Rule #51: Some Things Are Worth Dying For
In our family, you carry a powerful legacy. One great-grandfather was a machine gunner in World War II. Another was a prisoner of the Japanese in the Philippines and survived the Bataan Death March. These were men who sacrificed the full measure of their youth and risked everything for the freedoms we enjoy today.
Their principles mattered. They cared deeply about the liberties and values of this country—and were willing to die to protect them. Because of their courage, I never had to take up arms to defend our country. Because of them, I have lived my entire life without fearing for my life or my freedom simply for believing something different than someone else. My freedoms came cheaply because my parents and grandparents paid so dearly.
Today, millions of men and women still risk their lives to preserve our freedom, most of their actions going unnoticed because they do their jobs so well. Yet because their sacrifices feel distant, we’ve come to take freedom for granted.
Just this week, without a shot being fired, we gave up pieces of what they fought for. The movie The Interview was pulled from theaters because a foreign government threatened violence. Instead of fighting for our rights, we caved. No outrage, no resistance—just surrender. The freedom Bobbi’s grandfather suffered four years in a prison camp to defend was handed over without a word.
Two days later, our President traded spies for a prisoner and announced that Cuba’s brutal dictatorship—a regime that has killed thousands and suppressed virtually every human right—would remain as it is. We would simply accept them… evil, but with good cigars and beautiful beaches. He gave up the fight because it was too hard and the temptations too good.
I worry you’re hearing the message that freedom and values don’t matter. That if protecting them becomes too costly or takes too long, it’s better just to give them up. That safety matters more than principle. Who cares if we lose a movie, or smoke cigars that pay to keep innocents in prison?
Kids, it does matter. Your grandfathers and great-grandfathers taught us that some things are worth the cost—no matter how great or painful.
This isn’t just about one president. He is a reflection of our desires and fears, doing what he thinks we want—giving up when the fight gets hard. He couldn’t do these things if we didn’t allow it. This is not his problem; it is ours.
That’s the rule: some things are worth dying for. You need to know what those things are and be prepared to defend them.
Sometimes it does matter.
Love, Dad