We The People

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There certainly has been a strange element to the politics of the United States over the past few years. It is almost as if we are all picking sides for an ultimate dodge ball match. To say that the country is fractured in a Bush-Clinton type meltdown is actually understating the case. I have a number of really good friends who sit on the opposite side of the political fence - and we are awfully careful not to hammer away at each other when there are a couple of Michelob Lights introduced to the scene.

Still, it got me to wondering... why is there such a rift and why are we compelled to fight for whatever side we fight for? I thought about the first three words of the Constitution and how much they should mean to all of us - We the People -

I think back to The Stand by Stephen King and the re-organization of civilization after a horrible threat to humanity. Soon after the new government was formed - there were fractures and fissures that drove people to one side or another.

I don't know what is happening in America - you look at the Blue states and the Red States - you drive by a car that has a Bush-Cheney sticker on it or a Kerry-Edwards sticker - and it can actually make your blood boil - and don't even get me started on Obama, Clinton, Guliani or McCain. Maybe it is the simple fact that I seem to be paying more attention to our politics - as I should as a responsible citizen. The thing is - should the fight be so violent?

The talkers on TV and the radio are spewing degrees of hate back and forth - from Rush to Michael Moore - we are now raising issues that result in only more hatred.

As I've said, I have a couple of smart friends who look at it from a completely different angle from me - and that is not really how it should be. We the People does not break it down to Democrats or Republicans. They knew what they were writing when they drafted the consititution - they appreciated that there would be differences along the way - they understood that the fractures and fissures would develop - but they also understood that We the People - would stand united against the most evil of threats - not sure that is happening right now - but for the future of the country - we need to fill in the gaps - and we do need to do it together - that is of course, if we still believe in the constitution.

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