Paul Giambarba: The Withered Arm (c. 1960)

"May Dignity&Freedom never abandon them…"

Facing invasion by a hostile neighbor, Ukraine declared its purpose for defending its sovereignty. It announced that it was fighting for Dignity&Freedom. Their Freedom demanded a deeper purpose. It could not stand alone as sufficient to justify the suffering inflicted in its defense. Dignity would have to be Freedom’s companion to properly justify the struggle. This combination has lent Decency to Ukraine’s otherwise purely defensive strategies, inspiring freedom-loving nations around the world. Unfortunately, my country tisn’t of this at present. Our incumbent has made it his special mission to discourage our intrepid ally by denying it the necessary and prudent support that any freedom-loving nation deserves.

Now the world observes a different struggle, one between Decency and its enemies, who presently most prominently include Russia and the once United States. My country once ‘twas of thee, sweet land of Decency. Now, it’s gratefully fragmenting, bisecting along something other than merely sectarian lines, but into factions. Our incumbent, who explains that “elections have consequences,” as if elective office bestows a blank check on the winner and humiliation on the loser. He insists that the majority of the electorate voted for something the incumbent explicitly vowed to oppose before he was sworn in, under an oath he had no intention of ever upholding. Not one person who voted for him expected what he’s attempted to deliver. He’s delivered a cruel bait-and-switch instead, and split these once-united States along Decency lines; Decency being the new enemy in his deluded mind.

Dignity&Freedom inspires in ways that freedom alone can only aspire to. Deep down, Decency matters. It justifies struggles and delivers its promise when merely pursuing it. Ukraine isn’t simply trying to regain lost dignity or compromised freedom, but actively defending against its destruction. This focus delivers the desired end the instant they pursue it, for defending Dignity&Freedom amounts to an audacious act, one that requires both Dignity&Freedom to wholeheartedly engage in. Dignity is embodied in the very pursuit of dignity, as Freedom, too, seems embodied in the very quest for itself. To seek either must be to find them. To pursue them preserves them.

Those who attempt to compromise such rights fight an ever-disappointing uphill battle against entrenched defenders. Indecency and its apologists can drop rockets down upon innocents, but this produces neither Decency nor justice, and not even hollow victories. Indecency’s successes amount to embarrassments. No celebration accompanies these; just renewed dedication by the opposition to engage in Dignity & Freedom again. Decency’s opponents mostly battle themselves, for they lose more than merely battles they never could have won. They forfeit their future in favor of some imagined past, glory in its most degraded form. The G20 meets in South Africa with the once United States absent, save for a few academics like Jeffrey Sacks, who reports that our tyrant was too busy having a tantrum like a four-year-old to decently celebrate Dignity&Freedom together with its (former?) allies.

Evolution moves in one direction, like time. It still attracts a fair opposition, delusional defenders of the ever-eroding old status quo. The glory that once was Rome’s was not inherited by anyone, but was utterly transformed into ever closer approximations of improvement, often by way of near-total degradation. Through all those changes, over centuries, Dignity&Freedom remained the common attractor. It lent a sense of courage in the face of often-impossible odds, revealing its great gift through the mere act of engaging. What other factors have proven more inspiring? What other aspirations have proven to be so self-fulfilling? Even as the previously unthinkable occurs, even as the once self-declared bastion of Dignity&Freedom reneges on its most sacred commitments to itself and others, our allies promote what we’ve apparently abandoned. These once united States divorced for a good and, dare I say, Decent reason. Some of us chose to forego Dignity&Freedom in favor of mammon. The balance refused to retreat from the challenges. The Decent here continue enjoying the blessings of Dignity&Freedom bestowed upon us because we still believe in and pursue them. Thank Heavens for the Ukrainians’ inspiration! May Dignity&Freedom never abandon them or they abandon it.

©2025 by David A. Schmaltz - all rights reserved

Tags: #Decency, #PureSchmaltz