Voters’ Guides

Patriotism is not for wimps. For example, in the American revolution, an estimated 6,800 Americans were killed in action, 6,100 wounded, and upwards of 20,000 were taken prisoner. Historians believe that at least an additional 17,000 deaths were the result of disease, including about 8,000–12,000 who died while prisoners of war. The total estimated killed/wounded/missing In the Civil War for both sides is estimated to be at least 1,500,000. In WW 1, the casualties included 53,402 killed in action, 63,114 non-combat deaths from other causes (primarily due to the 1918 influenza pandemic), WW2 casualties include 405,399 killed, 670,846 wounded, and 72,823 missing in action. These numbers do not include casualties in post WW conflicts:

Korean War (1950-1953)

  • Killed: 33,686
  • Wounded: 103,284
  • Missing: 8,177

Vietnam War (1955-1975)

  • Killed: 47,434
  • Wounded: Not specified in the search results
  • Missing: Not specified in the search results

Persian Gulf War (1990-1991)

  • Killed: 288
  • Wounded: Not specified in the search results
  • Missing: Not specified in the search results

Iraq-Related Operations (2003-2011)

  • Total deaths: 4,605
  • Wounded: Not specified in the search results
  • Missing: Not specified in the search results

Afghanistan-Related Operations (2001-2021)

  • Total deaths: 2,459
  • Hostile deaths: 1,922
  • Non-hostile deaths: 537
  • Wounded: Not specified in the search results
  • Missing: Not specified in the search results

War on Terror (2001-2024)

  • Total fatalities: Over 7,000
  • Wounded: Not specified in the search results
  • Missing: Not specified in the search results

 

No one would argue that Americans included in these statistics were not true patriots who made extreme sacrifices for America. They are genuine models of what it means to be a true patriot. They demonstrated a quality of patriotism that far exceeds what passes for patriotism today.

Contemporary Americans who consider the mere act of voting to be a patriotic duty deceive themselves. Compared to Americans included in the above statistics, they are fake patriots because they sacrifice nothing more than time and perhaps some money to exercise their dumbed-down concept of patriotism. True patriotism includes much more than scanning social media posts, donating money to candidates, watching partisan television, attending partisan rallies, doing some door-knocking, waiting in line to vote, and voting. Self-declared patriots no doubt have a sincere, deep sense of love, devotion, and attachment to America, but their idea of patriotism pales compared to true patriots who voluntarily made extreme sacrifices for their country.

True patriotism involves hard intellectual work that compares to the sacrifices of Americans that served their country in war. Not every American is required to put on a uniform, train vigorously, and expose themselves to violence on a physical battlefield with human enemies who use real weapons to kill them. True patriots, however, do their training by spending time and energy to inform themselves about the character of the people for whom they will vote. The following links are the curriculum that true patriots will study to prepare themselves for voting: