By Garen Yegparian
I used to wonder if the rabid conservatives could really be as petty–miserly–and cowardly as they seemed. It just didn’t seem humanly possible. But a recent passing interaction in the snack shop at work makes it seem more probable that there truly can exist human beings who are so small of spirit.
But I’m getting ahead of myself. Here’s what happened.
As I was buying a muffin–I noticed the young employee had taped a small US flag to his shirt. When asked why it was on upside-down–he said it just happened that way. I remarked that he was likely to get hassled by some people over that inversion–whereupon another customer chimed in with something to the effect of the impropriety of inverting the flag. Then the same guy added–"He probably also voted for Kerry."
Of course–I told him–I had too and we exchanged words. But it wasn’t substantive–just accusatory–not much more than derogatory name calling. As I walked back to my desk–it struck me.
This skinny–weaselly looking guy had been in the snack shop before me–seen the inverted flag–but was afraid to say anything until he thought he had an all–me–who would back him up. He hadn’t the courage to speak up until he was part of a perceived majority–the typical approach of bullies and Turks everywhere. They’re ferocious tigers when outnumbering or obviously better situated than their foes. But the minute their opponents show resistance–they run off like frightened–skittish kittens.
This accounts for the policies and politics of the Bush regime’s cabal of wannabe tyran’s. Every heartless–ill-conceived–and societally destructive proposal emanating from these people has a small constituency of mean people who have been assembled by extraordinarily gifted organizers. All these small groups–from hate-spewers to the super-rich to the narrow-minded-religious-fanatics to the chest-thumping-war-mongers–would never have dared be as bold and brazen as they now are in advocating restoration and implementation of approaches–mindsets–and policies that demonstrated their ineffectiveness and abject failure in the 19th century!
Let’s work on providing the ego support these pathetic creatures need so they don’t feel compelled to go about destroying everyone’s quality of life.
