Quick Link --
The Infrastructure Law recently passed by Congress would not seem so amazing had it not taken years and years to get passed. This is to the credit of President Biden and the Democratic leadership in Congress. There is much to peruse here. All of it is hopeful, even inspiring.
Dear Reader:
With Christmas past, it seems a good time to resume posting here. I will attempt to post about twice a week, at least during this after-Christmas season.
Politics has become a contest of democratic v. anti-Democratic forces. Unfortunately, the Democratic Party doesn't seem able to frame the fight in these terms. Thus, we need everyone --including you, my reader -- to help in the fight for democracy, itself. Our task is no less.
Quickly --
Three retired United States generals have warned in not-to-be-mistaken strong terms, that the threat of a coup attempt in 2024 is real. We ignore these generals at our peril. A must-read Washington Post column. See link below.
Here we have a poem chosen not for its great art -- though it is more than acceptable -- but for its historical meaning. For here is a poem by a plumbing contractor named Reuben Anderson who gave it to Glen Edgerton, the supervisor of the White House restoration during the Truman Administration. Harry Truman liked it so much he read it aloud:
Every man's a would-be sportsman, in the dreams of his intent,
A potential ou-of-doors man when his thoughts are pleasure-bent.
But he mostly puts the idea off, for the things that must be done,
And doesn't get his outing till his outing days are gone.
So in hurry, scurry, worry, work, his living days are spent,
And he does his final camping in a low green tent.
-- As quoted by David McCullough in Truman, p. 859.
The poets have said time is like a shadow, or a swiftly flowing stream. In my case, time seems chimerical, almost disingenuous. Thus, as the nation has struggled with new variants of COVID-19, new fears in the stock market, and new anxiieties in the workplace, I have found myself caught up in the whirlwind which seems to engulf the country these days.
So, I regret the delay in posting here. In lieu of a specific topic tonight, I refer you back to the post here on the Robert Kagan article entitled "Our Constitutional Crisis Is Already Here," from several weeks ago. I will have even more to say about this matter soon.
Best wishes of the season,
The Musical Patriot
