My fun on FaceBook has irritated my friend Stella. I have "shared" every derisive post on the fact that some party line hacks in the Democratic party who howled over "W" and Iraq are now backing intervention in Syria. I have repeated every petty, pithy comment on their hypocrisy.
You can't be surprised. Everyone knows that my most finely attuned sense is my sense of schadenfreude!
But I am well aware that not all liberals back military intervention in Syria. I know that not all Democrats blindly follow President Obama. I know that the Americans who voted for Barack Obama are not a monolith unquestioningly following his lead.
Mathematically that would be impossible. 50% of voters chose to re-elect Obama over 48% backing Romney. Yet Real Clear Polling averages 51.3% oppose intervention on Syria's civil war with only 34% favoring it. And I have heard numbers putting that support as low as 19%. Politician after politician talks about calls and emails coming into his/her office against intervention. I've heard no one discuss a flood of calls in favor. I think that is even more telling because those people made an effort as opposed to just answering the phone.
I understand that my stand on Syria puts me in bed with MoveOn.org and Code Pink.
I further understand that John Boehner the nominally Republican Speaker of the House, backs the President here. But Boehner's actions don't move me. He's a boob. He's not a true republican or a true conservative. And ack, the crying! Don't get me started. Boehner is a non-entity in this discussion.
Facebook is for fun and snark. Please scroll through my timeline. A pic I shared last night jokes about Pope Francis, who I respect and admire, being a bad catholic for sitting in the back at Mass.
You know I loathe John Kerry to the point that seeing his visage gives me agita. You know I am disgusted that Obama talked smack about "W" and Iraq for years. But now that he is sitting in the hot seat, things are different. Yet, he still takes the occasional pot shot at "W". Have you heard anything from "W" in terms of a counter volley? No.
So when we make vicious fun of those involved here, that's what it's about. Never, never about you.
Well, I have written a post in response to you which desperately needs editing and which will be published for you to read. Your post is so thoughtful, I would be remiss if I did not respond in kind.
ReplyDeleteI am quite honored that you would title a post with my name in it. (Even a song? Wow.) I knew this was not a personal attack; mine was not meant to be, either. I hope you know that is the case. I wanted to wait and respond in as thoughtful a manner as you did in this post. I've always valued your perspective and continual challenges to force me to rethink my opinions and seek facts to support them. Long ago, we agreed no one can learn in a vacuum.
I'm not irritated (or pissed off) so much as I was simply wanting to demonstrate that, as a progressive drifting ever further left these days, many progressives do not support this insanity. I should have realized you would step back and look at the issue from a holistic perspective.
I want to see a healed America engaged in civil debate like us rather than the useless rancor of bitter partisanship. That written, the question of whether America should involve itself with Syria is opposed by Rubio and Cantor is withholding his support. Is that like Ed Markey voting present?
I have written much, much more. I will say that I am terribly disappointed that Sen. Boxer is supporting this action.
Ultimately, the goal must be for the good of the nation. The whole damn thing is a mess.
I've always felt that if someone is unsure of what to do, they probably shouldn't act.
It was true in Iraq, it is true in Syria.