The Speech After the Tragedy

After listening to President Obama's speech in Arizona, it seems clear he is the best communicator to hold the office since FDR. He spoke to all of us while speaking to the families. The speech was powerful, placing no blame and motivating us toward healing. Most moving was his call to make our country the country the little girl, Christine, envisioned. While his shortcomings are adversely impacting his Presidency, to date his major speeches are not among them.

It now appears the President's political minions stupidly co-opted  the memorial as a political rally by handing out T-shirts!  This is despicable and heads should roll.  I only hope the President was not party to this travesty.

Further, I found the cheering and applause to be rude and disrespectful to bereaved family members and those attending to pay respect to the victims.  Never before had I heard applause and cheers after the reading of Paul's letter to the Corinthians.  We must attribute the behavior to the fact that the event was held in a college venue and the young people in attendance had not the depth of emotion to understand the vulgarity of these demonstrations.  

Since I happened to be tuned to CBS, an interview with members of Congress followed. Their answers were shallow and self serving, regardless of party affiliation. They wreaked of fear and self-pity. One Congressman's attempt to equate a madman with the terrible bigotry of the past was feeble and denigrating to both issues. Yet another Member pitifully related the impact of this tragedy on her children. All members jumped at the opportunity to rationalize distancing themselves from their constituents.

The best leaders are those that lead from the front. It sickens me to hear legislators refer to themselves as public servants. They don't get paid like servants. They aren't treated like servants. They are not servants, but leaders, and should behave as such.

While it is imperative that the violence be prevented, we must also remember that American politics has always been vitriolic and violent. Alexander Hamilton died from wounds inflicted by a former Vice President. Andrew Jackson's temper was legendary. He was a violent man. Abraham Lincoln is said to have made a speech while a state legislator in which he ridiculed a political opponent so viciously as to reduce the man to tears even as he sat in the state house. Lincoln, in turn, was the victim of the most vicious attacks, and, of course, assassination. Franklin Roosevelt was denounced as a Communist by many. McCarthy was a snake of a man, destroying many good people in his quest for greatness. Martin Luther King appealed to many because offered an alternative to violence when cities were burning.

The day President Kennedy died, I, a Catholic boy, sat in a public school room. I was dumbfounded when a classmate stood up after the teacher left the room in tears and shouted, "They got that Catholic sonofabitch!" As a child, he must have learned that hate at home.

We are a violent people.

People have strong feelings about the role of government. Often, they interpret the methods of our Founding Fathers incorrectly to justify a violent dissent. Others are simply predisposed to violence as a solution. Still others are just plain crazy.

The tragedy itself was the result of failure. A young man with a severe illness self-medicated with drugs and alcohol. To date, we do not know what, if any, attempts his family made to seek treatment for him. Once a person reaches his or her mid teens, there is really little control a parent can exert on a mentally ill child. Although the signs were there, no one else, including law enforcement and educators, chose to address his illness. That in no way excuses alleged his actions or exonerates him.

We need a comprehensive health care system to include mental health care. The recent health care reform is a first feeble step. We must eradicate illegal drugs and drug dealers. Personally, an alcohol free country would be a better country, as well. That is why we must join the President in making this a better country.

The President used this tragedy as an opportunity for a call to greatness. Let us strive for that greatness.