Posted by
C. L. Palmer on Thursday, September 04, 2008 5:41:26 PM
If you are one of the unfortunate few who are unfamiliar with this allegory, allow me to sum it up for you:
An Arab merchant is travelling across the desert on his camel. He notices that a sandstorm is coming, so he quickly pitches his tent and shelters beneath it, leaving his thickly-furred camel outside as the tent is barely large enough for one. As the storm rages, the camel sticks its nose inside the flap. The merchant thinks, "How can I deny him this? It must surely be difficult to breath out there in the storm."
A few minutes later, the camel puts its entire head in the tent. The merchant doesn't object, as he understands that the sand must surely sting the eyes and ears of the poor beast. A few minutes later, the camel puts its neck inside as well. This, too, is allowed. Later, the camel's front two feet make their way into the tent. By this time, the merchant has curled himself into a ball to make room for the camel. He is quite uncomfortable, but knows that it would take a lot of effort to make the camel back out. He decides just to live with it.
By the time the storm is over, the camel is completely inside the tent. The merchant lies buried in sand outside.
Fellow conservatives, we are the merchants here. The "big tent" of the Republican Party is making many of us feel uncomfortable. The nomination of John McCain was like the camel inserting its feet into the tent. Now we, the true backbone of the party, find ourselves having to curl up and endure. Face it: We have lost control of our own party.
Now we are faced with a Faustian dilemma if ever there were one. Do we simply go with the flow, and accept irrelevance in the future of the Republican power structure? Or, do we stay home in November and allow a rabid socialist to run the country? Neither option is particularly attractive. I am the last person to say that we ought to elect Obama. McCain is certainly the lesser of the two evils with which we are presented. Just for that, he has my vote. Why? Not voting is voting for Obama. I can't do that. But part of me, a big part of me, wants to see Obama win. Perhaps, as Poe described it, I've fallen victim to "The Imp of the Perverse." Maybe, seeing us contemplating the view from the precipice, part of me is simply tempted to take a flying leap. I don't believe that's it, though. I have faith in the average American. We've been Slouching Towards Gomorrah for so long that few would notice the few steps McCain would take us in that direction. Obama, on the other hand, has some shock value. I have enough faith in America to believe that once we see what liberals really want to accomplish, the pendulum will finally start to swing in the right direction, which is the Right direction.
Best case scenario, for America? McCain wins, Palin governs, and yes, I know that's a horrible thought. I am ashamed already for thinking it. But... am I wrong?