Well, the State of the Union address is on and President Bush is taking the podium.
It causes me to remember that for the last number of years because of pastoral meetings, I have been in Chicago for this yearly address.
I was in Chicago for a two week class at North Park the year Mr. Bush laid the groundwork for his invasion of Iraq. It was interesting to me the next morning as I woke up listening to talk radio, then later on when I got on the El train, the talk was all abuzz about how we needed to get into Iraq.
Even downtown that was the buzz. We couldn't waste time, let's get over there. President Bush laid the case, now we have a responsibility to move.
I remember being amazed by such a noticeable shift in the spirit of the day. The previous few days had seen no strong clear sense of it. Now, after a speech and a nights rest, America seemed ready to go to war.
As an observer freshly landed on American soil, I found the shift to be quite dramatic. No subtlety at all. ?We? were going to war. The more time I spent in the city the more I heard that line. We must go, because to stay would be morally wrong.
Of course the years have produced a different reality, and a strained support of President Bush. But that was an education for me. How a speech from a motivated leader, had the power to shift the mood, the talk, the spirit of a city, and probably a nation.
And I realized all the more just how much we need to be praying for our countries, and our countries leaders, whatever their stripe.
I totally agree. In recent years, perhaps most significantly since 9/11, I have chosen to become more aware of the world around me. Keeping an eye on the news, politics, and how big "initiatives" have developed into compltely different than exected results has really changed my view of things and made me understand a little bit better how the world works.
ReplyDeleteI have to admit..I don't get Americans love of speeches. It seems like leaders can spew all kinds of crud that will never come to pass, but if it's done in a speech packed with loaded words and propoganda, everyone believes it. It just seems like smoke and mirrors to make true intent or agendas politically accepted.
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