Posted by
AuntieD on Tuesday, August 05, 2008 4:04:54 PM
Once again an email has been forwarded to me denigrating one candidate or another. Both Presidential candidates have indicated that they want to run on the issues, not on insults. Maybe these stories continue to circulate because the things we fear as an electorate are deeply rooted in personal beliefs that we may not want to acknowledge. The story this morning made me sad as it was a great story about John McCain's patriotism but the writer had to add an opinion that made judgements about her perceived lack of patriotism of Barack Obama. If the writer had stopped before expressing her opinon, it would have had the greater impact in support of McCain. Instead, it made me wonder about the people who support him. If, in this story, McCain's patriotism as recounted is the only measure of what is patriotic enough, only the few remaining living former-POW's would qualify to lead this country. If we were to hold any of our elected politicians including our current President to this standard, not one would be as patriotic as McCain. And if the story is true, it became gossip when the writer added her commentary.
In reality there are many ways to serve our country and express patriotism, just as there are many concerns that Americans have that will determine how they vote in November. The criteria are never black or white, one extreme or the other. It is in the extreme that we become a divided America. Instead I hope that we can sort through our own prejudices and fears to make a more measured and thoughtful decision, not only at the ballot box but when we make the decision not to pass on such emails.