did after that.
We’re up against arrogant bullies, who like bullies from the beginning of time are cowards who have some kind of edge. Did you ever meet an actually tough “progressive?” Very few and far between. We are very possibly looking at the end of the American Way. The fucking Reds are coming…no they’re here and it won’t be pretty.
October 18th, 2008 at 11:03 amESTBy the way, what a fantastic site! I just “discovered” it through a link from Hot Air. You have some terrific writers and smarty pants here; I really like it.
October 18th, 2008 at 11:13 amESTI live in Isengard, aka the SF Bay Area, and if The One is running ads here they must be nervous about the Bradley Effect and/or congressional coattails.
Our Mistress will not be pleased if the Fellowship forces her to relinquish claim to one of the Towers of the Realm.
October 18th, 2008 at 11:28 amESTHeh. There’s now an ad at the top of the page: “Which character from LOTR are you?”
October 18th, 2008 at 11:33 amESTWell, shoot, this is a damn fine site. Rachel, you’re a terrific writer and thinker. I’m a retired cop turned college professor (Humanities, Philosophy and Religion)and I have a blog that reviews an esoteric corner of the erotic universe. I won’t name it here, it would be out of sync. I love the great quotes your readers came up with; the college professor in me is demanding, “Where are the references?”
October 18th, 2008 at 12:12 pmESTDaveP:
How’s this for Geek?:
“I have only two men out of my company and 20 out of some other company. We need support, but it is almost suicide to try to get it here as we are swept by machine gun fire and a constant barrage is on us. I have no one on my left and only a few on my right. I will hold.”
1stLt. Clifton B. Cates, USMC
in Belleau Wood, 19 July 1918
C”ome on, you sons of bitches! Do you want to live forever?”
GySgt. Daniel J. “Dan” Daly, USMC
near Lucy-`le-Bocage as he led the 5th Marines’ attack into Belleau Wood, 6 June 1918
“We’re not accustomed to occupying defensive positions. It’s destructive to morale.”
—LtGen H. M. “Howlin’ Mad” Smith, Iwo Jima, 1945, quoted to Walter Karig
“A man with a flag in his pack and the desire to put it on an enemy strong point isn’t likely to bug out.”
—
Col Lewis B. “Chesty “ Puller to an Army staff officer who, watching Marines raise the flag over Seoul, complained “Marines would rather carry a flag into battle than a weapon.”
“So they’ve got us surrounded, good! Now we can fire in any direction, those bastards won’t get away this time!”
CHESTY PULLER, USMC
“Retreat hell! We just got here!”
CAPT. LLOYD WILLIAMS, USMC
“They say “you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink.” In the Marine Corps, you can make that horse wish to hell he had.”
—Sgt Fred Larson, drill instructor, Plt 343, San Diego, 1965
“Being ready is not what matters. What matters is winning after you get there.”
—LtGen Victor H. Krulak to a Marine unit leaving for Vietnam, April 1965
“In the attack people get killed and wounded. Some wounded will scream. Don’t let the screamers slow your assault.”
—LtCol William Drumright, RVN, 1969, on the objective
“Wake up, lieutenant. We have the enemy near the hill. When they get closer, we are going to kill them. You need to see this.”
—SSgt Smotherman, RVN, 1969, on defensive tactics
“Wherever you are or whatever your job, don’t be confused or diverted by false priorities. We have only one mission to perform—that is to fight and win. And, we must do it better than anyone else in the world.”
—LtGen Leslie E. Brown
“The insurgent leader is a stallion standing on his hind legs. You don’t win his heart and mind. You kill him.”
—Maj Sean Leach, AWS, 1976, on counterinsurgency
“I love the Marine Corps for those intangible possessions that cannot be issued: pride, honor, integrity, and being able to carry on the traditions for generations of warriors past.”
—Cpl Jeff Sorni, USMC “Navy Times,”1994
“We Marines are truly blessed. We get to enjoy the sweet taste of freedom because we know its price.”
—Marine veteran John Chipura, survivor of the 1983 Beirut bombing, a NY Fireman, who wrote the above for the 225th Marine Corps birthday, 2000. He was later killed while responding to the terrorist attack, Sept. 11 at the World Trade Center, Tower 2.
All offered as a simple reminder that Americans that understand the old ways in dealing with hard times still exists.
October 18th, 2008 at 12:38 pmESTAh crap, Rachel and folks, I just discovered that my parked blog home page has been hijacked by a porn site. I shit you not.
I will pull the domain off the server as soon as I post this comment.
Done. Jees that was embarrassing, a lesson learned about parking an index page.
October 18th, 2008 at 1:25 pmESTRachel…thanks for a welcome and much needed pick me up.
October 18th, 2008 at 5:12 pmESTYou guys are terrific; keep those inspirational quotes coming in.
October 18th, 2008 at 5:19 pmESTSorta took some of the fun out of a terrific thread for me, but here’s the demotivator on photobucket:
Our Mistress will not be pleased if the Fellowship forces her to relinquish claim to one of the Towers of the Realm.
October 18th, 2008 at 10:16 pmESTMy lady, will you marry me?
October 19th, 2008 at 12:27 pmESTTolkien knew something of fighting on no matter what. In WWI as an British officer he was present at the Battle of the Somme (22,000 dead, 40,000 wounded on the first day alone). Keeping a stiff upper lip, and all that. It is good to remember, though, the only way to win is to keep fighting. Those who don’t are called losers.
October 19th, 2008 at 10:53 pmESTThis posting is awesome. Not only are there LOTR quotes and a picture of yummy Karl Urban, but you’ve acutally gotten me to get up out of the fetal position that I’ve been in for the last few weeks and feel better. Kudos Rachel. You’re awesome!
October 20th, 2008 at 2:00 pmESTJesus H., relax. Obama will probably win, the Republic will be just fine, and putting together a speech of all LOTR quotes would be hilarious.
October 20th, 2008 at 4:35 pmESTIt is as Lord Denethor predicted! Long has he foreseen this doom!”
The age of men is over. The time of the orc has come.
I wouldn’t be so sure about BO not being Sauron
October 20th, 2008 at 4:58 pmESTLast one, I swear…
“Even if we were enslaved to the endless cycle of karma…”
October 20th, 2008 at 7:49 pmEST“…our courage will open the door!”
“Even if the entire universe stood against us…”
“…our burning blood will cut through fate!”
“Busting through the dimensions and heavens!”
“We’ll make our own path through force!”
“Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann!”
“WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK WE ARE?!“
Tolkien actually recorded excerpts from LOTR in 1952. Issued on LP (big round black CD type things)in 1975. To hear his work in his own voice is breath taking. Think I’ll go cue up The Ride of the Rohirrim and put an edge on my bayonets.
October 20th, 2008 at 9:51 pmESTI assure you that the tales you have heard are exaggerated. It is true we will enslave your women, but we will not force them to become lesbians–at least not all of them. We will not re-educate your young boys to homosexuality, at least not the ones who show promise in sports. And while you will indeed be required to renounce Jesus, you will have a wide choice of conversions available to you.
October 21st, 2008 at 7:04 pmESTWhy are Republicans so shocked that Obama is going to win? The smarter among you knew Bush was doing an incompetent job re: Iraq and the economy, and now most Americans have woken up and realized what a disaster the last eight years have been.
I’m shocked that you guys are so shocked. Won’t you at least take some personal responsibility for the fact that you backed an idjit, he screwed up royally, and now America is going to try something new? It’s not like things could be any worse.
And really, Star Wars analogies are way cooler in the first place.
October 21st, 2008 at 11:41 pmEST“We few, we happy few, we band of brothers” (and sisters)
“Will shall be the sterner, heart the bolder,
October 22nd, 2008 at 12:05 amESTspirit the greater as our strength lessens.”
Jaim: we’re shocked that people really believe all the easily refuted lies you packed into your post.
You want a Star Wars analogy? Cobbled together from different points and addressed to you and many on your side:
“I can feel your anger. Let the hate flow through you. The hate is swelling in you now. Use it. Give in to your anger! Strike with all your hatred, and your journey towards the Dark Side will be complete. It is inevitable. It is your destiny.”
October 22nd, 2008 at 12:11 amESTI liked the interpolated speech at the Black Gate, but …
Arise, arise, Riders of Theoden!
Fell deeds await; fire and slaughter!
spear shall be shaken, shield be splintered,
a sword-day, a red day, ere the Sun rises!
Ride now; ride now! Ride to Gondor!
…
“Eowyn, Eowyn!” he cried at last. “Eowyn, how come you here? What madness or devilry is this? Death, death, death! Death take us all!”
Then without taking counsel or waiting for the approach of the men of the City, he spurred headlong back to the front of the great host, and blew a horn, and cried aloud for the onset. Over the field ran his clear voice calling: “Death! Ride, ride to ruin and the world’s ending!”
October 22nd, 2008 at 1:28 amESTHow about a few inspirational Sci-Fi quotes?
“G’Quon wrote: There is a greater darkness than the one we fight. It is the darkness of the soul that has lost its way. The war we fight is not against powers and principalities, it is against chaos and despair. Greater than the death of flesh is the death of hope, the death of dreams. Against this peril we can never surrender.”
G’Kar, Babylon 5, Season 3 ending in “Z’ha’dum”
“You can’t save them all.”
“I’ll try.”
“You’ll fail.”
“We’ll see.”
Lorien and Captain John Sheridan, Babylon 5, “Falling Toward Apotheosis”
“You have to be able to say ‘No, I won’t’ just one more time than they can say ‘Yes, you will.’”
Captain John Sheridan, Babylon 5, “Intersections in Real Time”
“There are some corners of the universe which have bred the most terrible things. Things which act against everything that we believe in. They must be fought.”
The 2nd Doctor, Doctor Who, “The Moonbase”
“There are worlds out there where the sky’s burning. Where the sea’s asleep, and the rivers dream. People made of smoke and cities made of song. Somewhere there’s danger. Somewhere there’s injustice. And somewhere else the tea’s getting cold. C’mon, Ace. We’ve got work to do!”
The 7th Doctor, Doctor Who, “Survival”
“I’m not scared of monsters. They’re scared of me.”
The 8th Doctor, Doctor Who, “Ouroubourous”
And these, while maybe not as inspirational, are still bad@$$:
“This is Ambassador Delenn of the Minbari. Babylon 5 is under our protection. Withdraw, … or be destroyed.”
“Negative. We have authority here. Do not force us to engage your ship.”
“Why not? Only one human captain has ever survived battle with the Minbari fleet. He is behind me. You are in front of me. If you value your lives, be somewhere else.”
Delenn and Captain Drake, Babylon 5, “Severed Dreams”
“I am a Ranger. We walk in the dark places no others will enter. We stand on the bridge and no-one may pass.”
Marcus Cole, Babylon 5, “Grey 17 is Missing”
“This is the White Star Fleet. Negative on surrender…we will not stand down.”
October 22nd, 2008 at 6:37 pmEST“Who is this? Identify yourself.”
“Who am I? I am Susan Ivanova, Commander, daughter of Andrei and Sophie Ivanov. I am the right hand of vengeance, and the boot that is going to kick your sorry ass all the way back to Earth … I am Death incarnate, and the last living thing that you are ever going to see. God sent me.”
Comander Susan Ivanova and Earthforce Advanced Destroyer Captain James, Babylon 5, “Between the Darkness and the Light”
Thanks for refreshing my memory on the greatest speech in Tolkien! I was right there when I heard those words in the movie and they truly spoke to me..
Anyone up for the St. Crispen’s Day speech from Henry V? More stirring words to rouse us to battle!
St. Crispen’s Day Speech
William Shakespeare, 1599
Enter the KING
WESTMORELAND. O that we now had here
But one ten thousand of those men in England
That do no work to-day!
KING. What’s he that wishes so?
My cousin Westmoreland? No, my fair cousin;
If we are mark’d to die, we are enow
To do our country loss; and if to live,
The fewer men, the greater share of honour.
God’s will! I pray thee, wish not one man more.
By Jove, I am not covetous for gold,
Nor care I who doth feed upon my cost;
It yearns me not if men my garments wear;
Such outward things dwell not in my desires.
But if it be a sin to covet honour,
I am the most offending soul alive.
No, faith, my coz, wish not a man from England.
God’s peace! I would not lose so great an honour
As one man more methinks would share from me
For the best hope I have. O, do not wish one more!
Rather proclaim it, Westmoreland, through my host,
That he which hath no stomach to this fight,
Let him depart; his passport shall be made,
And crowns for convoy put into his purse;
We would not die in that man’s company
That fears his fellowship to die with us.
This day is call’d the feast of Crispian.
He that outlives this day, and comes safe home,
Will stand a tip-toe when this day is nam’d,
And rouse him at the name of Crispian.
He that shall live this day, and see old age,
Will yearly on the vigil feast his neighbours,
And say ‘To-morrow is Saint Crispian.’
Then will he strip his sleeve and show his scars,
And say ‘These wounds I had on Crispian’s day.’
Old men forget; yet all shall be forgot,
But he’ll remember, with advantages,
What feats he did that day. Then shall our names,
Familiar in his mouth as household words-
Harry the King, Bedford and Exeter,
Warwick and Talbot, Salisbury and Gloucester-
Be in their flowing cups freshly rememb’red.
This story shall the good man teach his son;
And Crispin Crispian shall ne’er go by,
From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be remembered-
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne’er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition;
And gentlemen in England now-a-bed
Shall think themselves accurs’d they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s day
keep the faith! it’s not over yet!
October 22nd, 2008 at 8:50 pmESTWhile we’re throwing out quotes, I have a couple I’d like to toss into the pot:
“You can’t enslave a truly free man; the most you can do is kill him.” - Robert A. Heinlein
“The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.” - Confucius
October 23rd, 2008 at 12:52 pmEST