It was called "seppuku" by the Japanese Samurai, the act of falling upon ones sword to show contrition and shame. Through the course of human existence, there have been many variations, many words, and traditions all ending in the same place. A person wrapped in failure embracing one small bit of honor as he or she committed an act of self-sacrifice in the name of the greater good.
Perhaps the whole of the U.S. Congress should take note. Choosing to step aside and allow fresh voices from both parties to be heard. A new generation of legislators with a sense of urgency regarding matters beyond the self serving. There is certainly enough failure and there should be enough shame to justify it.
A global recession, two wars, and double-digit unemployment. Fear is incalculable, struggle a natural way of life for so many. And yet they sit on their hands. We are a nation in drought, no rains, no water, no relief, and all they do is light fires in each others villages. Bickering and scrapping, hoping to win our favor by scoring cheap points when all we care about is easing our own tortured journey.
America is not a nation of one party or two parties; their interests should not concern us. We are 300 million lights shining brightly, the majesty of an individual conquering adversity. A rich tapestry strung together by so many unique stories, so many ideas and purposes, and we are all being held down at once by a party that wishes to legislate us into roboticism and another that seeks to let us be free within the bounds of their own definition. Free to own a submachine gun but not free to marry who we wish. Free to poison yourself with tobacco but not marijuana; your body, your beliefs demanded into obsolescence and submission. The phrase "The greater good," a mallet used to bash a free man about the head.
Once I cared about the frivolity of politics, but a voice grows hoarse, and eyes can see a horror so many times before they close shut. And while the promises and proclamations grow in intensity and volume over these coming months, still just as hollow as those delivered to us last time and the time before that, we must remember that no time has demanded more, and no time has received less from our elected officials at nearly every rung of the ladder. Perhaps mass resignation is a tad fanciful but something must be done to push aside partisan bickering and prove that patriotism is more then a lapel pin, more then a slogan. But rather a religion unto itself where those who truly believe are willing to sacrifice upon its altar.
