The Discerning Texan

If only Thomas Sowell were running for President instead of the lame cast we have today. Talk about healing wounds and putting the politics of race behind us:

Many years ago, a great hitter named Paul Waner was nearing the end of his long career. He entered a ballgame with 2,999 hits — one hit away from the 3,000-hit landmark — which so many hitters want to reach, but which relatively few actually do reach.

Waner hit a ball that the fielder did not handle cleanly but the official scorer called it a hit, making it Waner’s 3,000th. Paul Waner then sent word to the official scorer that he did not want that questionable hit to be the one that put him over the top.

The official scorer reversed himself and called it an error. Later Paul Waner got a clean hit for number 3,000.

What reminded me of this is the great fervor that many seem to feel over the prospect of the first black president of the United States.

No doubt it is only a matter of time before there is a black president, just as it was only a matter of time before Paul Waner got his 3,000th hit. The issue is whether we want to reach that landmark so badly that we are willing to overlook how questionably that landmark is reached.

Paul Waner had too much pride to accept a scratch hit. Choosing a president of the United States is a lot more momentous than a baseball record. We the voters need to have far more concern about who we put in that office that holds the destiny of a nation and of generations yet unborn.

There is no reason why someone as arrogant, foolishly clever, and ultimately dangerous as Barack Obama should become president — especially not at a time when the threat of international terrorists with nuclear weapons looms over 300 million Americans.

Many people seem to regard elections as occasions for venting emotions, like cheering for your favorite team or choosing a homecoming queen.

The three leading candidates for their party’s nomination are being discussed in terms of their demographics — race, sex, and age — as if that is what the job is about.

One of the painful aspects of studying great catastrophes of the past is discovering how many times people were preoccupied with trivialities when they were teetering on the edge of doom. The demographics of the presidency are far less important than the momentous weight of responsibility that office carries.

Just the power to nominate federal judges to trial courts and appellate courts across the country, including the Supreme Court, can have an enormous impact for decades to come. There is no point feeling outraged by things done by federal judges, if you vote on the basis of emotion for those who appoint them.

Read it all--and then think about how sad it all is: here we have a man--a man so utterly worthy and deserving of our respect that words really aren't adequate. Here we have a true elder statesman, untarnished by the pretense of politics. Here we have someone who really could--in a perfect world--heal the great black-white rift; or more accurately, he would dispel the myth that there still is a great black-white rift. Why can't we elevate people like this to positions of importance? How is it that men we hold in high esteem like Sowell remain in the shadows, while pretenders--very dangerous pretenders--like Obama occupy center stage?

This world is not a just place; but it isn't because of racism--it is because of our sheer stupidity.