President Obama, What Was Your Half-Mast Excuse?

                 President Obama finally ordered the White House flag lowered yesterday, five days after four marines and a sailor were shot dead by a Muslim terrorist. He did this only after being heavily criticized by various parties over several days for not having the flag at half-mast, even after many states and other federal buildings had honored the fallen American soldiers by doing so.

                One would think, given how often the flag has been flying at half-mast these past few years, that the death of five unarmed members of our military via Islamic terrorism would have merited the same respect. In 2013, the President ordered American flags to be flown at half-mast for the death of Nelson Mandela, former communist and president of South Africa. Incredibly, he had given the same order months earlier when pop-musician Whitney Houston died, so it seems more than a little odd that the Commander-in-Chief wouldn’t also issue the  order upon the murder, on American soil, of five members of his own country’s military.

                The President gave the eulogy at the funeral of one of the victims of the recent Charlestown massacre, Sen. Clementa Pinckney, even singing “Amazing Grace,” yet, apparently, has no plans to eulogize any of those fallen members of his own military, slain in an equally horrendous manner. Why?

                Is it a black and white issue? Mr. President, do all lives matter equally to you? Or do some matter more than others?

                The flag should be at half-staff to lament the loss- and honor the passing- of the victims of both of these recent terrorist attacks.

                And of America’s soul.