A few moments of peace

There's as much to love as there is to be critical of. 

Western civilization, once turned this way, seems to have turned another. Goya, the court painter to the throne, making pictures of babies for the royals well before exploring the monstrosity of war in his old age.

The announcement then from USA Defense Secretary Leon Panetta yesterday regarding the Pentagon's intention to cut military expenditures to a degree that will accommodate just 'one war' while maintaining a military large enough to 'spoil a second adversary's ambitions in another part of the world', should be welcomed with open arms.

(That the announcement wasn't made by a 4-Star General is also encouraging.)

In the Arab world, not that long ago, if you were confronted by an enemy and threatened with death, you were told to look that enemy in the eye and say that you knew his mother. If you had the courage to act this way, it was customary for your enemy to lay down his arms and for you to save your life.