Two Hundred Years And Counting!

[HARDCORE]

A little over two hundred years ago, the United States was forced to act in our defense against the very area of the world that we are engaged in war against today!

The Barbary Pirates of yore seemed intent upon kidnapping our sailors and raiding our vessels. As a matter of fact, for many years, our own government addressed the problem by paying tribute to those who preyed upon our own people!

With the likes of North Africa, Morocco, Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli, pirating our ships and crews (when they were not engaging in the slave trade that is), we were becoming hard pressed upon the open seas!

Finally, in desperation and ire, we cried ?ENOUGH IS ENOUGH? and fought back! We dispatched the USS Constitution, USS Constellation, USS Philadelphia, USS Chesapeake, USS Argus, USS Syren, and the USS Intrepid, to the region to put an end to this madness. And with the gallant actions of men like Lt. Stephan Decatur and 74 handpicked volunteers, we ended the folly of those who thought us an easy target.

Well, that was some two centuries ago, and since that time, we have even fought a world war to help free these very same ingrates from the boots of tyranny (Operation Torch, WW2 etc.). Of course, like much of the world, today?s friends have often proved to be tomorrow?s enemies, and vice-versa!

What I found to be especially puzzling was the recent swearing in of a Congressman using the Quran! We, as a nation, were (unfortunately) getting damned close to eliminating all religious reference, and even though this particular Quran had once been the personal property of the magnificent Mr. Jefferson (Thomas, not George), I found the incident interesting. ?Maybe this was a gesture of world peace, I know not??

Getting back to the Barbary Pirates (the old ones and not the current crop), some two hundred years ago, we were pushed into a corner and forced to act rather than react! ?Ain?t it amazing how history has a disturbing habit of repeating itself??

VERITAS