I generally am known in these parts by the graphics I post but for this diary I would like to focus on my prose.
I’m a closet patriot. A Vietnam vet that pays his taxes gives generously to political and non-political grass roots organizations and volunteers to drive old folks to the polls on Election Day. But not so deep down I’m a contrarian. My contrary views have led me to the point where I’m a traitor to this country.
More below the fold --
I don’t dislike George Bush, I hate him. I hate him for all the obvious reasons, which I don’t need to reiterate here. But now, today I support his every move, or lack therein he makes. George Bush has dug a big hole indeed and the last thing I want him to do is to back fill for some kind of last minute political gain.
You think that the military is broken today? Give George Bush another 18 months. You think things are shaky with our domestic infrastructure today? Have another Katrina event and George Bush trying to make up for his last lapse. You think the Republicans are weakened today? Give George Bush another 18 months of dominance and watch that nasty yellow build up of a Republican congress rinse away with the next election. Without reversing his current strategy, given that he really has one, the table may be set for this country to enter an era of meaningful progressive politics. I want him to him to hit bottom so hard that no amount of revisionist history will ever see him as anything but the cold callous authoritarian war criminal that he is.
I don’t want Bush to change. I don’t want him to try to pull out of this power dive. Put it into the dirt George! The problem with this thinking is that it’s so very wrong. First and yes most important, this is immoral; I’m talking about the misery and death of thousands of soldiers, my brothers and sisters, and domestic chaos. Do I really want to watch a replay of Katrina? Second, this is unpatriotic, dare I say, these are traitorous thoughts.
I’ve turned into something as repugnant as any ideological Republican. Republicans have got to know that George Bush is wrong for America. Some honestly believe he’s right for some of the precedents he’s set and the long term goals of conservatism. I believe that George Bush is wrong for America and that keeping him in place and supporting his insanity will awaken America for the long term goals of progressive politics.
As traitorous and immoral as this ideology is, the only thing worse would be if George W. Bush and Carl ‘Merlin’ Rove did pull it out at the last moment. Not that they actually succeeded to some degree in Iraq but made it appear so. And in the end made the ’08 elections a contested battle.
There is no difference between Dick Cheney and me, we are both immoral. We are both unpatriotic. We are both traitors. The only difference is that while Cheney is gloating I’m sick to my stomach. So I’ll give a little extra to VoteVets and The Fisher House in a feeble attempt to ease the guilt.