Thanks -- but No Thanks
Some Personal Reflections on Thanksgiving Day 2018

"Oh, Great Spirit whose voice I hear in the winds, 
and whose breath gives life to all the world, hear me, I am small and weak,  
I need your strength and wisdom." 
 -- from a prayer

by Lakota Chief Yellow Lark, 1887
(Entire Prayer)

"Treat the earth well: it was not given to you by your parents, 
it was loaned to you by your children. 
We do not inherit the Earth from our Ancestors, 
we borrow it from our Children." 

-- Ancient Native American Proverb

The three day feast that brought together 90 Wampanoags and the 50 surviving Pilgrims at Plymouth Plantation in 1621 has become part of our nation's mythology.

Unfortunately, this idyllic tale doesn't portray the stark reality of the holocaust that ensued as European colonists descended on this continent bringing with them white supremacy,  a harshly judgmental Christianity, the European notion of private property, and an emergent capitalism.  (The pilgrims received a land patent from the London Virginia Company and financing from Company of Merchant Adventurers who sought to profit by colonizing lands overseas)

Although the set of Democratic Ideals set forth in the Preamble to the US Constitution reflect humanity's universal quest for a just society, "our forefathers" also brought forth on this continent disease, death, domination, and the destruction of a Way of Life that seemed to better understand and honor humanity's relationship to Mother Earth, to the Great Spirit, and to the Circle of All Life.

The worldview of the Indigenous People embraced Connection and Reverence.  Our forefathers brought with them, instead, the Unbridled Greed buried in the belly of Capitalism, and the myopic worldview of a Christianity that produces a separation from one another, from the natural world, and from our spiritual connection to all that is.  

Through force of arms, including germ warfare and the power of "law," the bad guys won.  Unfortunately for Mother Earth and her myriad beings, they still hold tremendous power today.

In fact, lest we forget, Thanksgiving this year falls on the anniversary of the assassination of JFK . (I blogged about the chilling reality of the political assassinations in the 1960's in Lest We Forget.)  And this year we are also faced with the stark reality that a virulent stream of white supremacist capitalist insanity is being fostered by Trumposaurus Wrecks and his crew in the White House.

Yet, it doesn't have to be that way forever.

It is true that history shows us that those with more guns and less morals have often taken power.  Yet, the opposite is also true.  In my own lifetime, Mahatma Gandhi, armed with nothing but a spinning wheel, the force of Great Loving Soul, and the Power of the People, sent the mighty British Empire packing.   Martin Luther King and legions of non-violent activists toppled the framework of legal racial segregation that existed here in the "land of the free."

So....? 
(READ MORE)

It's Crunch Time!

The Count Down Continues...





There is no doubt about it.  

We need Regime Change here at home.

If we don't prevail and take back at least the House of Representatives, these Repugnant Retrograde Republicans will continue to support the Bully in the Presidential Pulpit.  He, in turn, will continue to support them as they turn their back on minorities, women, the elderly, most the middle class, and the working poor.

We need to turn out in massive numbers and turn the table on these crooks and misanthropes. If we do, we can at least put the brakes on their hell in a handbasket trajectory toward even greater Crony Capitalism, Xenophobia, Militarism, Racism, and Environmental Devastation.

The only thing standing in their way is us.

There are a number of ways you can jump in to dump these chumps.  You can put your feet on the ground, your mouth or fingers to the phone to call or text, or pitch in a few dollars to those specific candidates who reflect progressive values or to organizations like MoveOn.org, Indivisible, and the ACLU who are mounting widespread sophisticated Get Out The Vote (GOTV) campaigns.  The big conservative donors are spending a gazillion dollars on this.  All we have is a gazillion of US willing to devote some time and energy and/or a few bucks.  It matters.  Every $3 adds up.

If you are reading this and happen to be in a solidly Blue district like I am in here Western MA, you have a computer and/or a smart phone, right!?  Make it count!

Although we all need to roll up our sleeves for a few days and help out locally (here in MA there are important ballot initiates,) you can also have a personal impact on important races throughout the country, sitting there at home!  

Here's a few options:  
Indivisible Phone and Text Bank

•You can assist in important races like those of Beto O'Rourke in TX, Stacey Abrams in GA, and Andrew Gillum in FL.   

               
MoveOn.org Text Bank (beginning Nov. 4)

Vote with Me Phone App   

•  For a personal touch, this app uses your own contact list and identifies friends that are in districts with tight races! I love this one. It's been great to text my old friends in Woodstock, NY and encourage them to vote in the NY-19 congressional election.