Today is the day we elect many of our PUBLIC SERVANTS. Some of them are chosen to LEAD us when we need a leader. Chief among them is, well, the Commander in Chief. The duties of the President are pretty much the same as any leader of an organization: 1) Define reality 2) Become a servant to all 3) Do his or her very best for as many as possible 4) have a grateful heart for the opportunity to serve.
The first elected President of my party was Abraham Lincoln. If you have never read his history you have missed the paradigm for any elected leader. He defined reality: 1)the Union must be preserved at any cost 2) slavery was a great evil which must be eliminated. Slavery was secondary to the preservation of the Union because if the union were defeated then slavery would persist and the several states would be so weakened that there would be no ability to resist foreign interests and adventures.
During the last eight years the behavior of the Democrat Party has, in my opinion, been appalling. They have been divisive at every turn. In a tantrum unparalleled, they have dragged their collective feet, thrown sand into the political works, pouted and fumed endlessly because "their guy didn't win the election". In a thread a few months ago I noted this and said then that I would encourage all conservative to give back to the Dems exactly what they had been dishing out should they win the election! I was feeling a little funky and feisty. Knowing that all who post here are truly devoid of any REAL political bias you can imagine the response that sentiment received!
I have to admit that there are a few conservatives who also show the same characteristics for which I castigated the liberals. Two wrongs do not make a right.
In truth, I stand with Lincoln. The Union must be preserved at all cost. Being united (and not "Untied") is what has made this nation of ours great. We can acknowledge our differences and point out the short-comings of our opponent party and continued to work for our own ideals or vision of "reality" but we MUST NOT undermine the union of these several states. I will expect our elected servants to SERVE us, to address the greater needs of the people as a whole, to do the things that are too big to do on an individual or even a statewide basis. In peril I expect our Commander in Chief to be level headed and to made honest and best informed decisions possible and if that peril leads to armed conflict I will support his leadership. If he starts rattling ball bearings in his hand and talking about the strawberries, I will openly oppose him. The Union must be preserved. That is foremost and above all.
When I say that I love my country, that means ALL of YOU! You are my country and we are in this thing together. It might be by accident of birth or by choice but we are one in this United States of America. Like any family we have disagreements and some are pretty hot but it's a family matter and when anyone assaults a member of my family I expect to see something done about it, either by me or those who are called to be protector of our political brethren. I know not all of you share this view. Some of you are more "g l o b a l" in your outlook. Well that may be but I don't see the world rushing to help you (us) when we are attacked (granted, with a few notable exceptions). We are a sovereign country and we OUGHT to put our own interests first. Having done so in the past has enabled the US to share its progress and wealth of many kinds with the world. That's my kind of globalism and I'm very liberal thinking in that.
I would hope that all Americans would share this view. We could really accomplish some great things and be a benefit to the entire world. Leave off the bickering and backbiting. Get behind our elected representatives, public servants and leaders and help advance the cause of The United States of America.