This is a story about George W. Bush, and it's about character. No, it's not about serving in the Texas Air National Guard. This happened long before that.
George Bush spent his childhood years in Midland, Texas, before moving with his family to another Texas city. And, there's a fellow who grew up with him in Midland who tells a very interesting story from those early days.
They were both elementary students at the same school, and in those days the kids spent recess outside on the playground. The kids were free to do just about anything they wanted so long as they didn't leave the playground, and it was a chance for the teachers to chat with one another. A lot of things went on out there that the teachers never knew about. And, the incident I'm about to relay is something that happened one day on the playground at Sam Houston Elementary School.
Pete Hogue is the fellow who tells the story, and he was a nonathletic skinny little kid, just the type of kid that a bully might like to pick on. And sure enough, on that particular day there was a bully on the playground looking for someone to pick on. He picked out Pete and started whipping up on him without any provocation. He knocked Pete to the ground and was just whaling away on him. Then suddenly it stopped. George Bush was standing over them; he grabbed the bully and pulled him off of Pete saying "that's enough!"
Well, that ended the fight. And to hear that skinny kid tell it - he's now a grown adult - he was sore for weeks.
There were kids standing on the sidelines doing nothing, and one has to wonder if watching from the sidelines is the norm in that type situation. It's a rare person who will step into a situation and do what's right when there's a lot of risk and no reward. And, George Bush certainly deserves credit for stepping forward and doing the right thing.
Let's fast forward to today. We saw some of this same character on display when Saddam Hussein was a threat. Okay, they haven't found any weapons of mass destruction, but does anyone seriously doubt that Saddam was a big threat? George Bush recognized that, and instead of watching from the sidelines and waiting for something to happen, he took action.
That's what this election is really all about - whether we want someone who is going to take action when it's necessary to protect us, or whether we want someone who is going to go stand on the sidelines and watch.
I voted early in this election, and in case there should be any doubt, I voted for George W. Bush.
Comments