I can feel the gloom settle over the Kos, like a blanket of snow. Another defeat. Was this unexpected? I saw it coming, so most of you surely did as well. That does not make it any easier however. It is wrong to despair though. We have made great strides towards our goals in the last six months. I will continue to say it, for my benefit as well as yours; it is wrong to despair.
Listen and you can hear them telling us. Christ, Buddha, Mother Theresa, Molly Ivins, Samuel Gompers, Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., Lao Tzu, Tolkein, Churchill, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, please add to the list in the comments any person who has fought against despair and defeat their whole lives.
Yes, we have suffered a set back with the passage of the "New and Improved" FISA bill. Acknowledge and own this fact. It is wrong to crawl into a morass of defeat, lie there crying, and deny any possibility of a good tomorrow. As my girl Scarlett said, "After all, tomorrow is another day." Get angry, cry for now if you have to, but it is wrong to despair while hope remains. There is hope, we just have to look for it. Those of us who have sunk into despair let me help you. Go play with your children, or grandchildren. Get away from the television. Bake, read, tend your gardens, clean your houses, remember those who have gone before. Remember those who have fought in this life, and encourage us from where ever they may be now. What would they say to you? Those whom I remember tell me over and and over that no matter what the circumstances are, it is wrong to despair. While I have breath I can argue, call my reps, sing the praises of progressivism over conservatism. While I have strength I can protest, dance, love and be loved. This does not defeat me, or our movement. It is merely a street sign telling me how far we still need to go.
Let me say it again: it is wrong to despair. Remeber that poem
"When the funds are low and the debts are high,
When you want to smile but have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest if you must, but don't you quit."
I'm not trying to be pollyanna, I don't have on rose colored glasses. I know we have a long row to hoe. It's going to be difficult, and we will suffer more setbacks. We can't let setbacks stop us. We must become reinvigorated, not lethargic with defeat. We can move forward from here, I know we can. Who's with me?