COURAGEOUS RESTRAINT

“No one country should have an advantage over another”, declared Barack Obama during his visit to Canada for the recent G20 summit conference.

Now there’s an inspirational thought. The President is saying, what the world needs is mediocrity, more mediocrity. The idea probably occurred to him while watching the Chicago Cubs.

Here’s a thought. If it’s good for nations, why not for baseball? Shouldn’t the team that wins the pennant be required to trade some of their best players with the team that finished last? You know, spread the skill around.

And what’s good for baseball should be good for education too. Lake Wobegon should be condemned, along with any other town where all the children are above average. Towns like that could develop an advantage over other towns. That is not in the spirit of mediocrity.

Progress is actually underway in the military with the proposal for a medal called The Medal for Courageous Restraint. This is a genuine proposal, not a joke. The concept is to reduce the casualties of war by rewarding a soldier, who in the face of danger, fails to act. It seems the time has come to recognize the contribution made by those who just watch and think, while others are getting the job done.

It occurred to me that if we are going to encourage fighting men not to use their weapons, a lot of money could be saved simply by not supplying them with guns in the first place. Foolish thought,  how could a soldier exercise courageous restraint without a gun to refuse to use?

Bob B