Bill Clinton & Independence Hall

Sam and I were in Philadelphia, just driving around to check out the sights. We did many of the touristy things..well, tourist-lite, as we didn't pay to get in to see the Liberty Bell, etc. We stopped at Pat's and had cheesesteaks (I've had better—hey, they didn't have sweet AND hot peppers, so what kind of cheesesteak is that?), we drove around City Hall, we stopped at the Art Museum.

The only thing I really wanted to get near was Independence Hall. I'm not at all sure why; maybe it's been the books I've been reading about the Founders. I don't really know, because it wasn't until we actually got across the Ben Franklin Bridge that I decided that Independence Hall was something I wanted to see.

We got Doris Day parking; it's Sam's gift. I don't understand it, it just works. As we were catching first sight of Independence Hall, I heard a familiar voice coming from a loudspeaker across the street. Bill Clinton! It was his speech from the DNC playing out of a souvenir store two doors down. From the location where I took this picture of Sam, I stood looking at Independence Hall and listening to President Clinton's speech.

We haven't really changed all that much, it seems. It's still a society that holds ideals (if not practicals) in esteem. It's still some place where at least some people care about the future that lies beyond one's own lifetime (or the next four years, for that matter). To say that things need to be better in the future does not, should not come to mean that today is absolutely without merit or wonder. To say that things are bad right now is not, should not be a blanket statement of irretrievability for our country.

Just because the wheels finally came off the wagon because of the Bush Presidency does not mean that they can't be put back on by someone more interested in motion forward than who gets credit for the driving.

I miss Bill Clinton so much. I hope I miss John Kerry in the same way after Inauguration Day, 2013.