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ladym55

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"We cheer for cruelty ..."

I just finished reading this piece by Charlie Pierce from Esquire Politics Blog. It really pulled me up short and got me to thinking, which is why I wanted to share it with you all. First, some excerpts ...

We have politicians, most of whom will never have to work another day in their lives, making the argument seriously that there is no role in self-government for the protection and welfare of the political commonwealth as that term applies to the poorest among us. We have politicians, most of whom have gilt-edged health care plans, making the argument seriously that an insurance-friendly system of health-care reform is in some way bad for the people whom it is helping the most, and we have politicians seriously arguing that those without health-care somehow are more free than the people who have turned to their government, their self-government, for help in this area. ....

We cheer for cruelty and say that we are asking for personal responsibility among those people who are not us, because the people who are not us do not deserve the same benefits of the political commonwealth that we have. In our politics, we have become masters of camouflage. We practice fiscal cruelty and call it an economy. We practice legal cruelty and call it justice. We practice environmental cruelty and call it opportunity. We practice vicarious cruelty and call it entertainment. We practice rhetorical cruelty and call it debate.

Full essay (well worth reading): http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/24448-the-united-states-of-cruelty

He argues that we need to DO better and BE better.

"Cruelty is cruelty. It should be recognized as a fundamental heresy against the political commonwealth and wrung out of all its institutions." Amen, amen, amen.

Posted by ladym55 | Thu Jun 26, 2014, 01:23 PM (2 replies)

Shout out to Red State Liberals

I guess I live in what the pundits call a "purple" state, Ohio. My one senator is SHERROD BROWN -- the other, Rob Portman. MARCIA FUDGE represents me in Congress, but my state regularly sends the orange guy back to Washington to cry in his bourbon.

My current governor is John Kasich (we don't need no stinkin' transparency), and thanks to the magic of gerrymandering, we have a Republican super majority in the Ohio House and Senate. That means tax cuts for the wealthy, attacks on women's health care, attacks on public education, and lots and lots of fracking. We just turned back renewable energy standards.

I know what it is like worry about whether my car will be vandalized in the parking deck because of its Obama sticker. I've been sworn at phone banking (and I'm supposedly calling other Democrats!). It's hard to have conversations sometimes because I guess being a liberal makes me a non-Christian (who knew?). I know what it's like to never, ever, ever get a response from my state representative or my state senator no matter how many times I contact their offices.

I have family in New England and the Bay Area, so I know how wonderful it feels to be in a place where progressive values are the norm. It is just so relaxing. I love it!!! Trust me, our car with its Ohio plates got lots of glares in Massachusetts in 2005. They couldn't tell that everyone IN the car had not only voted for Kerry, but had worked on his campaign.

Here's to ALL of you in the states they call red. Cheers to your courage, your values, and your hard work. I know it ain't easy.

Posted by ladym55 | Wed Jun 25, 2014, 11:26 AM (8 replies)

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