Catafalques and Black Crepe
No one can accuse us of being slow out of the gate. In fact, it's sometimes alarming that we exercise such haste in trotting out the funereal accoutrements. Last time it was this bad was last fall, in the hours following the first debate.
To be sure, there is great concern about how Social Security will be dealt with, especially for those of us for whom that monthly check is the only income. And we would have to be certifiably insane to believe that the likes of Boehner, McConnell, Ryan or Cantor would ever EVER give serious consideration to what is really in the best interest of seniors and the disabled. Not one of them has any history that would suggest such inclination. None.
In contrast, we have a President with a considerable track record in working to the benefit of whole communities prior to his first involvement in politics. Since gaining the White House, his signature on the Lily Ledbetter Act was only the first of many doors opened that would have remained securely closed had his opponent(s) been elected. Ask the parents of kids with pre-existing conditions. Ask the members of the LBGQT community. Ask the children of immigrants. Even so, exactly how many times have we just known beyond doubt that he was going to cave?
Is the man perfect? Hell, no. Is he as Spock-ish as we are wont to see him? Again, no. If anything, he seems to be as normally foibled as the rest of us. And, if I'm going to be completely honest, if I've felt myself lulled into some false sense of security, I'm the one who's done the lulling, not him. Nor can I convince myself, even a little, that he's brought us this far just to yank the rug out. He may be no better than me, but I have absolutely no problem in acknowledging that he's a hell of a lot smarter. As to his chess abilities, I have no idea, not my game. But I've played a bit of poker in my day, and if there's ever been anyone I wouldn't want to sit across a poker table from, he's it.
So, I'll watch and wait. Petitions have been signed, phone calls have been made, letters have been written. But while I'm watching and waiting I'll do so without the sackcloth and ashes. I'm allowed to keep them in the box at the very back of the closet, because I'm the fat lady who hasn't yet sung.
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