POWIP Piece of Work In Progress – Former Abode of Dan Collins

On the 100th anniversary of Ronald Reagan’s birth

Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!

I plan to raise my glass and offer a toast to that great man who, in time, may be ranked among the greatest Presidents of the 20th century.  Sure, the cold war technically ended on Bush 41's watch, but that effect was caused by his predecessors policies.  And while much is often made of Mr. Clinton's seemingly magical touch, vis-a-vis the economy and the days of "high cotton" our nation enjoyed while he was in office-at least until the "dot-com" bubble burst that is, none of that would have been possible if the cold war had still been in full swing.  Reagan was a great man, who's good humor and optimism brought is together, by and large, when times were tough, and who inspired many to serve-and here I'm definitely speaking for myself.

It's amusing, this many years later, how so many people who openly reviled and vilified the man while he was alive, today instead sing praise of him and demonstratively lament, "Why, oh why can't these WINGNUTS! be more like Reagan?!?!?".  Even our current President isn't immune from this disingenuous behavior, and despite the fact that in his auobiographies he speaks of Reagan contemptuously; of late he has been trying to fashion himself in the public's eye as some kind of latter day Reagan.  Where 2 years ago we saw magazing covers with Obama as FDR, today we see them with the President embracing Reagan.  And the MBM (make-believe-media) has been working hard in order to exploit every opportunity to refer to something Obama has done or said as being "Reagan-esque".  That is a preposterous, patently absurd, assertion.  No matter how many films he watches or books he reads on the great man, Obama, nor indeed any lefty, could ever really be "Reagan-esque".

What do you think he'd say about Obamacare?

That's because Reagan had the courage of his core convictions; he believed what he said.  He spoke openly of his plans for our nation, of how he was working to achieve his vision, instead of trying to mask a socialistic agenda as some kind of center-right plan to restore America to her rightful place as Obama is doing; of course, what is being left unsaid is that her "rightful place" will only be achieved after she is taken down a few notches.  Reagan metaphorically referred to America as a shining city upon a hill, while Obama and the progressive left believe that the America Reagan was speaking about was inherently flawed, evil, and responsible for all of the worlds ills, failings, and travails.  What they truly admire is the high regard and respect that the majority of Americans had for Mr. Reagan, and that he could rely on the courage of his convictions and strength of his ideas and arguments to lead Americans in the direction he thought the country needed to go.  They admire that popularity, and the ability of this "teflon-President" to weather all criticism.

No matter how studiously Obama or the progressive left imitate Reagan, they will never be able to be like him.  That's because to them, Reaganism is a certain pose to be modeled, a scene to be played, "optics" to be achieved, a tone to be struck, another phony affectation that can be mastered.  They don't understand that it was based on a belief in the nation our founders envisioned, not in a revulsion at some "old" document written by a bunch of white guys; a love for America as she was, and not conditional on what she would become after an Obamian transformation; that a rising tide lifts all boats, instead of being wedded to the mistaken idea that the economy was some sort of zero-sum game; and an idea that our best days as a nation still lie ahead of us, instead of a conviction that we needed to consume less, enjoy less prosperity, and take up a more "equitable" place amongst the nations of the world.  Obama can never be Reagan, nor Reagan-esque, because he and his allies on the socialist, progressive, left simply don't see the world the same way, believe the same things, or share the same ideas, that Ronald Reagan did.  So they should give up the act already, because their poor attempts at assuming what they see as the proper posture are as hideous as a bad impersonation by a crummy night-club comic.

So on what would be Ronald Reagan's 100th birthday I offer my prayers; that he is enjoying the warmth of eternity in God's loving embrace, for his surviving family here on earth, and for us all.

May God bless us all, and may He continue to bless the United States of America.

Rocketman

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