Bird Droppings December 1, 2021

Venting a bit on a Wednesday Morning

I was slack with my daily journaling over the past week. I have missed a few days with my brother-in-law’s passing and my wife back and forth to Warner Robins. Yesterday I read several alarming posts on friend’s pages on Facebook and internet news sites. I followed links, and they led to paramilitary groups discussing declaring civil war. Another connection was an old one supposedly about President Obama has tried to declare Marshall Law while he was in office with no information, just a title, and graphic. This same link led to another about how the white race would be gone in twenty-five years. I read all the comments about our former President being a communist and socialist, and my response is that neither socio-economic system is closely approaching this country. At least it took the pressure off the bogus voter recounts and legal actions that seem to flood the news.

We are in overdrive capitalism here in the US, especially this time of year and our current President-elect. Greed rules above all else. We have the highest stock market and the most significant difference between the wealthy and the rest of us ever in the history of our country.  Granted, the great income difference is what Marx saw and wrote about as he pondered communism. However, our government, both parties, continues the process that maintains that elite few. Oil companies, defense contractors, pharmaceuticals, insurance, and banking are booming in profits. That’s not communism and or socialism.

The recent election is a good example. Much of the budget suggested by the party in power impacts the very people who voted for them, which is insignificant in contrast to cutting social security, tax credits, child care deductions, etc. are all suggested budgets of the Republican platform. Better yet, another favorite privatize Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare and let insurance companies run them. Kind of like health insurance, where the top five health insurance carriers’ CEOs are paid more than 20 million a year, none of which benefits my health care.  

Taking away from any group of people is not socialism and or communism. I was told recently we are losing our freedoms, and I asked which ones. Our freedom to not buy health insurance, for example, was the reply. Another freedom, of course, involves vaccination and our bodies, all the while in contrast, the Supreme court has a case denying freedom of woman’s bodies. I offered that when you are sick, cure yourself or pay your bills. They asked, you mean you would let me die, and I said, no, you let yourself die. The worst post of the day was almost 180 million people voted in the recent election, and even with a boycott of Black Friday by some, nearly 200 million went shopping. That speaks to me more than the idiotic posts and blogs about communism and socialism and civil war. As long as we get what we want, we don’t care about anybody else. So I will borrow from scripture.

Matthew 19:16 Just then, a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?” 19:17 “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.” 19:18 “Which ones?” he inquired. Jesus replied, “ ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, 19:19 honor your father and mother,’c and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’ ” 19:20 “All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?” 19:21 Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 19:22 When the young man heard this, he went away sad because he had great wealth. 19:23 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. 19:24 Again, I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” NIV

I am not one to use scripture often, but those spouting all the innuendoes mentioned above often use scripture. We could debate what this passage means since it is framed by an ancient Hebrew commonly used expression for something challenging, a camel through the eye of a needle, but I look more at the excess in our world and specifically in our country. No one cares about the environment, starving children, or a few other things other than making a buck. The past controversy with the XL pipeline and the Dakota pipeline are great examples. Currently, almost a mote point since oil has gotten so cheap; it costs more money to refine tar sands than they can get for it.  There are a considerable group of Koch industries employees, 35,000 promoting it through phone calls and conversation. Koch Industries owns 1.5 million acres of tar sands in Alberta. The pipeline is not carrying oil to benefit us here in the US; it plans to go to Asia, predominantly China. That has been in the news off and on. Gas prices in the US will not be impacted, and why should they in a world of supply and demand price is based on who will pay the most we are bidding when we pay 2.00 a gallon with Chinese willing to pay more. The US is exporting more oil and refined oil products than at any time in our oil history. The revolution that needs to occur is not one of military/militia/vigilante/gangs but people who care about others.

“Non-violence is the greatest force at the disposal of mankind. It is mightier than the mightiest weapon of destruction devised by the ingenuity of man.” Mahatma Gandhi

My friends, I do not say this lightly,

Mitakuye Oyasin 

(We are all related)

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