#2

     After all of the passengers were seated and Carl made his “setting out on an epic journey” speech, they started on their way to Pennsylvania. The passengers seated at the front of the bus listened to the mundane drone of the road moving beneath them for about five minutes before Carl broke the silence.
     “So, what made y’all decide to take a trip to Gettysburg?” he asked.
The first one to answer was the retired soldier, who was in his sixties, sitting diagonal to Carl.
     “I’m going to pay my respects to the men that died fighting for what they believe. And what is your reason Mr. Hoffman?” A hint of cynicism could be detected in his voice.
The politician found this almost amusing and with a chuckle in his voice replied, “Are you kidding? I arranged this whole trip! I go almost every year!”
     “Yes, but why are you going?” the soldier insisted.
     “Well…because it’s a part of our history. You can’t understand or appreciate the present without knowing your past and where you came from,” Carl stated.
     “Indeed,” was the soldier’s only response.
There was an awkward silence and the tension was thick in the air.
     “You know, I get the feeling you’re not too fond of me sir,” the politician said, addressing the unspoken hostility on the bus.
     “Well you’re just a regular Sherlock Holmes, huh? Look boy don’t take it personal. I think ALL politicians are full of it. It just irritates me to have to sit here and listen to you dribble bullshit that you’ve rehearsed and means absolutely nothing to you! All you politicians know how to do is lie and deceive.” the soldier retorted.
     “I’m not a liar…” Carl didn’t even get to finish before the soldier cut him off again.
     “Pick your word and call it what you want but a lie is a lie.”
     “Look,” Carl argued, “lying is bad, we all know that, but sometimes being a little dishonest is necessary to protect and even motivate people.”
     “So you get heaps of people to follow you, make them trust and respect you, and put all their hopes in your hands, and you’re telling me that your method of protecting and motivating them is through deceit?” The soldier was livid.
     “You are taking me out of context,” Carl answered. “Listen; let me tell you a story to make my point a little clearer.”
The soldier rolled his eyes in disgust, but relaxed in his seat as the politician began his story.