Impeachment

Clouds fogged up the skyline of Seattle as I drove across the 520 bridge to UW for my Japanese placement test. The tip of the tallest skyscraper failed to scrap the sky and hid behind the shroud of gray. The university is really quite fascinating. It is gigantic. I feel like I will be able to explore so much at the university and I really will need a well-made camera to document all the interesting experiences I encounter at this incredible place. These next four years will be marvelous, and all I need to do is continue to have an open mind and a strong spirit.

Among my encounters this morning included a run in with the Lyndon Larouche folks wanting to impeach Obama. I had my first political response with a group in my life by shouting, NO, I LOVE OBAMA! I probably could have been louder, but I was very nervous. I want to proudly announce my passion for this president and even though he is not perfect I have never believed in a politician like I do in Obama. It actually scares me a bit, but I have enough sense to know that he is no perfect Messiah and I will disagree a bit. Rather I am happy to be heading in the right direction right now.

Impeachment is such an extreme device. It really is only used for heinous crimes.
Consider this: friendships are like democracies. We work together in a complex relationship, obviously very differently, but inherently similar. Sometimes friends make mistakes. Sometimes friends make huge mistakes.

When do you decide that they have learned their lesson?
Do you remain friends with someone despite being treated horribly by them?
Do you forgive people for being total douchebags?
I can only be pushed so far by a friend before I need to really think about how much I value that friendship. Sure I can handle lame attacks like practical jokes or teasing. Sure I can handle some erroneous choices. Sure I can be okay with someone bailing out on some of my plans.

But when does someone cross the line from being a friend to merely a frustration?

I really want to find some peace in my friendships right now. I love my friends too much to have it end like this. But sometimes people go too far.
I cannot handle dishonesty.
I cannot handle all this conceitedness.
I cannot deal with this sense of entitlement.
I cannot handle someone who is unwilling to take a risk, unwilling to make a change to be a better person.
I cannot keep trying to fit inside another person's box to be their friend.
I cannot be friends with someone who cannot make a true sacrifice.
I cannot be friends with someone who is too closed to explain how they really feel about something.

If I am not a good enough friend, if I am only going to be a number 12 on your list why do you deserve to be one of my most trusted and best friends?

Right now I have a friend who makes me crazy like those people who want to impeach Obama. I don't want to be that crazy, but I feel like my friend is like some politician who is unreachable. I feel like my friend is like some bureaucrat who tells everyone that they matter and only can serve the few. If this friendship won't work then, as much as I care about it, perhaps I should change my citizenship and flee this bad situation.
But I don't run away.
Nevertheless I am caught in a predicament. As much as I want to take charge and make a difference it is not my turn. My government, my friend needs to do something for me. I can't keep trying to work with a government that won't work with me.
Still, I am offering no impeachment. I am offering no punishment. All I ask is for some honesty. All I ask is for is a REAL friendship.

"The Ladder" - Andrew Belle