Category Archives: Racism & Bigotry

The Future Of Teaching U.S. History???

Posted on by under Bits 'n Pieces, Black History Month, education, History, Humour, Political commentary, Racism & Bigotry, Social commentary

Alexandra Petri is a satirical columnist for The Washington Post.  This week, she opines on the re-writing of history to suit the racists in Florida, led by none other than Governor DeSantis, and it is both appalling and yet at the same time humorous.  Remember, this is tongue-in-cheek, satire … until it becomes reality.

Excerpts from a civics textbook I assume would be welcome in Florida

By Alexandra Petri

20 March 2023

“Rosa Parks showed courage. One day, she rode the bus. She was told to move to a different seat because of the color of her skin. She did not. She did what she believed was right.”

“Rosa Parks showed courage. One day, she rode the bus. She was told to move to a different seat. She did not. She did what she believed was right.”

— Two versions of a first-grade lesson from Studies Weekly, a publisher whose social studies curriculums are currently used in Florida elementary schools. Studies Weekly revised the lesson more than once, omitting any mention of racism or segregation, to submit for a state review of social studies materials.

American history is full of many heroes, whose accomplishments we will have no problem telling you about in the state of Florida! They fought for justice, which was brave of them, if a little redundant, because there was no specific injustice to fight against. Here are just a few of their stories!

Harriet Tubman is considered an inspiring figure by many because she made many trips on foot, often with other people. She specifically led trips from the South to the North, often at night. At night, you can see the stars! It is great to lead trips. She was a hero.

Frederick Douglass was famous, too! We celebrated him during the Trump administration for being someone “who’s done an amazing job” and whose contributions are still being “recognized more and more.” He also gave a noteworthy speech about the Fourth of July. Who doesn’t love the Fourth of July?

John Brown is regarded by some as a heroic figure. Famously, he went to what is now West Virginia (Wild and Wonderful!). He also grew a luxurious beard. Once, he was very excited to visit a weapons arsenal. We support West Virginia tourism!

Abraham Lincoln was a tall man who did something that was a very important thing to do, and especially at that time. He was president during the Civil War, which was fought from 1861 to 1865 between a group of people whom it was universally agreed would make wonderful, handsome statues and some other people who may have had reasons. He even made a proclamation, probably unnecessarily! He famously went to the same play as John Wilkes Booth, a very talented actor who also loved to exercise his Second Amendment rights! It is nice when actors support the Second Amendment. Too often, woke Hollywood doesn’t.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton and some of her friends went to Seneca Falls, N.Y., and had a conference there. At the conference, she talked about things related to ladies. Seneca Falls is a nice place to visit, especially in the summer!

Jonas Salk was a famous doctor. He invented a vaccine against polio, which was good because it made not being vaccinated against polio a choice, which it had not been before. Giving people choices is wonderful!

Rosa Parks was asked to move to a different seat, but she didn’t. People who sit are heroes! For instance, Thurgood Marshall famously sat on a bench. He was a hero, too.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was born on March 15, 1933. She spent 71 years of her life on the planet at the same time as Ronald Reagan! This was a big achievement. She also famously sat on a bench. We love it when people sit!

The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. had a dream and told people about it! King made some people upset, probably because it is annoying when people recount their dreams to you at length, but possibly for other reasons. He is no longer with us, but he is still celebrated today because his works provided so many out-of-context quotations for White people to use to explain why it is not important to fight racism any more. (Which was never important to do, because it did not exist.)

John Lewis was a hero! He famously marched across a bridge. This upset some people. People have strong feelings about infrastructure. Have you ever walked across a bridge? He was such a hero that they named a whole road after him and then some people wanted to rename a little piece of it after Donald Trump!

The Little Rock Nine went to school! Some people did not want them to go to school, and there were protests and guards were called in. It is sad: Even today, some people just don’t want other people to learn! They went anyway. It is good to go to school, where you can learn so much about history!

Filosofa’s Broken Heart 💔

Posted on by under Bits 'n Pieces, education, Environmental Issues, Global Issues, guns, History, Racism & Bigotry, Social commentary

As I sit here on Monday night perusing the news of the past day, I find myself feeling very sad, heartbroken actually.  It saddens me to see the state of this nation, the nation I live in and have done so since my birth.  I first wrote about what I call “the great divide” around 2016, for obvious reasons, but I thought that people would find reasons to come together, to narrow the gap between right and left ideologies.  I thought that at the end of the day, we would remember our humanity, our shared interests and concerns, and mend some of the fences that were torn down during the 2016 election cycle.

Instead, we have pushed even further apart, we have gone from bad to worse, and today I do not even recognize this country.  On any social media site, you will find people spewing hateful rhetoric, conspiracy theories, and incitement for violence.  You will find people like me who care more about humanity than about wealth, who support what has come to be known as ‘woke’ ideas, denigrated and taunted, called ‘Communists’ and any other label they can think of to pin on us.  I don’t see many like myself fighting back, except for an occasional one-liner, something of which I have been guilty as well a time or two.

A monster of a man who has broken the law multiple times, even while sitting behind the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office, is about to be indicted for just one of his lesser crimes, and half the nation is going nuts, calling for riots, violence, and even executions.

Tonight, I read of a man, a right-wing radio host named Pete Santilli, who has called for the execution of former President Barack Obama, former Attorney General Eric Holder, and former National Security Advisor Susan Rice.  Execution!  That’s … murder.  When did we come to this point, and where are the limits on free speech that need to nip this sort of talk in the bud?  Is this who We the People of the United States of America have become???

There are so many important issues that we need to take a stand on, but each one seems to only add to the divisiveness.  Covid, the war in Ukraine, climate change, world hunger, wealth inequality, the gun culture, voting rights … all need serious attention, but instead of researching, thinking, and coming together to help solve problems, we take it out on each other, don our weapons of words and sometimes guns, and take to the streets.

I don’t see how this level of hatred can continue.  Already, it has split marriages and families, wrecked friendships, and made many of us feel isolated, hopeless.  President Biden ran on a platform of unifying the nation, and I sincerely believe he has tried his best, but … people can only be unified if they are willing, and if they can find common ground.  Have we completely lost our common ground?  Did it fall through the huge crack we created with the great divide?  And most importantly, have we lost our humanity?  The reason for my sadness tonight is that I think we have.  I think we have lost our humanity and that the divide we created is too wide to be healed.  Might a bridge be built?  I wish I could say I had hope.

Have They Even Read The Constitution???

Posted on by under education, Free Press Issues, guns, History, Law and justice, Political commentary, Racism & Bigotry, Social commentary

All members of the United States Congress, as well as all state governors and legislators are required, before taking their seat, to swear an oath to the Constitution of the United States.  Now, if I’m going to swear an oath to something, then I am damn sure going to be clear on exactly what it is I’m swearing an oath to.  I take such things seriously.  I’ve never been elected to office, so have never had to swear an oath to the Constitution, but I have studied Constitutional Law at length and have read the full document numerous times.  I keep a pocket Constitution on the table next to me and have another in the drawer in my nightstand.  Apparently, that is not the case for some of the people who have sworn an oath to the document.

My jaw dropped yesterday when I read that Kentucky lawmakers have passed a bill that would make the state a so-called “Second Amendment sanctuary,” prohibiting local law enforcement from enforcing federal firearm bans.  Say WHAT???

The US Supremacy Clause, found in Article VI is a provision in the US Constitution that states that the Constitution and the laws and treaties of the federal government are the supreme law of the land. The clause ensures that federal laws and regulations take precedence over any state or local laws that may conflict with them.

The state of Missouri tried the same crap last year when Missouri Governor Mike Parson signed into law the Second Amendment Preservation Act (SAPA), which declared that limitations on gun transfers, firearm registrations and other federal regulations are unconstitutional.  A federal judge struck down the law earlier this month, saying …

“While purporting to protect citizens, SAPA exposes citizens to greater harm by interfering with the Federal Government’s ability to enforce lawfully enacted firearms regulations designed by Congress for the purpose of protecting citizens within the limits of the Constitution.”

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has appealed the decision.

What part of the Constitution do the lawmakers in Missouri and Kentucky fail to understand?  It’s plain as day!  It’s written in English, not Swahili, the language is purposefully kept simple so that anybody, regardless of level of education, could understand it, and yet we have highly paid elected officials who either have not bothered to read it, else are not bright enough to understand it!

Kentucky’s bill passed the state House in a 78-19 vote last month, and cleared the state Senate on Wednesday 27-9.  Apparently there are more than just a few dumb asses in the Kentucky legislature!

Those who represent the people of any state need to understand that this is a nation, the United States of America, and that we stand together, we have federal laws that supersede any and all state or local laws, that have been deemed to be in the best interest of the nation.  We cannot have state after state simply decide which laws they will abide by and which they will override.  That’s NOT how it works!

I sincerely hope the court system sends these bills to the shredder as fast as it can, and sends a loud and clear message to other states that might be considering similar actions.  My concern, naturally, is that when one of these cases works its way up to the Supreme Court, the compromised court may fail to do the right thing, as they have done numerous times in the past year.

If the laws in Missouri and Kentucky are ultimately upheld by the highest Court, then think about the consequences …

  • A six-year-old kid walks into a gun store … as long as he’s got the money, he walks out with a gun
  • A drunk staggers into a gun shop, tells the clerk “Gimme the biggest gun you got … I’m gonna kill that bitch.” As long as he’s got the money, he walks out with a gun.
  • A woman gets out of prison after serving five years for attempting to kill her spouse. Her first stop is the gun shop, and as long as she’s got the money, she walks out with a gun.

Guns are not toys, and I am horrified that gun ownership is more highly cherished than the lives of the children of this nation.  But if states are allowed to override federal laws, it could well get even worse.  What’s next?  Do some states write laws to disregard the 19th Amendment that makes it illegal to deny the right to vote to any citizen based on their sex?  Or the 15th Amendment that makes it illegal to deny the right to vote to any citizen based on their race?  Or perhaps the 13th Amendment that abolished slavery?

People … it’s on US to ensure that the people we vote for are qualified, that they fully understand the Constitution to which they will be swearing an oath, and that they respect the people of this nation enough to follow the laws of the land, not to be wasting their time scheming for ways to uproot the safety and cohesion of the nation.

We are a nation, not just 50 states, but ONE NATION.  The “UNITED” States of America.

Filosofa’s Famous Snarky Snippets!

Posted on by under Bits 'n Pieces, guns, Law and justice, Political commentary, Racism & Bigotry, Social commentary

It’s hard to focus on a single topic these days, as there are so many things pulling our attention, demanding a voice in our heads!  I’ve been working on two posts for over a week now, but every time I get back to them, I seem to veer off on some other tangent.  I will get them finished though, and soon, before they lose their relevance … as if anything ever does any more!  Meanwhile, I have a bunch of angst building over a few little snippets from the last day or so, and you know what that means!  It means it’s time for some of Filosofa’s famous Snarky Snippets!

O’ Da Hypocrisy!!!

Contradictions and hypocrisy are the platform of the Republicans

From Jonathan V. Last’s newsletter “The Id theory of politics” …

It’s not like Republican voters have been overburdened by logical consistency over the last decade. By turns they have:

  • Insisted that character and virtue are the paramount issues in politics; then voted for the thrice-married liar who cheated on his postpartum wife with a porn star and was on the cover of Playboy.
  • Proclaimed the importance of Christian teaching in public policy; then celebrated using refugees as political pawns.
  • Claimed that January 6th was a false-flag operation conducted by Antifa activists; insisted the protests were entirely peaceful; and also believed that the people engaging in violence were brave patriots trying to stop a constitutional usurpation of the presidency.
  • Demanded unquestioning support of law enforcement when minorities are beaten or killed by police; then argued for defunding the FBI when it investigated Trump and also called the Capitol Police crisis actors after January 6th.
  • Argued that America shouldn’t be giving aid to Ukraine because we should be “helping people at home”—even though they opposed the Child Tax Credit to help working families.

What a mum!

Here’s one to make you roll your eyes and shake your head …

Michigan Man Arrested For YouTube Threats Against Whitmer And Biden

Randall Robert Berka II was arrested and charged with federal firearms violations after Google tipped off the feds that he was making threatening remarks on YouTube, according to news reports and court filings.

There’s a lot going on here (emphasis mine):

Investigators went to Berka’s house, in Huron County, and spoke with his mother, who said she had purchased a handgun and three long guns for her son in the past year. She said he keeps the guns, as well as ammunition and body armor, in his room at their house.

Berka was involuntarily committed for mental health treatment in 2012, court documents say, and his mental health history is what prohibits him from having a gun. His mother told investigators she didn’t think his treatments are working and that he should be arrested and imprisoned.

The YouTube rants also included threats against FBI agents and the LGBT community.

His threats were made using the handle “@killthefeds42”, writing …

  • “Hey FBI! My name is Randall the 2nd and I live in Sebewaing Michigan and I am willing to kill these people.”
  • “im going to kill these democrats biden deserves to die” and that he was “more than willing” to kill Gov. Whitmer, also a Democrat. He also allegedly wrote that LGBTQ+ people need to “die and be genocided.”

Now, he is obviously a problem and should not walk among us, but the thing that I don’t understand is the mother.  WHY THE HELL would she buy guns for her son, knowing of his threats, knowing of his mental illness???  Personally, I think the mother should be in a cell right next to her son!

And down in South Carolina …

There is currently a proposal in the South Carolina General Assembly that would make people who obtain abortion care eligible for the death penalty.  Did you hear that?  Death Penalty.  And this from those who call themselves the “Right to Life” bunch???

Now, you might say that this is just a fringe bunch of Republicans and that the bill is going nowhere, but as it happens, 21 Republican legislators are in support of this bill!  Proposed by state Representative Rob Harris, it is titled the “South Carolina Prenatal Equal Protection Act of 2023” and does not include an exception for people whose pregnancies result from rape or incest.  Some who have read the proposal say that the language is vague enough to suggest that some people who suffer miscarriages could become eligible for the death penalty.  WTF????

I have to ask the question … what do you think they would say if someone proposed making men who have vasectomies eligible for the death penalty?  I’m telling you, sisters, it’s time we take a stand for our rights!  A strong stand!  Lorena Bobbitt … calling Lorena Bobbitt … help, we need you!

But Who Plays The Wolf?

Posted on by under Environmental Issues, guns, History, Law and justice, Political commentary, Racism & Bigotry, Social commentary

The Boy Who Cried Wolf  … from Aesop’s Fables

There once was a shepherd boy who was bored as he sat on the hillside watching the village sheep. To amuse himself he took a great breath and sang out, “Wolf! Wolf! The Wolf is chasing the sheep!”

The villagers came running up the hill to help the boy drive the wolf away. But when they arrived at the top of the hill, they found no wolf. The boy laughed at the sight of their angry faces.

“Don’t cry ‘wolf’, shepherd boy,” said the villagers, “when there’s no wolf!” They went grumbling back down the hill.

Later, the boy sang out again, “Wolf! Wolf! The wolf is chasing the sheep!” To his naughty delight, he watched the villagers run up the hill to help him drive the wolf away.

When the villagers saw no wolf they sternly said, “Save your frightened song for when there is really something wrong! Don’t cry ‘wolf’ when there is NO wolf!”

But the boy just grinned and watched them go grumbling down the hill once more.

Later, he saw a REAL wolf prowling about his flock. Alarmed, he leaped to his feet and sang out as loudly as he could, “Wolf! Wolf!”

But the villagers thought he was trying to fool them again, and so they didn’t come.

At sunset, everyone wondered why the shepherd boy hadn’t returned to the village with their sheep. They went up the hill to find the boy. They found him weeping.

“There really was a wolf here! The flock has scattered! I cried out, “Wolf!” Why didn’t you come?”

An old man tried to comfort the boy as they walked back to the village.

“We’ll help you look for the lost sheep in the morning,” he said, putting his arm around the youth, “Nobody believes a liar…even when he is telling the truth!”

We are so bombarded by lies every hour of every day told by Republicans that if, by some miracle, one of them ever tells the truth, we will discount it as just another lie.  The “Grand Old Party” has lost its integrity, its reputation, and sold its values to the highest bidder.  Collectively, they are the little shepherd boy in the fable, and the people who watch Fox “News” are the sheep, while those of us who recognize a lie when we see one are the ‘woke’ villagers who are trying to ignore the lying, cheating likes of George Santos, Matt Gaetz, Marge Greene, Lauren Boebert, Kevin McCarthy, Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson and all the rest, while realizing the potential for danger.  And the wolf?

Well, you see, the little shepherd boy crying wolf are the Republican politicians and media clowns who are painting Democrats as the wolf, but when the real wolf shows up, they may be surprised to find it isn’t at all who they thought.  The real ‘wolf’ is a combination of climate change, guns, racism & bigotry, wealthy corporations, technology, and a few others.  And yes, the wolf is really there, creeping ever nearer, unimpressed by the deniers and the conspiracy theorists who have laid the path, allowing him to creep forward at an even faster pace.

Grumpy Speaks The Truth …

Posted on by under education, Election 2024, Free Press Issues, Political commentary, Racism & Bigotry, Re-blogs, Social commentary

Our friend Jerry over at Grumpy’s Grumblings has a new post that is spot on regarding the state of truth in our nation today.  It is well worth the few minutes it will take you to read and ponder it, for one must ask the question:  Is this the new ‘normal’ or can we fix this?  Thank you, Jerry, for your thoughtful words!

When Tropes Trump Truth

I have a journalism degree and I worked within the newspaper industry for nearly two decades. While I never worked as a “hard-news” reporter, I did spend a year as a copy editor and also wrote feature stories for the business pages of several newspapers. So, I think I have a better-than-average understanding of how a newsroom is meant to operate.

But with or without a journalism degree, I think most folks know—or, more precisely, knew—what the primary purpose of any news organization should be: to factually inform its readers or viewers about events and phenomena that have occurred or are occurring within their communities—and beyond.

Forgivable Errors Versus Intentional Misreporting

News reporters are fallible humans who occasionally make mistakes in their reporting. Most of us are willing to forgive those relatively rare reporting inaccuracies. Occasional unintentional mistakes are forgivable. Intentional misreporting is—or should be— intolerable.

Read the rest of Jerry’s post here …

Live And Let Live

Posted on by under Election 2024, Free Press Issues, Global Issues, Law and justice, Political commentary, Racism & Bigotry, religion, Social commentary

Hungary’s “president”/dictator, Viktor Orbán has shared his ideology with Republicans in this nation and they have gobbled it up like dogs will gobble up the last of your steak, given half a chance.  Orbán has explicitly rejected the liberal democracy that his country used to enjoy, saying that its emphasis on multiculturalism weakens national cultures while its insistence on human equality undermines traditional society by recognizing that women and LGBTQ people have the same rights as straight white men. The age of liberal democracy is over, he says, and a new age has begun.  And far too many on the far right here admire Orbán, wish to instill the same ‘values’ here in the U.S. that he has forced on the people of Hungary.

In place of “Liberal Democracy”, Orbán advocates what he calls “illiberal democracy” or “Christian democracy.”  In July 2018, Orbán said …

“Liberal democracy is in favor of multiculturalism, while Christian democracy gives priority to Christian culture; this is an illiberal concept. Liberal democracy is pro-immigration, while Christian democracy is anti-immigration; this is again a genuinely illiberal concept. And liberal democracy sides with adaptable family models, while Christian democracy rests on the foundations of the Christian family model; once more, this is an illiberal concept.”

In other words, he calls for a very undemocratic ‘democracy’, one in which you are free only as long as you live by a prescribed set of religious rules that excludes anyone who looks, thinks, or believes differently than dictated by the state.  The United States is NOT Hungary and frankly I find Orbán’s ideas to be highly offensive.  To say that women, people of colour, or LGBTQ people are somehow not as worthy as straight, white Christians is a slap in the face to more than half of the people in this nation.   Our foundation calls for a wall of separation between church and state, and for good reason.  The First Amendment of the United States Constitution calls for ‘freedom of religion.’  It does not say, “freedom of Christianity”, but of ‘religion’ … and that means any, all, or none.  If you are to have freedom of religion, then you must also have freedom from religion.  Hence, that wall of separation.

The United States is a secular nation, not … I repeat, NOT a Christian one.  There are many religions practiced in this nation, and a growing number of people who claim no ties to any religion.  Catholics, Jews, Protestants, Muslims, Hindus and the like all pay taxes, all vote, and all exercise their 1st Amendment rights.  Orbán’s ideas may be workable for Hungarians, though that is up for debate, but they do NOT work for the people of this nation!

Look, folks … it is nobody else’s business what religion, if any, a person chooses to follow or what their beliefs are, but on the same side of that coin, it’s not their place to dictate to others, to tell an entire nation how it must believe, what religious views it must honour.  It’s a really simple premise – I call it ‘Live and Let Live.’

Beware the politician who praises Viktor Orbán and others like him, for they are out to change this nation — not for the better, but in terrible ways.

Super-Short Snippets

Posted on by under Bits 'n Pieces, Law and justice, Political commentary, Racism & Bigotry, Random, Social commentary

Just a few mini snippets that have crossed my path and made me either grrrrrrowl or smack myself upside the head this week …

Ever notice that the word “Republican” contains the word ‘public’?  And yet … and yet, the Republican Party could care less about the public.  Funny that.

“Former Speaker Paul Ryan is on a quiet quest to reboot the GOP as one of policy and ideas—not of identity and celebrity.”  Yeah, right … believe it when you see it.

Nikki Haley says that “wokeness is more dangerous than any pandemic.”  How many people have been killed by ‘wokeness?’  6.8 million people globally have died from Covid …

“Former Trump National Security Advisor and retired US. Army Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn is suing the U.S. government for $50 million on grounds of wrongful prosecution.”  This would mean that every taxpayer in this nation would be paying money to Mike Flynn, liar, conspiracy theorist, and insurrectionist.  No way, Josè!  I wouldn’t give the man a dime if he were starving!

“Republican Lawmakers Withdraw Bill To Rename John Lewis Way After Trump”.  That they even thought of the idea in the first place tells you everything you need to know.  John Lewis, a great civil rights leader, vs Donald Trump, a bigot, a conman, and a crook.

Over at Fox “News”, ol’ Tucker C. is blaming the failure of Silicon Valley Bank on the bank’s support of women and women’s history month.  Okaaaaaaaayyyy … well, you gotta take whatever the Tuck-monster says with a grain of salt.

Job Requirement: Walk A Mile In My Shoes

Posted on by under Economic issues, education, Law and justice, Political commentary, Racism & Bigotry, Social commentary

We humans … all of us … have built-in defense mechanisms that allow us to tune out certain things.  If you walk frequently in a city, you have likely learned to tune out the homeless person sitting against a building, hoping someone will stop and offer him a meal.  When we pick up our child at school, we rarely notice that tall kid with the holes in his shoes, or the skinny child whose clothes are two sizes too big, or the child being pushed to the bus in a wheelchair.  We become inured to things that would bother us, would disturb our vision of the world we live in, perhaps even give us a twinge of guilt for our own well-being relative to others.

Most of our politicians today are wealthy by almost any standards and have always been so.  They do not notice us … until election day.  And if they don’t notice us, have never spent time with a family mired in poverty, or a person suffering from the effects of AIDS, or a homeless mother and her children living in their car, then they don’t understand the problems of those people.  How could they?

Imagine if, in order to have his or her name on the ballot, a candidate running for Congress had to spend one month living in subsidized housing, living on nothing more than food stamp benefits, a small stipend for non-food items, and not much more to survive on for that month, with zero access to their own wealth or family.  Or imagine if that candidate had to spend 10 hours of every day for a month volunteering in a homeless shelter, food pantry or soup kitchen.  Might it open their eyes and give them a sense of empathy for what the people of their country go through on a daily basis?

Politicians have no idea what life is like for the poor in this nation, and that lack of understanding leads them to make decisions that are in the better interests of the wealthy than the average Joe.  I have long said they all … in both parties and with few exceptions … live in ivory towers far above the madding crowd and have zero understanding of what it’s like to have to live on a tight budget, to serve rice 5 nights a week and maybe chicken once a week for a treat.  They have no comprehension of what it’s like to have to choose between paying the electric bill or taking your asthmatic child to the doctor for a much-needed checkup; between buying food or insulin.

Before astronauts fly into space, they spend days inside of simulators to gain an understanding of what their journey will be like.  But most members of Congress are far removed from the people they represent and have only read about their trials and tribulations, never experienced them first-hand, not even for a day.  Airline pilots receive thousands of hours of training before they are allowed to fly a plane full of a hundred or so passengers, but members of Congress who are responsible for making decisions that affect 330 million lives receive almost no training.  Most members of Congress hold a law degree, not a degree in social work, and in recent years the people have elected members of Congress who didn’t even finish high school!

There’s a saying – walk a mile in my shoes – that seems apropos here.  Granted, no one person can experience all the hardships people go through, but if they lived a month in the life of those less fortunate, might it open their eyes a little?  Might it give them a level of empathy that few have when they first take that oath of office?  And might it weed out those who have no stomach for even a month without the trappings of luxury to which they are so accustomed?   Might it make them more interested in funding those things that help people live better lives rather than space exploration that provides no benefit, or military hardware that destroys lives?  Might it change their priorities just a bit?

Priorities

Posted on by under Economic issues, education, Environmental Issues, Global Issues, guns, Law and justice, Political commentary, Racism & Bigotry, Social commentary

While Ron DeSantis is worried about children reading about two male penguins taking on the care & feeding of a baby penguin, and Jim Jordan is worried about accusing the FBI of discriminating against Republicans, and other Republicans are worried that white people are losing their status as the majority in this nation … there are more important issues at hand that our congressional ‘leaders’ seem not to see.  Children are dying in schools by gunfire.  Polar ice is melting, temperatures are warming, our air/water/food supplies are in danger.  People are reaching adulthood without being able to function in the workplace or in life because our education system is failing.  People – mostly Blacks, Jews, and LGBTQ people – are being abused and killed by a bigoted society who thinks there is only one sort of viable human: white, straight, and Christian.  There are people sitting on billions of dollars, laughing at each increase in their investment portfolio, while others are sleeping in cardboard boxes under highway overpasses hoping that someone will give them a dollar for something to eat in the morning.

Priorities, people!!!  A line from Harvey Milk in the movie “Milk” …

“Worry about gun control, not marijuana control.  School supplies, seniors, not the books we read.”

I don’t know if Harvey Milk actually said that, though it does sound like something he would have said, but the principle is sound, whether fact or fiction.  Here is a list of my top five priorities …

  1. The environment
  2. Human rights
    1. Civil rights
    2. Women’s rights
    3. LGBTQ rights
  3. Education
  4. Guns
  5. Wealth inequality/poverty

That is not to say that nothing else matters, for certainly many other things matter, but … we need to put things into perspective somewhere along the line!  I honestly don’t give a damn what is on Hunter Biden’s laptop, but I DO give a damn that our children are being murdered in schools around the nation.  I don’t give a damn about Kari Lake’s inane claims of election fraud while more than half a million people in this country are homeless.

The ’United’ States of America needs to get its collective priorities straight. What will still matter 20, 50, or even 100 years from now?  Will Hunter Biden’s laptop still matter?  I think not … in fact, I don’t think that in that time frame anybody will even know … or care … who Hunter Biden was.  Will gun deaths still matter?  Will poverty and income disparity still matter?  Will ignorance still be a factor in who rules nations?  Will we have potable water to drink and plentiful food to sustain life?  Will women be forced into second-class citizen status around the globe?  Some things matter … really matter.  Other things are just minutiae designed to distract us from the things that really do matter.  We need to learn to separate the wheat from the chaff.

What is on your top five list of priorities?