The Cost of Losing National Spirituality

America has always had a sense of duty about it. Since 1776 it has remained on a mission to fulfill its principles at home and abroad. We have always seen ourselves as a special people in world history. Left wingers have derided "American exceptionalism" since the late 1960s, first attacking this concept as they fought to unseat Lyndon Johnson from the presidency. This very belief in the superiority of our traditions has changed the world for the better.

Now the left wingers who have hated America since around 1967 finally have one of their own as president. His first gift to them was Apology Tour 2009, an act that floored our allies and gave aid and comfort to our enemies. Don't feel too sorry for them. This was the guy they wanted. Why did they think it would turn out any differently?

An America that turns away from its own guiding principles of supporting democracy and promoting capitalism has nothing. It is our principles that bring together a group of races and ethnicity. We always disagreed on how to implement our values, not so much on whether they had validity, not until now at least.

A few days ago I watched a movie called The Mephisto Waltz. The cast of characters represented a pretty typical late 1960s, early 1970s elite crowd. People in the movie lived out their existence pursuing the dreams of art and an exciting social life. The group is completely devoid of any Christian influence. Eventually you realize that many of the characters are part of a satanic cult led by an incestuous piano player. The female lead loses her husband, played by Alan Alda, to the cult in a manner of speaking. She herself turns to satanism to get him back, but of course loses her identity as a "decent person" in the process.

It is not enough to be simply "decent" as an individual or as a nation. From time to time you must speak up for, and occasionally fight for, what is right. If Americans start to accept the left wing line that we are not an exceptional nation with a God given duty on this Earth, we open ourselves up to other less benign influences. In the past hundred years we accepted the ideal that freedom in every part of the globe lay within our national interest and this inspired countless peoples to seek freedom and try to follow our model of democracy. Obama does not believe in being "leader of the free world," but insists upon apologizing for America taking those stands.

Like the song says, "if you don't stand for something, you will fall for anything."