Bright Light or Dim Bulb?

          Our world appears to be in crisis. The old imperial borders in the Middle East are looking less permanent every day, while wars and atrocities are setting huge numbers of refugees on the run for safety. Human migration is taking countless lives. It all makes America’s illegal immigration issues seem second shelf.

           Meanwhile, the bright light in the political firmament shines like a glittering ball of hatred over the dance floor as he markets racism and fear, and divines for all to hear that our problems will be solved when he is permitted to get rid of all those annoying poor people who are seeking survival by coming to our great country. He is proud to help us understand that they are mostly criminals and they populate criminal gangs. It is a tired refrain. And an immature blame-gaming response. The big problems we face are not caused by immigrants. Nor are they caused by children who are citizens by birthright as guaranteed in our Constitution.

           It might be closer to the truth to believe that Congress has fumbled the ball on immigration reform, and that the immigrants here and those wishing to come to America present a tremendous opportunity for our country. It might be closer to the truth that obtuse politicians are the roadblock to record-setting prosperity in America, and that immigrants will play an important role in our future greatness.

           Around here, we think America’s serious problems germinate in plush board rooms, and are nurtured by self-serving political hacks.

Mouth-Worrying About Racism

            Too many people in the public eye are mouth-worrying about the niceties of racial politeness—meaning they say the words, but don’t really give a rat’s whisker.  If they did, they would be working to end the systemic bias that taints the lives of racial minorities, and the economic disaster that keeps them poor.  And of course, the poor sometimes riot and loot, and occasionally steal, so policing in some places is sometimes brutal and militarized to strike terror into their hearts. 

            Meanwhile the BIG thieves manipulate currency and evade billions in taxes, going without substantial punishment when caught, and lobby their way to even greater riches, and throw delightful cocktail parties, while the LITTLE thieves, the ones who riot and loot, and steal what they can carry, and the LITTLE criminals, the ones born of hunger and squalor, who suffer 50% unemployment and do drugs you don’t find in a martini glass, these little ones get sent to for-profit prisons to become part of America’s record-breaking crowd of hopeless apprentices.  Seems like a bizarre aberration.

            Around here, we think the I-got-mine “leaders” in Federal and State Government need to stop all the stupid mouth-worrying and put America to work on parks, roads, bridges and other infrastructure.  Maybe if we get enough people working and prospering, we can start to deal with the hate that fuels our real problem of racism.  We might even find that America’s symbols of treason and hate just quietly become unacceptable.  Certainly that should be the fate of mouth-worrying.

Experience Teaches Us…

          One thing we all have in common: sooner or later experience teaches us to be wary of “leaders” who have all the answers. When we are children, we need parents on whom we can rely for worldly knowledge and guidance. When we become adults, it’s on us. WE have to be the ones who evaluate what we believe, guide our actions, and sort through the hype for truth. It isn’t easy. Truth and fairness are never as alluring as the grand promises of demagogues.

           For example, a ‘flat tax that treats everyone the same’ sounds great, but would be disastrous for people without the money to influence Congress (meaning YOU). That hideous ‘Death Tax’ that’s so unfair? It only affects individuals with more than five million dollars, and couples with more than ten million to bequeath. And only the amounts in excess of those limits. Eliminating it creates a huge windfall for people who already have more money than you will earn in your entire lifetime. If ever there were a victimless tax, it is the estate tax.

           Slashing government, and government services, killing off help for people in need, tearing away the things the Great Depression proved were necessary—these are all examples of throwing away what experience has taught America in the past.

           Around here, we think ordinary folks need to sort through the scat, identify the demagogues and go-along goofs in Congress, and deliver a little worldly guidance in the voting booth, because…the NEXT Great Depression isn’t going to be as pretty as the last one.

Bainwarble's New Dog

          Turns out the coyote attached to the skunk was only unconscious from the smell. Bainwarble dislodged the skunk from its jaws, and while chef Wiley Stinks whipped up a pot of campfire skunk knuckle stew, Glassshard resuscitated the scraggly canine. The resulting madness only subsided when Bainwarble hypnotized the coyote into silence.

           I don’t know what Bainwarble said, because it was all in Welsh—it kind of ebbed and flowed rapturously. When he snapped his fingers, the coyote and I both started and then sat back in a soothing blanket of calm. I snapped out of it when Glassshard told the coyote, “Your new name is Margaret.”

           “You can’t do that Glass shard,” howled Wiley as he stirred the skunk knuckle stew. “Margaret-I-suppose-you’re-thinking-of-Thatcher was female. Your hair bag coyote is a boy!”

“Oh???” uttered Bainwarble, ending the argument. Margaret eyed Wiley and yowled, “Oh???” So Neighborhood Stop and Frisk lost out to Margaret’s care, feeding, and training. Bainwarble was wildly successful. I thought Parliament, had they known, would have been proud.

           The big problem came when Animal Control inserted itself into the mix. They told Glassshard he couldn’t keep a coyote as a pet. Ducky Bumps and I listened in on their last visit. They kept snarling, “Coyote!” Bainwarble kept mumbling “Kyhote!” with a Welsh lilt.

           Ducky Bumps had enough. “You idiots,” she roared, “It’s not a Coyote! It’s a Spanish breed called Quixote. And HIS name, “she said eyeing Bainwarble,“ is Senator. So leave the tags and buzz off!”

The Surprising Reason The Right Has It Wrong

      Only some science gets ignored. When it comes to abortion, there are all kinds of “scientific” ideas about when life begins. But that’s not why the right has it wrong. There are all kinds of biblical and spiritual interpretations about what God intended regarding abortion. But that’s not why either. There are even zealots who use altered audio/video concoctions to defraud unsuspecting good-hearted people. But that’s not why. And there is no shortage of “gross out” verbiage and footage depicting the horror of abortion. But that is also not why.

      The right has it wrong because they are seeking to force an anti-abortion belief system on millions of people to the detriment of those peoples’ other healthcare needs, and without regard for the reality that they don’t get to decide what other people believe. America was founded on peoples’ religious (or atheistic) and political freedoms to make their own choices.

      A recent concept posits a difference between ‘Pro Life’ and ‘Pro Birth.’ The former being a societal commitment to provide sustenance to the lives of those who are born; the latter being just get them born—society’s responsibility ends in the delivery room. The Right’s reputation for wanting to cut away safety nets speaks to a ‘Pro Birth’ mindset. A true conservative would feel a political responsibility to conserve and protect the lives of children with sustenance programs. Instead poverty burdens one of every four or five American children. It takes a village, and it takes a government. Whatever happened to ‘Pro Life?”