Patriotism stirred up in Missouri

To the editor:

I attended the Bush-Cheney rally in Poplar Bluff. Mo. My husband and I were excited about the opportunity and came away from it with a renewal of our commitment and belief in our country.

I also came away much more committed to the primary plank in the party platform: the war against terrorism. Before, I always took that cause seriously and have supported the war and the troops involved in it without hesitation. But I also had concerns about the economy, layoffs, downsizing and outsourcing.

Being in that crowd, I had an epiphany. I would rather be poor and happy knowing that my family and I are safe than rich but dead -- or worse, be a member of the wealthiest nation in the world with no freedom to use that wealth. That is what this election will come down to.

There is a very powerful current of patriotism rising in the still waters of Missouri politics. It had been relatively quiet until recently. It has been stirred by noble statesman Zell Miller's call to action during the Republican National Convention, and it simmers on with events like the presidential rally in Poplar Bluff. I could feel in my bones the momentum and the steady boil of that patriotism, and my heart rose in my chest as I considered that I was a part of this swell and surge -- a part of what will surely become a pivotal point in the history of this country I call my own.

JENNY PROCTOR, Patton, Mo.