Sheep/Sheepdogs/Jackals

This is the text of a speech I gave at a Junior High School Veterans Day Assembly last year.

There are many ways to classify people but today I’m going to borrow something from a Psychologist named Dave Grossman and put them in three classifications. About 1 percent of people are Sheepdogs. 1 percent are Jackals. The rest are sheep, cattle, horses and oxen. You heard me, the majority of people are gentle, hard working, and productive like farm animals who usually only hurt one another by accident. And I don’t mean anything negative by that. They are virtuous, take care of each other and fill their days with productive labor.

The Jackals are violent predators. They do nothing to produce, and they fill their bellies by threats and force. They are the criminals, thugs and despots in the world and they feed on the herd without mercy. You can’t afford to deny that there are Jackals who will feed on the herd. You have got to believe it. There ARE evil men in this world and they ARE capable of evil deeds and there is no safety in denial.
The Sheepdogs protect the herd animals against the Jackals. They are the police, the firemen, the ambulance drivers, the border patrol, the coast guard, the Soldiers, Sailors, Marines and the Airmen. "Then there are sheepdogs," and I'm a sheepdog. I live to protect the flock and confront the Jackals. Or, as a sign in one California law enforcement agency put it, "We intimidate those who intimidate others."
If you have no capacity for violence then you are a healthy productive citizen: A part of the herd. If you have a capacity for violence and no empathy for your fellow citizens, then you are an aggressive sociopath--a jackal. But if you have a capacity for violence, and a deep love for your fellow citizens? Then you are a sheepdog.

The herd generally does not like the sheepdog. He looks a lot like the Jackal. He looks dangerous and intimidating and he clearly has the capacity for violence. The difference, though, is that the sheepdog must not, cannot and will not ever harm the herd. Any sheepdog that intentionally harms the lowliest little lamb will be punished and removed. It is a central to the success of a representative democracy or a republic such as ours.

Still, the sheepdog discomforts the herd. He is a constant reminder that there are Jackals in the land. They would prefer that he didn't tell them where to go, or give them traffic tickets, or stand at the ready in our airports in camouflage fatigues holding an M-16. The sheep would much rather have the sheepdog cash in his fangs, spray paint himself white, and go, "Baa." until the wolf shows up. Then the entire flock tries desperately to hide behind one lonely sheepdog.
Now I want you to understand that a sheepdog is a funny critter: He is always sniffing around, checking the breeze, barking at things that go bump in the night, and yearning for a righteous battle.

When guns are firing, and buildings are burning and there’s smoke in the air, and the herd animals are running away at full gallop, the sheepdogs are easy to spot. The sheepdogs are the ones moving toward the guns and the smoke.

Here is how the herd and the sheepdog think differently:
After the attacks on September 11, 2001, most people thought, "Thank God I wasn't on one of those planes." They cancelled flight reservations and it took years for the flying industry to rebuild to pre-911.
But on September 11th, the sheepdogs, the warriors, said, "Dear God, I wish I could have been on one of those planes. Maybe I could have made a difference." When you are truly transformed into a warrior and have truly invested yourself, you want to be there. You want to be able to make a difference.
The sheepdog is willing to do violence on behalf of the herd. And Veteran’s Day is the day set aside to honor the sheepdogs.

We honor the sheepdog because he is able to survive and thrive in an environment that 98 percent of the population will run away from. The sheepdog can protect himself and he can protect others.

Ours is a great country. It’s not a perfect country, but it’s a great country. It’s the greatest country on the earth and it’s the greatest country in the history of the world. What we have is worth defending. Americans are the most productive, creative, inventive, ingenious, and generous people in the world. And they deserve to be defended.

The founding fathers took the best parts of Greek and Roman democracy, tempered it with the golden rule and the Magna Charta and carved a new nation out of a wilderness. The poor and oppressed from around the world came and made their contributions and over the years we’ve made it a better and better country. A country founded in the principle that the government is controlled by the people and that no one, including a lawmaker, is above the law.

Our culture and heritage helps define who we are and it helps determine what we do. In order to sustain the best of who we are as a people, we must honor our heritage and that requires that we defend our heritage when it is under attack. And I guarantee you that our culture IS under attack. And when we are attacked, such as we were 5 years ago in September, it is perfectly appropriate that we pick up the sword of war, and go hunt down the jackals that wish to enslave the world.

The defense of our heritage is the extension of a very old conflict. It is the oldest of conflicts. The battle is the long-running fight between freedom and oppression. Between liberty and slavery. It is a war that does not allow for neutrality. Eventually, every heart must choose which side it will be on.

Much of the world believes that all conflict is bad and that nothing should be worth fighting over. It is easy to fall into that line of thinking because our culture teaches us to treat each other with patience and forgiveness. But we cannot afford to compromise with evil. It is common to see a bumper sticker that says: “War is not the Answer”. To those that espouse that philosophy I say: What is the answer to a tyrant that wants to enslave your children, or a terrorist that wants to bring your entire culture to it’s knees? What is the answer to a robber or a rapist, a murderer or a spouse abuser.

In order to Honor our Heritage, we must be willing to stand for something. We must be willing to speak out against practices and philosophies of darkness. And when speaking out isn’t enough, we must be willing to run toward the sound of the guns and do violence on behalf of the oppressed and endangered.

I didn't give it exactly as written. I spoke of American ingenuity and invention and our world leading economic power. I spoke of the greatness of America and the fact that America and Western Culture deserve to be defended. The sheepdogs provide that service. Remember and respect their service.