Reconciliation: Day Seven

Some mornings, it’s harder to extend a hand of reconciliation to friends with different world views, than on others. Today is one of those days.

There are times when I fear so deeply about the future of my country that I find it almost impossible to converse with those who don’t.

But I will try.

There have been times in my life when I believe our country was on the verge of what Richard Wagner called Gotterdammerung, or “downfall of the gods.”

Geo-politically, I believe this nearly occurred when a national moral collapse led us into, and kept us in, the debacle in Vietnam, leaving hundreds of thousands dead, crippled, or scarred. I, personally, cannot help believing we are currently escalating another, less winnable, conflict against an enemy that has no concept of “forget and forgive,” meaning the destruction will never end. What will folks tell their grandchildren?

Internally, I think the Joe McCarthy era was such a test of our national morality, as was the Watergate era.

Regionally, I believe, to paraphrase William Faulkner, the “Jim Crow” period in the American South has left a curse on this area, if not the entire country, that will last for more generations to come.

During each of these, we survived as a nation because reasonable people acted. They transcended their pre-formed alliances and acted in the best interest of the country as a whole. I cannot help contrasting this with the public statement recently by a U.S. representative from our state that he “was elected by a group (with specific political leanings) and he would serve that group,” presumably to the exclusion of anyone else. Other elected officials have admitted the need for specific action but cannot vote accordingly because they signed “a pledge” to one individual that prevents them. Are these the attitudes that will make America great?

These things bother me, so I’m probably less conciliatory today than perhaps I might be. I will keep trying.

The foregoing are conclusions, based on my experience and education. If yours lead you to different conclusions, let us talk. By all means, let us talk. There are issues about which reasonable people can and do differ. That was once a more entrenched American attitude that it seems to be today.

Still here. Still thinking.