Good grief, what a week! First the horror of the Charleston shooting -- followed by the amazing grace and dignity of the response from the victims' families. Couple that with the beginning of a national conversation about the perceived symbolism of the Confederate flag and the sudden rush of various entities (WalMart, Amazon, Sears, EBay, KMart, NASCAR, ) to disassociate themselves from what is, at best, an extremely polarizing symbol.
Amid all of this, I kept thinking of the shooter's answer to the question of why he sat there in the church for an hour before opening fire. And he said (paraphrasing) 'They were so nice to me. But I had a mission..."
The words of a person who has allowed brainwashing to overpower a natural response. A mission. It breaks my heart.
But then there was the Supreme Court ruling in favor of the ACA -- or Obamacare as the Right derisively tagged it. Millions get to keep their coverage and Obamacare is starting to look like a legacy -- like Social Security or the Civil Rights Act.
Had the ruling gone the other way and a whole lot of newly insured people lost their coverage, I suspect it would have been dire news for the future hopes of the GOP. So, good news and bad.
And then, in the second half of a one-two punch, the SCOTUS delivers yesterday's knockout blow to marriage discrimination. Oh, calloo, callay! It's no longer gay marriage, it's just marriage. Equal rights.
We're not done. There's still Citizens United that needs overturning, environmental issues galore that need addressing, minimum wages, women's issues -- and, as they say, many more. And there are quite a few hateful legislators and governors I, for one, would love to see the back of.
But for this one brief moment, I'm feeling kinda hopeful, even celebratory.
I don't doubt that some of you disagree. Feel free -- just stay civil.
9 comments:
Well, I'll just comment on the images, which are magnificent!
I am feeling very hopeful and happy for the SCOTUS move on equality. And thanks for posting the beautiful flower photos. Jay St. Vincent
It was a good week to be an American. Still reeling from the murders in Charleston but proud of how our nation responded. So happy for many friends who will be able to make their dreams come true. I could not begin to think of how so many people would be able to deal with a reversal on Obamacare but there is still much work to be done. I am thinking of my daughter who has to now meet a $4,000 deductible. They get no supplement as they have a "good" income but who can scrape together that much money for health care,so she is very reluctant to go for medical care. Many other issues but at least this week we moved forward for a change.
It was a good week to be an American. Still reeling from the murders in Charleston but proud of how our nation responded. So happy for many friends who will be able to make their dreams come true. I could not begin to think of how so many people would be able to deal with a reversal on Obamacare but there is still much work to be done. I am thinking of my daughter who has to now meet a $4,000 deductible. They get no supplement as they have a "good" income but who can scrape together that much money for health care,so she is very reluctant to go for medical care. Many other issues but at least this week we moved forward for a change.
It was a good week to be an American. Still reeling from the murders in Charleston but proud of how our nation responded. So happy for many friends who will be able to make their dreams come true. I could not begin to think of how so many people would be able to deal with a reversal on Obamacare but there is still much work to be done. I am thinking of my daughter who has to now meet a $4,000 deductible. They get no supplement as they have a "good" income but who can scrape together that much money for health care,so she is very reluctant to go for medical care. Many other issues but at least this week we moved forward for a change.
Well I certainly don't disagree - what a week!
Among my favorite moments this week was seeing the apoplectic Scalia rant and rave. And saddened to see our own Senator insist that he will continue the fight to rescind the Affordable Care Act. Guess he doesn't care about the half a million North Carolinians who now have coverage because of it.
Another favorite was Stephen Cobert who pronounced that gay Americans now have equal rights as citizens. And it took only five years after corporations were granted that right.
I am very concerned about the defacing of so many Confederate monuments. I fear that such acts will provoke white supremacists to retaliate and will lead to the very thing the SC shooter wanted to accomplish.
This guy from Canada applauds this post. There is hope after all.
It looks pretty positive from here.
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