2008 is Tired and Worn Out
When I grew up, (You know, back when the dollar was backed by all the gold in Fort Knox; 90 percent of the cars on the road were American and Ford Chrysler and GM weren’t broke. Plus, The Daily Oklahoman and Amarillo Globe-News were readily available in Cimarron County.), back then, the New Year was always pictured as a swaddled infant saying good-bye to a tired and elderly old year. As this year winds down, 2008 isn’t just tired and elderly, he’s decrepit, hooked to an I.V., while riding in a wheelchair, and taking oxygen, meanwhile 2009 is fearfully being drug in kicking and screaming.
2008 has seen a troop surge that has appeared to work in Iraq and a promise of another in Afghanistan in ‘09. We’ve seen drought, hurricanes, floods, fires, blizzards, high grain prices, and higher fuel prices.We’ve seen plummeting stocks, and once proud automobile companies coming with hat in hand, saying “Hey brother can ya spare a dime?” We’ve seen arrogant CEOs who have raped their stockholders by losing billions while keeping millions for themselves.We’ve seen our nation’s currency cheapened even further by a Treasury that’s become the biggest counterfeiter in history.And we’ve seen a black man elected president of the United States.While President-Elect Obama seems to exude confidence, I’m betting he has more than a few bomber-sized butterflies circling in his gut.He’s already catching hell from his supporters since he seems to be back-pedaling from an immediate pullout in Iraq. He’s probably already figured out, we shouldn’t be there, but leaving on Jan. 21…that could be stupid.The new president, the man of “change” has already been criticized for his half-soled cabinet, left-overs from Bush and retreads from Clinton. Again, he’s probably arrived at the conclusion of…I’m new at this, I don’t need 21 others just as green and uninformed about the job as I.A new president, a man who has a different perspective of the nation and the job, will make 2009 both interesting and….fearful. But this nation has survived much and if we keep our heads, we will again. Bring it on Baby ‘09!!
