We are awake- and we are persisting...

So I've come to some conclusions during my hour long (or just under) peregrination to Lake Loretta (twice around) and back: The current occupant of the White House is making America Great Again! Just not exactly how he planned it. I'm really encouraged by the persistence ("She persisted") of the sane, rational people who live in, respect, and love this country.

The Sunday morning pundit shows have missed this boat by a mile- calling the protesters "the left" and saying that the Democratic Party is committing political suicide by turning "to the left." Since when is it "left" to abhor the politics of hate, fear, and bigotry? Since when is it "progressive" or "liberal" to want a government that will actually work for the people of the country, and not actively try to divide them? Since when is it "radical" to want to live in a country that honors the words on the Statue of Liberty, and remembers the famous phrase of Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." No, none of these things are "leftist," "progressive" (Franklin uttered those words in 1755!), or liberal. They are American- the soul of our country. They are what every flag waving, lapel pin wearing, uber patriot of the right claims to cherish and honor- especially on national holidays. They are what our troops were allegedly fighting for (even when they weren't fighting for our freedom, only our free access to oil lanes in the Persian Gulf).

So no, right wing nut cases who are delusional, angry, defensive, misguided, or just plain bigots and racists. You don't own the flag or the guiding principles of this country, this United States of America. The people who have finally awakened (some of whom apparently were under the impression that Obamacare and The Affordable Care Act were two different things- they were all for repealing the former and keeping the latter) are finally understanding what those of us who have paid attention throughout realized long ago: elections do matter. Not voting for the lesser of two evils (in this case, Ms. Clinton, whom I do not admire and fervently wish had not won the nomination in 2016- I would much have preferred Elizabeth Warren or Bernie Sanders or Martin O'Malley) is actually voting for the greatest evil- and for the greatest harm to our country.

Back in 2000 too many people said that both major parties were the same, and that who got elected didn't matter. And many of them voted for Ralph Nader. Way too many (but not the plurality) voted for Bush. But that election did matter: the election of 2000 cost over 4,000 Americans and about a million Iraqis their lives, and spawned ISIS (no matter what the Dumpster Fire in the White House claimed during the campaign- the fact is that without the ill conceived invasion of Iraq in 2003, there would be no ISIS in 2017). It also took a $160 billion annual surplus (largest in history) and turned our economy into a Ponzi scheme that crashed in 2007 and 2008, costing thousands of Americans their homes, almost spawning a new Great Depression-- rescued on the brink by bi-partisan (!) bills to inject government money into the economy.

So yes, America is going to be great again. But we'll find out how long that will actually take in 2018 and again in 2020. I hope it isn't longer than four years. I'm going to lose patience.