Action Not Fear

“What comes next? Expect massive efforts to keep Democrats from voting or prevent their votes from counting. The focus will be minority communities. I’ve spent years fighting suppression. I expect the worst election cycle we’ve ever experienced. We all have to fight for fairness.” @JoyceWhiteVance twitter
And right on cue posted on facebook by a nut job, “Trump approval among blacks hit 42%” WND-WorldNetDaily. Crap conservative news, more righter-wing than Fox News. Nobody buys this drivel, right?
We all know this is absolute fabrication paraded as fact, yet.
These people cling to what they want to believe, choosing to ignore rational thought. They have always done this. The difference now are numerous outlets that validate their craziness. There are countless ways to find what you want to hear and believe to validate your conspiracy idealism.
We are up against a very difficult beast to slay. Trump and Company have figured out how to tap into this right wing conspiracy crazies by validating, through media and government control, their underlying bigotry, hatred, and biblical piety masked as patriotism, nationalist pride, and dare I say, white supremacy.
It was always there, now exposed. This beast can only be slayed by truth alone. Dare I say, complete progressive ideas with no wiggle room.
This beast was a long time coming through the holes created by exposure to truth, historically and politically on BOTH sides of the spectrum, creating panic amongst everyone.
Columbus didn’t discover America, the Civil War did not end racism by abolishing slavery, reconstruction was squashed, lynching was viewed just like mass shootings today, as sad anomalies in our fabric that we could pray away.
The answer is not centrist regression that tries to shove the beast back into self-inflicted ignorance (you cannot erase exposure) by fear of what we dare ask for (democratic socialism (FDR)-Universal healthcare, higher wages, gender equality, etc.) The answer is a strong unity demand for these things without compromise because they are just and right. We must stand up against those that judge and ridicule others to lift up themselves as pious citizens, while others (usually of another race, economic status, or gender or sexually different than themselves) are seen as obviously lazy and decadent.
History shows us heroes who have tried and failed in the short term (Lincoln, Douglass, Kennedy, MLK, etc). Fear has always been a powerful tool to suppress, assassinating ideas as well as these heroes (funny how that word has double asses). When it works we get lynching, Holocausts and Tyranny.
It will never be easy to demand these things. Truths reveal ugliness, which are hard pills to swallow, but they are not whimsical ideas. They are not idealistic fantasies, they are truths. Obtainable truths. Isn’t that why we are here? Isn’t that what true faith is all about set to action.
I believe the beginning of our country, with all its flaws, was only possible through this boldness. Dumping British tea in Boston harbor, daring to face off against slavery, daring to believe truths were worth fighting for. Boldly starting anew. Can you imagine if in Dec 1773 those colonist that met at the Old South meeting house decided to listen to fear and say, “Let’s just wait this out. I’m sure King George won’t be in power much longer and the next King will be better.”? Fear.
We now know the complicated flaws of historical exposure, which will grow with new discoveries. Facing them head on must be the answer, not fear.
Yes, it will be easier to sit this out, hope the election will not be tainted, learn not to ask for things, let people die in abject poverty, let healthcare costs play Russian roulette with peoples families, etc.
I hope and pray we have the guts to choice the hard path.
“I am William Wallace, and I see a whole army of my countrymen, here, in defiance of Tyranny. You’ve come to fight as free men, and free men you are. What will you do without freedom? Will you fight?
Soldier: Fight? Against that? No! We will run! And we will live.
William Wallace: Aye. Fight and you may die. Run, and you’ll live…at least a while. And dying in your beds, many years from now, would you be willing to trade all the days, from this day to that, for one chance — just one chance — to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives but they’ll never take our freedom!-Braveheart