Regime change is tricky business; Nixon knew it, Reagan knew it, George H.W. Bush apparently knew it, but I wonder if his son knows it? With the ceremony surrounding the passing of PoTUS v.40 we are looking back at the ultimate in regime change, even if only partially inspired by us. The contrasts seem many to me, even if the comparisons run deep on television. A reader of this forum chimed in on remarks from yesterday that perhaps armies aren't the way to accomplish a shift in government - the captors cannot force the captives to agree. Huh. Maybe instead of regime change in Iraq we ought to change regimes here and retool. Just like Kosmo when he finds the Merv Griffin set in the dumpster, only different.
I watched with some sadness and some national pride last night during the ceremonies on Constitution Avenue and in the Capitol Rotunda, but the high point for me was when Richard Cheney (current VPoTUS, potentially corrupt as the day is long but too smart to get caught?) spoke. I hadn't heard him speak before, but he seemed to capture the appropriate demeanor, to take an air of reflection without the aggrandizing bellowing of the figures who preceeded him to the dais. I talked shop with Mom and Dad, too, which means that the dominos which figured so prominently a few short months ago are now in their final pre-toppling sequence.
Thursday, June 10, 2004