Allen Supporter Puts Blind Partisan Anger Before America and the Troops

By: phriendlyjaime
Published On: 11/15/2006 2:17:42 PM

From Style Weekly:

Blind Elephants - In the wake of Sen. George AllenGÇÖs defeat, the party of conservatives starts the healing process.
by Scott Bass

Had the election turned out differently, perhaps the party would have been livelier. As the Virginia Conservative Action PAC ends its annual convention downtown Nov. 11 GÇö planned well before the Democrats took over GÇö all the streamers, lights, giant speakers and television screens muster little enthusiasm.

Mostly there is somber disappointment GÇö and anger.

"IGÇÖll always remember November 7, 2006," spews a purse-lipped Rhonda Winfielda, Stuarts Draft mother whose son died in Iraq. "We have been attacked on our own soil. [The Democrats] have declared war on patriotism and the America I believe in.

"November 7 now will forever be a day, for me, when I lost my country," she says.

Let me be perfectly clear for those readers that will undoubtedly accuse me of lambasting people who have lost a child (or children) in this bloody, illegal, and atrocious war brought on by the Republican party in which Rhonda Winfield herself is a member and supporter.
I bear no ill will towards Rhonda Winfield.  Like any other American, she is entitled to free speech and her own opinion.  I also bear no ill will towards Cindy Sheehan, though I do not agree with her actions nor all of her stances.  To me, Rhonda Winfield is the Cindy Sheehan of the right, and I think BOTH of them do more to politicize this war and polarize Americans than anyone in Congress.

Now, for the past 6 years, I have had to listen to one caller after another on Washington Journal (C-Span morning call-in show) whine about the "evil and unpatriotic Democrats" and their unwillingness to work with and support President Bush.  I have heard people gleefully express that being part of the majority party means that others have to "fall in line" with their views.  I have been called a communist, a pinko, a hippy liberal waste, a freedom hater, an America hater, a troop hater, and much more.  I let it go.  I knew that I was part of a minority party that was free to complain, bitch, moan, cry, scream, and lament the fact that my voice would not be heard, because "working together" with the Bush controlled Republican party meant falling in line with their RULES.

I believe that the new Democratic majority has made it BEYOND perfectly clear that they are looking forward to uniting the country as opposed to dividing it.  I believe that when the majority of the country feels that the war needs to be closely examined and ended as soon as possible, the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches of government owe it to their constituents to govern the way THE MAJORITY sees fit.  I believe that this is a time for healing, and I believe that we can do so if we all work together.

Rhonda Winfield, like Cindy Sheehan, put herself on the front line of war politicization when she a) wrote a book catering to the right wing's stance on Iraq and b) became former Senator George Allen's sidekick; dare I go so far as to call her a prop.  She appeared at many events with him and for him, and she even went so far as to allow former Senator George Allen to appeal to voters in the last Virginia Senate debate by using her name and pointing her out to the crowd.  Now, I have no idea whether or not she was there, but I still believe the move was calculating and polarizing, and begging for sympathy votes.

Need I remind anyone that Senator-elect Jim Webb (D-VA) flat out refused to use his son for political gains?  I think not.  Need I remind anyone that Senator-elect Jim Webb (D-VA) is a war hero who came out against this war before anyone else?  I think not.  And need I remind anyone that the weekend before the election, 4 major news sources that are read by all branches of the military urged America to vote AGAINST the Bush controlled Republican agenda?

I THINK NOT.

So, today I am calling on ALL partisan Republicans to accept the FACT that the Democratic party is now in the majority, and that we have pledged to work together with ALL members of Congress in order to move our country forward and to again rise to be the great country we know that we are.  Please, for the sake of our troops and our international well-being, leave your partisan anger at the door and start supporting America as an AMERICAN, not a Republican.

Comments



I realize that this is a controversial diary. (phriendlyjaime - 11/15/2006 2:23:37 PM)
Some people believe that Cindy Sheehan is fabulous, some people think that family members of the troops are off limits, and some just think it is useless to give the Allenites any attention whatsoever.  But I think, based on her angry and "purse-lipped" spew of an answer, we need to point out that while some of us are trying to do good for the country and the troops, others are lamenting the fact that the do-nothing Republicans are now out of control.


MADD (seveneasypeaces - 11/16/2006 6:43:50 PM)
If she believes that her son died for his country then he died for the right for this election to have happened the way that it did.  If Cindy thinks that her son died for corporations then she has the right to have the opportunity for the election to go as it did.

Many of us know what they really died for:
http://www.wtc7.net/



Oh please, (Catzmaw - 11/16/2006 9:03:57 PM)
not that 9/11 conspiracy crap again.  Next thing you'll be telling me it wasn't a plane that hit the Pentagon because one of the eyewitnesses commented that "it was like a missile going in".  Never mind that hundreds of other witnesses say they saw the plane.


Scratch (seveneasypeaces - 11/16/2006 9:33:11 PM)
Nice try at explaining why THREE overly reinforced steel buildings came down at free fall speed.  Talk about crap.

http://www.wtc7.net



C-SPAN2 on Friday and Saturday (seveneasypeaces - 11/22/2006 7:07:20 PM)
http://www.booktv.or...

911 and the American Empire

Prof. David Ray Griffin

Retired CIA Ray McGovern

are some of the presenters



I lost my country in 2000 -- and again in 2004 (charcoal - 11/16/2006 6:14:24 PM)
In 2000 I could not believe that America elected an idiot to the White House (ok, call it a supreme court appointment, but the fact is that the election was way too close). In 2004 I was incredulous that America could re-elect incurious George. At that point, with Iraq already spinning out of control and the Repugnant ham-fisting taking place in Congress, I really felt like I lost my country. And what did right-wingers do? Gloat, brag, and claim ownership of patriotism. Remember how they told us to go ahead and move to Canada if we didn't like it "their" way?

Now that I feel like it is possible to get my country back (we are not there yet -- we have to see if Pelosi can pull off her 100 hours plan and set the agenda), I want to extend the olive branch. I want the Dems to show their leadership skills, not their brute-force power. 

America (and Virginia) is not red or blue -- it is purple. No one is a better American than anyone else because of their political party. It all comes down to positive change.

If right-wingers want to continue to cry and blame everything on Clinton; if Repugs in Congress want to try to become roadblocks and use the filibuster (oh my -- just give us an up or down vote!); if Bush wants to all of a sudden find his veto pen; then maybe we will have to crush them unmercilously. But first, I'd like to give them the chance to act like adults and Americans.



If Bush (Gordie - 11/18/2006 12:34:43 AM)
wants to find his veto pen, then maybe we will have to crush them. But first I want to give them a chance to act like adults and Americans.

Thank you, that is one of the best 2 sentences I have read so far. As Christ said "turn the other cheek". What he never said was "watch out if you slap the other cheek". He left that open for ones own interputation.

The second 100 days will tell the story.