Politics

The tweet read, “I like you, get a grip” or something like that.

It made me wonder what the author’s intentions were because if he really likes me and desired to motivate me to rethink my position that tweet was misguided.

Hell, it wasn’t misguided, it is a prime example of how to encourage me to tell you that you’re profoundly ignorant, willfully blind and probably mentally ill.

Ok, that last part is my irritation rising to the surface and sharing its voice with the world.

But the other parts, well I mean them.

I was familiar with some of the author’s beliefs prior to their tweet and had already decided not to bother engaging with them about politics.

Not because I thought it was polite but because their aforementioned ignorance and unwillingness to consider other options made it seem like a waste of time.

His Profound Myopia

I’ll admit my initial response to the tweet was to send something back that expressed my displeasure in no uncertain terms.

Hell, they are lucky I don’t have a phone number because I would have unloaded upon them.

Some of it is because they deserve a verbal ass kicking and because I hope it would wake them up because we’re not living in normal times.

We’re not dealing with a good president surrounded by good people.

There is bad stuff going on and this fool is trying to gaslight us into believing that he is our savior and not an inveterate liar and manipulator.

He is not a steward of our rights and someone who understands how to reach across the table to negotiate compromise.

No, he is a Machiavellian fool who believes fear and cruelty should be part of how you crush the opposition.

So the foolish person who suggests I ought to get a grip better hope and pray that I am truly wrong here because their rights are getting crushed along with mine.

They better pray this doesn’t go down the dark path we are on because it will hurt all of us and the net result could be very ugly.

But what do I know.

Maybe I am wrong and the fool prefers to let the government tell us what to think and maybe they think women are silly little creatures who overreact.

Wouldn’t surprise me because their profound myopia sure makes it look like that.

We elected a clown and incompetent boob who says he is trying to make America great.

How many school shootings have we seen since he was put in office?

That doesn’t mean I am ignoring Las Vegas or the other horrors he seems to claim are committed by people who don’t look like him or are done by those who are mentally ill.

I don’t recognize this and I can’t accept it as the way things have to be. Guess I am looking for America.

We’re several days past the election and the hard feelings/anger hasn’t dissipated on either side.

I continue to see posts filled with rage and pain and accusatory tones in which people wave their fingers about how awful the Trump/Clinton supporters are.

Today I was told how to feel about something that I said people might find to be insulting. “No insults were given, you are just upset because someone told the truth.”

I got a good laugh out of it because it was based upon an opinion piece and not some academic study.

Part of me was tempted to point out the obvious fallacies in their argument and ask if they thought it was ok to tell people how they ought to feel.

I didn’t bother doing so because it wasn’t going to lead to a discussion and I don’t care what some stranger thinks of me.

Nor did I expect them to hear, listen or accept my response and I am ok with that. I have other people and places I am focused upon.

About That Basket Of Deplorables

I have friends who voted for Trump and though I vociferously disagree with their choice I won’t end our friendship.

It is ok to disagree and I understand their reasons and trust none of them were based upon hate. 

But that is predicated upon 30 plus years of friendship and significant experience that makes me trust their word.

“Jack, do you know how offensive it is to be labeled by a candidate as “deplorable?”

I responded by asking how we should feel about a candidate who is supported by racist groups and who has emboldened them.

“You can tell me they don’t make up a significant portion of the population and I believe you see that as important. But I’ll tell you Trump’s refusal to distance and disavow their support in a significant way troubles me.

I’ll tell you hate and mistrust has been sown in his name too and you have to expect a strong response because of that. You can’t just say it is a case of sore losers. I won’t excoriate you for your vote, but I’ll say I expect you to do your part to stop these racist groups from thinking they received a mandate.”

We Have To Talk

If we have learned anything from this election it is that we are deeply divided and that is why now more than ever we need to talk.

I don’t believe we are all racists or sore losers.

I don’t believe we are all one group of anything other than Americans.

And like I said, I don’t unfriend people for simply having a different opinion than I do. I’ll listen and talk to you about all sorts of things.

Of course there are limits and if you promote racism/hate you’ll find I oppose you and in that case, well we probably won’t be friends.

What I am interested in is finding ways to get all of us pulling together and pushing for change for the common good.

You tell me you want to make America great again and show me how to do it in an inclusive manner and I’ll be right there to try and help.

We might disagree on ways and means, but that common goal keeps us talking and working together.

But if your idea is one that excludes others simply based upon race, color or creed then you and I have a problem because you aren’t talking about America.

We are a nation that was built upon the backs of immigrants.

We all come from somewhere else.

I don’t believe for a moment that we have so lost our way that we can never find it again. This can be a hiccup and bump in the road but only if we work together.

Fear & Anger

Fear & anger have led us to this corner and the only way to get beyond it is to start talking.

It is not hokey to say united we stand and divided we fall because that nugget has been proven true a million times.

So like I said to my friends who voted for Trump, I won’t call you names for doing what you thought was right but I will hold you accountable as I do everyone else to help promote inclusion.

In some ways your voice might even be more important as you let your candidate know that you didn’t vote for a bigot or a bully.

And like it or not, that is how he appears which is why these hate groups support him.

So help him help himself by demanding he do the right thing to disavow their support and to help the rest of us see that we really are pulling for the same common goal.

We’ll still argue about policies, some of them quite aggressively but at least we might feel like we are all Americans and not two separate groups.

Midnight approaches and I feel a bit like one of the guys sitting on the steel girder.

The government has shut down and I want to ask what would happen if I refused to work with a coworker because I couldn’t get along with them. It goes without saying I have taught my kids that you don’t have to like everyone but that sometimes you have to work with them.

I sit here at the computer one of the uninsured because my coverage was canceled. I don’t worry about getting coverage because the reason it was canceled will be overturned on appeal.

I haven’t got any real pre-existing conditions that will prevent me from being covered because I am one of those people who knows how to write a letter and understands how to work the system. But that is shameful, wrong and disappointing. It shouldn’t be like that and I won’t accept it.

The Ignorant Fighting With The Ill-informed

This post may have political elements but I am not interested in providing a forum for the ignorant to fight with the ill-informed. Not interested in listening to people who don’t understand the law argue against it while others whose understanding isn’t any greater argue for it.

What I know is that we are almost at the time I refer to as The Thankless Thanksgiving which means it is almost time for me to rant about why I hate the term Christmas Spirit and how giving should be done all year long.

But it is hard for me to understand why we fight about taking care of our own and then I look at our government and I just shake my head. When you don’t worry about healthcare the way ordinary people do it is easy to fight and dicker. When you don’t worry about dealing with the TSA and fighting through security issues flying isn’t as much of a pain-in-the-ass.

It just reminds me about how easy it is to ignore the pain of the other.

My Good Friend J.R.R. Tolkien

Got a lot of things going on in the world at large and many more in what you call the personal. I am excited about some new things, good opportunities that I can’t pass up and sad about some of the compromises that they require.

In the midst of it all I look to the books/stories I have always loved and reach for words because I have always found comfort there. Reached into the midst and wrestled with what quotes to share with you here.

“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo.
“So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings

There are many more that I want to share, that I should share, lines about courage being found in unlikely places, kissing the girl in front of many and lines that remind us that not all who wander are lost.

But instead we’ll look at the two above and remember most people live in interesting times and the only choice they receive is whether to act or react to what they encounter.

And we are also reminded that even though we might seek adventure and the danger that comes with it there is a chance it might find us. Sometimes you trip and fall onto the tracks or you get hit by the drunk driver even though you were minding your own business. Things happen. Life happens.

Sitting On a Girder

So I feel like I am sitting on a girder hundreds of miles above the ground. I am sure footed and confident about my ability to do my job and to work with the guys who are up there with me.

But sometimes when I look down the earth starts spinning a bit and I wonder if maybe I fooled myself into thinking that I wouldn’t get dizzy, feel scared or nervous.

And then I remember I have nothing to worry about because bad stuff only happens to people in the movies and to those others who aren’t lucky and or are just lazy and I am none of those, right…