Responding to Ms. Bonner and Mr. Powell

Responding to Ms. Bonner and Mr. Powell
Burt Prelutsky
Monday, June 01, 2009

In recent days, my attention was grabbed by former Secretary of State Colin Powell and Yelena Bonner, the widow of Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov.

The one I applaud is the former Mrs. Sakharov. In a speech delivered in Norway, she pointed out that the Palestinians are still being referred to as refugees even though only a tiny percentage of them have ever even set foot in Israel. According to my dictionary, and I assume Ms. Bonner’s, a refugee is someone who has fled from violence and wars. How on earth can the grandchildren and great-grandchildren of those who left Israel in order to avoid being killed or injured by the invading Arab forces in 1948, 61 long years ago, be regarded as refugees?

It reminds me of American blacks who, 45 years after passage of the Civil Rights Act, continue to benefit from various programs such as Affirmative Action and Operation Head Start. Is there no such thing as a statute of limitations, no point at which commonsense kicks in and people are permitted to say, “Enough is enough,” without being branded a villain?

Ms. Bonner pointed out that while every do-gooder group in the world seems to be concerned about the comfort level of Islamic terrorists at Gitmo, armed combatants who aren’t even covered by the Geneva Conventions because they don’t wear uniforms, carry a flag or even fight for a specific nation, nobody outside of Israel seems the least bit concerned about Gilad Schalit, the Israeli soldier who was abducted three years ago by Hamas. She’s right, of course. Our politicians don’t care, the U.N. doesn’t care, and God knows all those left-wing ACLU lawyers who are lined up eager to defend Islamic terrorists, up to and including Osama bin Laden, should he ever be captured, sure don’t give a damn.

That brings me to Colin Powell. For reasons I can’t begin to imagine, he has taken umbrage at Dick Cheney and Rush Limbaugh for suggesting he’s not a Republican. Frankly, I’m shocked that he continues to insist he is one. I, for one, began doubting it years ago, when, as Secretary of State, he publicly opposed George Bush over the invasion of Iraq. When, in 2008, he timed his endorsement of Barack Obama to do the most damage to John McCain’s campaign, I naturally assumed Mr. Powell had finally gotten around to changing his registration. After all, if you can’t support McCain, who was about as close to being a Democrat as a GOP candidate could be, what Republican could Mr. Powell get behind? Abe Lincoln?

I keep asking myself why, after supporting the most left-wing presidential candidate since Henry Wallace, the man would insist on calling himself a Republican. Frankly, I’m stumped, but, human nature being what it is, it must obviously work to his benefit.

Well, at my age, I need every possible edge I can get. Therefore, I am now announcing that I’m a Democrat. Understand, I am opposed to the bail-outs and to the monstrous debt Obama is running up. I am opposed to the feds taking over car companies, banks and lending institutions, and determining executive salaries. I am opposed to Barack Obama’s cavalier attitude towards Iran’s nuclear program; his kowtowing to Arab princes, ACORN and the UAW; his activities on behalf of Harry Reid’s re-election campaign; his endorsement of a paramilitary organization that appears to be patterned on earlier models created by Hitler and Mussolini; and to his search for a “compassionate” Supreme Court justice. I am also opposed to his bringing Cuban-style health care to the U.S., and I am opposed to the mind-boggling inflation that his profligate spending will inevitably bring to bear on all taxpayers, not just those super rich Americans he kept targeting, Che Guevara fashion, during his campaign.

What’s more, I’m not too crazy about a guy who names the family dog after his own initials. I am curious, though, considering that Bo was a gift from Ted Kennedy, whether he drinks from a bowl or a bottle.

Finally, at the risk of sounding boastful, I’d like to say that I’m the best kind of Democrat. I’m the kind who votes for Republicans.

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