Sheep(le), Wolves and Sheepdogs

If you’re not familiar with the concept of the three types of people: sheep, wolves and sheep dogs, I strongly urge you to read about it in Lt. Col Dave Grossman’s book, “On Combat”. Sometimes it’s not easy to tell which category a person falls into until circumstances or events make it plainly obvious. One of the things the COVID-19 situation has done is make the distinctions more transparent.

Very briefly, and quoting from the book…

“If you have no capacity for violence then you are a healthy productive citizen: a sheep. If you have a capacity for violence and no empathy for your fellow citizens, then you have defined an aggressive sociopath–a wolf. But what if you have a capacity for violence, and a deep love for your fellow citizens? Then you are a sheepdog, a warrior, someone who is walking the hero’s path. Someone who can walk into the heart of darkness, into the universal human phobia, and walk out unscathed.”

The vast majority of people are sheep. This isn’t a pejorative term, unless of course we’re referring to “sheeple”. Sheeple are docile, fearful, easily-led, easily-manipulated, often ego-centric, gullible and seek the approval of others, particularly “expert authorities” and some kind of outside validation for their actions.

The truly evil sociopaths are of course wolves, but we can characterize scammers, demagogues, fearmongers, ‘hypercrits’ (.sic), ‘patronizers’, ‘condescenders’, megalomaniacs, holier-than-thou types, petty bureaucrats and of course, the majority of politicians as wolves too!

FInally, there are among us, thankfully, sheepdogs: combat soldiers, intelligence operators, police, firemen, first responders, much of the medical community, community emergency response teams and myriad volunteers who seek to serve others.

Look around you these days and you’ll clearly see who’s who.

What does this mean for our new lives… our during and post-COVID lives?

If you are a sheep. I strongly urge you to seek out, get to know, listen to and if need be, follow one or more sheepdogs whom you can trust and try to help as they seek to protect and serve others.

If you are sheepdog, I strongly urge you to embrace your role and let people know you care about them, will try to look out for their well-being, will defend them (with violence if necessary!) against evil and will lead from the front, not from your behind (.sic).

A few years ago a regional newspaper run by wolves and staffed by sheeple, in a fit of anti-Second Amendment pique, published an online, interactive map of those of us with concealed carry gun permits. Their attempt was to ostracize and shame us. It backfired.

No less than three of my neighbors, after seeing that I (and no-one else within a radius of about five miles) had a carry permit, quietly told me something to the effect of, “If the s— hits the fan, I’m coming to YOUR house.” Besides offering to mentor them on firearms training and permit acquisition (usually met with a “noooo, I could never do that…”) I reassured them they could indeed rely on me to help them in a dire situation, and if necessary, I’d given them on-the-spot training!

If you are a Sheeple, you’re not reading this but if perchance you do I urge you to wake up, shut up, engage your brain and do something useful instead of whining, weeping, wailing and gnashing your teeth!

Finally, if you’re a wolf, you too are probably not reading this. But I would strongly urge all wolves to be mindful of the rapidly increasing number of sheepdogs who are coming out of their doghouses to confront the evil you represent. We’ve thrown the bulls— flag on the field and while we haven’t seen apocalyptic civil unrest at this time, we’re ready to confront you and will not hesitate to defend our families and our friends from everything from petty unrighteous dominion to violent threat.

This crisis has clearly brought out both the best and worst in people. I have no data to support this, but I would not be surprised if the number of sheepdogs reading these words is greater than for most blogs. Why? Because people who would actually take the time to read the reflections and musings of an old, traditional fart like me probably care deeply about their loved ones, their communities and our nation. I expect many of you are courageous in the face of hardship and would, like a sheepdog, step up when called upon (if you’re not already doing so) to defend the flock.

May God bless the Sheepdogs and the Sheep. May He help the Sheeple and may He render the Wolves impotent…

Schadenfruede

I can think of no better word to describe the feeling I had last night watching the Democrat debate. The spectacle gave whole new meaning to the expression “circular firing squad”. What’s more, it highlighted, again, the absurdity of the Democrats’ positions on just about everything.

Trying to focus on the issues at hand was darn near impossible. It was a food fight extraordinaire…a stage where each tried to out-perform the other. Bloomberg hid behind his lectern (.sic), and acted small, arrogant, smug, and clueless and as he tried hard to stoically look ahead while taking deserved incoming fire. Warren was her usual shrill, unhinged self, screeching #metoo platitudes and demonstrating once again how poorly an academic understands the real world. Sanders with his hand and arm gesticulations continues to look like he might fly away, and while he’s authentic alright, he’s authentically idiotic. Poor Joe Biden with his face lift and newly whitened teeth tried his best to look energetic but appeared the geriatric politician completely disconnected from today’s world, still stumbling and unable to find the right words to insert in his sentences and pitching the “good old days” when his boss was President – coattails on which Obama has made him unwelcome. Pete Boot Edge Edge represented himself, and his whole generation of snowflake millennial spoiled brats superbly, demonstrating his glibness and immaturity at the same time. Finally, Amy Klobuchar, a U.S. Senator believe it or not, looked completely outclassed, childishly defensive: “Are you trying to say that I’m dumb? Or are you mocking me here, Pete?”

What a bunch of clowns!

But I flipped to the Phoenix rally that Trump was holding court over and saw, regrettably, another jester’s performance. Trump really doesn’t act like we should expect a President to act. He still acts like he’s running The Apprentice. It’s embarrassing.

But here’s the kicker…Obama, with his nose in the air and his imperious attitude, his eloquence and presence, was highly ‘presidential’, and spent eight years fundamentally trying to transform America into some two-bit foreign midget while Trump, with his bumbling act, is fundamentally trying to save America from that fate. He may be the most inarticulate President we’ve ever had, and contra-presidential in many ways, but his intentions, his actions and his results have been spot on. I wish I could read what historians will write about him 50 years from now.

If I were a Democrat candidate, and I really wanted to defeat Trump in November, I’d embrace his nationalism, embrace his policies, applaud and thank him for his efforts and suggest that with minor tweaks, the path we’re on could be straightened and smoothed to accommodate the other half of the country who want a more liberal or “progressive” (although I’d avoid that term altogether because it’s a joke) approach. I’d adopt a presidential diction, speech and demeanor and present a serious, no-nonsense persona to contrast myself with Trump’s antics.

I’d still lose, of course, because more than 50% of the population, irrespective of Trump, are happy with the Country’s direction and are optimistic about where we’re going. But at least I’d have a chance to help down ballot Democrats with their runs, and I might even have a respectable run myself.

But the Democrats can’t help themselves. They’re so caught up in hysterics, theatrics, hypocrisy, misandry (.sic), megalomania, and victim-celebrating they’ve completely forgotten about the true majority: the millions of Americans with their heads down working hard caring for themselves and their families, supporting their friends and communities, productively contributing to the growth and welfare of our entire Nation. The Democrats have bought into the notion that the disadvantaged, the downtrodden, the tiny minority of true victims should be helped no matter what the cost to the rest of society or the nation.

When I was a kid we used to use the expression “My heart bleeds purple peanut butter for you” when feigning sympathy for a buddy who skinned his knee. I’m not so callous anymore, but I cannot support, for example, crushing the agriculture industry in California by restricting water flows thus jeopardizing farmers and crops and livestock production because some whiny biologists are distraught that a tiny fish might go extinct (I’m referring, of course, to the famous “snail darter” here.)

What about the vast MAJORITY? How about we celebrate the WINNERS? How about we celebrate EXCEPTIONALISM? How about we celebrate INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT? How about we reserve the use of NANNIES for our toddlers instead of treating everyone as if we needed the government to serve as one.

Trump may be crass, undignified, inarticulate and may appear at times to be off his rocker, but he’s crazy like a fox in that, like Reagan (“just a dumb actor from California” according to the Democrats), he loves this country, he believes a rising tide lifts all boats, that growth (i.e. GROWING the pie instead of trying to slice the pieces thinner and thinner) solves the problems of the vast majority of our people and indeed, for the whole world.

The Democrats whine we’re destroying the planet. While that is simply nonsense (see George Carlin’s famous routine about “Saving the Planet“), my response to the unlikely possibility that mankind will use up ALL of the Earth’s natural resources or somehow so upset Nature that we will all die of carbon dioxide or monoxide poisoning, or that our orbit will decay such that we fall into the Sun, is to go out and find ourselves another planet to live on (which is exactly what we’re doing)!!!

Growth. Prosperity. Equal opportunity, not equal outcomes. To each according to his MERIT, CONTRIBUTION and RESULTS, not his “needs” is the answer. So long as the Democrats continue to whine and stamp their feet, I’ll keep smiling as they seek to destroy one another.

Schadenfreude.