Monday Morning Rant 109

Okay, I know it’s Wednesday and not Monday and I apologize for not posting sooner. Coming back from D.C. got a little complicated since I came back through Chicago, Cedar Falls, IA, and Independence, Mo. I wasn’t lost, just visiting some old friends and a relative or two. One thing about it I didn’t like was missing church. God was so good to me on the trip by keeping me out of peril and offering His protection, I felt really bad about not formally acknowledging His presence.

A Couple weeks vacation

As I left the car to come into the house at one of my stops I was greeted in the yard by an old friend of the family. Ever courteous, she inquired what brought me to their neck of the woods. Eager to tell the tale of my recent trip to D.C., I shared a couple details and waited for a response. She said, “Well, we have just decided to take a couple weeks off from politics.” I thought about the statement and realized that it was code for not wanting to engage in discussion of political matters. I was disappointed in her response anyway.

I though about and it came to me what my reaction might be if I called the fire department and said my house was on fire. What if the fireman said, “Gee we have decided to take a couple weeks off and avoid really hot and flaming things?”

Further, what if I called the cops and reported a break-in by armed robbers? Would their response be, “Thank you for calling the police department? All of our officers are currently taking a break from confronting armed felons and traffic enforcement. They’ll be back in a couple of weeks.”

Worse, if I went to my doctor to complain of pain or a broken bone and he announced that he was taking a short sabbatical from curing mine or any anybody’s ailments would I understand? In each case, the result could be devastating to me personally and possibly to my neighbors as well.

In short, with the issues which threaten the nation at the moment and which also appear to worsen as time goes by, dare we turn our back and take even a rhetorical vacation. I am personally convinced that each individual citizen working with others holds the key to counter the pressures to change our American way of life. Only the most clueless will not see the sea change taking place in our government. With each passing day we move closer to socialism and further from the constitutional mandates we have previously enjoyed.

Like the professionals mentioned above, we are not free to abrogate our responsibilities to the nation by a random choice to ignore a lawless government in any form or for any length of time. With a cabinet of tax cheats, abortion proponents, green crazies, and other unsavory characters abetted by a corps of unvetted, yet individually powerful czars and a personal staff of Chicago hoods, the time to be alarmed is NOW! It is extremely foolish to believe that some senator or representative is going to come charging in on white horse to save the nation. It aint gonna happen. It is up to us—the citizens—to demand that those who serve us do their jobs within the framework of our principal founding documents.

If discussion of hard issues makes one uncomfortable then it may be time to do some research on how others in the world live. Pick just about any country you wish and ask yourself, “would I want to live there and be subject to their government?” Would I wish to inflict my new citizenship on my children—my grand children? I lived “on the economy” in Germany for two years and although I made many friends among the locals it was a visit and not a life choice. This nation is worth protecting. Our way of life is exemplary. Surely we must remain ever alert to those who would willfully destroy it.

The Recapitulation

Our latest addition to the automotive stable came as an inheritance. That 2004 Explorer is a lovely piece of work and the last gift my late brother gave me. The time had come to teach it that “life ain't all romance.” I rigged it with the camping equipment I routinely use and the superb bed was duly enclosed along with groceries, water, computer, and way more stuff than I would ever use. In the 6 days, 23 hours and 30 minutes I was on the road, I covered 2866 miles or 409 miles average per day.

I did not sit down in a restaurant or have to overnight in a motel and was extremely comfortable in the Wal-Mart parking lot. They allow RV’s and overnighters and it is safe and comfortable. Keep it in mind if you ever need a place to park for the night.

For all the estimates on attendance from CNN’s original of 1000 to the BBC’s overblown 2 million I have decided to offer my own figure. From conversations with capitol police, experience gained from counting the house for the preacher from the choir loft, seeing 100,000 people enter and exit countless foot ball stadiums, and the most useful of all, the restroom method I have decided on a number. They had 100 over taxed port-a-potties, each with 35 to 40 people in line. Many, with foresight, didn’t use them or else took advantage of other facilities in the surrounding museums and other public places. It was not an event for the incontinent. From all this, I have decided on 1,200,000 as the best estimate. What ever the number, they were of a universal mind—enough is enough!

I have never been prouder of my fellow citizens. Courtesy, generosity, patience and respect and extreme cleanliness marked the day. One was hard pressed to see any trash of any sort disposed of on the mall or the capitol grounds. Not so much as a cigarette butt on the ground, or a gum wrapper marred the pristine beauty of the nation’s capital. One reason for this may well have been that the normal scourge of public events was absent. You couldn’t buy a beer or a soda from ever present vendors usually seen at large public gatherings. I witnessed no scuffles and the cops I talked to had not seen any either. All in all, it was a beautiful day for America.

And finally

It was, as usual, great to get home even though the grass had grown a foot. Jan reported a near constant visitor on the deck outside my office—an opossum.

I dearly love to travel but there is truly “no place like home.” I visited many places familiar to my childhood but all had changed so drastically that they were unwelcoming. I do believe that will be my last go-round in the Iowa of my youth. My travels took me past the birthplace and also boy hood home of Abe Lincoln. I also went right by the original U.S. Grant home in Galena, Il. These are all well maintained by the Park Service but would probably be still be unrecognized by the original occupants. Things change, I guess I’ll just have to deal with it.


In His abiding love,

Cecil Moon