By Mathew Manweller,
Central Washington University political science professor
"In that this will be my last column before the presidential election,
there will be no sarcasm, no attempts at witty repartee. The topic is
too serious, and the stakes are too high.
This November we will vote in the only election during our lifetime
that will truly matter. Because America is at a once-in-a-generation
crossroads, more than an election hangs in the balance. Down one path
lies retreat, abdication and a reign of ambivalence. Down the other
lies a nation that is aware of its past and accepts the daunting
obligation its future demands.
If we choose poorly, the consequences will echo through the next 50
years of history! If we, in a spasm of frustration, turn out
the current occupant of the White House, the message to the world and
ourselves will be two-fold.
First, we will reject the notion that America can do big things.
Once a nation that tamed a frontier, stood down the Nazis and stood
upon the moon, we will announce to the world that bringing democracy to
the Middle East is too big of a task for us. But more significantly, we
will signal to future presidents that as voters, we are unwilling to
tackle difficult challenges, preferring caution to boldness, embracing
the mediocrity that has characterized other civilizations. The defeat
of President Bush will send a chilling message to future presidents who
may need to make difficult, yet unpopular decisions. America has always
been a nation that rises to the demands of history regardless of the
costs or appeal. If we turn away from that legacy, we turn away from
who we are.
Second, we inform every terrorist organization on the globe that the
lesson of Somalia was well learned. In Somalia we showed terrorists
that you don't need to defeat America on the battlefield when you can
defeat them in the newsroom. They learned that a wounded America can
become a defeated America.
Twenty-four-hour news stations and daily tracking polls will do the
heavy lifting, turning a cut into a fatal blow. Except that Iraq is
Somalia times 10. The election of John Kerry will serve notice to every
terrorist in every cave that the soft underbelly of American power is
the timidity of American voters. Terrorists will know that a steady
stream of grizzly photos for CNN is all you need to break the will of
the American people. Our own self-doubt will take it from there. Bin
Laden will recognize that he can topple any American administration
without setting foot on the homeland.
It is said that America's W.W.II generation is its 'greatest
generation'. But my greatest fear is that it will become known as
America's 'last generation.' Born in the bleakness of the Great
Depression and hardened in the fire of WW II, they may be the last
American generation that understands the meaning of duty, honor and
sacrifice. It is difficult to admit, but I know these terms are spoken
with only hollow detachment by many (but not all) in my generation. Too
many citizens today mistake 'living in America' as 'being an American.'
But America has always been more of an idea than a place. When you sign
on, you do more than buy real estate. You accept a set of values and
responsibilities.
This November, my generation, which has been absent too long, must
grasp the obligation that comes with being an American, or fade into
the oblivion they may deserve.
I believe that 100 years from now historians will look back at the
election of 2004 and see it as the decisive election of our century.
Depending on the outcome, they will describe it as the moment America
joined the ranks of ordinary nations; or they will describe it as the
moment the prodigal sons and daughters of the greatest generation
accepted their burden as caretakers of the City on the Hill."
Wow!! Bill, What an AWESOME post. I am sitting here with my eyes tearing up, because it is exactly to a tee what I feel about the upcoming election.
If President Bush gets voted out....I am actually fearful of what will happen under Kerrys watch. And not a whole lot scares me.... Let us hope and pray that, that does not happen.
I received it in an email. It does give one a lot to think about. When you consider that the average life span of our form of government is 200 years, it really makes you pause and think just what that means. If we go down the wrong path on November 2, 2004, there will be no turning back. The liberties and freedoms that we have loved and cherished for 228 years will be rapidly stripped. It may not happen by legislation, the way laws are supposed to be enacted/changed, but it will be done by activist Liberal judges.
It sickens me when I hear about the DNC's 66 page Election 2004 playbook. One of the primary tenants of the playbook is "If voter intimidation does not exist, be proactive and claim it does!" They WILL say and do anything to get John Kerry elected!!
Stealthy Cat I agree about the downward slope and the progression. It just seems to me like the progression to Kerry is a little to fast, I may be wrong, we will see.
Thanks
Mr-Pirk
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A proud owner of a Flying Vee. Bestowed by the fine Gentleman VC1111 himself.
Election Determines Fate of Nation
