Dear Santa——

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The National Rifle Association yesterday did just what a responsible lobby would do, it advocated for increased sales of its members’ products. The NRA solution to the increasing number of slaughters of innocent people in public places by mentally disturbed individuals is to place armed policemen everywhere an incident might occur. The net result will be some kind of armed police state resembling scenes out of Blade Runner or 1984. This will increase weapons sales greatly, and no doubt lead to future arms escalation as these peacekeepers find they need more and better machine guns and other artillery to keep up with criminals buying on the internet and at weapons shows. They also blamed violent forms of entertainment and treatment of the mentally ill, but were blind to their own contribution.

Senator Margaret Chase Smith

Senator Joseph McCarthy

Meanwhile Congressional members of the Republican party are at home being feted this holiday season by their contributors, getting further instruction for the next session of Congress from their supporters. We can only wonder at this point who that is. And whether they have a firm grip on reality. Increasingly the GOP seems to be splitting into two factions: what’s left of the traditional base of the party, and the increasingly powerful far-right element who are guided by face-based beliefs that seem to originate in some parallel universe. As we saw during the last election, a fair number of moderate Republicans have been driven into the Independent column and out of the general discussions.

Looking back over our 238 year history, it is hard to find a time when such a small group exercised powerful control over one party. The nearest example might be in the McCarthy Era after World War II, when many members of Congress, Republicans especially, were afraid to challenge the wild claims about Communists for fear of being labelled one themselves. It took finally Eisenhower and a few courageous GOP supporters like Margaret Chase Smith to stand up and take on the flaky element.

We need such people now. The Republican Party desperately needs such people now. Where are they?

Judge Joseph Welch

It’s not too late for a letter to Santa. Among the more personal things, I-Pads and video games and coffee makers, please ask for a Republican of reason and courage who might stand up like Judge Joseph Welch did many years ago and take on the loonies who are crippling this country and tearing it apart. How long must we wait for reason and decency to prevail?

Tom Godfrey

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