Hotel Vegas
Confessions of a Crank
RECEIVED Thu., Oct. 17, 2013
Dear Editor,
Now I know that cranks are made, not born. From being a relatively self-possessed person, I have devolved into a reactionary who calls the offices of public servants and screams at whoever answers the phone and is willing to listen. I am paranoid and nurse a healthy persecution complex. In short, I have become just like one of "them" – the maladjusted, hysterical, fear-based, "right-wing nut jobs." I am currently fighting through our system of politics. I have been warned about this: If a person gives in to hate, they are liable to become that which is the object of their scorn and contempt. I am afraid it is already happening to me. Why? Because it is like I am having to wage a heroic civil rights struggle in my community simply for the horrific crime of loving, respecting, and supporting my president and my government; because I seek to defend them from enemies foreign and domestic – and lately those enemies have been more domestic than foreign. So here is my sincere public confession and apology: If I have yelled at you, accused you, stereotyped you, or attacked you verbally on social media I seek your forgiveness. On the other hand, that does not mean I have given up the fight. Urbanites have no clue what it is like out here in the hinterland where the "Do Not Tread" flags flap in the breeze. But I digress. The fight we have on our hands is urgent, deadly, and crucial not just for the future of Texas but for the future of this nation. Once again we as Americans have to decide what kind of people we are. So you think you are immune? Come visit me a while, you'll see!
Now I know that cranks are made, not born. From being a relatively self-possessed person, I have devolved into a reactionary who calls the offices of public servants and screams at whoever answers the phone and is willing to listen. I am paranoid and nurse a healthy persecution complex. In short, I have become just like one of "them" – the maladjusted, hysterical, fear-based, "right-wing nut jobs." I am currently fighting through our system of politics. I have been warned about this: If a person gives in to hate, they are liable to become that which is the object of their scorn and contempt. I am afraid it is already happening to me. Why? Because it is like I am having to wage a heroic civil rights struggle in my community simply for the horrific crime of loving, respecting, and supporting my president and my government; because I seek to defend them from enemies foreign and domestic – and lately those enemies have been more domestic than foreign. So here is my sincere public confession and apology: If I have yelled at you, accused you, stereotyped you, or attacked you verbally on social media I seek your forgiveness. On the other hand, that does not mean I have given up the fight. Urbanites have no clue what it is like out here in the hinterland where the "Do Not Tread" flags flap in the breeze. But I digress. The fight we have on our hands is urgent, deadly, and crucial not just for the future of Texas but for the future of this nation. Once again we as Americans have to decide what kind of people we are. So you think you are immune? Come visit me a while, you'll see!
Katherine Edmiston
