For some unknown reason, events or occurrences that trigger feelings of true elation or euphoria have eluded me for some time now. I doubt that this is due to some form of a clinical depression - all in all, I'm still a reasonably balanced guy. More likely, due to advancing years, the rot of familiarity has taken hold of my life. And, of course, the helplessness and disgust of watching the hijacking of our country by republicans and religious loonies hasn't contributed to a mental nirvana.
But, yesterday it happened. One of those small, seemingly insignificant occurrences caused my perceptions of reality to slightly tilt and the whistle of a happy tune from a long-lost Disney movie to escape my lips. But more below ...
Before I begin to relate my tale that brought the proverbial lump to my throat, I must admit that I've witnessed the theme of my joyful story played out here in the diaries a number of times. And that theme is:
"GOPer, thou has seen the light and ye shall be saved. Halleluiah!"
I'm sure you've seen them. Many of these GOP redemption stories go something like this ...
"I went to my family reunion and my fascist uncle Herb (the one who has the portrait of Barry Goldwater tattooed on his ass) shocked us all by saying he is 'disappointed' in George Bush."
In the past, almost every time I read one of these I wanted to scream, "Bullshit! You probably live in some artic blue state like Massachusetts. Shit like that doesn't happen down here in the good `ole stompin' ground of W and Dickey-boy. And besides, Barry Goldwater might be considered a saint today - even by Democrats."
Well, boys and girls, I heard and even saw this very thing happen with my own two (or is that four?) auditory and visual organs right here in the heart of Texas. And my heart is still a-flutterin'
I have very little respect for hard core, card-carrying, Bush supporters these days. I don't buy into the crap that they're deceived or lost little sheep. To me, they're either enablers of the most historically and breathtakingly inept governments of all-time or just plain stupid. No in-betweens or middle-ground categorizations for me. Uh-uh. No way. No how.
Even with a compliant press, enough bile about this administration has oozed between the dirty cracks that even the most challenged of our society who can read and listen (and who are paying any attention at all) have the capacity to "get it". While I have friends who fall into the Repug crowd, their allegiance to a party that openly spits on the foundations of this county and the world community, while at the same time wrapping themselves in the flag and religion, with eyes turned piously upward, has greatly diminished their prior standing in my mind.
With that being said, you can imagine my shock, followed by a jolt of exuberance seldom matched (I promise!) when the following exchange occurred with a minor acquaintance.
"What do you think of the Bush port issue?" he asked. Now, mind you, I don't know this person well, and I suspected, based on the setting in which this question was asked, that he was the proverbial dyed-in-the-sheep's wool Repuglican. He didn't have a clue as to what political persuasion I was painted, so I was expecting a potential fight. One that I didn't prefer to tangle with since I was in unfriendly territory, so to speak.
But, I'm a child of principle, so I ventured, "A big blunder, no matter how you view the man. He owns the issue of being tough on terrorism and security, but yet he blew the PR battle. I just can't fathom that he is sticking to his gun belt on this one ... especially with his own party. But yet, that's our man Bush."
I don't think he understood what side of the political fence I had hammered a stake to since my response was, shall we say, a little wish-washy.
But then he said the words that I would have never imagined being uttered by a Repug. "Well, I voted for him ... twice ... and I'm sorry to say ... he's going to be the worst president that our country has ever known."
At this point, I wanted to do a happy dance. But, I decided to take the traditional Dem way out (because I just happen to be hard-wired this way).
"Listen, I'm proud to say that I never voted for him. But, let me say this, I believe in the two-party system, along with the balances that it affords, and I'll always fight for it. But you have to agree that under this administration, we're at the brink of a historic and dangerous precipice."
He nodded.
Soon afterwards I got into my car and I began to reflect at what had just happened. Could my faith in humankind be restored? Could some Republicans understand that the principals of good, moral behavior, and human decency still mattered over party? Could they do the right thing and restore our country to its rightful place in the world where other countries view us as a shining beacon of freedom and democracy .... something to be aspired and hopefully, achieved?
But for some strange reason, I heard a voice coming from the back of mind. A familiar voice. Yes, it was Steve Martin's ... and from a Saturday Night Live skit of long ago. And he was saying ...
"NAH!"