Article: We are the Meteor

I was chatting with a group consisting of both liberals and conservatives today when one Republican supporter made the comment that the Republican Party was showing its strength by "going after terrorists" in Iraq. In response, one liberal answered back coyly that Republicans were like dinosaurs""big and strong with itty-bitty brains.

I laughed, but it got me to thinking. If conservatives are dinosaurs, then we (progressives) are the meteor.

It is a widely accepted scientific theory that the dinosaurs were wiped out in one massive explosion when a meteor just a few miles wide crashed into the earth. Until that time, they ruled the earth by size and strength.

The largest of the dinosaurs had extremely small brains""the Tyrannosaurus Rex was (as far as we know) the most fearsome of all and had a brain roughly the size of a walnut.

All brawn, no brains.

Conservatives, like their prehistoric brethren, reign by the use of brute force and intimidation. They trample upon the earth and consume everything that stands in their way. They are seemingly incapable of reason and have no capacity for compassion, acceptance, or compromise.

Liberals, on the other hand, show their strength through a willingness to protect their fellow citizens and the citizens of the world. We show it through our passion to make this country everything it was meant to be.

We have the capacity to be the meteor that eliminates the radical right-wing lack-of-thought process that is destroying our fair nation. If we can manage to come together to form a rock of resolve, reframe the debate, and win the hearts and minds of the American people. They're already with us on the issues, that much we know. All we need to do is show our strength (which will not be achieved by the means of the DLC) and rally them.

Clearly, as we have seen over the past five years, the American people respond to strength in leadership, or at least what they see as strength in leadership. All we need to do is exhibit our strength, give them candidates who are passionate and bold, and wait for them to come to us.

This country is in dire need of progress. Without progressives in power, the American people will never get the benefits of that progress. If the United States continues to be ruled by the partnership of corporate-superpowers and right-wing fanatics that currently hold all of the cards, our country will regress into a dark age of economic depression, civil rights and equality degradation, and endless war until there is nothing left to protect but charred earth and hopeless citizens.

Let's use our brains to outdo their brawn""get together with other progressives in your communities and get active. Sponsor voter registration drives, volunteer for the campaigns of conscientious and passionate progressives, write letters and make phone calls and appear at the offices of your Congressional representatives and demand they stand for change or face progressive challengers in the upcoming elections.

If we all choose to make a difference individually, the collective benefit will not only do much for us, it will change this country, and the world.