Opinion:

I Changed My Mind About That Political Thing...

Let's say--theoretically, of course--that your country is run by the dregs of society. Dregs who look out for number one, and don't actually give a fig about you and me. Dregs who waste our hard-earned money every chance they get, and spend most of their time and energy ensuring they get re-elected every 2, 4, or 6 years (as the case may be).

Now let's say some court decision is made...I don't know...giving them the right to take away the home your grandfather built. The home your father grew up in, and the home your dear, sweet, apple pie-baking grandmother lives in. She lives on a tight budget, but still manages to spoil her grandchildren when they come to visit her. Every 4th of July the whole family gathers at Grandma's house for a barbecue dinner after the parade. The flag waves on the flagpole your grandfather put up after your uncle died in Vietnam.

But one year, the government comes along and tells your grandmother to pack her things. Her house is standing in the way of progress. A company worth billions of dollars needs to build their new headquarters in the very spot your dad buried his pet dog when he was 12 years old. They can't build 20 miles away on the land a farmer is trying to sell because he can't make a living on his farm. Nope, they need Grandma's house.

Your grandmother packs her things, takes the market value settlement, and tries to find a new home for herself. Of course, it's hard to find an equivalent home, because her house was 50 years old and most new homes cost much more. So Grandma settles into a small apartment in a senior living community. Her grandkids can't visit as much, because there just isn't the room. Plus some of the seniors don't care for the noise kids make.

On the day the bulldozers move in to tear the old house down, your cousin puts a flag on Grandpa's flagpole and sets it on fire. It's his small way of protesting against a government that would rip an old lady out of her home...some old men and women in black robes let it happen...some politicians let it happen. No one stopped it. So the flag of the country burns in silent protest. And your cousin is arrested for it.

Fair, huh?