Letter To The President by Harold B. Estes, a WWII Veteran

Ship Out!""


This venerable and much honored WW II vet is well known in Hawaii

for his seventy-plus years of service to patriotic organizations and

causes

all over the country. A humble man without a political bone in his body,

he has never spoken out before about a government official, until now.

He dictated this letter to a friend, signed it and mailed it to the

president.


Dear President Obama,


My name is Harold Estes, approaching 95 on December 13 of this

year. People meeting me for the first time don't believe my age because

I remain wrinkle free and pretty much mentally alert.


I enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1934 and served proudly before, during

and after WW II retiring as a Master Chief Bos'n Mate. Now I live in a

"rest home" located on the western end of Pearl Harbor, allowing me to

keep alive the memories of 23 years of service to my country.


One of the benefits of my age, perhaps the only one, is to speak my

mind, blunt and direct even to the head man.


So here goes.


I am amazed, angry and determined not to see my country die before I do,

but you seem hell bent not to grant me that wish.


I can't figure out what country you are the president of.

You fly around the world telling our friends and enemies despicable lies

like:

" We're no longer a Christian nation"

" America is arrogant" - (Your wife even

announced to the world,"America is mean-

spirited. " Please tell her to try preaching

that nonsense to 23 generations of our

war dead buried all over the globe who

died for no other reason than to free a

whole lot of strangers from tyranny and

hopelessness.)

I'd say shame on the both of you, but I don't think you like America,

nor do I see an ounce of gratefulness in anything you do, for the

obvious gifts this country has given you. To be without shame or

gratefulness is a dangerous thing for a man sitting in the White House.


After 9/11 you said," America hasn't lived up to her ideals."


Which ones did you mean? Was it the notion of personal liberty that

11,000 farmers and shopkeepers died for to win independence from the

British? Or maybe the ideal that no man should be a slave to another

man, that 500,000 men died for in the Civil War? I hope you didn't mean

the ideal 470,000 fathers, brothers, husbands, and a lot of fellas I

knew personally died for in WWII, because we felt real strongly about

not letting any nation push us around, because we stand for freedom.


I don't think you mean the ideal that says equality is better than

discrimination. You know the one that a whole lot of white people

understood when they helped to get you elected.


Take a little advice from a very old geezer, young man.


Shape up and start acting like an American. If you don't, I'll do what

I can to see you get shipped out of that fancy rental on Pennsylvania

Avenue. You were elected to lead not to bow, apologize and kiss the

hands of murderers and corrupt leaders who still treat their people like

slaves.


And just who do you think you are telling the American people not to

jump to conclusions and condemn that Muslim major who killed 13 of his

fellow soldiers and wounded dozens more. You mean you don't want us to

do what you did when that white cop used force to subdue that black

college professor in Massachusetts, who was putting up a fight? You

don't mind offending the police calling them stupid but you don't want

us to offend Muslim fanatics by calling them what they are, terrorists.


One more thing. I realize you never served in the military and never

had to defend your country with your life, but you're the

Commander-in-Chief now, son. Do your job. When your battle-hardened

field General asks you for 40,000 more troops to complete the mission,

give them to him. But if you're not in this fight to win, then get out.

The life of one American soldier is not worth the best political

strategy you're thinking of.


You could be our greatest president because you face the greatest

challenge ever presented to any president.

You're not going to restore American greatness by bringing back our

bloated economy. That's not our greatest threat. Losing the heart and

soul of who we are as Americans is our big fight now.

And I sure as hell don't want to think my president is the enemy in this

final battle.


Sincerely,

Harold B. Estes


When a 95 year old hero of the "the Greatest Generation" stands up and

speaks out like this, I think we owe it to him to send his words to as

many Americans as we can. Please pass it on.