As we all know, today is the 7 year anniversary of the September 11th attacks. John McCain and Barack Obama put aside their differences for a day and came together to remember 9/11. They met at the site of the Twin Towers, shook hands, and walked around the site together talking calmly. There were no large conventions or fans screaming, it was just a peaceful memorial service.
I'm glad that there are still things that everyone agrees on. It sucks that it took such a terrible event to bring everyone together, but at least something good came out of it. There aren't very many things that can unite a country like that.
I would say that I wish that the parties could unite like this all of the time, but honestly I don't think it would be such a good idea. If the parties behaved this kindly towards each other all the time it would be great, but I wouldn't like to see them agreeing on everything. Democracy is based on the concept that many different opinions and ideas coming together will be able to create a better outcome in the long run. A little more cooperation here and there would be nice, but it's good that the opinions of the country differ so greatly most of the time.
2 comments:
Often during election years, patriotism is used as a tool or method of gaining support. McCain, being a POW, has utilized this angle more than Obama, but both are about uniting a country that is experiencing societal, economic, and political hardship. This anniversary is not only a significant part of the election process, but it plays a significant role in american society as well. We can slow down and reflect on how we got to this point. For one day we are not democrats and republicans we are Americans and citizens of the world. The election, for the first time in months, is not center stage. It is refreshing, but i am still curious how remembering 9/11 will effect voters.
I agree that it's great how we can finally put the election aside for a short moment and remind ourselves that we are all Americans, regardless of where we stand in the political spectrum. It truly is unfortunate that it takes tragedies of such magnitude to bring the members of our nation closer together. Hurricane Katrina can be another example of this in which it required a large scale disaster to unify the nation. Hopefully hurricane Ike, which seems to be heading towards Texas, won't result in another large-scale tragedy for our nation to mourn.
Post a Comment