Freedom, in our representative republic, is never pretty. It is dirty, ugly, ever changing, and very much worth standing for. The louder the yelling the harder it is hear. We have the right to yell and an obligation to listen, no matter how loud. The past weeks have again ripped at our cultural fabric and that is ok. This country was created by those fighting for their rights and equality from tyranny; and the fight continues, and our republic grows stronger with diversity.
There are unique differences between the riots spawned from M. L. King’s assassination (1968) and Rodney King’s beating (1991). Today’s marches and demonstrations are not monochrome. The demonstrations are racially, generationally, gender, and culturally diverse. Aspects of our country are coming together with a resounding rejection of racism and racial targeted abuse. Unfortunately, their voices are being drowned out by those willing to tear down and loot rather than march for change. Will we stand in front of our neighbor’s stores and shops and protect them from looters and vandals? Or will we allow the lowest among us to steal our opportunity to make real and substantive changes to our republic. We hear: ‘the killing was terrible, the looting MUST stop’; we should hear: ‘the looting is terrible, the killing MUST stop’. What if the looting is the manifestation of pent up anger and frustration because of the killing?
Ordering federal troops ‘to restore order’ is a sign of failure. The Insurrection Act was intended to ensure Federal law was being upheld in the States. The act was used by Lincoln to establish the legal basis for the Civil War and by Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson, who in defiance of the State governors of Arkansas, Mississippi, and Alabama, deployed troops to ensure federal desegregation laws were enforced. The threat to invoke the Act to quell people exercising their rights juxtaposed to the past actions is a sad statement of leadership. Maybe the potential of marshalling of troops against citizens is why our founders included the Second Amendment. They lived with and fought foreign tyranny and feared domestic tyranny would be a death blow to the fundamental freedoms they sought.
Sadly ironic, the one thing law enforcement officers and minorities have in common is the fear of not knowing if they will return safely home as they leave every morning. It is poor statement of a civil society when this is an aspect of equality. Sunset the legal doctrine of Qualified Immunity and have law enforcement be held to the same standards as all citizens. In some circles that would be called equality.
Ultimately it comes down to each one of us, individually. Looking deep within ourselves, rather than looking at others. Regardless of your race, like it or not, there is a little bit of Amy Cooper and Dereck Chauvin in all of us. We all have some fear, uncertainty, mistrust, cynicism, and skepticism. We were not born with them, we grew-up with them and learned them. They are an undeniable part of us which we must un-learn. We have seen in the last few days the dark shadows these can cast. We have also seen the bright light of cross racial solidarity and compassion.
Just because you think you treated someone fairly, does not mean you treated them with equality. You can also commit injustice by doing nothing. Let’s commit to do something we’ve never done before: Make America Equal. #NeverFearTheDream #BlackLivesMatter
I paused on an overpass viewing the highway traffic coming and going. When I noticed a few on the right had made poor choices resulting in an unfortunate altercation. The right lanes almost immediately came to a halt as their sudden loss of momentum caused subsequent accidents. Backing up and in the ditch, the masses stymied and stopped by those decisions. It’s hard to tell if it’s a major accident or a series of minor incidents, nevertheless traffic stacked up. 
Every election, every opportunity to vote, is important. The health of our representative republic is at risk with every election. It isn’t your civic responsibility to vote, it’s a privilege and one which shouldn’t be abused. Our country is based on the principle of an electorate selecting people who best represent their opinions and aspirations. Those representatives are then empowered to make laws in concert with the majority of their constituents, while protecting the rights of the minority.
SimpleBender.....wcb 