I read this letter in a newspaper in Casper, Wyo., that was written by an man from Rock Springs, Wyo. I thought it was so good and worth sharing. The headline was, “Send in the right pitcher.”

“Imagine it’s February 2001, and former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush meet on the pitcher’s mound at Dodger Stadium. Bill’s holding a shovel and he says to George, ‘Well, George, it’s your baby now! I’ve left you with this beautiful surplus to pitch from. You should be able to throw strikes for the country. Good luck!’”

“He passes the shovel to W. and walks off. George snickers, ‘Heh, heh, heh,’ and says, ‘Well now, we don’t really need this much of a surplus to throw strikes! I’ll just give it to the folks that paid to put me in office.’ And he uses the shovel to start throwing the surplus to his buddies.

“Fast forward to February 2009, and George is standing at the bottom of a 10-foot pit. He’s holding that very same shovel as he speaks to President-elect Barack Obama. ‘Here you go fella, or can I call you ’Bama?’” (He really did). ‘You know, Rock? Rock-o’bama! Heh, heh heh.’ He then scampers out of the hole, taking the shovel with him.

“‘I’d let you have it, but my friends on the Hill said not to. Gotta do what’s best for them, don’cha know. And he disappears from view.

“Obama looks around and goes, ‘Oh, boy. I can’t even see the home plate from here. How am I supposed to throw strikes for America?’ Above his head he can see the clear blue sky of prosperity, but he can’t reach it from the bottom of the pit that the Republicans left the country in. So he leaps up, grabs a handful of dirt and brings it back down into the hole. He does this tirelessly for 3 1/2 years with no shovel and no help from the Republicans. And the hole begins to fill in. But it’s not fast enough for anyone’s satisfaction.

“Now his first term is almost over and the country is still staring up at the promise of prosperity, while the same Republicans that dug this pit in the first place are calling him an ineffective loser. Yet, they refuse to help him fill it in. Why? Because regaining power is more important to them than the prosperity of the country.

“It’s your choice who we send to the mound this November. Make it the right one for the country, and not the party.”

The letter was attributed to Leslie D. Punches of Rock Springs, Wyo. It was published in the Casper Star Tribune on Aug. 30.

 

Jackie Graveman

Albert Lea