Friday, March 22, 2013

Happy 100th Birthday, Richard Nixon

Friday, March 22nd, 2012




My Dear America:

Last Saturday, March 15th, I was in my living room playing Remote Roulette trying desperately to find something interesting to watch on Television.  As I flipped through the channels suddenly I saw one of the C Span channels that caught my eye.  The C Span logo for the program that I found was "Happy 100th Birthday, Richard Nixon" or something akin to that.  The broadcast was initially recorded in January according to information on the screen and the Richard Nixon birthday party was taking place at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C..

Here I was, merely days after virtually attending the Common Cause sponsored "Lessons of Watergate" Conference Online, which reminded me not only how wrong things went during the "Watergate Scandal" but how after changes had been put in place to prevent abuses similar to Watergate, those changes had over time been watered down or done away with altogether.

In my opinion Richard Nixon was certainly one of the worst Presidents we have ever had, if not the worst.  Now here was this bizarre televised tribute to Nixon in a packed ballroom with lots of applause for Pat Buchanon who seemed to go on forever extolling the virtues of his former boss.  Following Buchanan was a barely literate Henry Kissinger also finding wonderful things to say about Tricky Dick.  A few moments of Kissinger was all I could stand and I looked for something else to watch, something less disturbing and weird.

I can't get it out of my mind, though, how it was even possible to get this many people together to sing the praises of Nixon at what was surely an expensive dinner and celebration, yet the turnout for the "Lessons of Watergate" was far fewer people and I am sure cost less to attend in person.

When Richard Nixon is being idolized anywhere in America something has gone terribly wrong.  I thank C Span  however for showing those of us who remember the criminal activity of the Nixon Administration that incredibly weird things are occurring in our country even outside of the House of Representatives.



Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher

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