I have been very moved by the passing of Senator Ted Kennedy. I am much too young to have been alive during the "Camelot" years, and having grown up during Bush I and then the contract with america/impeachment silliness, i was always amazed hearing stories of a time when American discourse was about improving ourselves and our country and not lazily pointing fingers and name-calling responsibility away to the other party. While watching a tribute video tonight, I was struck with the idea of appealing to senators in the best tradition of the Kennedy's to do the right thing-- not for themselves, but for the country. Follow below the fold...
I truly hope that the passing of this great man will inspire senators and all Americans to stop with the pettiness and to do what's right for the American people. I decided to write a brief and simple email calling on senators to do right by the memory of Teddy Kennedy by standing up for meaningful healthcare reform. I sent a similar email to the following to all of the wavering Dems in the senate that i could think of:
Sen. Landrieu>
You owe it to the memory of Ted Kennedy and to the American people to stop the bickering and equivocation and pass meaningful health care reform. The Kennedy's reminded the American people how great we can be when we remember the duty we have to each other and to our country. Please do the right thing.
Sincerely,
d. f.
Perhaps if we appeal to senators to live up to the reputation of this great man, then they will start acting like grownups. Many of these people worked alongside the "lion of the senate" for years. They know how ardently he wanted all Americans to have access to decent healthcare, and they fundamentally know that if they fail to rise to the occasion on this issue, they will have bankrupted the core values of the Democratic party-- Kennedy values.
I encourage everyone to drop the rhetoric and write an email from the heart. Maybe we can break through their lobbyist-lined pockets and get these corporate-bribed dems to do the right thing. They owe it to Teddy Kennedy, they owe it to their constituents, they owe it to US.