THE OTHER WAY We are, being American, often accused of somewhat piously claiming that we always give fair and equal treatment to everyone concerning our political differences.
Most individuals who have never taken a meaningful role in a major election would, I think, agree with that statement and see our participation in political affairs more as if it were a sportsmanlike interlude in our normal activities, rather than a dog-eat-dog , life-or-death confrontation.
I have been in a foreign country during a major election period and I can be pursued ed to agree it is not a pleasant time to be around persons who, otherwise, meet average criteria for being worthy friends and associates.
I witnessed to people to be understanding, fair, loving, appreciative human beings upon which one might depend in social and in business affairs. In politics? No.
With us, I thing, we are convinced we are willing participants in a series of meetings, demonstrations, innings, quarters or turns or whatever terms we might wish to use to describe our actions as to both quality and quantity, a time.
I have never, really, come to understand how an individual ,of his desires, so places the finer elements of living at jeopardy by entering into a political confrontation of any large size or scope. Certainly sufficient evidence exists at ,or near, the point of entrance for such an extravagant departure from saner pathways. To put all that one has gained at such risk is not exactly a recommendation concerning personal management, much less , any attempt to do so for an entire nation of people such as yourself.
The affirmative view can take over if you promise to run a clean campaign in the race ahead. You feel that, if you are proper, an opponent will be forced to accept such a level of conduct for his own actions. Anyone who believes that could be
the case is far to busy tracking down astronauts asking why they brought back moon
dust and rocks from the Moon rather than some of that good, usable green cheese!
We have many possible candidates in the field at the moment. Dark Horses" are reported to be stomping around in the backwoods, too. All - save one - will be going home. Years from now a few of them will insist they could have made it had they just been given give half a chance. Some will tell of how much better they could have done than he actual winner had done. In their view, that's where our future candidates come from - because some people believe events which never happened can be those of our future.
Andrew McCaskey Sr amccsr@comcast.net 2-10-07 [c455wds]
