Dear friends and colleagues:
These are trying times we find ourselves in. The U.S. and the world at large is more polarized politically at the moment than any time that I can recall. The left and right components of political thinking are in separate realities, causing frustration, anger, and in some cases abject hatred. Seemingly the only way out of this scenario is love, compassion, and some kind of awareness of the world as a place for all it’s inhabitants to live in colaboration, peace and relative comfort.
Today in the Hannover train station in Germany I saw a refugee family sitting on the floor
accompanied by two suitcases and a toddler on the father’s lap. A sad, tragic sight by any measure. What went through my mind is that western countries initiated the invasion of the middle east, in part exacerbating the destablization of the region, and creating the scenario we now face: innocent people caught in the middle of sensless wars. Are we not responsible in some capacity to help these folks, given our part in creating this dire situation? Germany is the foremost country stepping up to help out. What about the U.S.?
As one of my Republican friends is quick to point out, we all want the same basic things:
a good quality of life, food and shelter, a sense of community, a sense of well-being. What we find at the moment ae vastly diferent concepts ar far as how to achieve these ends. Big government/small government, socialization/privitization, services for all/services for some, address climate change/climate change as a left wing hoax, religion playing a subsantial part in government/separation of church and state, and an incredible amount of chatter on the internet that may/may not reflect reality. And the big question: whose reality?
Hate and devisiveness will get us nowhere. Forcing agendas on others is a futile endeavor. Yet we need consensus on some level. I think we would all agree that people should treat one another with respect, empathy, compassion, and love. Those who have been handicapped by history deserve appropriate consideration. We need to help one another! Period.
Finger pointing, mud slinging, and generating hatred will not get us where we all want to go. Let’s work towards a world where we take care of our citizenry, provide quality education,
update infrastructure, and live and let live.