On my own terms

Reading the newspaper on a Sunday morning isn't usually an uplifting experience for me. It might be invigorating. It might be mentally stimulating. Rarely, though, do I come away feeling inspired. Today was a little different. The Philadelphia Inquirer had an article about Arlen Specter. Senator Specter has come under a great deal of fire in his career, as I'm sure we're all aware. There have been times when I haven't agreed with his position. That didn't include me wanting to scream, "Are you kidding me?" at Senator Specter. Ok, outside my incredulity at the magic bullet theory, but he was young and I am a bit jaded.

There were segments of today's article that did bring out the "Are you kidding me?" trait in me but none of those feelings were directed at anything that Senator Specter did. Rather, it was at the belief system of adults that makes it seem sane to expect Senator Specter to vote the same way as his "party" on subjects as diverse as tax cuts and escalated torture. In what way, and in what world, would a group of people expect that someone's opinion would match theirs consistently in areas that diverse? Or, is the expectation that you supress your own belief system in loyalty to a the thoughts designed by an organization? If the expectation is to become part of the "political Borg", then how can we ever hope that our representatives can represent our interests, and maintain their own integrity, unless we also join the "Borg"? Many thanks to Gene Rodenberry and his associate writers for developing something as bizarre as the Borg to make it possible for me to clearly describe the insanity of this practice.

That encapsulates the negative portion of the substantial article about Senator Specter. The article was aptly entitled, "A Survivor on His Own Terms". Something in that struck a chord in me. Reminding me of the strength, not the insanity, of Don Quixote in Man of LaMancha as he sings, "...to be willing to march into hell, for a heavenly cause". This seems to be a quality that has been lost in America. I recall that, during the period leading up to our invasion of Iraq, I questioned what the government was doing and why. I felt strongly that we were being intentionally misled. People with whom I had been friends for years, people who respected me, told me that I wasn't a patriot. They told me that my loyalty had to be with our government. I suspect they assumed that the government would act only in the best interest of our citizens. However, if being part of the Borg is admired in our government, how can we possibly believe them capable of acting in our best interest? At best, its a partisan crapshoot. At worst, their need for unquestioning loyalty subverts our best interest.

Arlen Specter is unwilling to stop thinking as an individual and following the direction that his independent thought takes him. That is to be admired. It is to be applauded. When his name came up in articles in the past, I would find myself approving of what he had to say even if I didn't agree with him. Today, those feelings went a step further. I suddenly have a much deeper respect for Senator Specter and would love the opportunity to sit with him and discuss some things with him. More importantly, I feel that he would fairly consider what I have to say without asking for my political affiliation. He has recently been lambasted for changing political parties. I don't think he changed political parties so much as he walked away from a party in which he was clearly going to be blocked from continuing participation in government. His desire to be a participating member in the US government, in an effort to effect change, was stronger than his political alliances. He wasn't disloyal to the Republican party. They were disloyal to the American standard of independent thought and tolerance.

Here is a phrase that I think summarizes Arlen Specter, "Koolaid? No thanks! I think I'll pass!" Not being much of a Koolaid fan myself, I have to respect that! "Senator Specter, may I get you a martini with an olive or a glass of ice water?" I wouldn't mind being considered a survivor on my own terms. Hats off to Senator Specter!