Judson Cox, March 1, 2004

Following Sept. 11, 2001, our nation returned to the things that really matter. We focused on our national security, our families and neighbors. We experienced a renaissance of patriotism and purpose. This renewal of the American spirit could not last forever, but who could have guessed that not even three years later, the war on terrorism would be forgotten by so many of our citizens?

It would seem that in March of 2004, patriotism and common sense have been forgotten. Homosexual couples are flocking to San Francisco, and who knows where next, to be married. Talk of amending the Constitution to ban gay marriages only three years after the attack on Pearl Harbor would have been inconceivable. Not only was there a war to fight, but no one could have imagined even those few short decades ago, that such unnatural, immoral and unhealthy unions would ever occur.

This underscores the reasons why I will never move from the south; things that matter still mean something here. There is something very comforting to find closed stores on Sunday in a southern town, something that speaks to tradition. When you drive by a field full of collard greens, and see a sign instructing you to leave a dollar or two per head of collards in an unattended bucket, you are reminded that there is still a little honesty and goodness left in mankind. No, things have never been perfect here, and nothing escapes the progression of time even in the deep south, but there is something here that gives you a sense of hope; I’ll call it groundedness.

It is that sense of groundedness, as much as it is the music, that causes me to listen to as much of the Grand Ole Opry as I can each Saturday night on WSM, AM 650. Although I travel hundreds of miles each week, I can almost always catch a portion of the nation’s oldest continuously running radio show anywhere south of the Mason Dixon line. Last Saturday found me really looking forward to the Opry. All week, the news was filled with reports of gay marriage and the constant negativity of the Democratic candidates. I needed to hear something that made sense.

What I found almost brought tears to the eyes of this on’ry and thoroughly masculine hillbilly. The Opry was being broadcast from the historic Ryman Auditorium that night, the "Mother Church" of country music, a building that was actually a gigantic church built by a Civil War veteran, converted into the venue where legends such as Hank Williams, Ernest Tubb, Lefty Frizzell, Bill Monroe, Red Foley and Roy Acuff played. This Saturday, they were taking requests for songs from a select few of the thousands of audience members. About half way through the eight o’clock hour, Porter Wagoner introduced a soldier just returned from Iraq. Before that soldier even requested a song, he received the biggest standing ovation given that night. The song he requested was from Daryl Worley, entitled "Have You Forgotten." Below are a few lines from the song:

I hear people sayin' we don't need this war
I say there's some things worth fighting for
What about our freedom and this piece of ground
We didn't get to keep em by backin' down
Now they say we don't realize the mess we're gettin' in
Before you start to preachin' let me ask you this my friend
Have you forgotten how it felt that day
To see your homeland under fire
And our people blown away
Have you forgotten when those towers fell
We had neighbors still inside going through a living hell
And you say we shouldn't worry bout Bin Laden
Have you forgotten
They took all the footage off my TV
Said it's too disturbing for you and me
It'll just breed anger that's what the experts say
If it was up to me I'd show it everyday
Some say this country's just out lookin' for a fight
Well after 9/11, man I'd have to say that's right
Now I've been there with the soldiers who've gone away to war
And you can bet that they remember just what they're fighting for

The Ryman filled with cheers, for the soldier and for the song. There is no doubt that southerners haven’t forgotten; that is why the Dixie Chicks no are no longer welcome in Dixie! George W. Bush will carry the south and all of those "red states" that share our values. The media may not report it, but there are a lot of us who have not forgotten and never will.

Judson Cox is a political columnist from the mountains of North Carolina. He is quickly gaining recognition as one of the most popular and influential voices of his generation. As a college student, and a young entrepreneur, he has a unique perspective on matters of politics, economics and culture.

Copyright © 2004 Judson Cox