William Helms: “the July edition of the American Legion magazine features a remarkable statement of obvious truth by a much maligned…”

“the July edition of the American Legion magazine features a remarkable statement of obvious truth by a much maligned American who deserves far better than the petty sniping he endures at the hands of cunning politicians and the media, neither of whom would acknowledge the truth if they fell over it in the middle of the street. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas pulled no punches in this article. His piece in the American Legion magazine was headed, appropriately, ``Courage v. Civility.'' Mr. Justice Thomas knows a good bit about both. He is, himself, a civil gentleman who possesses great courage. The subhead on his piece pinpoints a great deal about how a good many American freedoms are being lost. One of the things he says is, those who censor themselves put fear ahead of freedom. I will quote briefly from two or three statements made by the distinguished Justice of the Supreme Court. He said: I do not believe that one should fight over things that don't really matter. But what about things that do matter? It is not comforting to think that the natural tendency inside us is to settle for the bottom, or even the middle of the stream. This tendency, in large part, results from an overemphasis on civility. None of us should be uncivil in our manner as we debate issues of consequence. No matter how difficult it is, good manners should be routine.…”