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Passover begins tonight and I find myself asking the question of “why is this night different from all other nights” with new words – Why is this time different from all other times? Obviously, the threat of the Corona Virus makes it so. Yet I think there is more to it than just the possibility of catching a deadly disease. Our times are different from any other time in the history of our country.
We have for the best part of four years tolerated the ineptitude and disservice of Donald Trump. We have tolerated the ineptitude of the House of Representatives and the Senate. All to our detriment. Yet, we still do very little to bring about change. Now we are faced with the possibility of having to put up with this administration for at best another four years, and if Trump were to get his way, forever. But we are still asleep.
We are still asleep as the plague drifts over our homes and enters through our closed doorways. We have not covered them with blood to mark them to ward off the evil and the evil pervades us everywhere.
Nonviolence usually calls for us to not bring our enmity against a person but to challenge only the evil action. As I look forward to rejuvenating Yes We Can Peacebuilders to become truly a peace builder organization, I must step away and state that this time is different because we must bring our challenge against the person and persons wreaking havoc with our world. The current administration in the white house must be overthrown.
Since the onset of the Corona Virus I watched like so many of you every news report. All the major news stations covered the events surrounding the tragic pandemic practically nonstop and completely. And what was left out? Not a word did I see or hear from the candidates running to replace Donald Trump. Not a word! After two weeks I decided to say something about it and I emailed all the major TV stations asking that they leave out the flowery, goody-goody, this will make you feel better, sections of their reporting and to please let us hear from the candidates. I have had no response as I imagined would be the case. And today at least one report came floating through on my cell phone that now it would be one candidate vying for the position for the Democratic party – Joe Biden. Not my choice. But now he must be!
Forget the Green Party candidates, forget the Libertarian, forget the Independent and please concentrate on supporting Biden as the only possible candidate to hopefully take the presidency away from a person who would, in a flash, make a move to dictatorship.
You don’t think so? Think about it. It’s happened in this world before.
Sanders supporters are dismayed today. They feel he has been cheated out of the possibility to become our president. Maybe so. In 2016 many people did not vote because they did not support or even like Hillary Clinton. I didn’t like her or want her either, but I had to vote for her. The idea that someone like Donald Trump could be put into the position of leader of this nation was so repugnant to me that I knew I had to vote for someone who I would ordinarily not choose because at least she would be a lesser evil.
Much work needs to be done by the people of this country to make effective changes to our system of government. This will never happen if the Trump administration remains in office. All our petitions and articles and podcasts and organizational work for the myriad of issues we face are stagnated if this administration remains in charge. If anything, it will probably become worse for the environment, social justice of any kind, poverty, homelessness, military build-up, war, economic disaster, immigration and so much of what we have been dealing with these past years. Biden is not a great candidate however, electing him might just loosen up things enough for government by the people to make some inroads to writing up a new constitution. One that will at least begin to concretely address all these issues and truly put this country on a new road.
This is what the Corona Virus has brought us. A new chance to effect change. Don’t be complacent. Think! And for heaven sakes start questioning why we are not hearing about our political situation. Demand to know! And VOTE! Never give up that right no matter how infected you believe the voting system to be. It is your basic right, but more so, it is your basic responsibility.
We have a lot of work to do. Let’s get to it!