HELP THE COUNTRY

Greetings. I am a voting constituent in rural west Texas. Thanksgiving has come and gone. Onward to Christmas, a time when we celebrate the birth of the reason for the season. Sort of. We shop. But do we spend much time actually thinking about, or practicing, the teachings of Jesus? Not these days in America. We are being told to hate our fellow humans who come here for a better life. We are being convinced that those who love, think, look, believe differently are less than human, and should be taken care of. But not in a Jesus kinda way. We’re being riled up by powers who seek more power by turning us against each other. Who are using cynical actions and dangerous rhetoric to fan the flames of our worst sentiments to turn us against each other. We know what happens when fiery rhetoric is effective. History is full of learning lessons. But we seem to have an ability to discount, poo-poo, downplay, appease, and ignore things we know are wrong, assuming that all will somehow be okay in the end. So we sit back, watch, tsk-tsk, and allow the escalating damage to occur. This is America right now. And any conscientious powers-that-be that may remain in the GOP continue to go along to get along, even doubling down on bad choices made in the past, unable to admit that their actions, or lack thereof, have led us to this dangerous place. Appeasement does not work. It only gives permission. Silence is complicity. Justifying bad behavior by corrupting standards of a civilized society is shameful. And using the privileges granted by our democracy to destroy it, is betrayal of the highest order. “It doesn’t have to be this way. Taking a stand for conscience, even long after one should have, is always the right thing to do.” Do any of you still feel this way?