Tell Congress to Act on Our Behalf

 

Are you concerned about the actions President Trump is taking?  Do you worry about his possible conflicts of interest, and his ties to Russia, and their hacking of our electoral system?  Are you worried about the apparent instability of President Trump, and his unpredictability, utter lack of tact and decorum, and total disregard of protocol?  Are you concerned about the choices he’s made for his cabinet?

If you answered yes to ANY of these question – it is time to reach out to Congress, and demand they take action!  Call, e mail, write letters, do all of the above!  Remind them that they work for US, not the party and their special interests.  Only Congress can call for an investigation into the ethics and potential conflicts of interest.  Only Congress can either enact the 25^th Amendment or begin impeachment proceedings.  Yet they have taken no actions, and thus far only have worked in pursuit of their limited agenda, not doing their job as a check and balance of our governmental power.  The longer they wait to do so the more Mr. Trump can corrupt, disrupt and defy our representative democracy, and erode our republic.

The time has come to remind Congress, both the House of Representatives and the Senate, that they work for US.  We, the People.  The parties are not who they serve, the investors and financiers who fund their campaigns are not their true constituents – WE ARE.  Let’s inundate them with phone calls, e mails and letters reminding them that they serve US, not their self-interests, and we DEMAND that they do their JOBS, and act as a check and restore balance to our government.

Let’s do this!  Feel free to share this call to action.

Some thoughts on True Things

Truth.  Most of you reading this know it already.  Those who most need to see this, to fundamentally understand it for what it is, probably won’t.  And even if they did, they would likely dismiss this as liberal bullshit, or some such.

Mexicans are not pouring across our border as though the dam is broken.  Not by any stretch of the imagination.  Illegal immigrants are not everywhere, and taking your jobs!  This is simply a great big lie.

Refugees are not hiding secret ISIS operatives.  They are fleeing from destruction, murder and worse at the hands of ISIS and their ilk, they are not the problem.

Islam is not so different from Christianity.  The extremists are a very, very small percentage of what makes up Islamic practitioners, and are in no way representative of the religion.  Lumping them all together is a completely false equivalency.

There is no war on Christianity.  I repeat, there is NO war on Christianity.  What there has been is a broader understanding that we are NOT, nor have we ever been, a Christian nation.  That is why saying “Happy Holidays” rather than “Merry Christmas” has become prevalent – we are acknowledging there are others with different sensibilities out there.

Climate Change is a real, scientifically proven issue.  If we do nothing to arrest it or otherwise impact it, the planet will become increasingly toxic to us, and we will find it harder and harder to survive.  This is not some liberal lie to increase unnecessary regulations, it is the truth about how we have artificially effected the planet since the industrial revolution.

Non-straight people are no threat to anyone.  Sexual orientation and gender identification do not make a person good or bad.  These identifiers are harmful to none, and anyone who identifies as queer, gay, bi, transgendered or what-have-you should not be subject to discrimination on the basis of that.  Period.

President Trump is dangerous to the world order.  He will not make America great again, he will make us a third rate power.  He will make us a laughing-stock, a has-been, an also-ran.  We are in danger of losing our sovereignty over his outright lies and disregard for protocol, tact, and civility.

America is NOT a White nation.  We never were, we never will be.  We are a melting pot of diversity, or at least that’s what we should be.  We have every race, creed, color, religion, and so on represented in our national identity.  And remember, with the exception of the Native American tribes, we are ALL immigrants here.

Civility, kindness, compassion, understanding…what happened?  When did it become ok to be an asshole?  When did we let go of loving our neighbors, looking out for our brothers and sisters, and trying to help one another?  This is not what we should ever be about.  We should be trying to help each other be better people, not divide ourselves so that a small group of people can maintain a choke hold on power.

Consider that.  All of this is the truth.

An old-fashioned letter-writing campaign

One non-violent action we can ALL take:

We KNOW that Congress is going to repeal the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare).  I have never understood why, except that it was an Obama idea and thus an affront for whatever reason.

I know a LOT of people who benefit from any number of provisions of the ACA, and who are far too likely to suffer if it is taken away.  There are even more people I DON’T know that will be hurt by this action.

Frequently, we all talk about how clear it is that Congress is completely out-of-touch with We, The People.

So I thought, hey, here’s something we can do – an old fashioned LETTER WRITING campaign.  Maybe if we inundate them with what WE want and need, maybe, just maybe, they will see that representing us should be a higher priority than it obviously is.

I have taken the liberty of writing the following letter.  Feel free to take this and edit it as you see fit:

 

Dear (Congressman/woman)(Senator) *insert name here*,

I understand that you wish to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA, aka Obamacare).

I recognize that the ACA is imperfect, but if you really, truly serve the people you claim to represent, how can you support taking away insurance from millions of Americans, many of whom are your constituents, without offering them an alternative?  If you do so, are you instead offering us an affordable alternative that continues to ignore pre-existing conditions and provides care for everyone?

You have been elected to serve the people of your District, and beyond that to represent the United States of America.  Taking away individual rights and denying your people their rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness by making a necessity such as health care unreachable should seem counter to serving your country.

Please, if you truly care about the country and the people that you serve, do not simply repeal the ACA and leave millions suffering.  Please serve in your position to help your people, and either give us something better or leave the ACA alone until such time as you come up with an alternative.

Please show your people that you serve them, and their interests.  Without our health we have little else, so rather than eliminating something that helps people and betters the standing of our nation, keep it until you can change it for something better.

The people of the United States deserve decent, affordable health care, no matter their finances, gender or religious beliefs.  Please consider the lives your vote to repeal the ACA could destroy before you vote to repeal it.  Please consider how many people are struggling to make ends meet, how American was built on neighbor helping neighbor, and please do your part for the people you are supposed to serve, to help us all live better lives.

Thank you.

 

Respectfully,

A concerned constituent

 

We can’t just e mail this – we need to MAIL these.  Not a few, a LOT.  Like, LOTS, and LOTS, AND LOTS of letters.  Pile this on and show them how their actions (and for that matter inactions) affect us all.

To that end, let me offer the following assistance:

Senators who voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act in January, 2017

http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=115&session=1&vote=00026

Congressmen/Congresswomen who voted to repeal Obamacare in February, 2016:

http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2016/roll053.xml

Because the above gives names but not their states, here’s how to find your member of the House of Representatives:

http://www.house.gov/

Wait a sec, you may be thinking.  There was just an election.  Aren’t at least SOME of these people gone?  Most likely – SO – here’s the next Congress, according to Wikipedia (so could be somewhat inaccurate):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/115th_United_States_Congress

Wikipedia DOES offer links to all of the members of congress, but I think this site may be a tad easier for seeking who YOUR reps are:

https://www.nationalpriorities.org/take-action/contact-your-representative/

Additionally, the above site suggested how to address our Members of Congress:

For Senators

The Honorable (Full Name)
[Room #] [Building Name] Senate Office Building
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510

For Representatives

The Honorable (Full Name)
[Room #] [Building Name] House Office Building
United States House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515

When writing to the Chair of a Committee or the Speaker of the House, it is appropriate to begin letters with “Dear Mr./Madam Chairman/woman” or “Dear Mr./Madam Speaker.”

 

This may be crazy, but it is a non-violent, practical means to an end.  E mails are easier to ignore than physical letters, so let’s inundate them with the message that they cannot just take away health insurance for MILLIONS without offering a comparable replacement.

Please share this with EVERYONE, and encourage everyone you know to either use my template above or write their own letter.  I know this is hokey, but that makes it no less practical.  Let’s all do it, ASAP.  Tons and tons of letters.  Maybe if they really SEE how many people this is important to, maybe they will reconsider if they are working FOR us, or AGAINST us.

Thank you.

Today and the New Year (2016/2017)

Today.

Today is.  That’s all, today is a day.

The question is, what will you make of today?  How will you treat today differently from how you treated yesterday and how you will treat tomorrow?

As we enter into the new year, and we prepare to celebrate the transition from the one to the other, we should all take a moment to consider what last year wrought, both good and bad, and what we might want for next year.

This past year was, for many, deeply depressing.  Too many popular celebrities left us too soon, we experienced an utterly distressing election, and have watched a world stage grow increasingly disturbing and more and more uncertain.  But beyond those big-picture matters, 2016 was a year like any other, full of personal ups and downs, wins and losses, good, bad and otherwise.

What do you want for the new year?  I know we all have concerns, fears, and interests in the coming year.  But if consciousness creates reality, then we need to find good things for ourselves, first in the today, then for tomorrow.

There are only three questions we need to ask ourselves to start better consciously creating our reality.

Question one: How are you feeling?  Asking this awakens your awareness, and lets you assume control over your thoughts and emotions.  Question two: What am I grateful for?  Finding things, no matter their size or shape, for which to express gratitude will put you in a more positive mindset, and help further your awareness about how you are feeling.  Question three: What do I want for the new year?  Not the bad things you DON’T want, do not give them any additional focus or attention – examine those things which you DO want.  The things that will help you to live the best life you can.

Today is.  What today is is wholly yours to determine.  You, and you alone, can create your life, and this is an opportunity to create one that is what you want.  New Year’s Eve brings out resolutions in many to improve their lives – but I would suggest we take this chance to instead look closely at the day, and not just make a resolution to do some thing or other next year – but instead find the awareness of TODAY, of this moment, and use that to start off the new year with the most positive emotional ammunition we can horde for a better year.

Happy New Year to one and all!

Thoughts on the results of this election

What happens next?

Accept what has happened, go passive and wait to see what happens next?  No.  It is because we have been too passive that the bigots, the racists, misogynists and homophobes now feel empowered.  Every time they march, we need to counter-march.  Every time they spew hate, we need to spew reason and love.  Because we were passive they think they now have a voice.  We can no longer be passive, we need to take the fight right to them, and get in their faces just as much as they have gotten in ours.

There are people we cannot reach.  They will shout down all reason, spouting platitudes from a lack of research and knowledge.  But further isolating them and allowing them to shout unanswered will not do anything.  They think that by repeatedly spouting their hate and their closed-mindedness we’ll roll over for them…but no, we need to calmly reply until they go hoarse and cannot speak but listen.  We need to show them that hate is not greater than reason.

Assume the worst?  No.  Look, Trump used deplorable means to win, but now that he has it IS possible he will not be the worst.  I am not saying we can be passive here, either…and we need to REALLY keep our eye on Congress…but before we climb into our bunkers and prepare for the end, let’s work to change the conversation.

We have TWO YEARS to change Congress.  THEY are the lawmakers.  They are the ones who will take away the hard-earned rights of the people we love, the health insurance we desperately need, and harm the environment in the name of the almighty dollar.  We need to find people NOW we can put out there, who can raise the funds needed to compete and who actually represent change.  We need to start that ball rolling IMMEDIATELY if we want to take back control from these spineless politicians who care for nothing but their power.

Be active, not passive, in your actions.  I know this could get risky, the armed and ignorant may get violent, but we need to stand up to the bullies and show them THEY are the minority, and they may be loud, but they are few, and they cannot disempower us.

I am a white cis male (and being Jewish in this situation seems not to make me part of the targeted).  I will stand with and for ALL of my friends, no matter skin color, religion, gender, sexual preference, etc.  I will stand by your side and support you in whatever ways I can.

Election 2016

I am sorry if this offends you, but I feel rather strongly about this, so I am going to say it.

This is the reality of the situation.  We have two choices for President.  Trump or Clinton.  Unless you agree with a self-aggrandizing, hate-mongering, sexist, racist narcissist, it is in your best interest to vote for Clinton.  She may well be the status quo, and a corporate shill, but that is of far less import than we give it.  I know a lot of people thoroughly dislike her, and for that matter I am not her biggest fan either.  But we have ONLY these two choices, whether we like it or not.  She is the best of them by far.

America has two choices for President this year.  I am sorry if you are a supporter of one of the third party candidates, but the sad truth is that they can’t win, because the system is designed to stop them from doing so.  Want to change that?  It won’t change from the top.

This is the truth, whether you want to believe it or not.  You cannot change the system from the top down.  The continued failure of the theory of Trickle-Down economics has proven that.

Thus, you can throw away your vote for President if you so choose, but the statement you are making by voting for your third party candidate might as well be a shout in the middle of the dessert, because it will have the same effect.

Want to change the system?  Since you can’t do it from the top, let’s address the much, much larger issue at hand.  Congress.  The President DOES NOT MAKE LAW.  Read the Constitution, the President signs or vetos laws, but DOES NOT make them.  That’s Congress’ job.  And they are not doing their job.

We have an embarrassing, useless, obstructionist body politic right now.  There are so many people in office who just should not be there.  They are focused on meaningless drivel, and doing nothing to address important matters that could improve the lives of the people they are supposed to represent.  Their elections are the ones we should care the most about.  They are the people in office we should REALLY concern ourselves with.

Do you know who your Congresspeople are?  Take a look at the lawmakers, people.  These are the people we should be focusing on, not the people running for President.  I believe that ALL of the House of Representatives is up for election this year.  Want to change the system?  Get rid of these nimrods and get in new blood where it counts.

Want to support a third party?  How about a third party candidate for Congress?  Bernie Sanders is NOT a Democrat, but he understood that to have ANY chance he had to run for President as one.  We need more independents and third party men and women in the House and the Senate.  THAT is how we change the system.

It might seem like a bleak reality, but that’s what we have.  We need to accept that, and choose the less frightening of the two choices before us.  Meanwhile, let’s turn our attention towards the scary, do-nothing people in Congress, and start making the change that would do our nation the most good.

We CAN change the system.  But we have to work our way from the bottom to the top, not the other way around.

Taking a Stand for Equal Rights for ALL

It is time to take a stand.

Full disclosure: I am a white, straight, non-Christian male.  And I believe that EVERYONE deserves equal rights.

I do not care in the least if you are white, black, Hispanic, Asian or what-have-you; it does not matter if you are male or female or gender fluid or no gender at all; it doesn’t matter if you are straight, gay, bi, omnisexual or any other option; it is of no matter to me if you are spiritual, agnostic, atheist, Muslim, Christian, Jew, Buddhist, Hindi or so-on-and-so-forth; fat, thin, short, tall, flat-footed, blonde, brunette, grey, American, European, Indian, rich, poor, etcetera; EVERYONE DESERVES EQUAL RIGHTS.

We live in a world where people still hate based on the must ludicrous perceived differences.  People act out of fear of those who are different from them, and spew hate and anger at whole groups of people who have never done anything but not be the same as them.

Hatred gets us nowhere.  Period.  Fear only drives us to cower from change and to allow a small, vocal minority to disempower people.  This has got to stop.

Take a stand.  Express your support for equality.

And if you are afraid of people who are different from you, ask yourself this question – WHY?  What are you afraid of?  Are you afraid of being changed?  Are you afraid of losing what you have?  Are you afraid of anything tangible?  Are you afraid of being shown that your fear is completely irrational?  WHY are you angry, why are you afraid?

Everyone deserves equal rights.  We need to love more, fear less, and seek to make the world a better place, together.

I am not afraid of you if you are not like me.  I support you in having the right to worship as you want, to love as you will, to have a life of love and peace and equality.

Equal Rights.  For EVERYONE.  Resist the hate and fear with love and courage.  Do not give back the hate and fear and anger, turn it around and give what you want to get.

I stand with the LGBT community.  I stand with the black community.  I stand with women.  I stand with Muslims and Christians and Buddhists and Jews and Atheists and anyone else trying to worship, or not, freely.  We all deserve to be treated with respect, with dignity, and with equality.  That’s our birthright.

Disagree with me?  Ok, that’s your prerogative.  You are entitled to your own opinion.  What you are not entitled to, however, is degrading, belittling, condescending or denying the rights of those you are in disagreement with.  Don’t politicize basic human decency, and don’t treat people as less than you, because none of us are.

We are all one.  We are all equal.  We all want and deserve equality.  That’s a plain, simple, unbiased fact.

I stand for equality for all.  Will you stand with me?

An open letter to fellow Americans

Dear America,

When did we accept hatred as the standard?  When did we decide that after almost a century of progress it was perfectly ok to allow unrestrained racists, sexists, bigots, misogynists, warmongers and fearmongers to be our leaders again?  When did we decide that it was better to praise and follow the blindly faithful and ignorant rather than the logical and intelligent?

How did we get to this place where our choices for leadership from one party includes a zealot and a narcissist and the other side is a corporate shill and an idealist?

The one side became polarized over the past 30 years or so because they allowed special interests, religious fanatics and closeted bigots gain control.  And they wonder why they cannot stop this monster Dr. Frankenstein has unleashed on us?

The other side became polarized over the past 30 years or so because they allowed special interests, a lack of conviction and an unclear agenda gain control.  And they wonder why so many distrust the party leaderships’ Chosen One and prefer the idealist?

Do you want this country to return to segregation, to the failed principles of separate but equal?  Do you want the corporate bosses to be your slave masters again?  Do you really want to see those who are poor and disabled and hurting simply left to die?  Do you want to allow the greedy to destroy this planet so they can turn ludicrous profits that never trickle down to anyone else?  Do you want to live your life in fear?

This is what you have to take into consideration when it comes to the election this year.  I am not just talking about the Presidency, I am talking about ALL of those up for reelection.  Congress has become an obstructionist mouthpiece of those who pay for their elections.  Special interests and corporate hacks have taken control, and they will not stop until the rich are so rich that they can afford to leave the planet they are destroying, while the rest of us let them take everything we hold dear and wonder where it all went wrong.

Fear is not a healthy basis for a system of government.  Hate, exclusionism, greed, racism, bigotry, misogyny and sexism are all just alternate versions of fear.  Fear enslaves us to the will of others, and those who have the power continue to make it clear that they want only to garner more power.

Please stop being afraid, America.  Please stop fearing change, stop fearing the unknown, stop being afraid of anyone and anything different from you.  Please remember that our Declaration of Independence that was the blueprint for the forming of this nation says,  “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that ALL men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

America is not a land of Christians only.  It is not a land of Whites only. America is not a land of men only.  It is not a land of rich only.  It is NOT a nation of exclusion – American was founded on the principles of inclusion.

Building walls to keep out those who are different is not American.  Creating laws that forbid marriage is not American.  Creating laws that belittle ANY citizen, black or white, man or woman, gay or straight, religious or atheist is NOT American.  We are a nation of tolerance, we are a nation of freedom, we are a nation of inclusion…and it is time that we reclaim that.

Please release the fear, America.  Isolating ourselves, registering those who hold different beliefs and limiting resources for only the wealthy is what this nation was founded to stand against.  What we choose this year will reverberate very differently from our past choices.  We can reclaim our nation from the greedy, from the special interests, from those who don’t care about us but only about themselves…or we can give them even more power, and disempower ourselves and let America truly cease to be great.

Fear is not the answer.  Fear is un-American.  Please, please examine this and consider if you want to empower the people who only take, and are giving nothing back to you but fear, death, poverty, and war.

Is being American about being afraid?  No.

Please stop being afraid, America.  For the sake of us all, for the sake of our children, do not let fear make your decision in these elections.

With Respect,

A concerned American.

The Wrong Side of History

Dear haters, bigots, misogynists, and homophobes,

Congratulations – you are on the wrong side of history.

I am sorry to tell you that your hatred will not change public policy. Blacks, women, homosexuals, Hispanics, Hindis, Muslims, transgendered, fat and thin people and everyone else all will win equality, because that is what is right.

There is no “gay agenda”, except maybe they want to be treated like everyone else. There is no Muslim world take-over conspiracy, the vast majority of Muslims think about their religious beliefs the same as everyone else. Women should be paid the same as men for the same jobs. Transgendered people have the right to use whatever bathroom they choose. Black, Hispanic and Indian people are not trying to push out white people.

There IS a war on women and their rights to choose how to treat their own bodies. There ARE religious extremists out there who want their intolerant ways applied to all – and not just Muslims, there are plenty of Christian and even Jewish extremists out there. There ARE haters who fear change and dislike seeing women and homosexuals and anyone who is not white and male in positions of power or as major characters in books, TV, movies and other media. There are nut jobs running for office who deny science and logic and reason in favor of extremism and their own power.

I cannot speak for everyone who feels as I do, but let me just tell you this: We are all one. Stop hating, stop being afraid of change because change is going to happen, you are simply in the way. Let go of your hatred, because it is irrational and useless. You aren’t going to keep the “status quo” because it’s not. Everyone deserves equality, everyone has a right to live the life they would choose, and intolerance and hatred won’t stand.

Those of us who feel this way need to speak up. Stop letting the haters spread their hate unanswered. Spread inclusion instead of exclusion, unity instead of division, peace instead of war, love instead of hate, education instead of blind faith, logic instead of extremism. Stop letting the fear mongers win supporters – Let’s work on spreading truth over irrationality.

Maybe I am espousing a hippy-crunchy love-over-hate message, but I see nothing wrong with that. The world needs less fear and hate and more rationality and love. I’m doing my part – what else can we do to change the world for the better?

Equal Rights and Religious Freedom

The United States of America is NOT, repeat, NOT a Christian Country. Period. End of discussion.

Further, please correct me if I am mistaken, but didn’t Jesus preach equality? From the low to the high, all are children of God and should be respected as such? Who do you think you are claiming your hatred, your bigotry, your discrimination, or your misogyny is in the name of God?

Let’s discuss another absolute fact. There is no war against Christianity in the USA. Period. End of discussion.

America is a great big melting pot. EVERY SINGLE RELIGION you can imagine is found here, and allowed to be practiced. No one religion dominates. Nor should it. That is the definition right there of freedom of religion – go ahead and practice it, no matter what it is.

Besides, do you realize how many forms of Christianity exist? Beyond Catholicism, Lutheranism, Protestantism, Methodist, Baptist…how many more forms are there? How many divides even amongst these? And do they all agree? No. So you are completely off base if you believe that anyone is waging a war against Christianity as a whole.

Look, I have nothing against anyone practicing their religion. Go for it. What I DO have a problem with is when you try to push your beliefs on anyone else. In especial if you work a mundane, private-sector job.

If you do not work for a church or other religious organization, you have NO RIGHT to use your beliefs to deny someone goods or services. Are you a pharmacist? Ok, you prescribe birth control and morning after pills and all other drugs, PERIOD. No debate, that’s what you do. Are you a butcher? Unless you are specifically a Kosher butcher I would bet you sell pork. Justice of the Peace? You marry couples, gay or straight. That’s how it works.

It is extremely disconcerting to see so much outright hatred, bigotry and misogyny happening in this day and age. The so-called leaders who unapologetically spout it somehow stir-up the old animosities, and we’re tossed backwards in time. Suddenly it is acceptable to openly express your bias against anyone who is not like you.

What happened? I grew up when we were talking about inclusion. Equal rights for EVERYONE. Color of your skin, religion, gender, economic standing – they didn’t matter. Equality was the word. Now – suddenly its ok to proudly be discriminatory in the name of…take your pick. God. Money. Race. Creed. Whatever group you want to tag yourself onto.

You know what? It’s NOT ok. Equality IS everyone’s right. There is only so much I can do as an everyman to express this, but here it is: WE ALL deserve equal treatment. If you are male, female, transgendered, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Christian, Atheist, Muslim, Jew, young, old, rich, poor, heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, fat, thin, hot, cold…whatever – you deserve equal treatment!

There are people in positions of leadership RIGHT NOW that do not stand for equality, and make no bones about that. There are people attempting to gain positions of leadership who are unabashed bigots, haters and misogynists. PAY ATTENTION, and let’s kick them to the curb. Don’t allow them and their disparate followers to turn back the clock to the inequalities of the past.

Stand up and make your position known.

Join me in shouting more loudly than the haters – EQUAL RIGHTS FOR EVERYONE!!!!!