***Editor’s Note: Andy McGee is a Columnist for “The Thirsty Quill.” While Mr. McGee often writes for ‘The Quill’ from a Liberal perspective, it is important for the readers to note that his current submission is written from a non-partisan point-of-view. This article is submitted on the basis of hope for the future of our great nation, and drawing comparisons to Flight 1549. As always, “The Thirsty Quill” greatly appreciates Andy’s participation and contributions to our site.***

“Walking On The Wings Of A Miracle”

By: Andy McGee, Columnist

By now, all of us have seen the pictures and videos (and have even heard the stories) of the fortunate passengers and crew of Flight 1549. I have been captivated over the past few days, and I could not help but draw parallels between our nation and the folks who lived through this extraordinary event. Like the times we find ourselves in, the passengers and crew of Flight 1549 went from gaining altitude (and a complete sense of normalcy), to being earth-bound, terrified, and imagining the worst.

Like the birds that jammed up those turbines, careless men and practices have jammed up the powerful engines of the great dream of Capitalism. Like those passengers, many of us are sitting in a stoic panic, too scared to respond and too terrified to breathe. In an instant, all that was important aboard Flight 1549 before take-off, became somewhat meaningless shortly thereafter. The economy, petty disagreements, a job, indifference, racism, bigotry, sexism…gone.  Addiction, independence, and inadequacy…gone.

And then a miracle happened. With the winds of uncertainty blowing all around them, the good Captain got back to the basics. This was his bird, these were his people, and by God, this was his Country. He got back to what he learned as a young man, assessed the situation, took stock in what he could control, and then rolled that bird down into the calm, steady current of the freezing Hudson. And he did all of this in the proud view of a very welcoming Lady Liberty.

What happened was miraculous. It is exactly what this Country is all about. We are a nation that saw our two shining trophies of free market and excess crumbled by the silent tyranny of desperate men less than a decade ago. Last Thursday, the recovery was very similar in that we witnessed the valor of the good people of New York. Yet this time, the “miracle” was in that everyone survived. Everyone.

Every once in a while, something “big” happens and things change forever. September of 2001 was such a time. Now is also such a time. We owe the promise of tomorrow to those who have gone before us, and it is in that debt that we must not simply cower to the conditions. Much like the brave crew of Flight 1549, we mush stay focused on the job at hand. Are we guaranteed the utopian times that we have experienced in our recent past? Of course not.

Are we competent enough as a nation to show the determination and concentrated calmness of the passengers who walked on the wings in the Hudson? I believe that we are. How about you?

Walking On The Wings Of A Miracle