November 6, 2004
		manifesto
Had the presidential election this week. W tries my patience, and God knows I don't have a lot of it. I don't think W is a good guy. I think he's a liar and a cheat and he has a Stepford Wife. I think he misses the forest for the trees sometimes. I don't see how he can support some of his policies and still be able to sleep at night. Not that Kerry was a lot better, but "at least he's not Bush."
There’s a girl in my class who is constantly wearing this t-shirt that says "W....the President," and, God help me, but I just want to hit her when she wears it. I happen to know on good authority that her parents pay for her car, her house, and her schooling. She has costume parties for her dog. Her mother flies in from Dallas to attend said parties. Are you kidding me? Is this a portrait of the "average American"? Heaven help us. She is concerned more about how she looks and making sure she has the perfect tan & the perfect dyed hair & the perfect fake nails to realize that there are other people out there. Some people need help. While it may be nice to have a swimming pool in your backyard, there are people out there who need FOOD. And clothes. And medical care. And these people aren't necessarily in Africa or (GASP) Iraq. These people are here in America. There are people who - one way or the other - have to pay for their own college.
Let me tell you a little story. You know my family is pretty "salt of the earth." We're not ever going to be rich. Last Christmas, when my own mother was struggling to provide Christmas for her children & family, she had the opportunity to give to another family. She got a new Christmas tree and somehow found the name and address of a family that didn't have a Christmas tree that year. So she took the old tree & ornaments over to the family. When she got there, she realized that they probably weren't going to have anything to put under the tree come Christmas morning. So my mother took money out of her own blue collar, high school educated pocket and spent it on that family. I think it was a grandmother and 2 boys and 2 girls. She didn't get them anything elaborate - some socks & underwear for the kids, and a toy each, and some frou-frou bath stuff for the grandmother. Nothing really expensive, probably all bought at the dollar store. She wrapped it all up and took it over to their family. I wasn't there, but my mom says that the look in their eyes was the best present she received all year.
Why can't America be like that? By "America" I mean America as a country and "America" as the citizens that make up the country. How can we clothe & feed the people in Iraq when we let our own citizens starve? How can we (myself included) continue to eat meat? The grains that are needed to produce one 8-oz steak can feed 50-60 people. Isn't that insane? How can we quest to drive the best car and have the biggest house and the designer clothes when there are people in our society who only have one set of clothes? Do we not have a responsibility to take care of other people? Does not charity begin at home?
“Well, of course we do,” say the religious right. “We sure do have a responsibility to take care of other people. Like those poor people in Iraq. We sent over our brave soldiers and humanitarian aid so they can have a better place to live.” Get a grip. We sent over our best & brightest to die in a foreign country so our pres & vp can continue to reap the benefits of Halliburton. God will smite the wicked. We sent over our best & brightest to assert our “righteous power” (his words, not mine) over the rest of the world. Pride goeth before a fall. We sent over our best & brightest to rid the world of tyranny and terrorism. The road to hell is paved with good intentions.
Home          Email Me          Back