Tonight, during the first Presidential Debate, in the year 2008, John McCain empathically claimed to know his chum of more than thirty years. The Arizona Senator strongly stated former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, would think Barack Obama wrong. Senator McCain repeatedly reassured the public that the Ambassador would not think it wise to negotiate with rogue nations such as Iran. John Sidney McCain reminded us of the refrain, Barack Obama is "naïve." Yet, it might be puerile to ponder that friendship ensures explicit agreement. Relationships may remind us of a capricious certainty and why countries engage in combat.
Days ago, United States Commander-In-Chief, George W. Bush reminded us of the need to remain vigilant. He admonished anyone who might think to talk with those who politically, philosophically, or perhaps physically have the potential to oppose "us." The President of the world's superpower 'wisely' proclaimed ""Some seem to believe we should negotiate with the terrorists and radicals, as if some ingenious argument will persuade them they have been wrong all along." America's leader addressed Israeli lawmakers and said, "We have heard this foolish delusion before. As Nazi tanks crossed into Poland in 1939, an American senator declared: 'Lord, if only I could have talked to Hitler, all of this might have been avoided.' We have an obligation to call this what it is -- the false comfort of appeasement, which has been repeatedly discredited by history." As a protective parent might alert an easily frighten child, the Mister Bush forewarns his citizens. "Do not speak to strangers."
For most of my life I have been a dreamer. As a child I sat many a fine hour on a creek bank with a cork floating on the water (often with no bait on the hook) and dreamed of other times and other places. In those years science fiction was a staple of reading. Television was young and barely available. Entertainment was found by one's self or not found at all for the most part.
In years past I dreamed of a better life for myself and my family. In those days the dream was more about myself than for other people. As life has continued in time the dream has come to encompass the people around me and now extends to the nation and around the entire globe. Today I dream of a world in which peace, justice, and prosperity are the rule of the day.
"Speak to the past, and the past shall teach thee." ~ Inscription on the Caspersen Wing of the John Carter Brown Library
Americans, her allies, and those we have yet to formally declare an adversary awaken each day to a world of glory. In the dawn, we hear only the gentle sound of songbirds. The rustling of leaves also hums in our ears. A silence fills the morning air. It is the tune of tranquility. We open our eyes and see beauty, most everywhere. Although we are awake and alert, Americans have amnesia. We do not recall why we fight, why we fear, and why we are forever at war.
In recent days, I am reminded of my own life as I watch the Democratic Presidential candidates quibble, over the timing of peace talks. Throughout the airwaves, and in every periodical, reports discuss the divisive dynamic. Senator Hillary Clinton thinks Barack Obama is naïve. She states the comparison he makes when discussing her point of view is silly. Thus, the former First Lady emphasizes a theme that has haunted the junior Senator. Is the Senator from Illinois too young and inexperienced to be President of the world's superpower?
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