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Be Thankful for What You Can

By Joey Kennedy

Alabama Political Reporter

Be thankful. It’s Thanksgiving, so be thankful. For family. For friends. For good things that have happened.

We’re thankful. We are.

But we’re not thankful for Donald Trump. Or Ben Carson. Or Marco Rubio. We’re not thankful for them. We’re not thankful for Jeb Bush or John Kasich or Chris Christie.

We’re not thankful for them because they are not a thankful group. I’m sorry. But they are not.

I’m thankful for France, and for how that country has responded to the terrorist attacks. I’m thankful for Belgium, and how that nation has dealt with the tension of what may be.

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I’m not thankful for Trump and Carson and Rubio and others for how they’ve responded. I’m not thankful to them at all.

I’m thankful that France responded with aggressive attacks on Daesh. I’m thankful than the French didn’t wait even a few days before responding.

I’m not thankful that Trump, idiot that he is, put all Muslims in a negative box. I’m not thankful that Carson did the same. I’m not thankful that Americans want to reject Syrian refugees, fleeing from the hell they live in. I’m not thankful for Trump or Carson or any other Republicans or Democrats who are wanting to isolate these hurting people from life.

I’m thankful for family such as it is. I’m thankful for friends and others who love us. I’m not thankful for how we, as a country, react to the horror in Paris. Or wherever. I’m not thankful for that, because we act as if we’re the best. We’re not. We’re just among the many. Don’t think for a second we’re better than anybody else. We’re not. We’re who we are. Flawed. Awesome. Hurt. Overbearing. We’re who we are. Let’s live with it.

I’m thankful for my friends and family. I’m not thankful for those politicians who want to use a terrorist in France or elsewhere to boost their standing. They are fools. They are fools.

Let’s don’t be fools. Please. Let’s don’t be fools.

Joey Kennedy, a Pulitzer Prize winner, writes this column for Alabama Political Reporter every Wednesday. Email: [email protected].

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Joey Kennedy, a Pulitzer Prize winner, writes a column each week for the Alabama Political Reporter. You can email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter.

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