There is no era that is not informed by and built upon the ashes of our past. Our belief in the integrity of our system was dealt additional blows under his watch. We have yet to recover.

As humans, we punish our elected officials when they disappoint us. And we punished him with a 1-term presidency. His thousand points of light will be remembered along side his broken promise of no new taxes and war mongering. Yet he was not afraid to be wrong or to admit it. If only we had such humility in ourselves and our elected officials today. And if only we chose to honor the humanity we see in each other instead of issuing punishing rebukes.

While his term included more civility of manners than we witness today, the civility of morality was compromised and questioned. Today, as we honor his life and contributions, the ritual of a state funeral brings us a moment of respite and self-reflection. May we take the lessons of his life as a lesson to us all. And may we live each day towards the memories others will hold of us.

~Debilyn Molineaux, Coffee Party USA past president and Director Emerita

December 5, 2018