Victory At All Costs

The GOP and its Tea Party constituents swept the Democrats from the House of representatives in the biggest shift of power in the 21st Century. I was greeted at work by the security guard, Andy, who boasted, "We had a revolution last night."

"Obama is the worst president in my lifetime," another white man said with heartfelt conviction. Errol came from within the Beltway. His father sold truth serum to right-wing believers. The lies tasted better with single malt Scotch.

"Worst than GW Bush or Ronald Reagan?" I didn't mention WH Harding, the traditional choice for presidential dishonor.

"Roanld Reagan was a great president." Not many people read history and I launched into a list of 'Old Dutch's sins. "Tax cuts with a 40% increase in defense spending, cutting taxes for the rich in belief of the 'trickle down theory' while cutting Medicaid, food stamps, and federal education programs, Iran-Contra, the savings-loan debacle, cut and run in Lebanon, forcing NASA to green light the Challenger Space Shuttle launch, the arming of Islamic fundamentalist in Afghanistan, SDI, and worst for the nation the War of Drugs, while the CIA was funneling cocaine into the USA to finance the Contra War.

"Do you have any proof of that?"

Like millions of Americans voting for the right in this election Errol prefers a lie to the truth because that is all he had heard since birth.

I don't have any proof of the CIA selling crack in LA.

15 years ago I was hiking on the Inca Trail in Peru. 4 day journey from the railhead at KM82 from Cuzco by train. The travelers broke into groups sherpaed along the trail by Quechuan porters and guides. My girlfriend, Mrs. Carolina, and I were separate from these instantaneous collective. The next smallest aggregation was a DEA colonel stationed in La Paz and his two sons. He was severely gungho about endurance. One look at me and Mrs. Caroline. A challenge. Under normal condition the colonel might have bested me, however I had several bags of coca leaves, a present from the coca dealers in the Cuzco plaza.

$2 each.

Enough for four days of high altitude hiking. Mrs. Carolina and I cruised along the trails like Steve McQueen's escape in PAPILLON after the convict gives him coca leaves. At the second night stop colonel gasped that we were cheating.

"Cheating? I didn't know that we were playing a game." I stuffed a wad of leaves into my cheek. The juices were strong and I felt no cold or pain or boredom, as the sun set behind the sharp Andean ridge. The guides were huddled around a fire. It gave little warmth.

"No game, I see you every day chewing those leaves, looking back at me, thinking that i can't walk as fast as you."

"Well, you can't." I'm pro-drug. The DEA is the enemy.

"Only because of those leafs."

"Hey, it's all natural." I had a bone to pick. A persistent rumor. "Unlike the crack the CIA was selling in LA."

"The CIA never did that. They are too many people involved. Someone would have said something."

"Not unless they killed them and that is what the CIA and DEA do best. Kill people." I stood up and walked away before the words got angry. The colonel left early the next morning. We passed him and his sons several hours later. They were in bad shape. The boys look to me for help, but I had nothing to offer. A father knows best for his kids even when he's wrong.

As a father I know that all too well.

Thankfully I never had to say anything about Reagan to the DEA colonel.

At high altitude all conversations are short.