To all you bitter republicans

November 6, 2008

"Liberalism is trust of the people tempered by prudence. Conservatism is distrust of the people tempered by fear." William E Gladstone, British Prime Minister

I am still so unwaveringly proud of this great country that we live in that I cant even bring myself to bubble over into anger over all of the disgraceful things I have been reading on myspace and facebook.

Ok, we get it! You are discontent. Well, we have been knocking our heads against a wall for the past 8 years watching our country's greatest resources exploited. (And while I would LOVE to take this moment to list stats and use political jargon, I am going to refrain. I know the underlying message of this will fall on deaf ears the second your values are attacked - so I almost regrettably bite my tounge.) The point is we have all been there, I had that pit in my stomach when Bush was reelected. We can all empathize with that, but what I refuse to empathize with is the level of HATE that I am seeing. I understand a lot of this hate is heightened because I reside in the Southern bible belt which breeds conservatism. But, it is absolutely ridiculous.

How can you not see that you are witnessing history? I don't particularly care who you voted for, put your inbred tendencies toward hate and stereotyping aside and see how wonderful it is how our country has come together. I haven't seen unity like this since September 11th. It breaks my heart honestly to watch a handful of your comments. I cant help but think when your grandchildren come up to you and want to know where you were and how you felt during this pivotal moment in history, that you will either 1) Lie and say it was wonderful and feel like you missed out on something so powerful. or 2) still be bitter, in which case I will pray for you.

Our entire country is riding the wave of Hope, and I just wish that everyone had enough wisdom to put their differences aside and Respect what a triumphant win this is for not just democrats and not just blacks - but for mankind as a whole. Your political opinions are inconsequential to me, but bitching about it is not going to change anything. I learned that a long time ago. Obama is going to be your president for the next four years whether you are enthusiastic about it or not. So embrace it, he's not going anywhere. Instead find an issue in your local community that you find yourself passionate about. Volunteer your time rather than wasting it over heated arguments. When they are over all you have done successfully is raise your blood pressure and possibly strain your vocal chords. At the end of the day, both of you walk away not feeling any differently, aside from the growing disdain you have created for the opposite party and its affiliates. If you feel so passionate about it get up and do something, find your political home base and fight for issues you do believe in rather than bitching about ones you don't. After the 2004 election, I picked myself up off the floor joined college democrats and started campaigning again. Obama won Virgina and North Carolina, and party wise he shouldn't have. Its because people whom he inspired donated time and money and got the job done. I have spent countless hours registering people, talking to people and knocking on doors - in BOTH NC and VA. Yes thats right, I even went to a state I could never vote in to fight for what I believed. I campaigned in Prince William County in VA, and if you actually know anything about politics you would know this was a MAJOR county in Obama's winning VA, at which point he was declared our next President. So to all you bitter people: did you do anything to support your beloved McCain? Did all of you even show up at the polls? Point blank, don't talk about it - be about it.

I realize the root of the issue is that Liberals tend to define success in that as their society as a whole. When there are children that go to sleep at night starving and cold, we can not shut our eyes with out knowing we have made an active effort to CHANGE and aid these families. When our 95 year old neighbor must decided between medications and meals we go to Washington and pharmicudical companies with pitch forks. We think everyone deserves a fair chance, which means giving others a leg up to level playing fields. Conservatives define their successes in that of themselves and their family. Every man is for themselves and if you are unemployed it is obviously because you are lazy and a greedy welfare mongrel. They hold the church and its "will" in highest esteem, and homosexuals are 6 headed monsters who should be put on an island somewhere so they don't continue to spread their "mental disease" and gay marriage is some silly left wing ding bat idea that should remain secularized.

My point is Liberals and Conservatives are NEVER going to see eye to eye, this is nothing new. But, you are not going to leave the mark on society you desire using hate. No one will listen to your message. And this goes both ways. To all Obama supporters, the best way you can do yourself and your country justice is to take the higher road. When two people argue, from a distance you both look like fools despite who "wins". By getting angry and fighting back, you unfortunately have lived up to the narrow minded stereotypes they hold of you - and you instantly become who they THINK you are.