A Tale of Two Camps - Chris 'Preach' Smith

What Joe Wilson of South Carolina did with his interruption of President
Obama was illustrate one vital point that should linger in the minds of many in
this country...civility and honest debate, values we love to flaunt as purely
American traits, have been shoved out of sight like dirty magazines under a
young man's bed. For that to happen was unprecedented, but it may have
reason to be expected given that healthcare reform has raised a firestorm
across the nation and showcased absolute ugliness from some people in this
country.

Which brings up a question...where the HELL was all of this 'patriotic and
righteous indignation' for the past eight years? Whenever I turn on the TV
and see some of these people, I get angry. Mainly because their anger
and confusion is not only misdirected, but manipulated to the point that
they resort to outlandish statements and posters. I would have never
thought I'd see the day that a black man could be compared to Adolf Hitler.
Skinheads and Aryan separtist groups must be scratching their heads at
that one. But that is what Obama is being called all because a certain
politician who couldn't tell a news journalist what she liked to read makes
a statement that his healthcare proposal contained 'death panels' when
it clearly doesn't. And it is reckless vitriol by clueless, power hungry
politicians and puffed-up media pundits who add fuel to the flames.

I would have never thought I'd see the day that a black
man could be compared to Adolf Hitler.

Charles Dickens' "A Tale of Two Cities" comes to mind whenever I see
news coverage of the town hall meetings and protesters and view
people like Brit Hume and Glenn Beck. There's a cautionary element
in the novel that Dickens illustrated that is two-fold. the aristocracy
must take great pains to not sow injustice among the masses or it
will reap their anger and contribute to their downfall. But Dickens also
shows no sympathy towards the poor in the novel when they become
a mad mob intent on rampant punishment. It may behoove us to
re-read Dickens because we're getting that mob mentality delivered
to us on our television sets and our chatrooms. When people feel
the need to attack the President over a speaking to schoolchildren,
it is a classic sign that there are people whose brains have been
switched to autopilot. We need more people willing to stand up
and say, 'Have you no sense of decency, at long last?' to people
who will not entertain sense and reason when debating these and
all topics vital to every American.

It worked with Joseph McCarthy.