Posted on 10/22/2008 10:58:05 AM PDT by Dawnsblood
“I believe that man will not merely endure: he will prevail. He is immortal, not because he alone among creatures has an inexhaustible voice, but because he has a soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance.”
William Faulkner
Traveling along the roads of Afghanistan (when there are roads) provides a different perspective on life back home. Folks in the U.S. are worried about the economy, and while I can understand that many are struggling, it’s easy to forget how much we still have. In Afghanistan, and other countries all over the world, there are many people who literally beg for their next meals.
Americans worry about who will become our next president. Despite what their opponents say, if Barack Obama is elected, he’s not going to turn the U.S. into a socialist state (at least I don’t think he will) and John McCain is not going to invade Iran (at least I don’t think he will). Even though a great deal of noise is made about ideological differences between Democrats and Republicans, it’s remarkable how much both sides agree about certain vital issues, and how stable our nation’s fundamental policies are. No matter who is elected, America will remain true to its basic values of freedom, democracy, private enterprise and public service. The change of government will occur in an orderly fashion, no bloodshed, revolutions or coups. Think about it: When this campaign is finished, either an African American man will be president or a woman will be vice president. The candidacy of Barack Obama has demonstrated how American society as a whole is NOT racist. For all the scars we have inflicted on ourselves (slavery and racism being one of the worst), our democratic society is self-healing, even if that process can be painful and slow.
(Excerpt) Read more at michaelyon-online.com ...
Mr. Yon is mistaken on what would happen under Mr. Obama’s administration. While it would be slower if the Dems don’t have a filibuster-proof super-majority Obama will make this a marxist nation. There is NOTHING that indicates otherwise, and almost every known act of his adult life that indicates that it would be so.
Yon has always been “Wobbly”
Why ... because he has committed the sin of putting our current political climate in perspective?
Yon may well be overly optimistic when he predicts that a President Obama will have a relatively small impact on American society -- especially relative to a place like Afghanistan.
All I can say is, there are a hell of a lot of people in the world who would be ecstatic if they only had our troubles to deal with.
If his point was to state that we really have it good in this country, he made his point, and I think most people would agree with him. If his point was to state that the country would be pretty much the same under either candidate, I think he is dreaming.
As I said ... he may be a bit optimistic about the effects of an Obama presidency. However, I think he's correct that even in that case, the difference relative to sh!tholes like Afghanistan would be too small for a garden-variety Afghan to notice or care about: it would still be paradise in comparison to what they've got.
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