January 20th, 2009- I watched with grim satisfaction today as they finally dispatched that ravenous bastard, George W. Bush, from the nation’s capitol, and sent him squealing back to Midland, Texas, his boyhood home. The former vice president Dick Cheney left in a wheel chair due to back injuries from moving boxes out of the white house. That sounds a bit odd that he would have to lift anything, but, then again, Cheney has done little to make anyone want to help him, except, perhaps, to give him one, final shove out the door.
Now, isn’t that refreshing? A new president, with a new voice, and a new vision. It’s been a long eight years, and some of us were so fouled by the way George Bush handled himself that we tuned him out, we sat back in the dark corners of taverns and hotel rooms, waiting for someone closer to the top to see what was happening in America. Some of the atrocious acts committed by the Bush administration are nothing short of criminal, and I for one, feel that too many heads of justice have stood by and let this go on uninterrupted. Perhaps those responsible will recognize their own flaws and right them…oh no, I think not. No, this time around someone needs to remember, and when wrongs are committed, there should be someone to bring the hammer down before they spin out of control.
It’s been a long time since Richard Nixon stepped down as president, but not so long that everyone forgot. I’m not even old enough to have been alive, and I remember. The mistakes he made were not simply errors in action, but gross errors in what he believed in, what he stood for against the backdrop of American liberty and freedom. The challenges faced by our country in those times were great, and the losses suffered by the American people were massive. But these losses were caused by, not cause for the kinds of action taken by the Nixon administration, and that is where now stands the parallel. I don’t think it is any accident that Barrack Obama won the presidency by such a massive landslide. The times have shown that the failed leaderships of the past need to be revised, rethought, and reshaped to meet the type of crisis we now face. The old guard of the Bushes, and the Nixon’s of the world need to step aside for leaders that will stand for the people of this fair nation. This country has too long been represented by those who hold the most power, and the most property. These people will inevitably only look out for their own best interests, and only think of the people so far as to win their votes come election time. Maybe it’s just what they know, but so many have failed in really getting hold of the true vision of the American dream, or truly feeling what it is that drives this nation forward. The true grit of the workers and producers has never been wholly captured by the politicians who claim to represent them. This could be our chance though, one last hope to grasp onto and cling for dear life; that last shard of a sinking ship, still afloat despite the odds, and perhaps enough people will hold on that they may live to build a new boat, bigger and better than the bastard that sunk beneath our feet.
Let’s not get carried away blaming Americans for the shortcomings of a great and powerful country, though, let’s get started thinking about how we can fix her up. For starters, a great portion of the world hates us and our imperialist ways disguised as diplomacy. Our new boss is probably already designing some scheme to send flowers along with apologies and get-well-soon cards to the many countries we have trampled across in recent years. And who knows what good that will do, but at least we won’t be telling them of our next invasion strategy. I’m sure Obama is also thinking of ways to get the masses more educated than they have been. Our idea of a public education has become a joke to the world, and with high drop-out rates, and illiterate high school grads, an overhaul seems long overdue. Yes, of course, let’s help us poor, jobless college students too, cause by god we need it (don’t mistake that for religious undertones either).
It could be a golden age for the United States, given that our new leadership is given enough power to undo the wrongs of the previous administration. The power is not likely to shift too far, but maybe just enough to get us back on track to the light at the end of the tunnel, that glorious place our founding fathers wanted so badly to see. Caress the vision, believe in it, and most of all, speak up and be heard, because nothing will change if we don’t tell them what’s wrong.
