Democracy

Thanks Given

I have been

given

everything.

Not 

that I never

studied

or worked

or pursued

or accrued

accomplishments—

if accomplishments

mean

that which 

I have

managed

to manage.

I have been

given

everything

to give

everything

I have.

That may not be

adequate,

but if 

another

can benefit,

then I reckon

it still 

matters. 

I have been

given

everything

to face 

the moments

like this,

when what

I thought

was 

a given,

is actually

a vison

I didn’t see

coming.

I am most

grateful

that I 

am not

hateful

except 

of hate.

I have

been given

voluminous

love

and was taught

to learn

from

everything

that I have 

been given–

even considerable

pain,

which I do not

consider

a gift,

but a continuous

lesson

nonetheless.

Asserting

gratitude

given

the magnitude

of awful

acknowledges

the whole,

not merely

the shards

that have marred

us. 

We are more 

than that which

is broken.

Words yet spoken

that recognize

what we’ve been

given

identify what we have

yet to give.

Minimum Wage

At a minimum,

political

campaigns

are attempts

to influence

decision making

without violence.

We wage wars

on everything.

We conjure

the valor

of fighting

as a warrior

for the right

to champion

Cancer

Christmas

Guns

Personal Autonomy

Fetal Rights

Racial Equality

Gender Equality

Marriage Equality

Group Identity

Gender Identity

Social Justice

Climate Justice

….

You name it,

war is waged

on it. 

Until now,

those wars

have been

metaphors

for concerted

efforts 

to support 

a cause

or suppress

what is 

deemed

an invader

or enemy.

But even after

electoral decisions,

ill health remissions,

and holiday contritions,

divisions

remain,

and positions

harden.

At a minimum,

we wage

a perpetual

cold war

on  several fronts

at once.

Who are

the ones

waging peace?

Too idealistic?

They do not

need

to search 

for the way

to peace,

for they know

that peace 

is the way.

Too unrealistic?

It seems

that waging

war,

at a minimum,

does not

cause peace.

What happens

the day after

the cease fire?

Post Impressionism

Vermin.

From the river to the sea.

Globalists.

Confederate flag.

Noose.

Ok gesture.

Welfare Queens.

Real Americans.

Law and Order.

America First.

MAGA.

Speech

can be

a weapon

that kills

the bodies

politic

and civic.

Let’s not

pretend

that words

may offend

without 

consequences.

Posting hate

through images

visual

and linguistic

is intentionally 

antagonistic

and characteristic

of the most

objectionable

among us.

Proudly

bigoted,

they promote

identity-based

appeals.

These signals

of utterly

inappropriate

appropriations

are coded 

language

that convey

affiliation

by othering

while intentionally

demeaning.

The Dog Whistles

that may have

once been

mostly political

are predictable

and critical

for everyone

to hear.

This coded

communication 

provides 

information

and plausible

deniability.

Hate speech

may be free

to post,

but the cost

of expression

that leaves 

an impression

of hate

and threat

as code

for action

is not 

an abstraction

or mere

distraction.

There is no

innocence

in a call

to violence

without

saying as much.

The impression

says it all. 

Gutted

It’s so very

exhausting.

Thoughts

abound

suggesting how

to live 

better.

More this.

Less that.

Kale?

Pro

Democracy.

Anti

Autocracy.

Greener.

Cleaner.

Healthier planet,

gut,

you name it.

Safety.

Growth.

Resilience.

Endless

issues

demanding

urgent,

immediate

attention.

Everything

feels like

crisis

self imposed.

Backlash to

institutional

disparities,

injustices,

bigotries—

hate

with deep roots

like oaks trees

and hickories

live for 

centuries.

It’s overwhelming

and painful

to reckon

how we are

living now.

I can not 

tolerate

the intolerable,

or accept

the unacceptable,

which is inundating 

us 

daily. 

I am enervated

but not 

yet

defeated.

The culture 

that I embraced

is being 

gutted

without conditions

suitable

for growth. 

We may

or may not

need kale,

but the gut

needs

to be rid

of toxins

and create

homeostasis

to foster 

health. 

Fire Power

With 

the former

guy

who branded

himself

on tv

saying,

“You’re fired,”

the wannabe

important,

desperate 

for attention

and power,

led

the charge

to fire

the Speaker

of 

the House.

An assault

on The House

of Representatives

again,

this time

we witnessed

from within,

it is clear

that 

fire

and power,

assaulting

institutions

and traditions

while

calling themselves

conservative,

is the Republican

brand

in the 21st century.

Cruelty

sparks drama

while pretending

it’s some sort 

of political

philosophy.

This century

began for us

with a disputed

election

followed

by a terrorist

attack

from

abroad.

The answer

to difficulty

and complexity

it seems,

is assault 

weapons. 

Now in human

form,

some openly 

carry

banners 

and weapons

of hate

to intimidate

to feel

important.

AH, 

to be

seen

in scene

after scene,

matters more

than governance.

It’s the anti

social

media power

that

fires up 

the pyromaniac

group.

I thought

of calling

this

“Burning Down

The House”.

But fire power

is really 

the only

discernable

stance 

beyond 

no taxes

that is consistently

attempted

at all costs.

Excusing

hostage 

taking 

with a government 

shutdown.

Excusing

mass shootings.

Excusing

insurrection,

and then twisting

and distorting

truth

while nuclear

secrets

were being

shared.

The relentless

spray,

like an 

AK

47,

requires

more 

than duck

and cover

and remaining

silent.

Dumb and Dumber

“Every time

I hear

you,

I feel

a little bit

dumber”,

hailed

candidate Haley.

Honestly,

I feel this

all the time

every time

I hear,

read,

see

news.

Some want

candidates

to say 

what the

voter

feels,

like:

Make

America

Great

Again.

or 

Yes 

We 

Can.

Defund

(you name 

it)

or

My pronouns

are…

or 

Build

Back

Better

or even

The Climate

Crisis—

no matter 

how valid,

the issues

have been

poorly

constructed

taglines.

These have

caused

backlash,

mockery,

spin,

failed explanation,

but little

social connectivity

beyond 

the already

connected. 

Even

pro-lifers

understand

the misnomer,

and seek

to advance

a more 

effective

rebranding

to keep

abortion

a crime.

Knowing

the fraud

perpetrated

in front

of us,

while

pretending

it’s just

business

as usual,

keeps us

fighting

a rather

uncivil

war

of culture.

Languaging

the culture

becomes

most

important. 

‘Alternative

facts’

is now

an alternate

reality.

‘Alternate’

electors

were

real news,

despite

the 

declaration

that

‘lame-stream’

(Palin’s Seussian

coined term

for mainstream)

news

is Fake 

News.

As 21st

century-

speak 

defines

a new era,

now 

the sides

have different

languages

further

balkanizing

the states

we are in.

I feel dumber

every time

I hear

the attempts

to project

fraud

on the

electorate

when the

evidence

is abundant.

As the 

dumbing

down

gets dumber,

it seems

to get

dirtier.

Disregard

for any 

correlation

between

verbiage

and 

reality

means

anything

can be uttered

or typed

with no

accountability.

Fraud-

shmaud,

as there

is no debate

about 

who they applaud

on his own

stage

staging

a get- out-

of- jail-

run -for -his-

life-

candidacy

for President.

Our feeling

defeated

and depleted

is the goal.

I’ll take

feeling dumb,

but we can’t

be numb

to the inanity

and insanity

being perpetrated

upon us.

Don’t withdraw.

Don’t stay silent.

Don’t be mute.

Don’t be dumb.

Hunting Hunter

Hunter

bought a gun.

He allegedly lied

as he applied

for a weapon

of self destruction.

Now the gatherers

of signatures

to change 

the gun laws,

lead by 

Hunter’s father,

speak about

trauma

with compassion

for the son

whose depression 

and addiction

may have resulted

in terrible 

decisions

and deceptions.

But hunting

Hunter

has been 

the obsession

of the opposition,

intent on indicting

and impeaching

Bidens

while abiding

by 

and supporting

Trump’s

overt corruption

with distortion

and endless

disruption.

Gathering

actual evidence

before condemning

to  sentence

is the order

to law

in this democracy.

Hunting 

Hunter

may lead 

somewhere.

But it will 

never  lead

to equivalence.

Any ambivalence

about the

malevolence

of the false

equivalence

should be 

mitigated by

following

justice,

not merely

as 

an opportunity 

to inflict

pain.

Hunting for

sport

kills

the innocent.

If hunting

Hunter

tracks

a crime,

let justice

be served. 

Ginni, Coefficent

The Gini Coefficient

is a statistical measure

of the degree

of variation

or inequality

represented

in a set

of values,

especially

in analyzing

income

inequality.

SCOTUS Clarence

Thomas,

Co-efficient of Ginni

Thomas,

along with Ginni,

have managed

to skillfully

evade

ethical demands

while unethical

friends

fund their 

causes and lives.

Partners

if not 

in crime,

then certainly

in deceit

and concealment,

they seek

the super wealthy

and hide

their gifts

and feign

distance,

as entanglements

worse than

Christmas lights

are being

brought

to light.

Nothing to see

here?

Citizens,

Unite! 

Ginni Thomas

is the woman

in front of her

man,

fronting for all

sorts of dark

money

groups.

Ginni 

(co) efficiently

undermines

democracy

with shadow

money

as her husband’s

shadow docket

conceals

an agenda

that is clearly

meant

to be hidden.

I think we’re

beginning

to see the light

of this equation.

What’s in a Name? (McCarthyism Too)

The American Heritage Dictionary

gives the definition

of McCarthyism

as:

  1. The political practice of publicizing accusations of disloyalty or subversion with insufficient regard to evidence; and 
  2. The use of methods of investigation and accusation regarded as unfair, in order to suppress opposition.

Joseph?

Kevin?

Neither sir has

much decency.

McCarthyism Too

is the Speaker’s

pathetic

listening

to the reactionaries

desperately grasping

for enduring power

at any

and all

costs.

The third

most powerful

American

is powerless.

He knows

he can

only

retain

his powerful

position

by launching

an impeachment

inquiry 

into this

Joe

(Biden).

The Un-American

Activities of

one party

continue 

with endless

attempts

to instill

fear

and loathing

as they fear

and loathe

the truth:

that they

have

bupkis

to offer 

now

beyond

hate

and 

lies.

To be

a Republican

in name

only

means

being

a 21st

Century

McCarthy

MAGA

acolyte.

A

MAGArthy.

22 Years

The fictions

being told

will be sold

among

non-fictions.

There will be

volumes 

recounting

the fabricated

accounts

of corruption

at all levels

of government,

while those

deeply committed

to the rules

and rule

of law

have continued

to work

anonymously

as always

upholding

standards

that the rest

of us now

realize

have been

a privilege

to obtain 

and maintain.

22 years

after

the twin towers

were destroyed,

the threat

is now 

within.

They hate

our freedom.

They hate

our democracy.

They are not

a regular

military.

And they

brought

us

to our

knees.

In between

then 

and 

now,

so many

thoughts

and

prayers.

We are stuck,

deep in a state

of despair

and destruction;

of never

seeming

to accomplish

the mission

of creating

a more 

perfect union

without

retrograde

motion.

Our environment

is in crisis.

A generation

passed.

We can not

pass

on the next

generation.