The toll of politics is on my mind today. County Supervisor Kurt Friese, one of the biggest hearted people I have known passed away on Friday and that made many of us locally take a collective breath as we felt the heaviness of that loss. However, time waits for no one and politics has an even shorter timetable with an election a week away from now. And to that point. With no less than three mass killings that were based on hatred and rage because of the victims color or religion, can we have a long-term moratorium on race baiting and religious intolerance? From the President on down, many of us have shown a great deal of intolerance of others, but some have seen it as an opportunity to unleash their brand of hatred in support of some ideal that they hold. No holds barred.
Enough is enough! If this nation should fissure, it will not be by accident. There are political motives in play that have been harnessed to to put us at each others' throats. And yet, it is so preventable, if we decline to be played for political gain. Refuse to be used as a photo opportunity or to lend credibility to the party or person who converts your presence as a referendum on their ideas and methods. In other words, don't be played a fool or turned into a pawn. Be brave enough to call BS when you know you are being fed it.
This is not to say that you should not be involved in politics. This is to say, be involved in a better more humanistic-style of politics. One that, as Kurt did, put service ahead of agenda. The only politics that is worth spit is that which attends to the needs of people and uses political movement toward that end. People need jobs? Great work on that, but not by telling lies about other people. Health care needs to be fixed? Great, work on it, but not by robbing Peter to pay Paul. It is clear that the scales of justice and economics are badly out of balance. Let's use the tools of government to right the wrongs and even out the scales, but not through scapegoating our fellow human beings.
An action you can take right now is to vote for people who are more aligned with justice and democracy. Ask yourself, whose policies make things better for more people than a relative few? Also ask yourself: what is gained by my hatred or intolerance of any other human being? I say that fear for fear sake benefits no one but those who invoke it. Work backwards, who is trying to instill fear in you? Vote against that agenda.
Enough is enough! If this nation should fissure, it will not be by accident. There are political motives in play that have been harnessed to to put us at each others' throats. And yet, it is so preventable, if we decline to be played for political gain. Refuse to be used as a photo opportunity or to lend credibility to the party or person who converts your presence as a referendum on their ideas and methods. In other words, don't be played a fool or turned into a pawn. Be brave enough to call BS when you know you are being fed it.
This is not to say that you should not be involved in politics. This is to say, be involved in a better more humanistic-style of politics. One that, as Kurt did, put service ahead of agenda. The only politics that is worth spit is that which attends to the needs of people and uses political movement toward that end. People need jobs? Great work on that, but not by telling lies about other people. Health care needs to be fixed? Great, work on it, but not by robbing Peter to pay Paul. It is clear that the scales of justice and economics are badly out of balance. Let's use the tools of government to right the wrongs and even out the scales, but not through scapegoating our fellow human beings.
An action you can take right now is to vote for people who are more aligned with justice and democracy. Ask yourself, whose policies make things better for more people than a relative few? Also ask yourself: what is gained by my hatred or intolerance of any other human being? I say that fear for fear sake benefits no one but those who invoke it. Work backwards, who is trying to instill fear in you? Vote against that agenda.
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