Victor Davis Hanson on the Illusion of Invincibility

 Victor Davis Hanson - American Thinker   "Victor Davis Hanson’s latest book is a macabre warning to an aging America as it closes in on its 250th birthday.  The warning comes in the form of a graphic depiction of the hideousness of war and the terrifying state of those who suffer ignominious defeat. 

However different the four societies described in the book were, be they Thebans, Carthaginians, Byzantines, or Aztecs, each was blinded by the illusion of invincibility.  Hanson shows that such an illusion is so persistent that even as the conquered were being slaughtered, they continued to think: “It cannot happen here.”. . .

"Hanson’s tone in The End Of Everything may seem detached and pitiless considering the brutality described in the book.   But his tone suggests how we, in contrast to the examples in the book, should unsparingly evaluate ourselves if we are to survive.   For people’s fears and hopes are like gravity in their consistency and predictability.  In that sense, Victor Davis Hanson is more Isaac Newton as opposed to the progressives, who dream “that money, education, and better intentions could arrest the gory arch of history,” as he wrote in one of his previous twenty-seven books.  Ignoring reality destroyed the four societies shown in the compelling narrative of this book.   May such blindness not be visited on us!"

Biden’s NATO speech should have been about a different nation - American Thinker  . . ."When Biden said this:

Together, we’ve built a global coalition to stand with Ukraine. Together, we’ve provided significant economic and humanitarian assistance. And together, we’ve supplied Ukraine with weapons it needs to defend itself: tanks, armored fighting vehicles, air defense systems, long-range missiles, and millions of munitions.

The United States and nearly two dozen Allied partners have signed the bilateral security agreements with Ukraine and more countries will follow.

"I wished he’d said this:

Together, we’ve built a global coalition to stand with Israel. Together, we’ve provided significant economic and humanitarian assistance. And together, we’ve supplied Israel with weapons it needs to defend itself: tanks, armored fighting vehicles, air defense systems, long-range missiles, and millions of munitions.

The United States and nearly two dozen Allied partners have signed the bilateral security agreements with Israel and more countries will follow.

"Would the current, ostensible Leader of the Free World have said that? And, had he done so, would his remarks have garnered the same applause? Would the world rally behind Israel the way it has behind Ukraine?" . . .