Patriotism: Where Art Thou?

While President Bush was in office, if anyone accused him of having misguided policies, the "patriotic" Republican conservatives called his accusers unpatriotic at best and traitors at worst. Today, those same conservatives are in essence doing the same thing to President Obama as the Democrats were accused of doing to President Bush. Of course now the shoe is on the other foot so to speak. And the great "patriots" are now the unpatriotic and traitorous? Not according to them.

In the days of Rome, the god, Janus, had two faces. I wonder if some of these conservatives worship at his alter. It offends my sensibilities as a citizen of a country that elects our leaders in a democratic society that some who say they believe in this type of government do not respect the office of the President of the United States now as they said others should have before the election.

How is it that this self same attitude was held libelous when others seemed to disrespect their elected President, but now the conservatives themselves are exempt from the slurs they hurl so easily at their democrat opponents. Not that I feel it is unseemly to disagree with the politics of any given elected official. That is our right as Americans. But to belittle the President of the United States because we do not agree with his policies strikes me as not only small minded and disrespectful but also childish. To be fair in this matter, I realize that some democrats did the same to President Bush. I was not one of them. I strongly disagreed with many of the Bush foreign policies, but kept my respect for President Bush. It is the right of the American people, nay, the obligation of the American people if a President's policies run counter to their ideology or their moral understanding to run and elect a candidate who reflects their views. Not to belittle the sitting President.

Having said that, it seems to me that the hard line conservatives are acting a bit more like cry babies who have not gotten their own way then American adults. If they find President Obama's policies distasteful, let them nominate the better candidate in the election. As it is, the American people have made their choice in this election and the hard line conservatives should respect America's choice for the next four years. They do not need to fly a flag with President Obama's picture on it outside of their door. But they should continue to wave the American flag as they did under President Bush. I am not a proponent of the "My country: Right of wrong" political view. However, I feel that our flag did not change under either administration. In other words, I believe that the patriots are those who love America and respect it's lawfully elected leaders regardless of the party or policies.

God Bless America!