The whole country was dazed, frightened, paralyzed and uncertain. But amidst all of the gloom, anger, humiliation, indignation and fear, there was both a glimmer of light and a willingness to move toward it.

The whole country held its breath on that cold day in 1933, hoping, listening, uncertain about the man who would soon be president. The moment reminds me of a scene in a Jack London short story, wherein a man freezing to death has but one match left, with which to start a fire and save his life.

FDR was a last match. Fortunately for the country, he flared and set the country aglow with new hope, new activity, encouragement and inspiration.

Things are not so bad this time, but neither are they so simple. There is strong opposition to this president-elect. The ringleaders are easily identified. They are the ones who say: “Conservatism didn’t lose, Republicanism lost.” These talkers obviously have not studied the electoral map of this past election. With a few exceptions, the Republican Party has shrunk to its conservative core.

No conservative could be elected president now. The policies, programs and personalities of conservatism have been uncovered. They are selfish, fraudulent, ineffective and hide a more insidious agenda.

Conservatism is a kind of “now-you-see-it-now-you-don’t” philosophy. It is hailed in victory, but never held accountable in defeat. It is the denial of defeat, of repudiation and of the termite-like nature of right wing incessant vituperations, which make that movement deliciously ludicrous.

– Raphael O’Suna, Haiku