Category — Political Ramblings

This is my flag.

I recently found a nice place to hang it on my wall, near the front door.

It’s not just any flag.

It is a flag that flew over hallowed ground outside of Shanksville, PA, where a group of forty American heroes gave their lives on September 11th, 2001.

This is their flag.

They gave their lives in defense of this flag.

They gave their lives in defense of our country.

They gave their lives in defense of our Constitution.

They gave their lives in defense of our way of life.

They did not give their lives in defense of fear or hatred or cowardice or bigotry.

This is my copy of the Constitution.

You should read it some day.  It is important.  It is short.

I bought my copy of the Constitution at Manzanar.

Manzanar was one of the many “War Relocation Centers” during World War II.  More than ten thousand people were held prisoner at Manzanar.

They were not criminals.

They were not spies.

They were not the enemy.

They had not attacked us.

They were Japanese. 

They were patriotic American citizens.

They were rounded up and sent to a prison in the desert because of fear and hatred and cowardice and bigotry.

I bought my copy of the Constitution at Manzanar to serve as a reminder.

A reminder of what America can be.

A reminder of what America is.

A reminder of what America must never be again.

This is my copy of the Qur’an.

I am not going to burn it.

I am not going to tear it apart.

I am not going to insult it.

I am not going to desecrate it.

I am going to put it on a shelf and maybe read parts of it now and then.

I own a Qur’an.

I am not a Muslim.

I have no plans to become one.

I own a Bible.

I am not a Christian.

I have no plans to become one.

I own a Book of Mormon.

I am not a Mormon.

I have no plans to become one.

If I want to become a Mormon, I am able to.

If I want to become a Muslim, I am able to.

If I want to become a Christian, I am able to.

I am able to do that because of the Constitution.

I am able to do that because of The Forty and those like them.

I am able to do that because this is America.

This is my flag.

This is not the flag of fear or hatred or cowardice or bigotry.

This is the flag of The Forty on United 93.

This is the flag of the people of Manzanar.

This is the flag of Muslims, of Catholics, of Mormons, of Sikhs, of Jews, of Hindus, of Baptists, of Atheists, of Zoroastrians, of Wiccans, of Buddhists, of Scientologists and of those who aren’t sure what they are.

This is my flag.

This is your flag.

This is the flag of freedom.

This is the flag of the United States of America.

Always remember what it flies for.

At the close of Operation Iraqi Freedom, the right wing talkers were all abuzz, saying that Obama should “give Bush credit” for what he did in Iraq.

Credit for what Bush did in Iraq?

I don’t have amnesia.  I give George W. Bush full credit for what he did.

Here’s what Bush did in Iraq: 

4417 dead Americans.

Over 30,000 wounded.

Countless tens of thousands Iraqi civilians killed or injured.

Billions of dollars wasted.

Our country is known around the world as a country that starts illegal, immoral, and unjust wars and tortures people.

He took us from the “Shining City on the Hill” to the “Slimy Wreck in the Gutter”.

Bush deserves credit for what he did in Iraq?  He deserves an indictment.

http://www.givebushcredit.com/