Shining

Peggy Noonan puts it in beautiful perspective: come the next attack and necessary evacuations, "An elderly conservative congresswoman will be unable to make it down those big old Capitol steps, and a young liberal congressman will come by and pick her up in his arms and carry her. (I witnessed a moment somewhat like this during a Capitol alarm two years ago, when we were told to run for our lives.)"

How lovely an image. How moving. Such gallantry. If only the world were like this, where the strong help the weak. And in the act, they come closer to each other. They might even come to love one another, in that instant where what is best in the human spirit shines out.

There are enemies, and there are decent people who are just wrong-headed. Both of these can get us killed, but only one wants us dead. For that other group, benign in its intentions, we must have hope. Someday we will be old, should we live so long, and we might crave for some young strong man to come up along side us and aid us in our frailty and weariness. As we, in our strength, must do for them.

It's only politics. It's only about money. It's just about a certain level of comfort and convenience. We had a revolution about such things, but that may have been an over-reaction. Good things can come from over reacting. But that will be the exception.

I fall in love easily. I love that young liberal anonymous congressman. He buys himself a lot of tolerance, with such actions as we've just heard. In such moments when the soul becomes the body, we are reminded of the greatness of this land. Of course it's a human thing, not just an American thing, but we nurture it here -- this taking responsibility for the welfare of others. It is a good and great thing, to see humanity as part of your family.

"We can be serious, and humane," says Ms. Noonan. "We can realize that we're all in this together and owe each other an assumption of good faith." So there it is. Nancy Pelosi seems to be a horrid person, to me. Dangerous, irresponsible, and vile in her rhetoric. But look what I did in my Who Are These People? I would sweep her off her feet, though, with my long strong arms and carry her to safety or drop with fatigue in the effort.

We don't need to be loved, to do what is right.



J