Summer of 2017......Charlottesville musings

Some thoughts after this past week and things I've seen discussed in social media:

People who carry torches and shout "Jews will not replace us" and "Blood and Soil" (former Nazi slogan in Germany)...are not "good people." Period. Look up the video. There is no moral equivalency with people who showed up that day to counter-protest such vile hatred.

Most of the people who were counter-protestors in Charlottesville were peaceful people who wanted to show these racists that they did not support this in the community. They were faith leaders, students, people like myself who want to stand up for what is right and would never dream of being violent in that process.

Peaceful candlelight vigil on the UVA campus, August 16th, 2017

That being said, there were some counter-protestors who were physical in response to the antagonism of the white nationalist groups. What is striking in these reports is that none of those groups were from the local Charlottesville community.  The Charlottesville police did not do a very good job of containing all these more violent protestors. But let's put it in perspective. If those vile Nazis had never come there, neither would any of these groups who felt the need to be there to be on guard or defense against their hatred.  The white nationalists showed up with guns, shields, helmets, and torches.   Apparently this makes some people feel threatened.  Shocker.  I do not advocate violence, ever.  But the Nazi symbol tends to bring out the worst in people.  Wonder why?

Black Lives Matter in no way equates with these white nationalist hate groups. They do not advocate killing police. They do not advocate killing white people.  They protest how African-Americans have been treated in the criminal justice system and if you don't understand that BLM does NOT mean that other lives don't matter, I don't know what to say. It MEANS that in THIS COUNTRY, too often, we see incident after incident where it appears to be a person of color means your life does not hold as much value. Get it? I'm not saying the organization is perfect. But it's not a hate group. It's an advocacy group. Look it up.  No, don't look it up in social media.  Do some research from credible sources.

People are still debating the Civil War and what it was about. Seriously. This is unbelievable.

We are NOT erasing history by removing monuments or plaques that HONOR Confederate leaders or the Confederacy. Those monuments can go right into a museum. If anything, more than ever, we need to remember our history and learn it very well. But GLORIFYING it is a completely different matter. Learn the difference. The Confederate flag is not "pride in the South." It's offensive. And so are monuments to Lee.

The current so-called president is an embarrassment and disgrace to this great country. He has shown who he is since well before his election so nothing that he does or says shocks me...he has made it clear who he was from the beginning: hateful, rude, sexist, racist, and small-minded. Not fit to serve. If you voted for him, I am sorry for you. That's not a burden of conscience I would ever want to bear. Now is the time to say you made a mistake and to stand up for a return to a country that rejects hate and oppression, whether conservative or liberal.  I am heartened by conservative leaders like John McCain, Lindsey Graham, commentators like Ana Navarro, Tara Setmeyer, and others, who are speaking out against his tyranny.  We desperately need our Republican leaders to stand up for our country and demand the removal of 45 from office.

There's a ton of bad stuff happening while all these discussions are going on that are destroying our environment, our legal protections, and our freedoms. And we still don't have good health care. Congress can't focus on the work of the country because of the mess in the White House. Patriotism means standing up for your country, not for a particular politician. Our country is in jeopardy. More and more people from all sides are recognizing this. Be one of those people. Get it right.

"We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented."-Elie Wiesel  

Love Wins.  The peace vigil at UVA tonight gives us all hope.