Call me naive.C’mon, you know you want to.
I am an unrepentant liberal. I support the Democratic Party – even after all these years. I know the errors, missteps, foibles, hypocrisies, misdirection, crimes and misdemeanors, on both sides. Or on all three or four sides. I know that no one can solve all our problems. I know that some cannot solve any of the problems. I know that politicians lie and fail and fall, and that their failures are no more surprising than anyone else’s, but just more obvious. I know that some will say anything to obtain the power that politicians wield in this country. I know that some will do anything to hold onto that power. Lie, cheat, steal, murder, launch wars – anything.
But, I also know that this country has fallen into a hole. It’s not the first time that we have fallen, and cannot be the last. But this fall is during my time of awareness, and it stings. I am appalled and embarrassed. I am outraged, and truly believed that the damage the current President and his administration have done to this country – to the reputation of this country –cannot be allowed to stand. We have held ourselves up as the beacon of light in the world, and in spite of the social and political hypocrisy we have ignored when looking in the mirror (slavery, genocide, racism, sexism, class-ism, McCarthyism – all in the land of the free) I believe that at our best, we shine that light. At our best, we reach out a hand and shine a light.
Our light has faded in the past few years, and I want it back. Stronger, unequivocally, and “truly”.
So, I hope. I hope that Barack Obama, Joe Biden and all the people they gather to accomplish what they want and have promised, will be able to realize a fraction of their vision. I hope that politics and cynicism will step aside for a time. I hope that both sides of the aisle will look up and see that some goals (health care, economic security, environmental concerns, human rights, and international relations) are worth cooperation across the conference table. I hope that we can focus on 2009, instead of waiting and plotting for 2012.
We have so much to do, and, are so far down in this hole that I can’t look at what Barack Obama has done, but only what he will do. I will add my voice, my attention and my strength to his because I believe that he and his truly want to rise and do better for me and mine. And yours. I believe that hope and optimism cannot be worse that cynicism and greed. I believe that anyone who is willing to stand up and put forth a vision for a better day deserves a chance to rise or fall on their own muscle.
Call me naive. Then tell me what my alternative is.
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8 comments:
Coyote the Beautiful,
Somebody once said that a good definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and over again -- and expecting a different result THIS time.
By that measure America is mad as a hatter.
Do what you've always done, you'll get what you always gotten.
The only candidate I can think of right off-hand who has PROVEN over the last 40 or more years, his merit as a man, as a champion for the underdog, having both insight and honesty, is Nader --- and what happened to him?
I'll give you a hint: Jesus. Hammer. Nails.
I think as long as we accept the false dilemma of either/or republican/democrat, we're done.
The whole system is so putrid with greed and corruption it stinks to high heaven. Only we've been living in the stench so long we don't really notice it anymore. The same way people in my old neighborhood didn't hear the el trains roar past their windows...
One thing my dad taught me: when you find out the game is rigged, STOP PLAYING.
What ain't scam or sham is flim-flam.
There's a point, for me, at which my participation in the charade feels like complicity in the crime.
The alternative isn't cynicism.
It's change.
with love,
sj
Spartacus Jones -
So, that would be a "Hell, Yeah!" on the naivete then? LOL!
At least I have the comfort of never (quite) believing before, but you DO have history on your side.
What HAS happened to Nader? Isn't he, too, running around doing what he has always done? :-D
I do not think he was actually crucified, but rather ridiculed and ignored. Well, to your point, I suppose in politics, that IS being crucified ...
So what to do about the stench and train noise? Isn't cynicism a material barrier to change? And, how does one effect change without participation?
Ever,
Fe
I believe Nader is doing what he's always done -- fighting the good fight. But I don't believe he expects a different result THIS time.
What was the basis for him being ridiculed and ignored?
Cynicism IS a barrier to change because a cynic believes change for the better is impossible. Thus, I am not a cynic. I believe it IS possible. But NOT by going along with business-as-usual.
Effecting change is a matter of what you participate IN. I don't see any point in playing a game, the rules of which ensure that you can never win. The game itself has to change.
But it won't unless WE change it.
That change won't happen if we just toddle to the polls every 4 years to vote for whichever one of the pre-slected sob's it is whose smile we happen to like better, and then go back to sleep and not hold ANYone accountable for ANYthing.
If we're not careful, we're going to wind up getting exactly the government we deserve.
sj
The only issue I have ever had with Nadar is his inability to see the other side. Now, certainly I agree with some of his stances, but there is a difference between disagreeing and not seeing. If you can't see, you will eventually miss something important. Worsem this breeds arrogance.
How does one change the game if he is not there to protest and influence? Crying in the wilderness, or standing silently in that wilderness does not support change. But, you are right about going to sleep. I liken it to staying silent, or waiting for a better day. I don't want to wait.
I don't believe Nader is unable to see the "other side." He certainly would not have been able to win some of the landmark legal battles he won if he'd had this handicap.
When someone tells me, 2+2 is 9 and I say, "Like hell it is," I suppose I'm unable to see the other side, too, at that point. But I'm not going to split the difference and agree that 2 + 2 is 6. :)
I don't advocate crying or silence in the wilderness or anywhere else. You're utterly right: That doesn't support change. And neither does counting on someone else to make change for us.
Just my opinion. Soapbox and all.
:)
sj
SJ how can there be change without participation?
Lori
Defending against the other side does not necessarily require truly absorbing it. And, being able to see the weak parts of an argument does not indicate full understanding. Some never let a fact get in the way of a good argument.
2+2 = 6? Is there a base .75? :-)
I'll make the changes in my life, if you (Mr. President) will make all those changes you have promised.
Can I reinforce that soapbox for you?
Ever,
Fe
Yeah, what Lori saud. :-)
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