Dear Walt,
I understand the poet Michael Palmer wrote a letter to you a couple years ago* in which he informed you of our failure to achieve the vision you penned 120 years ago in your poem, "America:"
Centre of equal daughters, equal sons,
All, all alike endear’d, grown, ungrown, young or old,
Strong, ample, fair, enduring, capable, rich,
Perennial with the Earth, with Freedom, Law and Love,
A grand, sane, towering, seated Mother,
Chair’d in the adamant of Time.
As a reminder, Walt, this is how Mr. Palmer explained our dilemma to you in his missive:
I don’t know whether you keep abreast of the news, Walt, but it is not good. The current administration, a dungheap of pious hypocrites and liars, has used the pretext of the war against terror to dismantle the founding principles and values of the republic and to abrogate international treaties.
I must admit, Walt, all that Mr. Palmer wrote to you regarding our illegal war with Iraq, the torture of prisoners at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo, our domestic struggles for "human and civil rights, gay and women’s rights, environmental protections, social programs and freedom of expression" - all of that, Walt, regrettably is true.
There is much more.
I surmise, Walt, because of the deep appreciation for science so apparent in your poems, you would be quite dissatisfied to learn that the administration is throttling our scientists, and suppressing and altering their research.
I suspect that a Wound Dresser like you, Walt, who personally cared so lovingly for thousands of Civil War soldiers during your time in Washington, DC, would be dismayed at the administration’s callous treatment of our returning troops.
As an ardent advocate of the symbiotic relationship between humankind and Nature, you’d likely abhor the way the administration has defied the rest of the world with regard to the Kyoto Treaty. And the U.S. was boo'd at the conference on climate change in Bali, Walt.
Most of all, Walt, I surmise you’d be appalled at how they’re perverting our language. We have a "Protect America Act" that allows illegal surveillance on our citizens. We have an education act called "No Child Left Behind" that is terribly underfunded. We have a "Patriot Act" that only traitorous scoundrels could appreciate. Torture has been euphemistically renamed "enhanced interrogation techniques." The President says things like "Is our children learning," and "We do not torture" in the face of proof that we do, and "Heckuva job, Brownie!" to his FEMA crony who lost New Orleans and countless numbers of its residents. (Yes, Walt, I’ve read that you enjoyed New Orleans, but they need help there now rebuilding the city and their lives. Our government has dropped the ball).
These are dark days for us and our country, Walt, but to you who wrote
I celebrate myself, and sing myself,
And what I assume you shall assume,
For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you...
I’d like to say the Walt Whitman spirit of hope and vision still exists, and I would, therefore, like to celebrate this community of political and social activists at DKos with you.
We contain multitudes and are ever growing, Walt - jotter says about 145,000 of us now. We are young and old, rich and poor, from all walks of life and many different places. We write, we comment, we volunteer, we campaign, we sign petitions, we hound our legislators, we pledge our voices, our time, our energy, our money. We are committed, and we all do what we can because we care.
And we understand you:
Allons! Through struggles and wars!
The goal that was named cannot be countermanded.
Have the past struggles succeeded?
What has succeeded? yourself? your nation? Nature?
Now understand me well - it is provided in the essence of
things that from any fruition of success, no matter what,
shall come forth something to make a greater struggle
necessary.
My call is the call of battle, I nourish active rebellion,
He going with me must go well arm’d,
He going with me goes often with spare diet, poverty, angry
enemies, desertions.
Allons! the road is before us!
It is safe - I have tried it - my own feet have tried it well -
be not detain’d!
Your vision may well be impossible to attain, Walt, but we know certainly we can do much better than this.
So, thank you, Walt, for your confidence in us and for the encouragement.
* From the book Walt Whitman: hom(m)age, 2005/1855 published by Turtle Point Press.