Masquerade

[democrank]

My Oxford dictionary defines masquerade as a false show or to appear in disguise, assume a false appearance. Think of that word next time you see "Leader" Boehner standing in front of the Republican Party`s very own American flag or when you see Glenn Beck attempt to commandeer the memory of Dr. King. Think of it whenever John McCain gears up for one of his I`m-A-Maverick, I`m-Not-A-Maverick sideshows or when Alaska`s former half-governor, Sarah Palin gives a speech on never giving up. In fact, grab a dart and take a crack at a wall of random Republican names and you`re bound to hit a false appearance. Start in the "C" row, where you`ll find one of the world`s most vicious war mongers, five-time Vietnam War deferment Cheney. Then on to Vitter,Gingrich and Mayor Rudy. You`ll find them in the Family Values section.

Think about these false appearances. Most Republican "leaders" would, in a heartbeat, slash the pay for police officers, firefighters, teachers.They`d do away with Head Start and they`d be perfectly content with mine owners writing their own "mine safety" policies. They would send soldiers to war with defective equipment, buy cigars for every outsourcer and tell rape victims they must pay for their own rape kits. This is what we`re dealing with and this is why we can`t make excuses any longer. Either we stand true as a party speaking for those without a voice or we morph into Tom DeLay and Saxby Chambliss. You remember Saxby. He had a student deferment from the Vietnam War but tore Max Cleland to shreds over not being tough enough on terrorists. Max Cleland, the hero that left for Vietnam with all four limbs but came home with one.

If you take a pitcher of orange juice and dilute it with a cup of water each day, by the end of the week you`ll have to ask yourself what the hell happened to your juice. Same goes for the Democratic Party. If all of a sudden we`re okay with gays not having equal rights, okay with torturing people, okay with factories being boarded up, okay with homeless children wandering the streets looking for a place to sleep, okay with dozens of school children getting murdered in the first half of the Chicago year, okay with bread lines and unemployment lines, we might as well switch to a giant (R) after our name and go golfing with Boehner.

Actually, I think the Democratic Wing, as Howard Dean likes to call us, has given up enough. If you want to search around for proof, start with the "health care" bill or the dead silence surrounding Bush and Cheney`s war crimes or the still-intact DADT policy. This "winning" at all costs doesn`t appeal to me any more.