What if Trayvon Martin was a born again Christian white kid, and Zimmerman was a “black as the ace of spades” neighborhood watch captain? Does anyone out there think that the chain of events would have been the same? For all those white neighbors of mine who commented on the overactive crowds that rallied recently in Sanford, Florida: What if a sea of evangelist Christians and angry white folks marched and rallied over that same terrain? On the subject of “born again Christians”?
What if Tim Tebow was a Muslim, and he, instead of Tebowing (kneeling in prayer during and before and after games) he kept turning towards Mecca and went to his knees in prayer before, during and after games? One wonders if those same folks who think Tim is such a devout religious man would think the same of Tim Tebow, Muslim. By the way, if one truly is a follower of Jesus the Christ (as this writer happens to be, by the way) one would know that Jesus taught to not parade one’s beliefs in public prayer or ceremony. Rather, he said to go and pray in the upmost privacy or with another in the upmost privacy… and NOT in public displays of passion.
What if Israel had a Palestinian man who lived next door to you on their “terrorist watch list” for compensating the families of suicide bombers? This neighbor of yours was a congenial guy, with a good profession, and he was a darn nice neighbor at that. One day, the Israelis decide to “take him out” with a drone attack. It succeeded, but in doing so there is the collateral damage of the two homes adjoining his — one of which happens to be yours! You get that terrible phone call at work informing you that your spouse and your two kids are….dead!! Will you still support the politicians (of both corrupt parties, by the way) who advocate drone attacks into Pakistan and elsewhere?
What if you support this corrupt and disgraceful health care system of private insurance OR the so called “Obama Care” which continues to feed the private insurance beast? You refuse to stand firm and demand that we have the option for buying into the Medicare system at obviously lower prices and somewhat better coverage than what private insurance now offers. What if you or your spouse or your teenage child gets a devastating illness that private insurance cannot cover completely? The costs are astronomical and they come after you, once the dust settles, for tens of thousands of dollars that you do not have?
What if you continue to support this military industrial empire that takes over 50% of your federal taxes each year? You buy the lies that this is necessary for our defense, while you notice more and more budget cuts are happening around you… locally, statewide and nationally. Your schools are being abandoned, library funds cut drastically, police and fire personnel being cut down. You see layoffs and foreclosures abound, and the “rally round the flag” festivals and events increase. They tell you to “support our troops” as they are sent to occupy, control and destroy other nations that pose no real threat to our national security. When unemployment and uncertainty suck the very life out of your community, and you see more and more homeless, destitute and desperate folks walking about — when is “enough really enough” ?
So, keep buying into the con job that “your vote counts” as you support either of these two corrupt political parties. Keep thinking that an annual visit to a voting booth is enough to counteract the empire’s tentacles. Don’t dare get out and stand in public for a better world… week after week, month after month until more of your neighbors begin to “get it”. No, just keep saying, “Oh, what can I do anyway?” as we all slide into the black hole caused by apathy and self interest. Remember, the greed and the violence and the corruption that many of us disdain must still have some elements of them imbedded within our own psyches or we would finally rid our society of them.