Trafalgar

Random Thought: Does the Obama war on Fox News and talk radio make you think the Clinton's were thick skinned by comparison?

RTII: If the Constitution is a 'living' document then doesn't that mean that something or someone can kill it?

RTIII: I don't know if I'm more disturbed by Anita Dunne's incessant lip licking or the fact the Kathleen Sibelius right eye opens all the way and her left is mostly closed (although it looks like her mascara glued it shut).

He was the first modern dictator. He was ruthless, cunning, and one of the most brilliant generals to ever live. He was called the first AntiChrist. He was Napoleon Bonaparte, the Emperor of France and on this date 204 years ago he suffered his first major setback in his quest to conquer the world.

The architect of that setback was Admiral Horatio Nelson, hair turned prematurely white from a near fatal wound and missing his right arm from an ill-conceived Battle to take Tenerife in the Canary Islands. He was already a legend in England for exploits in the Battles of Cape St. Vincent, the Nile, and Copenhagen - all of which nibbled away at Napoleon's naval capacity. At Trafalgar he would become immortal.

Near Cadiz, Spain lies a small spit of land called Cape Trafalgar. In the Atlantic Ocean just to the west the historic battle took place.

At Trafalgar, Nelson was outnumbered 27 ships to the combined French-Spanish fleet of 33 (actually it was 33 British ships to 40 French but naval battles of the day only counted Ships-of-the-Line which were heavily gunned). Nelson was confident of victory even though outnumbered and outgunned. The British fleet attacked in two lines cutting the Franco-Spanish fleet in two places near the middle of their line. Four hours later, the British had captured 22 enemy ships with the loss of none (though several were badly mauled).

However, the British suffered one very important casualty. Nelson had been hit by an enemy sharpshooter. The ball smashed his internal organs and crushed his backbone. Still, he managed to keep tabs on the battle from below decks (even issuing orders) and lived long enough to know that his victory had been won.

Today Nelson remains one of the most celebrated figures of English history. He stands atop a victory column in Trafalgar square, his last, unfinished letter is preserved at the British Library, his portrait hangs in the National Portrait Gallery and his face looks out over England from schools to pubs and virtually everything else. His victory and martyrdom at Trafalgar ensured him a shrine in the basement of St. Paul's Cathedral, a beautiful onyx crypt set on a pedestal (in spite of the many signs forbidding touching the crypt, I could not help reach out and lay a hand on it). It also crushed Napoleon's overseas ambitions and ensured British world naval dominance for the next century.

Nelson's victory might be little more than a historical footnote to many people, especially those outside of England. But in a world where the 'heroes' are felonious sport stars, drugged up actors and rockers, and brainless 'reality stars', it becomes increasingly important to remember and celebrate real heroes. Nelson and many others gave their lives in a struggle against one of the modern world's first tyrants. Unlike a whiny, useless heiress with an even more useless dog in her purse or a sports star who has come back from a (usually self created) tragic story to return to the game, real heroes overcame real adversity. Nelson could have retired to the country after losing his arm and no one would have argued with him when he said that his arm was enough sacrifice for his nation. But he went out again and only with his last breaths did he claim that right when he told Captain Thomas Hardy: "Thank God I have done my duty."