The Reminder

Yesterday was a grim reminder to the extent that some people can be driven. In case you might have forgotten, it was the 12th anniversary of the bombing of the Federal building in Oklahoma City. An act of cowards, just a couple of disgruntled citizens. At least, that’s the way it was presented to the rest of the world.

There is no doubt that this was a horrible crime against humanity, but the circumstances that surround it are still in serious debate. Of course, for those that want to believe that this government and this country are pure, it all gets swept under the rug as just another one of those conspiracy theories … but having lived one of those very theories once in my life, I can only say they aren’t always what they seem. Most certainly aren’t to the extreme that either side pleads, but the truth is certainly there and can be found somewhere in the middle. While Timothy McVey was no saint, his behavior wasn’t entirely of his own making, either. He was a former soldier that distinguished himself in his military service, did the bidding of his government, then found out that he had been betrayed in the process. He fell in with the wrong crowd and took it upon himself to try to call to attention of the American people just how badly we are manipulated with propaganda each day. Oh yes, propaganda is another conspiracy theory for those unwilling to take a hard look at what passes for news and information in our own press.

We are angered by attacks on our own soil but refuse to see the past of our history that so heavily contributed to the attackers anger. We claim a right to spread democracy throughout the world, yet condemn those that would enforce their own beliefs. We give resounding speeches about the rights of human beings, yet we imprison those around us and suspend their own rights, for fear they could be right and we might indeed be the unjust ones.

There are so many contradictions in our laws and practices it could easily take years to expose every one, but one certainty remains. As long as there are those around us that understand and are angered by these obvious intrusions on our freedoms and our liberties, put forth and guaranteed by a constitution, you can be certain that from time to time, there will be those willing to throw caution to the wind and find some way to make their point of view known. McVey did that very thing and we can be certain there are plenty more where he came from.

As I was told many times while I was growing up; life is a matter of politics’ or timing and occasionally a combination of the two. We live in a time where communication is as the speed of light and the opportunity for a single person to rein havoc on certain parts of the world is very much a fact. More and more people are withdrawing from the society we know and attempting to retake control of their lives. It would take only a small step and a strong leader to pull them all together and start a second civil war in this country. If you doubt that you need only look around you. Our form of government is the oldest surviving form of government on the face of the earth. All others have been forced to change and to evolve and our own time is long over due.

It could all be reversed by the hand of a strong leader backed by an equally determined Congress & Senate that was willing to reverse so many wrongs and eliminate the double standards we have created. Keep this in mind in the coming months and when topics such as the wearing of a flag pin take precedence over why we claim democracy yet attempt to surround ourselves with fences and legal obstacles … it will be time to make your own voice heard and insist we get back to the issues, not the convenient diversions that those in power would like to use to further confuse the issues.

Good luck to all of us!