I'm writing this today after having watched part of Margaret Thatcher's funeral this morning. As I was watching CSPAN2's coverage of the event I kept trying to find the American contingent. Any sitting members of the administration? Zip, zero, null, nil. Did Jimmy Carter show, how about George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton or George W. Bush? Nope, none of them were present. Perhaps a former VP? Again, the answer is no. There was absolutely no US representation at the funeral of Ronald Reagan's number one supporter, the person who most helped bring down the Iron Curtain.
I find this utterly appalling. I can understand some of the former president's not making it to the funeral, Carter and G. H. W. Bush are both older than she was and probably do not travel well, but to have no representation at all? The current administration should have had at least one person present, but it isn't just this administration that missed the boat, both houses of Congress should have had representation.
We wonder why there seems to be so little civility today, why people are so willing to paint others with broad brushes. This shows, beyond any doubt, that the lack of civility comes from the top down. Whether you agreed with Lady Thatcher or not, she was a major influence on the entire world in the 1980s. That we did not have the courtesy to send a formal representative to her funeral paints all Americans with an ugly brush and unfortunately it seems to be deserved.
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