Tag Archives: donald-trump

Crazy Activism and The Big Streak!

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Hands-Off Protests Nationwide
Colorado rallies alone took place in Denver, Boulder, Fort Collins, Loveland, Longmont, Greeley, and Highlands Ranch. Nationwide protests happened today against the atrocities being committed by that guy in office. Many of my friends went to the one in Boulder and Denver and I give them a thumbs up. They were brave enough to step up for what they believe. For more information on what is happening go to: https://www.yahoo.com/news/protesters-tee-off-against-trump-191321348.html?fr=yhssrp_catchall

Comments from the White House are abhorrent. Shakespeare was right in his statement, “The lady doth protest too much, methinks.” When you have the press secretary parroting the words about fraud and abuse when programs are cut, you wonder why she is the representative for the highest office. She should be ashamed of herself and resign. No one wants to hear that. We know what is going on. The highest elected official doesn’t have a conscience.

In 2020, after the George Floyd incident, the president strode across Washington with his military minions, in order to be photographed holding a bible in front of St. John’s church. He had recently ordered  As he held up an upside-down bible he stated that “this is a great country” and turned and left without speaking. This was his statement, as though this explained his order to remove protesters by force. Bishop Budde spoke out against this man. She told reporters, “President Trump does not speak for St. John’s.” She also stated, “Let me be clear: the president just used a Bible, the most sacred text of the Judeo-Christian tradition, and one of the churches in my diocese, without permission, as a backdrop for a message antithetical to the teachings of Jesus [Emphasis mine)]. Everything he has said and done is to inflame violence. We need moral leadership, and he’s done everything to divide us.”—How We Learn to Be Brave by Mariann Edgar Budde, Episcopal Bishop of Washington

When President Trump was elected once again, Biship Budde spoke out. Trump attended church services in her church after the inauguration. In her sermon, she pleaded with him to embrace compassion and strive for unity. She stated there were three foundations for unity:

  1. “Honoring the inherent dignity of every human being. In public discourse, honoring each other’s dignity means refusing to mock, discount, or demonize those with whom we differ, choosing instead to respectfully debate across our differences, and whenever possible, to seek common ground. If common ground is not possible, dignity demands that we remain true to our convictions without contempt for those who hold convictions of their own.”  
  2. “Honesty in both private conversation and public discourse. If we aren’t willing to be honest, there is no use in praying for unity, because our actions work against the prayers themselves.”
  3. “Humility, which we all need, because we are all fallible human beings. We make mistakes. We say and do things that we regret. We have our blind spots and biases, and we are perhaps the most dangerous to ourselves and others when we are persuaded, without a doubt, that we are absolutely right and someone else is absolutely wrong. Because then we are just a few steps away from labeling ourselves as the good people, versus the bad people.” 

In her final plea to him, she stated: “Let me make one final plea, Mr. President. Millions have put their trust in you. As you told the nation yesterday, you have felt the providential hand of a loving God. In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now.”
Bishop Budde’s Sermon

I hope that all of this activism will make changes in awareness and help people see the light. However, I don’t believe it has helped in those in the states where contentious people, mostly republicans, are still being voted into office (recently, Florida). The only way to make a change is to keep challenging the people who continue to believe in all of their politician’s nonsensical rhetoric. Keep challenging these folks about the way they vote. Continue to question them by asking them why they believe that their representatives who keep spouting misinformation and not showing up to town halls are representing them, the people. Continue to ask them why they believe it is all right to dismiss people in need or who are not like them.

But let’s take a moment to divest from this seriousness. In 1974, I was in college at the University of Georgia. This was an era of Watergate and Vietnam. Militants had kidnapped newspaper heiress Patty Hearst in February. Gas was short and pump lines long. Streaking (running naked on campus) became a phenomena on all college campuses and events everywhere. It became a competition. Media touted it as simply being springtime college antics and youthful hormones. Some organizers stated that they were just determined to set a record that had gotten away. The University set the record with a culminating event where over 1500 students gathered and streaking on campus.

While I was on my way to becoming a police officer, I saw these actions in a different light. My life choices have colored my experiences with protests. I saw it as a challenge to let things happen in a peaceful manner, while controlling the civil disobedience in a kinder way than the way it was handled in the 1960s. I believe all have the right to protest and not be beaten half to death. I believe both sides can keep it peaceful. We don’t have to exercise extreme force on either side. And, for crying out loud, keep the guns at home. When has that ever solved anything? Think about it. If you are naked, where would you put a gun? Huh? Huh?

Gotta love the 70s! Have fun tonight checking out these hindsight articles regarding the streaking craze!

The Big Streak
https://www.americanheritage.com/streaking-fad
https://jimnicar.com/2013/04/11/the-bare-facts-of-streaking/
https://oxfordeagle.com/2016/12/03/ole-miss-streaking-in-the-1970s/
https://magazine.washington.edu/streaking-fad-of-the-70s-once-ran-through-uw/
https://www.runnersworld.com/runners-stories/a27305183/history-of-streaking/

I love you all and I hope for a better world and loving people everywhere!

Rewriting History-Part II

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“The significance of historical accuracy cannot be overstated, as it plays a crucial role in our ability to discern the truth, make informed decisions, and maintain the integrity of our collective memory.”

In this current administration fact-checking has become a dominant conversation piece for every citizen who is appalled by what is going on in the political scene. Historical events are being distorted and/or outright fabricated at will. This era is rapidly becoming the misinformation age.

We are forgetting about the consequences for spreading outright lies and deleting information that is critical to us. People who believe in what is going on with that guy in office haven’t suffered the consequences yet. They don’t care that we as a country are not preserving the historical truth for ourselves as well as for future generations. They don’t care that the current administration has no understanding of historical events that should be accounted for in the current decision-making process. “Accurate information helps us avoid repeating past mistakes and make informed choices about the future [emphasis mine].”—from https://medium.com/@thehistorychip

And finally, they don’t care that they are not preserving cultural heritage and identity. As a result, there is no critical thinking based on the evaluation of the past.

When misinformation rears its ugly head, the challenges are:
1.         Confirmation bias – people seek and believe information that confirms their pre-existing beliefs. They simply believe the inaccuracies being told to them because of their worldview.
2.         Misleading Narratives – When people in power interpret the past due to their confirmation bias, they skew perceptions of others.
3.         Echo Chambers – “Social media and online communities can reinforce existing beliefs and isolate individuals from diverse perspectives. In such echo chambers, misinformation can thrive unchecked.” [e.g., Fox News]
4.         Digital Manipulation – “Advancements in technology have made it easier to manipulate historical content, including photographs and documents, leading to the creation of convincing but false narratives [emphasis mine].”
Please read this blog for further information. It was an excellent source outlining the problem:
https://medium.com/@thehistorychip/facts-vs-fiction-the-importance-of-historical-accuracy-in-a-misinformation-age-f82c3475a3d9

I want to emphasize how much this bothers me. We are visiting this misinformation age once again 10 years later from the time this article was published: Political Lies: Altering Facts and Rewriting History. On 2/9/15, author Richard A. Barrett reviewed a book by Hannah Arendt, titled Truth and Politics. Arendt stated that “Freedom of opinion is a farce unless factual information is guaranteed and the facts themselves are not in dispute.”

Barrett stated, “In other words, factual truth informs political thought just as rational truth informs philosophical speculation….Such attempts by states to alter history are not the only danger of political lies. Arendt warns that “self-deception is the danger par excellence; the self-deceived deceiver loses all contact with not only his audience, but also the real world, which still will catch up with him, because he can remove his mind from it but not his body” (Lying in Politics).”

Barrett stated that Arendt brought new light to the information given in the Pentagon Papers. He stated that “in her commentary on the Pentagon Papers, Arendt details how little the Administration managed to deceive others about the reality of the Vietnam War but nevertheless managed to deceive itself into believing and basing policy on information it knew was not true. In the end, the free press, which Arendt refers to as the fourth branch of government,” performed its crucial check on government—not by alerting the public to facts hidden from it, most of which were already known but—by forcing the executive to confront those facts, facts it had previously been so successful in deceiving itself about.”

Thus Arendt informs us, “Even if we admit that every generation has the right to write its own history, we admit no more than that it has the right to rearrange the facts in accordance with its own perspective; we don’t admit the right to touch the factual matter itself.”
https://hac.bard.edu/amor-mundi/political-lies-altering-facts-and-rewriting-history-2015-02-09

For further information about our changing facts in history due to the political climate see:
https://www.journalofdemocracy.org/articles/30-years-of-world-politics-what-has-changed/

So, my point in this rather long diatribe is this:
Every day that you are on this planet and in this current realm, combat historical misinformation and uphold historical accuracy. Become a critical thinker and encourage this same thought process in others. Question sources, verify information, and seek many perspectives on any matter. Don’t believe everything. Fact check when you can, but also use your common sense. Ask yourself: “Is this really true?” Why would someone believe this?” “Why should I believe this?”

Educate yourself and others and learn how to look into the media and review the historical data. Share accurate information with others, not just something that people say over and over again. Remember this: “If you say it over and over again, it doesn’t make it true if it’s a lie!” Don’t believe everything you hear. Counteract the spread of ridiculous claims. Believe in humanity once again. We will survive!

I love you all on this windy, weeknight in Colorado! Hang in there!