This just in: Cub reporter Jim H. challenged me yesterday in a comment. He wanted to know what I meant about “doing nothing” or “doing something” about Trump. I’m taking up the challenge today with a little brainstorming session. This list will come off the top of my head (much like my list on how to fix gun problems). The point I hope to make is not “see how much I just solved” but rather, “If I can come up with a list of ideas, imagine what we could do if everyone tried to come up with ideas.”
In other words, I have faith in large numbers.
But first, before I go on another “list of stuff”, I want to pause for a breath. There is good in the world and we should at least spend as much time appreciating that as we do being disappointed in the bad.
For example, in an underprivileged, minority community, there is an organization that mows the lawns of the local elderly…for free.
There is also a barber that takes $2 off of a haircut for a child that reads to him as his hair is being cut.
And now…here is an oldie but a goodie…
Now for my list on what to do to fix our political system…
- Vote. Your vote counts. I recommend voting by mail. You will get the ballot in the mail and can mail it back postage-free.
- Find your soapbox. Let people know what you think. This blog is my soapbox. It can be yours as well. Post comments. Don’t let my thoughts be the only thoughts. Repost those posts that strike home with you.
- Write to your congressman. I send Diane Feinstein an email about once every 6 months. I try to be polite, patient and fact based. Contacting your congressman is as easy as googling their name, going to their website and hitting the “contact” button.
- Attend rallies. If you are pro-NRA, go to one of their rallies. If you think the NRA is a terrorist organization, then go to the anti-NRA rallies (I’ll see you there.)
- Turn your back on Fox News, Breitbart and the like. You won’t get rid of them because, hey…”haters gotta hate.” However, you don’t need to let them into your front door.
- Look for ways to attack the root causes. For me, this means supporting (1) any measure that takes money out of politics, (2) any measure that takes your religious beliefs out of my life, (3) any measure that criminalizes racism and intolerance.
- Pay attention. Is the Mueller investigation a witch hunt? If you think it is, then you’re not paying attention. Do you think Trump is bailing out Chinese companies out of the goodness of his heart? If you say “yes”, then you’re not paying attention.
- Question yourself. If you saw a post that said, “Incredible tape shows Trump talking to Putin about overthrowing the U.S. Government”, don’t immediately assume it’s true and start reposting it.
- Fact check the Haters on Facebook that continually post divisive memes. In the comment section of their post, clearly state the facts and your source. They hate that as much as they hate everything else.
- Support local and state government. California is a shield between Trump and the people of the state. Trump wants to let cars pollute. California says, “Fine, but not in our state.”
- Vote for women. I don’t know about you but I’ve about had enough of old, white and wealthy men running the show. Now, some men are good politicians but my motto is “If I’m in doubt, I vote the man out.”
- Challenge racism on the spot. There are a lot of recent incidents where a racist is behaving badly in public and people confront him right then and there.
- Pick your battles. If you try to fight every battle you will lose them all. Choose what is important to you and then, arm yourself with facts and associate with those that think similarly. I am pro-life (for a lot of reasons) however, I don’t care if you are anti-abortion. If you are, then good for you. I’m not going to fight that battle. I think guns cause gun deaths. If you don’t agree, then we are going to do battle (Not literally. Remember, arm yourself with facts.)
- Boycott. If you are anti-NRA, then vote against those that support them and don’t buy products from companies that associate with them. In other words, vote with your wallet whenever you can.
- Nothing to excess. This is always a good idea. For me, I struggle with this constantly. I can get very frustrated watching the daily “Trump Fucked Something Else Up” show. Sometimes, it’s best to just sit back and watch a video of a dubbed seal.
or….you can do nothing….that is always an option.
But for me, I choose to save the world.
Up, up and away…
Jim
Two companies have recently elected to “do something.” ABC cancelled the Rosanne reboot and erased all mention of the woman on their website. Why? Because of her racist tweets less than 12 hours earlier.
Also, Starbucks shut down over 8,000 sites to conduct training on racism after two men were arrested at a Starbucks for being “black.”