Thankful for Thomas Jefferson's Trust
Among other lessons, Thomas Jefferson taught that future leaders should trust the good judgment and common sense of the American people. He thought those qualities were the rudder that would keep the ship of state on its proper course. Of course he presumed our good judgment and common sense were underwritten by a press protected by the First Amendment that would do its job of informing the people about their public business and by elected officials committed to honesty and candor.
In the period between the spring of 2002 and sometime within the past year or so, some of us lost confidence in the good judgment and common sense of the American people when a majority re-elected a president who had either made a huge mistake in trusting massively faulty intelligence or had purposely and consciously misled us. For the first time in my life I began to question Jefferson's assurances and to fear that we were in the process of becoming a fundamentally different country.
But, true to his admonition, a very large majority of Americans have now passed judgment, good judgment, on this president and are demonstrating common sense in concluding we have been led badly off course at home and abroad.
This Thanksgiving Day, among many, many blessings, I am most grateful for the restoration of American good judgment and common sense. This gratitude is qualified only by the thought that it has taken more than 30,000 American casualties to restore our true character and by the sober realization that the Democratic party now must demonstrate courage and conviction in designing a better course for America.
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As always, your posts are informed, insightful, and articulate. I disagree with you on two points, however.
I believe the American people did not lose that innate wisdom Jefferson trusted in 2002 and beyond, so much as they were misled by a press that failed to inform.
We had a NYT that withheld critical information on a criminal act by the president and his administration until after the election; acted as a cheerleader in the runnup to war; and burried stories questioning the administration's veracity.
The Washington Post did the same. The excelent reporting of Walter Pincus was burried deep in the A section, while the administration's false assertions were given front page treatment. Much of the media -- with the exception of the Knight-ridder chain followed suit.
The other part of your post I profoundly disagree with is this -- there is absolutely no chance this President made a "massive mistake" and trusted bad intelligence. The historical record is clear on this, as were the reporting of Knight-Ridder, the BBC, and much of the German and French press -- this President manufactured intelligence; pressured the intellignce community to come up with supporting narratives; intentionally mislead congress and the american people, and failed to do due dilligence on any supporting data that the IT uncoverd.
He even created a new intelligence body within the Pentagon -- the OSP - when the CIA and the DIA discredited curveball in a DITSUM in February, 2002.
Please, Senator Hart, don't give credence to the notion that this President was mislead -- he mislead us.
One final thought. He was able to do it not only becuse the media failed to do its job, but also because the Democrats behaved as abject cowards and did not do theirs.
Gary, Gary, Gary...Jef
Get the numbers from the V.A. notout in the bushes-over one million American wounded then add seventy-thousand American dead in the gulf.
And as far as the American people -we have been steadfast in our bravery and righteousness and it is the self serving cowardly politicians that have been loosing their caviar-and
Jefferson also thought civil disobedience was a form of loyalty under the right circumstances. If our leaders are not behaving well, we need to rattle their cage every once in a while.
What nonsense. To hold out hope that the coming election offers a major change in direction is to sell snake oil.
The criminal occupation of Iraq will continue no matter which party resides in the White Housw.
The Federal budget will have little room for anything but military expenditures and interest on the debt. Infrastructure and social programs will continue to shrivel.
The dollar will continue to plummet and recession will deepen into a 1930s magnitude depression.
And, we can expect more feel-good, light-at-t
Though your message of hope has no basis in reality, lacks substance and vision, it probably was well-intended.
Enjoy your Thanksgiving, Gary.
I still have a wait and see attitude to see who people vote for in the upcoming election.
Will women be embarrassed in supporting another woman for president. Perhaps, Hillary being an advocate for women and children since law school isn't enough and they'll pick out one thing they have against her they don't like.
Whoever the democratic candidate may be, it is entirely plausable they will be swift-boated again as people are easily manipulated by the press. They might think a thug like Rudy may keep us safer even though we may see wars breaking out all over the world due to his not being at all familiar with foreign policy.
I find it difficult to believe people have changed so quickly---it may take another generation.
"I am... for freedom of the press, and against all violations of the Constitution to silence by force and not by reason the complaints or criticisms, just or unjust, of our citizens against the conduct of their agents." --Thomas Jefferson to Elbridge Gerry, 1799. ME 10:78
So GARY Please do NOT Disgrace the name of Thomas Jefferson by acting like he would support the " Fairness Doctrine". Its censorship plain and simple. Government should have no say in the content of our media . Hugo Chavez would be proud of you. Now I remember why I didn't want you to be President.
John Kerry was on Senate Intelligence. He fell for the same faulty intel.
>I am most grateful for the restoration of American good judgment and common sense.<
I wish I could agree that good judgment and common sense have been restored; though some Americans may have awakened to the fact that they've been duped into supporting the agenda of a madman, I'm afraid that far too many are still too easily manipulated by lies and/or driven by fear. What else could explain the front-running positions of hawks in both parties?
Thank goodness for the 20th Amendment ... which prevents the wisdom of the American people from making the same mistake more than twice.
What is all this about being thankful for Thomas Jefferson's lust?
It just goes to show that If its not one thing then its another. First we know about the Constitution and his slaves, and so why should we be thankful for his lust? Shouldn't that be his business? Its not like he was sleeping all over the country, nor was he the father of our country, exactly. He wrote all those letters and left us his books, so why be thankful, oh, I see
its trust. Oh well, I have typed all this and its too late. it just goes to show you, some days you don't know who to trust. Nevermind.
Correct me if I am wrong about this, but I heard once that Thomas Jefferson, thought that the Senate should elect the President, from the field of current sitting State Governors? And that Senators would never be eligible to be president unless they were to retire from the Senate and get elected to a State Governorship.
This makes a Lot of Sense to me on several levels, considering the amount of time and money to run a Presidential Campaign these days,and especially how devisive the whole process has become among the citizenry. As it is right now, the people are split basically down to a 50/50 ratio of Democrats and Republicans, so regardless of who is elected, half of the country harbors ill feelings towards the other half.
A Governor already has the Administrative Experience to operate as the Chief Executive, unlike Congressmen & women, or Judges.
The Election process could be condensed down to 30 days or so to do vetting and to do Polling as to who would be the Most effective President based on their accomplishments in the State they Governed, and not on stupid childish question about Boxers ro Briefs.
And all of the Grumps and sadsacks who must make a big fuss out of every misconceived slight that a candidate might say or do, will just have to find something else to be Miserable about, and hopefully they will just drive their own family members crazy with their inanities.
Simply put, if anyone here believes that by Electing any of these current Crop of Candidates will change anything in their Personal Lives, is Greatly Mistaken!
They are just two different faces of the Same Damn Coin!
Let us hope that the disasters inflicted upon us by the GOP will never be repeated.
In the meantime, what can be done to improve the fourth estate?
What is all this about Thomas Jefferson's lust?
It just goes to show you, if its not one thing it is another.
First we hear about the Constitution and our freedoms and then we hear about these slaves, and so we are thinking about his lust and ....
its trust? oh well, nevermind !
Thank you Gary Hart for your words of wisdom and your vote of confidence in America and Americans!
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