Sunday, January 29, 2006

Saving Our Constitution

I just wrote the following message to Senator John Thune (R) of South Dakota. I know it is a hopeless cause, but it's better than doing nothing at all:

Dear Senator Thune,

Like you, I am a South Dakotan. I graduated from Lyman High School in 1979. You and I are from a generation and a state that prides itself on its philosophy of individual rights and freedoms. We believe in less government, not more. I know that deep down you are more of a South Dakotan than you are a loyal member of an agenda-driven political party. You have a chance to make history (and a very big name for yourself) by taking a very principled stand and protecting our Constitution, rather than voting for a person, Samuel Alito, whose record undeniably shows that he has ruled against individual rights 85 percent of the time.

Many conservative South Dakotans are so caught up in overturning Roe v. Wade that they are blind to the much greater dangers posed by Alito. That said, a survey in South Dakota shows that its citizens are evenly split between pro-choice and pro-life; therefore, as far as abortion goes, you are going to offend half the population of South Dakota, no matter what you do. So abortion is a non-issue in this particular matter. In fact, it is nothing more than a distraction.

Please tell me that you value our Constitution and our future as a nation (a nation that proudly does its best to "err" on the side of freedom every time in judicial matters) more than you value your temporary spot in the United States Senate. Millions of Americans have put their lives on the line in order to protect our Constitution from foreign threats. Surely, the very least you could do is put your senate seat on the line in order to protect it from an insidious domestic threat. You took an oath to do that very thing.

If you do not, this nation will feel the effects of your decision long after you have left office, maybe for all time. Almost certainly your children and grandchildren will not grow up with the same freedoms that we did. Are you willing to risk those freedoms for temporary political benefit? You have a chance to take a stand for something unbelievably important, instead of quietly towing a party line for a president who is clearly not pursuing the greater good for our nation (you must surely see that, as I do, since we were raised practically next door to one another). Far more South Dakotans agree with me than you may realize. Make them proud. They are more deserving of your representation than are those who have a particular agenda. Take a stand that will surely get you noticed (and even admired) around the world. Shock our mainstream media out of their six-year slumber. They will beat down your door to get interviews with you. When they ask baited questions, you answer bluntly. Don't mince words. The strength of your convictions will be far more impressive to their millions of viewers than will a comparatively anonymous party-line vote for a dangerous Supreme Court nominee.

In conclusion, let me repeat: You are a South Dakotan. I want to have faith in you, regardless of party affiliation (party affiliation is tearing this nation apart). I want to continue to brag to my Nebraska friends about the enlightened citizens of South Dakota, as I have for thirty years now (off and on, as I have moved back and forth between here and "home").

Thank you.

P.S. I think you may be unaware of the vast grassroots anti-Alito movement that has been building in this nation over the weekend. Believe me. It is definitely a bipartisan movement. Even the ultra-conservative John Birch Society has sided overwhelmingly against President Bush.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Welfl,
Ohhh I feel that groundswell rising against Alito. I Am Scared. You dems really really scare me. Yeah, I can just see the drop off in tourism your boycott would produce. How many of your blue state snobs ride Harleys or visit Mt. Rushmore? Typical empty headed leftie reasoning.

Yeah, I'm scared. Scarewd that you idiots would ever have power again in this country.
MM

MJW said...

MM, I replied to your Alito comments in a new blog entry.

As for the typical Harley riders who visit Sturgis, you would be amazed at how many of them are doctors, lawyers, accountants, teachers (lots of teachers), etc., who simply dress up to fit the part for one week every August. I grew up on Interstate 90 in South Dakota. I saw those people passing by in the hundreds of thousands. I am personally acquainted with lots of people who go to the rally every year. I know lots of people who know lots of people who go to the rally every year. Most of the people who go are unassuming, seemingly dull neighbors and friends who look forward to becoming someone else for a few days. I can almost guarantee you that the vast majority of those people cannot be characterized as mostly republicans or mostly democrats. A person's politics (and certainly his or her position on abortion) has absolutely nothing to do with his or her desire to go to Sturgis. As for the vast majority of "regular" tourists, they are certainly not mostly republicans or mostly democrats either.

That said, no, I don't expect the tourism trade to diminish to a trickle, as I suggested; although we both might be a bit surprised to see it drop a little (the majority of Americans are pro-choice, whether you like it or not). I was just extremely angry when I wrote the boycott comment and soon wished I hadn't written it. I have spent much of the past thirty years bragging to my out-of-state friends just how wonderful South Dakota is. I truly love South Dakota. Always have and always will. Those Dark-Ages, agenda-driven politicians hijacked my state while I wasn't looking and thoroughly embarrassed me and gave South Dakota an infamy it doesn't deserve (half of all South Dakotans, including my most conservative friends, are pro-choice). Such infamy could live on for decades if the Supreme Court acts on their law and overturns Roe v. Wade.