Cindy and Rosie and stuff

I'm not crazy about the war in Iraq. I think we've done about all the good we can do there. It's time to allow the Iraqis to govern themselves--or not.
I understand those who oppose the war. I understand those who protest. This is their right as Americans. What I do not understand is Cindy Sheehan. Her son was killed in Iraq, and she started a grassroots protest of the war. Again, this was her right as an American. However, her "resignation" reported in the news today really irked me. She gave me the distinct impression that the whole U.S. government was supposed to stop in its tracks and give her everything she wanted, when she wanted it. When this did not happen, she sat down in the dust and cried like a thwarted 5-year-old. "I just won't play anymore!" Some might say she is a grieving mother. I understand that as well, but it seems to me she went a little crazy after her son was killed.
Sheehan spoke of sacrificing a 29-year marriage for her cause. I'm sorry, but rational people do not do this. I'm sure her husband is grieving the loss of his son as well, but only her grief seems to matter. Only her grief is legitimate. Sadly, thousands of mothers are grieving the loss of their children, slain in battle these past five years. But only Sheehan's grief is "real," because she's the one doing the protesting. Maybe Mr. Sheehan could have used his wife's support, but she was out protesting.
Mind you, it's not as if she doesn't make some legitimate points. Our government is a bureaucratic mess--but this is not news. The political parties are entirely too involved in fundraising to care about what their constituents are saying. No one in either party is interested in hearing much truth about anything. However, these issues are not irredeemable. Americans must be willing to examine candidates carefully and vote accordingly.
Cindy Sheehan has and had every right in the world to protest the war in Iraq. I do not deny that to her. I think it is a mark of the respect this country still gives the Bill of Rights that she is not rotting in jail somewhere. Not all countries would be as understanding. But even a grieving mother does not have the right to command the world to stop turning and bow down to her.
It is difficult to put into words my feelings about Cindy Sheehan. I don't hate her. I don't wish evil on her. On the contrary, I feel great pity for her, and for all those who have lost loved ones in this war. But in what she continually terms her "sacrifice" to make her son's death "mean something," unfortunately, I see a disturbing degree of selfishness. I've seen a lot of Cindy, but not that much about anyone else involved in her cause. The media spotlight has been trained largely on her. I have to wonder if that wasn't her intention all along.
Rosie, Rosie, Rosie. When are you going to learn that people have the right to disagree with you? When are you going to learn other people have a perfect right to their own opinions? Just because someone disagrees with you doesn't mean the person doesn't respect you.
Although I enjoyed Rosie's talk show, this always needled me where she was concerned. Rosie has a hard time accepting dissenting points of view. Those who disagree with her are automatically Republican (Boo! Hiss!), right-wing conservative (even worse!), Christian (how dare they?) and homophobic (better get the vaccine!). She has a nasty habit of even listing someone being a Christian as a reason she doesn't like them.
Again, I don't hate Rosie. I think she is funny a lot of the time, and I appreciate people who are outspoken. Do I agree with a homosexual lifestyle? No, but she didn't ask my opinion, and she doesn't live her life to suit me, does she? Of course not! I don't hold it against her.
And this brings me to another point. She must still have real issues with being a lesbian, since she constantly plays the "gay" card. People don't like her because she's gay. Well, let's see: almost everyone likes Ellen DeGeneres, and she's gay. People don't like Rosie because she's obnoxious! She's started to act a lot like the playground bully everyone hated in elementary school. "You play MY way or nobody plays at all!" She uses her outspokenness to browbeat people into acquiescence. She screams and shouts over people so her viewers will hear the only opinion that really matters: hers.
And she says she never "fit in" on The View. Well, bwess her wittle heart. She had seen the show, I'm certain, before she signed on--what did she THINK it was like? She knew who the co-stars were. And I'm sorry, but Elisabeth Hasselbeck's views represent those of many Americans, and she shouldn't be asked to compromise her feelings to make Rosie happy. You learn to accept the differing opinions of those around you, and adult people learn to discuss those viewpoints in a rational way. But Rosie has a hard time with that since, after all, her views are the only legitimate ones. I have friends whose religious and political opinions differ widely from mine. But we're still friends because we've learned to respect each other's differences.
Rosie needs a big bottle of get-over-yourself tonic. She should look at this fiasco as an opportunity for growth and change. To be accepted, one has to extend acceptance. She has a difficult time with that concept, obviously. She also needs to grow up and to learn to discuss issues like an adult, not like a bratty 13-year-old. Mostly, she needs to remember those who disgree with her are not evil. Until she learns that most important lesson, she will continue to have trouble working with anyone.
O.K. Rant over.