Is McCarthyism Dead? Maybe Not

Yesterday, while waiting patiently at a "big box" to get some tweaking done on my new computer I was approached by a man who first tried to blatantly flatter me then resorted to humor to engage me in conversation. I resisted but did eventually, out of sheer boredom, finally get sucked in. Within the next two minutes he said, "I can't believe we are about to elect a Marxist (code word "commie") to the Presidency of the United States. This after he had told me how he gets out of speeding tickets by telling the officer he is a former Navy vet, and that his mortgage is not jeopardized so he didn't really care about anyone else's plight. Wow, Mr., I'm just waiting on the Geeks to fix my computer.

As there is one political party in our country that seems to attract such belligerent propaganda junkies,I was certain that he was just your plain vanilla racist who had learned a big word. I've learned not to assume anything, and I wanted him to show his hand after such an inflammatory remark. Sure enough, he was talking about Obama. I wanted to stay stone faced and say something appropriate, but the reflex of laughter just poured out of me. It was like the polarity of the jerk magnet had been suddenly reversed, and to my great pleasure he disappeared across the room faster than a speeding bullet. Today is a good day to think about outcomes, to cherish our home planet Earth, and to have compassion for ourselves and others. Take heart, be creative and no matter what your political or religious proclivities are, rejoice in the many gifts we receive.

(c) 2008 - Ruth Mitchell - all rights reserved