THE PARADOX OF PATRIOTIC OPPOSITION

The model citizen of any republic is the most ardently patriotic one. And more importantly, the paragon leader of a republic is supposed to be patriotic all the time, not sometimes. The selfless leader of a republic must set good example to the citizenzry but showing selfless, remarkable patriotism. However, as ideal and proper and necessary as it is for citizens, particularly leaders to be patriotic, unquestioned patriotism is difficult in practice. Given the chance, everybody pay lip service to being patriotic or pledge to be patriotic when the difficult issue comes.

According to my own Machiavellian postulation, it is easier for incumbent politicians to be patriotic that is is for members of the opposition. When you have the power, you want everything to go well for your nation for the good of all and more importantly for the good of your relection propects. And wishing your country well is a mark of patriotism. When you don't have power, you want the incumbent to fail. The only way for the opposition to gain power is for the incumbent to fail. Unfortunately, if the incumbent fails, the country goes down with him. So wishing the incumbent to fail is wishing for your country's fail, and that's unpatriotic. In effect, incumbents are patriotic, opposition leaders are not. This is a cold, calculating, machevellian rule of politics; it is an unspoken truth.

Most Democrats did not wish wish George W. Bush well; they wanted him to fail. Dems could wait for Bush to fail in Iraq, and for a good reason. If the Iraq war had gone well, Republicans could have easily ridden that euphoria to a third straight presidential election victory. And would be talking President John McCain, not President Barack Hussein Obama. So whilst it was unpatriotic for Democrats to wish their country lose a war, it was politically expedient. Patriotism means putting country first but attaining political power requires putting self first before country.

So why did Rush Limbaugh take so much heat for saying he wants Obama to fail. Limbaugh's mistake saying out loud an apostasy everybody in the opposition commits in their heart. Democrats are no different from Rush; they wanted Bush to fail.