February 12, 2005

THE STORY SO FAR (PART X)...

Concluded...

If you've stumbled upon this post looking for that long sordid tale of how I got here, congratulations. The bad news is that you've got a lot of reading to do (but for your convenience, I've put the links to the prior chapters below). You can go back to any previous posts here:

Part IX

Part VIII

Part VII

Part VI

Part V

Part IV

Part III

Part II

Part I
-----------------------------------------------------------

And now...the rest of the story (apologies to Paul Harvey):

9/11/01 and beyond:

September 11, 2001 (my 8th wedding anniversary, BTW) was a day that was one of those moments in history that causes a tectonic shift in the destiny of a nation. The United States faced this kind of crisis at least four times in its history.

  • April 20, 1775 - British march on Lexington and Concord, MA
  • April 12, 1861 - Confederate attack on Fort Sumter, SC
  • December 7, 1941 - Bombing of Pearl Harbor, HI
  • October 18 - 29, 1962 - the Cuban Missile Crisis

In each case, the nation was staring down two distinct and separate paths that had been placed before it. One led to victory, the other to utter ruin. In each case, the correct path was chosen. And in each case, the nation - either through pure luck or Divine Providence - was led by a man who had the courage, the wisdom and the conviction of his principles to make the right choice.

  • George Washington
  • Abraham Lincoln
  • Franklin Roosevelt
  • John Kennedy

Whether these situations required a series of choices that were made over several years - as in WashingtonÂ’s case - or decisive action over the course of days - as with Kennedy, each of these men looked into their hearts and their souls to bear the responsibility that would drastically determine the very future of the people they led.

These were leaders in the true sense of the word. Whether the qualities that these men possessed in innate or learned, it is clear that for each of them it was at least instinctive because they didnÂ’t have time for navel-gazing and indecision.

IÂ’m not saying that George W. Bush ranks up with the greatest Presidents - historians will look back a hundred years from now and make itÂ’s evaluations in the proper context. But from what I see, Bush at least has demonstrated the qualities that those individuals possessed as they found themselves poised at such important cross roads in U.S. history.

ItÂ’s been more than three years since that day and while so many of the memories are etched into my mind, what I can recall today is more akin to fleeting emotions than distinct images. We all have our recollections about that moment and the days that followed, but IÂ’m willing to bet they are no more unique than the other 280 million Americans who wondered if they had really woken up that day - of if it was all just a bad dream.

The most important observation I have made since that day is that the Democratic Party no longer stands for anything. It was merely weeks after the attack that members of Congress who represented the party symbolized by the donkey - the jackass - began to wage the kind of political war that is usually reserved for peacetime. The stakes for the future of our nation - and of the world - are too high for this kind of bullshit. If the Democrats are so obsessed with regaining the power that they so wantonly squandered then they need to be exposed for their efforts every step of the way.

In the last few years the MSM has lost its grip on the stranglehold they once had on the information dolled out to the public. The new media - radio, cable TV and the internet have blown away the old template for disseminating information. The power of the blogosphere is awesome. Just ask Dan Rather, John Kerry or Eason Jordan.

ItÂ’s the power of the internet that allows simple folk from various backgrounds and expertise to find, research and share information. ItÂ’s also that power that allows someone like me to share his ideas, whether they be read by a million people or only the writer himself. I live in a "Blue State". And itÂ’s mighty tough to find people of similar philosophy. But thatÂ’s OK. I like where I live and IÂ’m happy here. But IÂ’m not going to feel like an outsider just because my point of view isnÂ’t necessarily shared by the majority of my neighbors. The world is a big place and neither time nor distance are a factor in finding a receptive audience to the opinions I have to share.

IÂ’m not the kind of person who looks for conflict or argument. I hear statements every day that I not only disagree with but I sometimes even find offensive. But I have a perspective to share. I understand what itÂ’s like to be a Democrat. I understand what it feels like to be angry, and maybe a little bitter that the opposing team is calling the shots. I know whatÂ’s like to put a ton of faith and hope in a candidate - even a cause - and watch them lose in a way that can only seem unfair.

However, I have watched people take these emotions too far. I have seen people become unhinged because they are more interested in the outcome of an election - or the reacquisition of their power - than they are in the future of their country. I am watching day after day a political party that I once called my own collapse onto itself because it has been taken over by extremists whose only creed is "kill or be killed". No compromise, no middle ground, no surrender - all ideology and no ideas. NO VISION. They have ceded the identification as "the party of reform" to the GOP and can now only be associated with dependence on government and special interests, obstructionism and maintaining the status quo.

I do not take relish in this destructive process though I admit to taking some amusement in it. That is why this Blog is called Ex-Donkey. Like an expatriate, an ex-Communist or an ex-junkie, my experiences have helped create who I am today, having accumulated an imposing stack of lessons learned. I understand the current opposition all too well and how they got to where they are now. I also can see where they are going. And itÂ’s not a pretty sight.

Posted by: Gary at 11:44 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
Post contains 1103 words, total size 7 kb.

1 I found you through Homespun Bloggers and could not resist coming here because the title of your blog really caught my attention!! I really enjoyed reading your story.

Posted by: Barb at October 09, 2005 10:21 PM (osBDY)

2 Very kind of you. Sometimes I wonder just how many people are able to stay interested enough to make it all the way through. :wink:

Posted by: Gary at October 09, 2005 10:43 PM (ziiYY)

3 Well, at least you know one did, if that's any consolation.

Posted by: Barb at October 11, 2005 07:27 PM (1Kscs)

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