I note that one week into 2020 the current administration has blustered, blundered, and lied the U.S. into an international crisis that endangers our military and may lead to another war in the Middle East and beyond.
Black and brown people continue to be detained at our borders and thrown into cells and cages in squalid conditions just for seeking legal refuge in the "land of the free".
The current occupier of the White House has been impeached in the House of Representatives, but the GOP-controlled Senate is pledging to support and work closely with the White House on a sham "trial" where they refuse to call witnesses to the president's wrongdoing.
The current White House occupant's son, a civilian, showed up on social media today grinning while clutching to his breast an AR 15-style assault rifle (the mass murderers weapon of choice), a military weapon even though this guy will never be called, nor volunteer, to serve our country in the military. No, he's not the errant youngest child, loony black sheep of the family. He is the eldest, 42 years old and favored child, head of the family business dynasty. (Well, in name only; his daddy is likely still running the business, Constitutional prohibition be damned.) The gun is etched with the Christian cross symbol used in the Christian Crusades of the middle ages when Christians decided to rid the world of Muslims. Also etched is a depiction of Hillary Clinton behind bars, in a nod to imprisoning innocent-of-any-crime political rivals. So there's that, which about sums it all up.
I could go on and on. Suffice to say, the shit-show of this Administration continues and we are all getting very, very edgy.
Oh, and Australia is on fire with the climate crisis consequences of global warming, burning like Armageddon and killing tens of thousands of animals, spewing smoky particulate matter into the air and lungs, burning homes and homesteads...on and on...while some continue to deny the reality of climate change and continue to prop up the fossil fuel industry as if there is no tomorrow (and soon there won't be.)
It's all rather depressing. My passion for politics as a means to equality, compassion, inclusion, fairness, life, liberty, safety -- democracy done right -- is still strong. But there are times when I notice myself turning away from the news, skipping articles and stories that I previously would have read, in favor of obsessively watching old episodes of Outlander to calm my fraying nerves. We are all fatigued. We all need a break from the daily gaslighting, lying, evil-doing, and selfishness of this authoritarian- loving and -leaning president and his apologists and supporters. Sigh.
What to do? 2020 is the election year we've all be waiting for. The Democratic field started huge and hugely diverse with the white guys sharing time and space with women and people of color. Well, naturally, we are down to the front runners being three white guys and a white women. I confess to jumping all over the place in who I most support, but at no time have I been truly excited about any of these left standing. So the nominee will be vastly better than what we have, but not as good as we could have had, in my judgement. I'm a bit bummed about that. Still, this is the year we roll up our sleeves and get to work! (That pep talk feels false right now; I just want to go back to Outlander.)
I think that is part of the plan of the current Administration -- to wear us out, wear us down, create a feeling of overwhelm, hopelessness, distraction, and exhaustion. It's easier to have their way with a meek and downtrodden populace. History shows this to be true.
So I will rally my energy! I will join groups that keep me motivated and I will admit my dismay and keep going anyway. I will end this blog post and call my Senators and Representatives urging them to stop the march toward war and to insist on a fair and lawful Senate impeachment trial, because too many fought and died for this country's vision, too many voiceless need my voice, because I can't live with myself if I don't do something.
Are you depressed by this post? Me too. The antidote is action. Let's go!
At least, that's the view from here...©
You summed up the state of the world perfectly.I really hate that man sitting in the Oval Office. He is wearing us all out---no surprise there but what surprises me is his fan base seems as strong as it ever was. What would he have to do to break that? We've never had a more important election in our lives. We have to keep up the resistant. My nest post will contain my rant at the man. If we don't speak up now, we never will. Thanks for writing this.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jean! I hesitated to hit publish on this one, feeling the handful of people who read this would be put off by the pessimistic description of where I see us. But then I decided, this is MY blog, MY truth, and the denying this reality and "protecting" tender feelings is not helping us move forward to a brighter day. I appreciate your support of this post and your resistance activism. Onward!
DeleteIt is depressing, but we have to keep pushing back. I've never been mainstream, ever since my first political protests against the Viet Nam war when I was in high school. I think I even still have my black armband. Now, being in a wheelchair, I don't go to protests anymore, and have to choose my battles. I still sign petitions and email my congresspeople and try to boost the signal on the issues I'm concerned with, and support the activists I know who are working on issues I'm interested in. When it all gets too overwhelming, I back off and read a book or look at cat videos.
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