Unlike water, words don’t remain the same after they are
poured into a container. Consider, for example, a politician we all know. While
running for office, he said, “I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and
shoot somebody and wouldn’t lose any voters, okay?” He then mimicked firing a
gun with his fingers, adding. “It’s, like, incredible.” For these words, he was
elected president of the United States of America, albeit by the Electoral
College and not by popular vote. Nonetheless, he now occupies the same White House
where Abraham Lincoln, the two Roosevelts, Dwight David Eisenhower, Harry Truman,
and others once slept.
Having arrived there, this politician used words to dishonor
the military sacrifice of a man who served six years in a brutal prisoner of
war camp on behalf of our country. He used words, with the assistance of gestures,
to mock the speech and movements of a disabled man. He later used words to describe
a group containing Neo-Nazis as having some “very fine people.” He used words to mock the family of a soldier killed in war in the service of our country.
His base supporters lauded and approved these and other words,
solidifying even more tightly around him.
The sad thing is: consider what might happen if this
politician were to request TV time tonight to make the following speech.
“My fellow Americans, we have become a divided nation and we
must heal ourselves. We are all in this together, and face a highly complex and
sometimes terrifying future. May I suggest that we face it together as friends,
not foes? Our patriots faced a harsh future at Valley Forge. Our brave soldiers
and sailors, men of every color, race, religion, and orientation, faced and conquered
fear on the shores of Normandy. Our grandparents faced hunger and desolation,
along with fear, during the Great Depression. Our heroes of the Civil Rights movement
faced dogs and clubs on the streets, highways, and bridges of our nation in their fight for
freedom.
“We survived these struggles through unity, not divisiveness.
We joined hands as Americans and do what American do best, prevailing against
the forces of hate and disparagement. In short, we faced the future as a united
nation. That’s what I’m asking you to do tonight. I’m extending my hand in this
symbolic gesture, and asking you, if you are physically able to move yours, to
extend your hand toward my voice and join me in an oath of unity. If, because
of infirmity or disability, you cannot extend a hand, simply smile as best you
can and know that we stand with you and that we all stand together.
“The main religious figure for many of you charged us to care
for the least of those among us. Another religious leader commanded that we care for the poor. I
pledge to orient my administration to that charge. Starting tomorrow, I will
not post my thoughts on the Internet. Instead, I will post my thoughts through
action. Join me and let us persevere, as did our ancestors at Valley Forge. Let
us charge into the Valley of the Shadow of Death as did those brave men in
France. Let us welcome sacrifice in the name of justice as did my brother John
Lewis and the brave women and men who fell underneath the horses and clubs at
Selma. Let us be Americans, and show the world what that means, and may whatever
God we each worship, including an inner-spiritual one who dwells in our own
heart, bless us.”
Well. You and I both know what would happen. He would lose
half his base overnight. Franklin Graham would never speak to him again. Stephen
Miller would melt into a blubbering mass. Vladimir Putin would be shocked into
silence. Fox “news” would shut down for emergency repairs, and five members of
the United States Supreme Court would start wearing Groucho Marx disguises when
leaving the building .
Know what though? I think the Galilean would be smiling.
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| Many have given. Many haven't. Some gave all. |
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