I saw the movie “Lincoln” this weekend. Wow, what acting. More so, wow, what courage! I can’t imagine what our Country would be like if it were not for the passing of the 13th Amendment.
My wife says I liked it because I’m a history buff. I think I liked it because it made me proud to be an American. Our leaders saw injustice and acted.
I cry at every Civil War battlefield I visit. I weep at their mention. I cry at the loss of life. I cry that the struggle to do ‘right’ cost so many so much. I cry and yet am thankful and proud that the conclusion was the moral and right one.
Don’t we all want to be proud of America? Would any of us try to justify slavery today?
It took a Civil War to change our culture.
Is what happened at Sandy Hook, Ct make you proud to be an American?
What can be done to change our culture of violence, guns and death?
President Obama rightly said; “our hearts are broken”. What’s broken is more than our hearts. A system that allows assault rifles to be in the hands of anyone other than soldiers or law enforcement officials is broken.
Courage is what Abraham Lincoln and our Congress had. One can only hope that our leaders can summon up the same type of courage and conviction to move beyond partisan politics and deal with this latest tragedy so it can never happen again.
I grieve with Newtown as a parent, a grandparent, an American and a human being.
Michael
