Cancer Schmancer, as long as you feel OK...

By Joseph Walther

 

Elizabeth Edwards’s cancer has returned. She and her husband, John, announced it last week. In spite of this, they—emphasis on “they”—intend to continue John’s quest for the Democratic nomination for the Presidency of the United States. I thought it was a great decision. Then, the leading right-wing talking head, Rush Limbaugh, announced that it was political gimmickry, aimed at procuring the “sympathy” vote. Since then, I’ve heard a minority others on the right eluding to the same thing. My blood is still boiling!

 

            We are all no more than a blood test or an MRI away from receiving the same horrible news. When a physician pronounces that demoralizing word, it resonates off the eardrums, making its way to the brain for substantiation. In a split second, the word CANCER begins its tranquility-altering echo throughout every fiber of our being. The stun-effect is inexpressible. I know this from direct experience. My children know this from direct experience. As hard as it hit us, we could not begin to imagine the horror that had to be going through my wife’s mind as she heard the diagnosis.

 

            When forced to look boldly into the face of our own mortality, each of us has one of two choices. We can rationalize that death ultimately wins all of its battles, and simply decide to die. Or, we can decide to live for the rest of our lives. Yes, it’s going to suck unbelievably at times, but a decision to incorporate cancer into our life routines instead of making our living routines subservient to cancer is what gives hope and makes the situation tolerable.

 

            My wife chose the former. So did John and Elizabeth Edwards. Each day, thousands of others make the same choice. I know several people who have cancer. Some have had as many as five reoccurrences. None of them chose to wear a sign proclaiming the fact, but the public found out just the same. Massive hair loss, constant nausea, noticeable weight loss, and a seemingly perpetual loss of energy tattled on them. Most people will say nothing, but they know.

 

            John and Elizabeth Edwards aren’t looking for sympathy. They went public with the diagnosis because they are public figures. Ordinary people like us have only two chances of keeping such a thing secret from others: slim and none. High profile people like John and Elizabeth Edwards have ZERO chances. So, they took the wind out of the media’s sail by announcing it up front. Even at this, the media will continue its feeding frenzy until John and Elizabeth decide they can’t win or John takes the Presidential oath of office.

 

            This leads me to another point relative to the office of President of the United States. We seem to have fallen prey to a misconception as to what function that office serves.

 

            It is not to run the country. The United States Congress is supposed to do this, even though it hasn’t happened for a very long time. The President’s role is leadership. This hasn’t happened for a very long time, either! Rarely, though, will the media mention this. They’re going to be too busy hounding John and Elizabeth Edwards about her cancer and following the exploits of Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, Rosie O’Donnell, Donald Trump, or a cadre of other useless Hollywood swigs.

 

            I am more conservative than liberal, although my liberal streak stands out on occasion. Political labels like conservative and liberal can be devoid of party labels like Republican and Democrat. Several Democrats I know make some Republicans look like left-leaning pinko commies; just as some of my Republican friends make a handful of Democrats look like right-wing extremists.

 

            No matter, I don’t look for a presidential candidate who leans in particular direction. I look for one who demonstrates an ability to challenge us onto greatness, not only in our own collective eyes, but also in the eyes of the rest of the world. I look for a presidential candidate with the ability to bring a greater sense of aggregate self-respect to this nation. I look for a candidate with the ability to make us feel justifiably good about ourselves. We’ve had such presidents in the past.

 

            Political stance notwithstanding, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was what we needed at the time of his prominence. He was what we needed not because he was a liberal or a Democrat or an aristocrat, or a superb orator, but because he was able to convince us that we could handle anything fate threw at us. He made us believe in ourselves. Harry Truman followed suit, taking over at a time of extreme peril. We believed we could do anything on his watch because we believed in Harry.

 

            John Kennedy seemed to have had similar qualities, but we never learned for sure because an assassin cut his life short. People either loved Ronald Reagan or hated him. Politics aside, we needed him at the time he came along. He restored this nation’s lost sense of self-respect. He made us believe in ourselves again. Bill Clinton, on those occasions when he kept his penis locked behind his zipper, could feel our pain from light-years away and, like it or not, he had a charisma about him that radiated feelings of well being.

 

            These presidents had a number of attributes in common. Each was outstanding in the affective domain. Each made us believe in our collective selves. Each conducted their political battles effectively and well. Of the lot, Ronald Regan had the most to overcome, though. Each of the Democrats had a majority in Congress to help politically. Ronald Reagan didn’t. He had to fight a hostile Congress throughout his entire first term. He did it most effectively, though. His landslide reelection spoke for itself. Of course, it didn’t hurt that Fritz Mondale had the dynamics of water-soaked bread. Oh, and thank God for Geraldine Ferrara!

 

            Both diehard lefties and righties are going to send me nasty email because I’ve dared to mention Ronald Regan and Bill Clinton in a positive light. Let ‘er rip, folks. Fire away! It won’t change the fact that we’ve had precious little recently demonstrated presidential leadership outside of the ones that I’ve mentioned. It doesn’t mean the others, including George W. Bush, have been bad, stupid, or dishonest. I voted for George Bush… TWICE. What in hell was I thinking? Even so, he’s not a liar. He’s not evil incarnate. He’s just been incompetent as a United States President.

 

            None of the current crop of presidential wannabes has grabbed my attention so far. This includes both sides of the political aisle. The only one that I’ve ruled completely out, so far, is John McCain. I was in Viet Nam, too. While John is a few years my senior, he has reached the lower part of the down slope of his obsolescence curve. In terms of the leadership attributes I’ve described here, John Edwards, Joseph Biden, and Rudy Giuliani are not out of the question. Give them time, though. We shall see.

 

            Finally, where Rush Limbaugh and some of the other minor league righties are concerned, they’re not even in the same league as John Edwards when it comes to courage. In fact, in last week’s column I wrote about people we consider as “chronically unreflective.” Mr. Limbaugh fits the bill quite effectively. But, since he may not understand a term like “unreflective,” let’s stay with the technical equivalent: asshole.

 

            I’ll be back next week. Stay safe and have a great Easter if you’re of the Christian persuasion. If you’re not, have a great one, anyway. There has to be some occasion out there that we can all celebrate.

 

Joseph Walther is a freelance writer and publisher of The True Facts. Copyright laws apply to all material on this site. Send your comments. Just click here.