Urban Thought Collective

Dear John McCain,

Why are you doing this to us?

Is it because Bush and his Rove-led pit bulls treated you like an outsider during your past campaigns? Is it because they made you feel like rotted smelly fish, un-worthy of all the years of service you have given to the U.S. Senate as its self proclaimed “maverick?” Even before I was of voting age I had heard of you. You seemed like a principled guy. Now, you are saying anything you have to say to win favor with any group you are talking to. I understand that is a huge part of politics. However, to watch you renege on just about every idea, policy and core value that you so strongly believed in makes me sad for you. It seems like when you get to be your age, you have the right to your thoughts and to hell with the party line.

Why have you surrounded yourself with young punks as advisors and spokespeople, who could care less about your legacy, only about putting one in the win column for their resumes? These jokers could give a damn about loyalty or honor. They are men-children who seek only to glorify themselves by any means. You are being used, my friend.

As the economy gets its ass kicked and the image of America goes further and further into the proverbial toilet, you allowed these fools to talk you into selecting Sarah Palin as your right hand woman. You have proven your desperation with this a hazardous and careless decision. Don’t you care that this country will be the laughing stock of the U.N. conferences? Do you care that the crucial bridge re-building that must be done with our former allies cannot possibly be taken seriously with Palin in the room? Are you telling me with a straight, grizzled face that with the ship sinking and a lifetime of repair to be done, this was your best option to leave us with? You said you cared about us! You said that you loved nothing more than serving the people! WTF, John?

Hey, I dig moms. I can watch a lil’ hockey. But who the hell is this woman? Heaven forbid something happens to you, sir. I in no way wish you harm. But, you can’t be serious. You can’t be sleeping well at night or any part of the day knowing that if you croak, our potential leader is about as experienced to govern this nation as I am at running in a touchdown. You are playing with our very lives here. Love of country? More like love of self. This is one of the biggest shows of ego I have ever witnessed. You are more than 20 years into senior citizenry. You are a former POW. You not only survived that bravely, but you are also blessed to be a cancer survivor. Doesn’t wisdom come with any of that?

Speaking of bravery, let’s talk about that. You are the son and grandson of seasoned military men. The idea of struggling is not exactly something you are intimate with. Every step was laid out for you before you were born. That very fact is what made you such a high value target for your captors in Vietnam. Of course, I applaud and admire your sacrifice. However, there were hundreds of other POW’s bunking with you in that hell hole, too. Are they also eligible for what is the most demanding career in the entire world? For me, bravery is a black man that dared to run for the presidency, and, which the nomination clinched, wakes up each day and stands among thousands with a potential assassins bullet marking his every step. As you may know, this great country of ours has a habit of martyring its trailblazers. Even with your ailments and age, history tells us that your opponent is more likely to die on his way to the soda machine than you are of old age. Cold, hard truths, my friend.

Schools are failing, and not just in the big cities. What about little Emma Mae in rural Mississippi who has never even been on the internet, much less knows what Google is? What is your plan to modernize rural America? More war? How can we even begin to compete for the jobs of the future when the average 12 year old can’t point out their own state on a map?

Have you forgotten that country is made up of actual living, breathing people? All kinds of people. Not just the choir you preach to, but all kinds of cultures, ethnicities, orientations and religious beliefs. It is what makes us strong and special. You cannot simply govern the folks that you agree with. I may not be a member of your party, but if you become President, you represent me all the same.

So again I ask, why are you doing this to us?

Ellene Miles has worked as an entertainment publicist for more than 6 years. Her collections of rants are featured exclusively on UTC for the good of the people.