“We are a nation of laws. Not men.” -John Adams
I was mostly shielding myself from it when it went down yesterday. But now that the smoke has cleared a little, I am left here just shaking my head. I wish we had real leaders to take charge of this country, calm everybody down, and help us heal. Because we certainly didn’t see any true leadership yesterday, apart from Vice President Mike Pence, who would not be intimidated by Trump asking him to oppose the certification of the Electoral College votes. That took balls. Kudos to you, Mr. Vice President.
I did not recognize what I saw yesterday as America. In rough times like these, I yearn for the America of my childhood. The pre-9/11 America I grew up in. We weren’t this tense and anxious every day as a country, people respectfully agreed to disagree, and then went about their business. I recognized this as comfortable and normal at less than 10 years old at the time. Yet here we are 20 years later, watching idiots enter the Capitol Building, and proceeding to bust out windows, start fires and destroy things. All because their candidate lost. Sound familiar?
I know many people feel that the election was stolen. Guess what? We would’ve had the same exact complaint had things gone the other way. Guaranteed. But what we wouldn’t have had in either case, was a peaceful transition of power, or respect for the office. No matter our feelings on Trump and Pence or Biden and Harris, I believe where we start healing our nation, is to develop the ability to respect and revere the office, no matter who occupies it.
I want our country to one day learn this respect. And I want us to choose worthy candidates. I want us to get to a point as a country where if a candidate they don’t like wins, that most people would be like, “I didn’t vote for them, but I can see they clearly love this country, and I will support them until they give me a reason not to.”
And even if I ended up not supporting the candidate who won, I wouldn’t actively wish for them to fail. I would simply ride things out, and then vote them out once I got the opportunity to do so. But I absolutely would NEVER participate in what happened yesterday. Those who entered the Capitol Building call themselves Patriots. But they are nothing but thugs and cowards, just as those who rioted this past summer are thugs and cowards.
I am sure everyone reading this has a different definition to what constitutes a true American Patriot. But here are some key signs to me that someone is a true Patriot:
- Their love for America never wavers, in spite of who is in power. They can differentiate between the country and her government.
- They can name the four rights guaranteed by the First Amendment, and see when those rights are being abused, like they were by the rioters yesterday.
- They respect and honor our national symbols, and respect the office of the President of the United States as well.
- They recognize the difference between truly patriotic dissent used to accomplish some goal, and anarchy. For example, things like the Civil Rights Movement and Boston Tea Party were patriotic dissent. While the events leading up to the Boston Massacre, riots after the murder of George Floyd, and what happened yesterday, are all examples of anarchy.
- They sincerely hope for the survival and betterment of this country, no matter who is in power. Anyone who hopes for the people in power to fail are hoping for the country to fall apart. People who either wish for America to fall apart, or who actively try to weaken this country are traitors in my eyes. No matter if they are citizens or politicians.
I realize that last point might seem radical or harsh to some. But I make that point to shake people awake. We view things so much through the spectrum of Liberal vs. Conservative, or Left vs. Right. When we view things this way, we see “our side” as infallible, and the side we oppose as evil personified. This has to stop! There are truly good people who voted for Trump. Just as there are truly good people who voted for Biden.
But what neither side sees are those in their party who actively work to tear this country down for either party agendas or personal wealth. Very few are clean. There are evil people in DC folks. They’re both Democrats and Republicans who masquerade as public servants. But it’s going to take true Patriots from both sides of the aisle who deeply love this country to get us back on track. And I know they’re out there somewhere.
As Joe Biden’s Inauguration approaches on January 20th, I sincerely hope and pray for peace. And if he truly loves America, I pray that he will succeed for the betterment of this nation and all of us. In the meantime, I encourage you to be the exact opposite of what the rioters were showing yesterday. Love your country, your friends who think differently than you do, and keep the faith in God. He has guided America through rough times since 1776. And I am confident He will do the same here! 🙂
Luke's Thoughts 