Freedom's Fidelity

Wednesday, October 13, 2004

Cynicism

I don’t know if I care to watch the debates tonight, I am so politicked out. I am sick of the undecideds, I am sick of the constant polls. Most of all I am sick of the far left and their BusHitler talk. If there is one thing I have learned this election cycle it is that Republicans think Democrats are wrong and Democrats think Republicans are evil. I always thought the left was tolerant, open minded and favored diversity. Respect for civil discourse has all but vanished and I am afraid to put a Bush bumper sticker on my car cause I don’t want it keyed. You think I am paranoid? You think it is just the left leaning, artsy neighborhood I live in? I wish it were so, but I’m not alone.

It is shameful how much of the left has sold out their values because they just hate George W. Bush that much. If Al Gore was fighting this war the left would be celebrating the toppling of a murderous dictator, women registering to vote, Iraqi children going to school, and the rebirth of civilization in Mesopotamia. (see Kosovo) Instead they pull a page from the Buchanan book of isolation and ask ‘why are we closing firehouses in the United States while opening them in Baghdad?’ Instead they have become apologists for those wretched societies in the Middle East where, if women and gays were treated as second class citizens it would have to be called progress. Instead we’re in a world where Howard Dean mentions that Bush may have had prior knowledge of September 11 and Madeline Albright says Dean could be right. Instead Ted Kennedy says at the DNC that the only thing we have to fear is four more years of George Bush. Right, that was the reason for all those bomb sniffing dogs and tight security at the DNC – too keep George Bush from running in wearing nothing but a suicide bomb belt and detonating himself. The Democrats are mainstreaming the fringe.

I don’t know why anyone would want to be president. There is a good goddamned reason why every president that leaves office does so with the same grayish white colored hair. This will be no exception. Whoever wins this thing is going to have a nuclear North Korea and probably a nuclear Iran to deal with (at least no nuclear Saddam though). Kerry can talk secret plans all he wants now, but if he wins he will face the same constraints that George Bush does - an uncooperative corrupt, and toothless UN with more interest in their own oil supply than any international order. Oh yeah and weapons of mass destruction, nuclear proliferation and the general responsibility for the safety of the country. Why does either man want this job again?

The Republic is bigger than George Bush and John Kerry though, and it will survive no matter who gets elected. One thing I will say though is that if Kerry does win he will get my support on staying the course in Iraq. I may question some of his policy, but I will never question his motives. I will never attack him with the vitriol that the left attacks Bush, I will never accuse him of being in a conspiracy to cover up for mass murdering terrorists to make some money, or for sending American troops to die so he can steal some oil for his private jet. Just as I have with President Bush, I will likely disagree with some of the decision a President Kerry will make, but I will do so knowing that he has the best interest of the American people in mind. I will support my President in the fight for civilization and I will never sell out my values simply because I can’t stand the notion that a guy I dislike happens to be right about something. Unfortunately over the last two years, I have not been able to say the same for the opposition and I think that has really hamstrung some of our efforts overseas. When the election is finally settled I hope we can put this nonsensical rhetoric behind us and move forward, there is a real enemy out there and he is not a domestic politician.

posted by Paul  permalink | |