I am deeply concerned about a growing divide in our country. As a very famous quote says - "a house divided must fall." I fear that this national divide that is growing is going to be our demise. While some of this article may sound political it really is not. This is more about stepping back and recognizing what is happening to our country and perhaps suggesting some ways we might fix it.
I play with social media because I have to for my job and to keep pace with my large and spread out family. Facebook, Twitter and others provide great communication methods we have never had before and for that I am thankful. However, I think they are a true reflection of what people are thinking and they divide and hatred is running at an all time high. On a side note, I can't believe that some people feel that they need to play out their entire lives on these media but that is a subject for a separate blog.
One could argue that these new media have created a single world with instant communication and feedback. This is excellent is certain respects and bad in others. (the bad we can address in a subsequent blog). For news and sports it is a miracle. For families living around the globe it is a God send and for governments it is an invaluable link.This new media is an outlet for freedom of speech, which is critical but must be tempered with reality and common sense. And this is where some of the trouble starts.
Have you noticed in America we are now a divided country - the left and the right. We seem to no longer have America or Americans. Oh perhaps we would unite to fight a real enemy but the truth is we are filled with hate, greed and ego. We all believe in things and part of the beauty of a true Democracy is that we can do that. We are given many rights under our Constitution and as a nation we have evolved well, that is till recently. Look at all the good things we have done - abolished slavery, created leading human rights, elevated women to true equality with men (actually perhaps now dominance of men), guaranteed freedom of speech, protected minorities, driven environmental protections and so much more. We are an amazing country and the largest economy in the world.
All this success has caused us to be hated by many and that is a cross we most bear. We most carry our ideals and morals as our badge of courage and we must always fight for our beliefs. America became great because we fostered a can do attitude and a society that rewarded success. In short we were the poster kids for capitalism and Democracy.
But look at us today. We have a weak economy, we are deeply divided and we have no agreement on what our core beliefs are or where this country should be going. We see hate and vicious criticism across the nation. Our news media is divided like two bastions in a great battle. Our faith is no longer strong and our distrust of our governments and our neighbors is palpable.
I am not a Republican or a Democrat but an Independent. As such I see both sides of all the issues but don't neccessarily agree with either. More importantly what I see is this growing divide. Take for example this past Easter Sunday. A well known Reverend, Dr. Luis Leon, gave a sermon in front of many government officials, including our President and his family. In the sermon he said " it drives me crazy when captains of the religious right are always calling us back... for blacks to be back in the back of the bus..for women to be back in the kitchen...for immigrants to be back on their side of the border". He also said they want "gays back in the closet".
Now put aside that no holy Christian man should be preaching about such things on Easter - a day when we celebrate the resurrection of Christ, a day when Christians unite to bask in the joy of having their sins cleansed by the death of saviour and a day that ends the season of Lent for 1.2 billion Catholics.
But put that aside and look at the vile nature of the accusation. Who are these Christian conservative captains that are saying this? When has any religious person ever said women should go back to the kitchen or blacks to the back of the bus? Does history not prove this wrong? So many religious people were front and center fighting for the end to segregation and for women's rights. This is ridiculous at any level and alarming coming from what should be a neutral party - an ordained minister - a servant of Christ.
Truly that is not the sad part of this story. What is? The fact that we have become so divided that a reverend has to stand in a pulpit and use the notoriety of his congregation to deliver a message from the left. What is sad is that we actually have people who believe that religious folks want to do these things and that they ignore their own faith and ethics to try and attack said folks on one of the holiest days of year.
Sure many religions do not condone homosexuality but that does not mean they ever suggest that these human beings deserve no human rights or not to live in peace. No, all they say is that they believe that God has taught us this homosexual behavior is not the path to redemption. They disagree with the lifestyle but still bless and hold sacred these individuals. Sure there are some religious conservatives who believe that immigrants should enter the country legally and abide by our laws but they never deny these folks the right to worship of live a good life.
Here in the Central Valley of California we have a very high illegal alien population (due the large aggro industry) but if you go to church on Sunday you will see thousands of these folks worshipping right next to us legal US citizens and no one is calling INS or kicking them out of the church. The reverends and priests are baptizing their babies, offering last rights to their dieing and praying for their sick and suffering. No one is saying they must go back or be hated. This is typical leftist hyper crap, designed to enrage their followers and force through their agenda. It is dirty pool at best - shame on them.
This incident this Easter crystallizes the divide in the country and the debase level that we have gotten to. Can't we see what is happening to us? We are divided into givers and takers with supporters on each side. We are divided into right and left; Republicans and Democrats; believers and atheists; into heterosexuals and homosexuals; immigrants and legal citizens; rich and poor and so much more. We will never progress as a country if we continue this nonsense. We must find ways to compromise as we have throughout our entire history or we will surely crumble under our myopic stupidity.
Our leaders have caused a great deal of this - through actions, words and policies. We must get back to certain basics. Basics that made us great and will guide us into the future. We don't ever want to go back but remember those that refuse to study history are doomed to repeat it.
So here are some basics to consider:
Perhaps I am nuts but I sure would like to see more of these basics in our great society and less vicious Tweets and Facebook rants espousing left or right opinions. Hatred will kill us all. Try thinking ahead more. Too many young folks today live for the moment, want instant gratification and care little for the future. This selfish short sightedness will kill our great nation. My grandfather always said test theories to the nth degree. So we want to ban large sodas in NYC. Take this to nth degree and where would we be? Would we ban anything that might harm us? So we would all live in bubbles and never go outside? See how stupid this is. Try it and see if it opens your mind.
Also can we stop this horrid trend where young people enjoy the suffering of others. Have you noticed it? Seriously it is an epidemic. Just look at some of their favorite movies and videos. They like to see others get hurt. The success of the Jack Ass movies proves this. And if that ain't enough look at some of the top You Tubes. Look I love to laugh and folks say I am pretty funny but the pain of others is not really funny. Sure we have always found prat humor funny but today it has escalated and the real laughs come from true injury. Not Cool.
So let us not fail, let us not crumble under our division, let us unite, compromise and prosper. After all we are the United States of America - not the Divided States of America. Stop the division, stop the bickering and fighting, heal the wounds. No one wins if we all fail. Stop the racial, economic, religious and social persecution. Tell our leaders that dividing us only provides short term gain and then long term pain. We need to make them change their ways or fire them all.
God Bless America.
I play with social media because I have to for my job and to keep pace with my large and spread out family. Facebook, Twitter and others provide great communication methods we have never had before and for that I am thankful. However, I think they are a true reflection of what people are thinking and they divide and hatred is running at an all time high. On a side note, I can't believe that some people feel that they need to play out their entire lives on these media but that is a subject for a separate blog.
One could argue that these new media have created a single world with instant communication and feedback. This is excellent is certain respects and bad in others. (the bad we can address in a subsequent blog). For news and sports it is a miracle. For families living around the globe it is a God send and for governments it is an invaluable link.This new media is an outlet for freedom of speech, which is critical but must be tempered with reality and common sense. And this is where some of the trouble starts.
Have you noticed in America we are now a divided country - the left and the right. We seem to no longer have America or Americans. Oh perhaps we would unite to fight a real enemy but the truth is we are filled with hate, greed and ego. We all believe in things and part of the beauty of a true Democracy is that we can do that. We are given many rights under our Constitution and as a nation we have evolved well, that is till recently. Look at all the good things we have done - abolished slavery, created leading human rights, elevated women to true equality with men (actually perhaps now dominance of men), guaranteed freedom of speech, protected minorities, driven environmental protections and so much more. We are an amazing country and the largest economy in the world.
All this success has caused us to be hated by many and that is a cross we most bear. We most carry our ideals and morals as our badge of courage and we must always fight for our beliefs. America became great because we fostered a can do attitude and a society that rewarded success. In short we were the poster kids for capitalism and Democracy.
But look at us today. We have a weak economy, we are deeply divided and we have no agreement on what our core beliefs are or where this country should be going. We see hate and vicious criticism across the nation. Our news media is divided like two bastions in a great battle. Our faith is no longer strong and our distrust of our governments and our neighbors is palpable.
I am not a Republican or a Democrat but an Independent. As such I see both sides of all the issues but don't neccessarily agree with either. More importantly what I see is this growing divide. Take for example this past Easter Sunday. A well known Reverend, Dr. Luis Leon, gave a sermon in front of many government officials, including our President and his family. In the sermon he said " it drives me crazy when captains of the religious right are always calling us back... for blacks to be back in the back of the bus..for women to be back in the kitchen...for immigrants to be back on their side of the border". He also said they want "gays back in the closet".
Now put aside that no holy Christian man should be preaching about such things on Easter - a day when we celebrate the resurrection of Christ, a day when Christians unite to bask in the joy of having their sins cleansed by the death of saviour and a day that ends the season of Lent for 1.2 billion Catholics.
But put that aside and look at the vile nature of the accusation. Who are these Christian conservative captains that are saying this? When has any religious person ever said women should go back to the kitchen or blacks to the back of the bus? Does history not prove this wrong? So many religious people were front and center fighting for the end to segregation and for women's rights. This is ridiculous at any level and alarming coming from what should be a neutral party - an ordained minister - a servant of Christ.
Truly that is not the sad part of this story. What is? The fact that we have become so divided that a reverend has to stand in a pulpit and use the notoriety of his congregation to deliver a message from the left. What is sad is that we actually have people who believe that religious folks want to do these things and that they ignore their own faith and ethics to try and attack said folks on one of the holiest days of year.
Sure many religions do not condone homosexuality but that does not mean they ever suggest that these human beings deserve no human rights or not to live in peace. No, all they say is that they believe that God has taught us this homosexual behavior is not the path to redemption. They disagree with the lifestyle but still bless and hold sacred these individuals. Sure there are some religious conservatives who believe that immigrants should enter the country legally and abide by our laws but they never deny these folks the right to worship of live a good life.
Here in the Central Valley of California we have a very high illegal alien population (due the large aggro industry) but if you go to church on Sunday you will see thousands of these folks worshipping right next to us legal US citizens and no one is calling INS or kicking them out of the church. The reverends and priests are baptizing their babies, offering last rights to their dieing and praying for their sick and suffering. No one is saying they must go back or be hated. This is typical leftist hyper crap, designed to enrage their followers and force through their agenda. It is dirty pool at best - shame on them.
This incident this Easter crystallizes the divide in the country and the debase level that we have gotten to. Can't we see what is happening to us? We are divided into givers and takers with supporters on each side. We are divided into right and left; Republicans and Democrats; believers and atheists; into heterosexuals and homosexuals; immigrants and legal citizens; rich and poor and so much more. We will never progress as a country if we continue this nonsense. We must find ways to compromise as we have throughout our entire history or we will surely crumble under our myopic stupidity.
Our leaders have caused a great deal of this - through actions, words and policies. We must get back to certain basics. Basics that made us great and will guide us into the future. We don't ever want to go back but remember those that refuse to study history are doomed to repeat it.
So here are some basics to consider:
- There is No Free Lunch - we all have to work and carry our fair share. We should be generous and take care of our fellow man but avoid hand outs and stick to helping hands. The poor have no right to demand anything from the rich. The government is not your parent or family.
- Live and Let Live - be tolerant of folks who don't believe in what you do. Listen to their opinions and value them as you would yours. Don't just dismiss someone because they are different than you. Not everyone has to like others but we must respect them and allow them their rights.
- If You Cant Hear You Must Feel - we must listen and learn or we will eventually feel the pain of our mistakes. Life is self regulating to some degree and we all pay for our sins be they mortal or trivial. Accept guidance and history - not all progress is good.
- There is No Equality in Success - life is not kind, not everyone is lucky, some will always have more than you. We are not all created equal when it comes to our ability to succeed. Accept what you have and strive to do better every day but do not begrudge another for their luck or skill. Be thankful and persistent.
- Family is Everything - every parent should know this. The miracle of life is the most precious thing we have and love for our family is above all. We must nurture, educate, support and be responsible for our family. Parent your children don't be their friend, love and protect your mates, teach family history and most of all teach morals, values and charity.
- Cream Rises to the Top - only the best succeed - so be the best you can be. And when you reach the top, help others on their journey, teach then to succeed. Never gloat about your success. (All you Rappers take note)
- You Can't Legislate Morality - we can't think that we are God. We have no right to try and legislate morality. Families should teach morals not governments. We can't protect folks from themselves but we can protect our nation from our enemies. Laws are broad guidelines to keep society from total chaos - they are not supposed to dictate how we live day to day. God gave humans supremacy over all other beings by giving us free will. No government has the right to take that away - we must be free to learn from our mistakes and enjoy our successes. To celebrate, worship, mourn and teach our traditions to new generations.
- Do Not Hate - yes I said it! We have no reason to hate any other person. We can dislike someone or chose not to associate with them. We can have differences of opinion, faith or values but we should not hate. Hate is a useless emotion and serves no purpose (just like regret). So live by the Golden Rule - do unto others as you would have them do unto you!
- Don't Change for Change Sake - progress is not measured by how many things we try and fail but by how much we move ahead. How much we improve, innovate and grow not how much we change things because we personally don't agree with the status quo. History is there to remind us of what has been tried and failed so don't repeat it. Progress without purpose and value is no progress at all.
- Love Conquers All - ask any new parent how they feel about their newborn child? Look at the glisten in their eyes and the uncontrollable smile. Capture that; make that your guiding principle. Love means compromise and we must always lose something in a negotiation or it was not worth it. Life has a balance and try as we may to disrupt it over time we never will. So love one another and respect opposing opinions - who knows you may learn something along the way.
Perhaps I am nuts but I sure would like to see more of these basics in our great society and less vicious Tweets and Facebook rants espousing left or right opinions. Hatred will kill us all. Try thinking ahead more. Too many young folks today live for the moment, want instant gratification and care little for the future. This selfish short sightedness will kill our great nation. My grandfather always said test theories to the nth degree. So we want to ban large sodas in NYC. Take this to nth degree and where would we be? Would we ban anything that might harm us? So we would all live in bubbles and never go outside? See how stupid this is. Try it and see if it opens your mind.
Also can we stop this horrid trend where young people enjoy the suffering of others. Have you noticed it? Seriously it is an epidemic. Just look at some of their favorite movies and videos. They like to see others get hurt. The success of the Jack Ass movies proves this. And if that ain't enough look at some of the top You Tubes. Look I love to laugh and folks say I am pretty funny but the pain of others is not really funny. Sure we have always found prat humor funny but today it has escalated and the real laughs come from true injury. Not Cool.
So let us not fail, let us not crumble under our division, let us unite, compromise and prosper. After all we are the United States of America - not the Divided States of America. Stop the division, stop the bickering and fighting, heal the wounds. No one wins if we all fail. Stop the racial, economic, religious and social persecution. Tell our leaders that dividing us only provides short term gain and then long term pain. We need to make them change their ways or fire them all.
God Bless America.