I worry about my grandchildren.
I worry about the America they will inherit. In fact, I worry about the America we have today.
For a long time I have said this year’s presidential election will be more about voting against a candidate rather than voting for one. In recent weeks I see that my thoughts are not unique – maybe not even original.
Last week I saw perhaps the best explanation of the upcoming election while reading a “Shoe” comic strip. In it Cosmos, one of the characters in the cartoon, says “this year’s election is not about the lesser of two evils – it is about the evil of two lesser.”
I couldn’t say it better.
How did we get here?
How did we get to the point that one party feels America needs a leader that is currently being investigated for security breaches, lies, and cover-ups?
How can anyone really consider voting for Hillary Clinton?
On the other hand, how did we get to the point that one party thinks America needs a leader that is a bigot, a racist, and has proven time and time again his best ability is the ability to file bankruptcy for his financial benefit.
How can anyone consider voting for Donald Trump?
The answer to both questions is easy – which makes the answer even more concerning.
Neither party selected the candidate who will carry the party’s banner into the presidential election – you and I did.
Why?
It doesn’t take much to put things in perspective.
America has become a country that still shuns its Vietnam veterans while naming Jane Fonda one of America’s greatest women. The same Jane Fonda who supported North Vietnam at the expense of American military men and women.
Muhammed Ali is idolized as a great humanitarian – a great and beloved American, perhaps even the image of America.
A great American who not only did not support our military men and women in Vietnam, but was openly outspoken against anything to do with Vietnam.
Was Jane Fonda a disgrace to America – maybe even to the level of being a traitor?
Absolutely.
Can the same be said of Muhammed Ali?
Absolutely Not.
Ali was simply using his freedom of speech rights and his religious rights. However, his celebrity fueled anti-Vietnam rhetoric, protests, and actions by others that certainly could be considered treasonous.
What does this have to do with today?
Nothing.
And everything.
A good example is the horrible massacre in Orlando, Florida last Sunday. As I write this, 50 are dead with another 53 injured. Some of those 53 may have died by the time you read this.
Even before the blood started to dry, fingers were starting to point.
This massacre could not have happened if we had stronger gun laws – On the other hand, the millions of gun owners who have never used a gun against another human are being vilified through “guilt by association.”
It was also immediately obvious that the massacre was an ISIS inspired terrorist attack.
It may have been. It may not have been. It may have been an excuse to hide the real motive. No one knows as I write this – I doubt that anyone will know for sure when you read this.
Other accusations quickly followed – the police waited too long to act – because the scene of the massacre was a “Gay Bar.” First responders were slow to respond – for the same reason.
And on and on.
I would note that most of the interviews I saw involving victims and near victims indicated they felt the police and first responders acted properly and saved lives. But, that isn’t what the media, the liberals, nor the conservatives want to hear.
It seems almost immediately, the political spin was more important than the lives, and deaths, of the victims – and near victims.
There is one aspect that has been verified. One that will certainly become a political hot potato. The shooter, Omar Mateen, had been working for a security company for nearly nine years.
A security company that provides security for airports and government buildings.
While America mourns, many are secretly smiling. If a security company cannot successfully “vet” those it employs, how can 100,000 Syrian refugees be properly “vetted?”
How can we ensure a Syrian refugee is not an ISIS terrorist?
Simple – we can’t.
Just as we can’t ensure that out of 100,000 natural born Americans there will be no terrorists – no killers.
Evil is where evil is.
Terrorism is evil – Hate is evil – Heroin is evil.
Domestic abuse is evil – Child abuse is evil – Animal abuse is evil.
That doesn’t mean when one individual from an ethnic or a religious group does something that is considered evil, that all members of that group will do the same thing. That all members of that group support actions that are considered evil.
Unfortunately, such thinking is not the American way.
Nor is it the way of today’s politics.
Maybe four years from now we can fix that.
– Mike Cooney