Who bears the responsibility for the war in Iraq, our degraded international relations, and our loss of civil liberties, and our coorupt and greed-mongering domestic agenda?
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Many point the finger at Dick Cheney as the prime evil master of our government's treachery in Iraq, its politics of fear, its degenerative foreign relations, its trashing of our Constitution, and its corrupt and greed-mongering domestic agenda. And I will admit that he is my number one choice, but by focusing solely on the treachery of Cheney, one could assume that all would have been better or will be better without Cheney, and that is not the case.
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There are a thousand hate and greed mongers ready and capable of stepping into the monster's shoes through the tiniest aperture of opportunity, and each is -- though difficult for us now to appreciate -- equally treacherous.
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The problem has been and remains with the electorate: WE ALLOWED IT TO HAPPEN. And if WE do not change, if we do not exercise the NECESSARY "eternal vigilance," it WILL CERTAINLY HAPPEN AGAIN.
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We, perhaps justifiably, blamed the Republicans, but that solved nothing. Now, after we changed the congressional linen to a Democrat majority, we blame the Dems, but that solves nothing.
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No Republican, and (now swallow hard my liberal and partisan friends) no Democrat, not Nancy, nor Hillary, nor Barack, nor John, nor Saint Dennis, nor all the prayers to the Creator will return America to us and preserve it.
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The job is OURS.
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I am uncertain of all we need to do, except that the first thing we need to do is to accept the responsibility for America personally, then flush all the current partisan bullshit down into the sewer where it belongs, then mount the dialog -- yes, talk, but this time, with our violated innocence behind us, with a clearer vision of our responsibility as Americans, and a steelier view of the political opportunists who all too willingly offer to do our job for us.
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And if this takes another party, so be it, but only if that party is composed of informed citizens who insist in raising their individual voices, demanding to be heard, and no longer so conveniently entrusting attractive personalities to do the job for us.
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Are we ready? Is it worth it? You tell me.
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...............Rafe Pilgrim
Authors Bio:Rafe Pilgrim, after "a life largely wasted on hard honest work," found himself a jungle of turkey oak, scrub pine and giant palmettos up a dirt road running east of Crystal River, Florida, which neither school busses nor the U.S. Postal Service dare to assay. Sharing a house of his own design with Spanky the cat, Darla a pit bull, and a foundling of mysterious breed named Alfalfa -- all collectively known as Our Gang -- he spends his time "productively: writing poetry, working for peace, and gazing at the sky."
Details:
Central High School of Philadelphia, University of Maryland, Syracuse University, University of Maine, Ursinus College, Air Force Intelligence (Washington D.C., Germany), Ford Motor Company, Philco-Ford Corporation, Eighth Day Gallery, Phi Kappa Phi, Romey Everdell Award for Journalism,(1988), Hole in one (1998), and struggling to find America ever since 2000.