Category: Choice

He’s Counting On You

Welcome Spring. Walk in Beauty and Fight like Hell the injustice and ignorance. Uplift Humanity.

ODE TO THOSE WHO HANDED OVER THE REINS

Do you so want a Savior that any savior will do? He said you’d love him even if he killed a man on Fifth Avenue and you said, “Yes”. He talked of grabbing women and you said, “OK”. He said reporters who challenged him were evil and so are all democrats and you said, “Yep”. 

He said he would clear the swamp and you said “By all means”. He freed 1500 mostly violent offenders of the insurrection and you said, “Well, OK”. With his unelected sidekick, he began destroying the federal government, eliminating jobs that keep you safe – like park rangers, NOAH, air traffic controllers, etc. and you said, “Right on chief, let ’em have it.” He started to deport your friends, neighbors and co-workers and you said, “Hmmm, yes”. He tells you it will be a bumpy financial ride as he jolts the economic world with tariffs – on allies and enemies alike – and you say, “Trusted you so far.” 

He obliterates the history of Black and Queer soldiers that fought alongside many in combat and you say, “It’s a white man’s world, isn’t it?”

He sends green card holders to be imprisoned in foreign lands – without trials – breaking fundamental laws of our country and you say… nothing. He continues Biden’s genocidal campaign in Gaza to heartless applause…and he cozies up to Putin in your silence.

In less than two months he has shown you how right he was from the very beginning.  He’s still counting on you – to ignore everything he warned you about – and to keep you buying his merch. And that includes electing his mouthpieces, however rude, arrogant, hateful and inhuman they may be. He’s counting on you… to be just like him. 

Here the translated words of new flyers dropped in Gaza (see flyer below): To the people of Gaza, after what happened and the end of the temporary ceasefire and before we start Trump’s compulsory plan which we will proceed with whether you liked it or not, this is the last call for anyone who may share information with us in return for financial support…
Reconsider this. The world map will not change if Gaza’s people disappear. No one will notice you. No one will ask about you..

Neither America nor Europe cares about Gaza. Even the Arab states. They are our allies. They provide us with money, oil, and arms. They only send you shrouds. The game will end soon

Let us prove them wrong. Call your Senators and Reps today, everyday. #FreePalestine

Change Course

There’s no doubt we’re in for a ride as the chaotic upheaval of the government continues. Certainly, there’ll be people in need and hopefully we’ll find a way around failing systems to help. If you’re still falling in line with Republican or Democrat talking points, it may be time to consider the talking point that suffered the most in both parties’ rhetoric: our humanity.

When a government abdicates its responsibility to protect the welfare of its people by choosing instead to build wealth through military industry and resource theft, that government is not worthy of its people’s allegiance. Since October 2023, we have witnessed a government unyielding in its support of genocide. The hand off from Biden to Trump was seamless and now we are expected to complete the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians by a single decree of our president / king. 

And just as South Africa and others accused Israel of genocide, there is now a request for the International Criminal Court to investigate Biden, Blinken and Lloyd for their complicity in genocide by “aiding and abetting” Israeli war crimes in Gaza.

European nations are uniting in fierce opposition to Trump’s erroneous statements on Ukraine. And we must reckon with what appears to be another US resource grab in disregard for the sovereignty of Ukrainians – and what it could mean for other nations if Putin’s aggression continues with US approval.

As the United States wealth gap increases and countless marginalized people face the terror of hatred unleashed and run amuck, we shouldn’t ask, “How did we get here?” In a country whose entire history has been one of attempted genocide of Indigenous people, cruelty of enslaved people and the scapegoating of anyone who challenged the normalcy of the “divine right of kings” – the question should be: “How do we emerge from this horror?” 

It’s beyond time for us to acknowledge, challenge and change the storyline of empire that has been our history. Yes, we have been led by high ideals but time and again we have surrendered those ideals. Whether out of fear of the powerful or the desire to climb the ladder, we have squandered beloved community. We have sacrificed our humanity, our individuality and our human family and for what? Changing course is still an option. It will require a commitment toward peace and peace building. It will require a truth telling and courage to face the backlash that will surely, is surely, coming. It will require a restoration of each individual’s humanity and the reinvigoring of community. It is possible and it is happening for some of us. We can remain frozen in the fear of this moment of violence and repression or rekindle and support the ideals of liberty and equity for all. Choose. 

To Live in Uncertainty

In our northern climate, February can be difficult. While few of us rely solely on the summer’s bounty for our sustenance, there could be a sense of scarcity as you eat the last of the greens you put up or taste the last bite of your homemade jam. And if you heat your home with wood, you may be reckoning with the reality that your supply may run short. It is a gamble these days to guess how long or how cold the winter may be and how warm the spring. There is always the unknown in life, however much you plan, and the truth is you just don’t know what will be. And to be able to live in uncertainty and still keep your joie de vive is the art of living.

There is another aspect to February that adds a bit of kindness to the mix of tumult, it is the return of the light and the lengthening of the days. On bright days the sunlight kisses our face and reminds us of the coming of spring and the triumph of summer. That light generates hope and rekindles the memories of less burdensome times. Some people count the days until spring.  I am not one of them. I prefer to meet the challenges of each day with a bit of trust that everything I need will be at hand. Or I am comforted in realizing how little I truly need.

We have collectively been thrown a deep-winter punch in the gut. And while some are gloating at the political upheaval, most are reeling. Hold steady. We have strengths yet to cultivate. Like seeds that are dormant, with proper care they will rise. Love put you here and Love holds you. Never doubt that. We will rise.

Still I Rise

50/50 1 Fifty states / Fifty marches on 2/5/25

The Potter’s Hands

There’s a story about a potter’s wheel. As the potter spins the wheel, she lays her hand into the clay to hold it steady while with the other hand she slaps and shapes the outside of the clay into the vessel she chooses. This analogy is to our lives. We are the clay on the potter’s wheel. And on the outside, we are tempered in ways we cannot imagine. Yet it is the firm and steadfast grip that holds us from within that is as important to the shaping of our lives. 

Fear these days is palpable. Governments are struggling and militarism and violence have become the human go-to. Systems that we have relied upon, however ill equipped, are proving unworthy of our trust. And fledgling testaments to the possibility of human greatness, such as the United Nation’s Geneva Conventions of War, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, are being challenged and sidelined by power grabs and our collective inability to change course.

In this chaotic moment, the distinction of what is happening to us on the outside versus the strength and sureness of the inside is worthy of our attention. We may not be able to stop the downward spiral that seems to be gripping humanity, but we can begin to slow it down. We can lean into the internal hand that holds us and recognize it as universal. We can remember our interconnectedness to all of life and begin again to remake our world from the inside, out. We can allow the outside to reflect the strength and vision of that internal hand. We can allow the wisdom of the potter lead, not the fates of ill-will and inhumanity. 

It’s our choice.

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photo by Ahmed Kassem : Pottery hand made craft by young girl in Tunis village in Fayoum Egypt

This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license

Restoring Our Greatest Strength

Somehow, we’ve wandered away from our humanity. Somehow, we must find our way back. Here are some thoughts on restoring our greatest strength:

Go quickly to those things that broaden your vision and extend your ability to love. Don’t become burdened by the ignorance in the world; and don’t pretend it doesn’t exist.

There’s dignity in empathy and compassion. These are our allies. Honor them.

Stop accepting the answers of others and dig for your own treasures within.

There are questions left unanswered because we have not found the right words to ask. Find the words and ask yourself the questions that you have forgotten. Those questions matter. The answers matter. You matter.

These are a few steps to take in becoming human, our greatest strength. Discover for yourself what is needed. The biggest strides are made by those who rediscover and reassert their humanity.  It’s time for big strides.

Be mindful of your surroundings and appreciate the Beauty of the Earth even as it is disappearing before us. It was meant for your appreciation, your care and your enjoyment. Revel in it.

If you must be silent, let silence be a statement of a depth of feeling; not of your acquiescence to the evil and fear that seems so very powerful in this moment. And if you’re ready to speak, be sure your words are piercing and precise. Hone your skills of humor and clarity. You will need both. And above all let your words be sourced by Love.

In all the complexity, there remains simple truth. Fear does not live there. 

I know many people are afraid right now. Personal lives are upended; communities divided; and we exist in a world seemingly hell bent on self-destruction. 

Becoming human is our way out.

We Are The Greatest Resistance

We always have choice. In this cacophony of endless dribble we endure, we still have choice. I don’t advocate hiding one’s head in the sand. I think it’s wiser to know what is about to kick me from behind. So, I make the choice to wade into the maya or illusion as it has been called. Into the pseudo reality that appears before me as vitally important and desperately urgent. Into this fleeting moment of time that I am given, I wander. I choose to bear witness to the glory and the ignorance of living life as a human being on this magnificent gift of a planet.

I choose to discover what are the secrets of my heart and in whose hand my heart rests.

This is no easy task. It’s a solitary journey. No one can reside in our soul. No one can know the ease or the difficulties we’ve faced or how often we’ve failed or how frequently we’ve touched the divine. The outside can easily mask the joy or the sorrow these vessels carry. It’s better that way. I don’t take this journey lightly; I know the risks. One slip and you forget who you are; and we are not brought into life to doubt it. 

No one is here by chance, but we must know that. The belief that we are insignificant is the greatest lie. Life is a precious gift. We live in a time when that has been forgotten and lives are disregarded. It is up to each of us to upend that lie.

This, then, is the task at hand: to walk consciously and with gratitude for the moment we have been given. And to know that in that singular act we are the greatest resistance. 

Be the lit candle.

Hats off to those who are upending the lie of human insignificance. Enjoy this WDRT Conversation from a Veterans for Peace, Brad Geyer as we speak about the unnecessary costs of war to humans and the planet. Peace is possible.

Our Diversity is Our Strength

I believe and often say, “Our diversity is our strength”. Now that has become a tag line of the Democratic Party. If you think about it, that wasn’t something that could have been said by many candidates throughout our history. It is hard to accept diversity when you are not accepting the differences among us. It is hard to champion diversity when the push towards status quo sameness is drilled into us from birth. It is impossible to honor diversity when fear of other is used from the pulpit and political soap box to provide scape goats for the powerful to hide behind. 

But there it was, loud and clear, “Our diversity is our strength”. Words are easy to mimic; more difficult to understand and nearly impossible to bring to fruition. But here it is, a clarion call to the wise to recognize what Nature has always taught. We are here because of what has come before and what will come after. We’re intrinsically tied to all living things. When one is elevated, we’re all elevated. And while we may not recognize it, when one is harmed, we too, are harmed.

The United States has been an experiment in humanity and we are by all accounts in a critical moment. Can we the people, recognize the value of “the other”. Can we care for “the other”? 

Our collective history is fraught with genocide of Indigenous peoples, slavery and other ongoing racial injustices. Our debates about helping immigrants is hypocritical and ironic, given the reality that most of us are born of settlers who infiltrated this land and its peoples.

Thought has its own evolution. And while the ideals of unity, compassion and caring are not new, maybe the time has come for their acceptance. Perhaps a wider audience is now ready for a new reality that’s not merely lip service. Time and actions will tell.

And high on the list must be the end of the apartheid of Palestinian people. We must end racism here and we must not support any forms of it throughout the world. Come on DNC, honor what the vast majority of our citizens want: #CeasefireNow and stop supplying Israel with war machines. Anything less is the continuation of a ruthless and inhuman history. This is now ours to change.

We are waking up.

I remain hopeful. Do the right thing.

Liberal Ambivalence

People take great pride in espousing what they believe to be true. “Hear it, repeat it, swear by it” should be our national motto.

People ask me what I believe and I say, “You don’t want to know what I believe. Beliefs change like clothing. Ask me what I know.”

I get a few sideways glances but few dare to ask. I understand why. Very few take the time required to delve into the realm of knowing. Comforted by belief, however ludicrous, we accept what we have been told as gospel. 

The annihilation of Palestine is peppered with belief. Belief in Zionism, belief in Rapture, belief that our leaders have our best interest at heart. I heard someone tell Tammy Baldwin that what is happening in Gaza is genocide. She replied, “We don’t use that word.” Why Tammy?

Does it have something to do with who finances campaigns?  Or do you really believe that what is occurring for the past eight months – and truly much longer – is not genocide? Cutting off food and water, bombing crowded markets, hospitals, schools…all with United States tax dollars and your support. Let’s call it what it is.

We are so into belief that we no longer push for what is right. Our beliefs keep us from any meaningful dialogue towards peace. Instead, we “save” four hostages by killing a few hundred civilians. And it is “we” since it is our money and weaponry so cavalierly being used to kill.

But, mustn’t say genocide. 

But I can’t blame you alone, Tammy. For every one of you there are countless numbers of people who shrug their shoulders and mumble something inane like, both sides are wrong (or are they right?). Ah, the delusion of ambivalence. How well we wear it. 

Ignorance must indeed be bliss. We can all do much more.

Wisconsin Coalition for Justice in Palestine – Learn more. Take action. Talk to people.

Bring Peace to Rafah

Democrats are terrified of Trump. They admit that Biden’s choice to support Israel and the slaughter of over 35,000 human beings, including 15,000 children is “wrong”, but they are terrified that if they speak out, Biden will lose and democracy will be no more.

Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but democracy took a back seat to militarism in this country a long time ago. Militarized police on university campuses should be telling us this. 

Biden is turning a blind eye towards Rafah, regardless of what his words say. Rafah is the last holdout for 1. 5 million Palestinians who ran there for safety. The government of Netanyahu is showing no sign of letting up on his seven month march of destruction and death. And Biden is showing no understanding at the consequences of his unequivocal support of Netanyahu from the start.

And one day, as we saw with Bush’s Iraq horror, we will come to know Biden’s complicity in these war crimes as calculated resource and land grabs – costing countless lives and ways of life.

War will never bring us peace. 

It’s beyond time that we stop the United States war machine. Biden is little more than a puppet to the industries of war and fossil fuels, as were the presidents of both parties before him. Choose your poison.

Students are again the conscience of the United States. The rallies and encampments are the culmination of a sincere desire for peace – with the recognition that divestment from war is our way out. End war and save the environment. End war and save our humanity.

We have a bigger choice before us than who will be in the White House in 2025. We have the choice of who will emerge from this nightmare. Peacemakers or warmongers. 

To all the terrified Democrats: try being in Rafah right now.

Silence is Betrayal – King’s moral stance against the Vietnam War continues to teach us. 

For What Its Worth

Young people are at it again. Stirring up trouble and making us think. How dare they have peaceful protests about genocide. How dare they demand an end to their college’s funding of militarism and the slaughter of innocents. The hubris. The arrogance. Challenging the United States’ long held worship of war is not easy. Just ask those who stood up in the 60’s. Or at least ask the ones who remember how good it felt to be on the side of humanity.

Once again young people are forcing us to remember the creeds we extol. Freedom of speech being among them. It’s very hard to reckon how any of us can still believe the self defense claims of Netanyahu while we watch the horror unfolding and the lies exposed.

Now we’re learning that the Israeli claims of terrorists in UNRWA have no foundation – this after the US led the charge to defund the only consistent humanitarian aid available to Palestinians. And how long will it take Congress to reenact that aid?

Remember the pier the US was building to bring relief? Whatever happened to that? Yet the international humanitarian flotilla carrying 5500 tons of aid may not be allowed to leave Istanbul. And children starve to death.

What must it be like to be a Palestinian in this moment when revenge is promoted on a grand scale and the western world silently utters thoughts and prayers and watches. We were lied to from the beginning of this slaughter, both by the ranking Israeli government and by our President. 

But too many of us are saying, “Don’t rock the boat”, not realizing the boat sank a long time ago.

“It’s time we stop”. Listen to the youth. Remember our humanity.

For What Its Worth. This picture is of Jewish students enjoying and celebrating Passover Seder – while protesting the slaughter of innocent Palestinians at the hands of the extreme right wing government of Israel.

It is worth a lot. we must keep overcoming our ignorance to uphold our humanity.

Please take some time to listen to my conversation with Alan Chavoya on militarized police, the need for community control over policing and humanistic activism. It holds groundbreaking information for those ready for change.