There is a scene in a movie called "Andersonville", about Union prisoners during the Civil War being held there under horrible conditions. The group of Union prisoners within the prisoners, known as the Raiders, were thugs and criminals who preyed on the other prisoners. They referred to newly captured soldiers as "fresh fish", meaning they probably had rations, money and other necessities which were vital to survival in that hellhole. Anyway, they were captured and put on trial, finally, and one of the lines from one of the good prisoners is, "All men want to live, sergeant! But there are some things men will not do just to live!"
That sums up T supporters for me. If you support him despite his treason against the US, his lying, bullying, corruption, racism, misogyny, authoritarianism, criminality, the list goes on and on-for me, personally, family or not, I want nothing to do with you. People are dying, and they don't care. It goes way beyond differences in political beliefs; it's the difference between right and wrong, good and evil. That's my belief, and I respect those who feel differently.
Name-calling is dehumanizing, period. That's why T. loves it and revels in it. It doesn't matter what the insult is. We are all guilty of it, whether it's out of anger, frustration, makes us feel better, whatever. We're human. We vent, we rant. This is Jeanne's site and what she says goes.
I wish I could feel hopeful about America ever being united again but I don't see it happening. The divisions have been simmering beneath the surface for years, yes, but now they have been brought to the surface, full boil, and have spilled over. And I don't know if we will be able to clean up the mess.
@polarberry & dhyana-ji (love your name ?️)))
I had to take some very deep breaths and try to digest everything that you both articulated so well and so passionately...
Thank you for being the light -imbued avatars that you are, and I have nothing but admiration for your courage and sensibilities...
I hope that when you (and everyone here) close your eyes tonight and go within to find that balm of silence and peace, you will find rest in the arms of an angel ..... ?
A hallmark of autocracies is that they debase the people and the institutions. Once people feel debased they are more likely to act in ways they might not have otherwise, such as engaging in demonizing and name-calling of others. Once the institutions are debased they cease to function as they should and instead become vehicles of oppression.
Anger at what is happening is justified, but we can't allow ourselves to be debased. We can't allow this site, which has been a safe harbor for years, to be debased.
Happy Monday folks. Love to all. xoxo
Thank you @vestralux, @jeanne-mayell and others for calling out the dehumanizing vitriol. As Jeanne stated, "we are better than that."
@dhyanaji You wrote: "It's always been about consolidating "Global Power' among the few who worship money, power, and territory." YES. Two points to add: 1. I feel strongly that there is a hidden force behind Trump. His inability to criticize Putin, his looking drained after Putin met with him behind closed doors, his sucking up to him at every turn, his frequent telephone conversations, along with knowledge of KGB tactics strongly suggest that Putin really may have something on Trump. One way or another, Trump IS Putin's puppet!
2. In GOD'S POLITICS, Jim Wallis wrote that GREED is cited over 250 times and more than any other sin. Trump AND his family represent greed at its worst. I have to believe that this fact alone will lead them to a huge downfall.
@deetoo @vestralux @jeanne-mayell
Thank you for your posts about language. I am so guilty of mouthing off and name calling. Even if I keep the name calling in my head, it's still there and is destructive to my heart and spirit.
I loved what you said about your family, Vestralux. These are people you dearly love. Like you, I have family in the South who are very supportive of Trump and I get very agitated by their political stance. It unnerves me and makes me despondent and angry both.
Spirit talks to me in various ways, but one way that always gets my attention is music and lyrics. A few days ago, James Taylor's song "Shower the People" started cycling through my mind, in particular the lyrics, "shower the people you love with love, show them the way that you feel, things are gonna work out fine if you only will do as I say."
Yesterday I was meditating outside, lying in the sunshine and asking Spirit what is going to happen in the summer and fall. Two lyrics immediately came to mind: the Doxology and James Taylor's "Shower the People." So whether you worship the Christian God or acknowledge that presence as the Higher Power, we are reminded that we are not alone in this horrific experience of living through both a global pandemic and the current presidency. We shelter under the Wing. In the meantime, I am going to shower the people I love with love.
@jeanne-mayell Thank you, Jeanne. For a long time, I failed completely to understand THE MEEK SHALL INHERIT THE EARTH until I discovered that warriors in ancient Greece wanted MEEK horses. To them MEEK meant standing strong in the face of the onslaught. I think that's what so many of us are trying to do. We all (I think) fight the vitriol in our thoughts (I've had some doozy's). However, finding a way to be MEEK doesn't mean NOT doing anything. Besides being politically active and writing a lot of editorials, standing up to Trumpites with facts, letting my Congressmen know what I think, etc., I also pray every single day that God would bind Trump's power and the power of all corrupt politicians to do more harm. ...followed by a plea to save our democracy. And, then--VOTE.
@stargazer ...definitely humor. (And, that includes political cartoons as well.)
I have close family members who are Trumpers. People have reasons for their positions that may not intend to do the harm that some of us have witnessed or read about. We are aghast at the harm the man has done, but many of his supporters out in the population are not aware of it, not realizing it. They may even read about it, but because of the news they read (FOX), the news is slanted to make it look like T is actually protecting them from harm.
One old high school classmate of mine believes in pro-life. She brought her own unwed pregnancy to term and raised her daughter herself. Her daughter is precious beyond all life to her. She voted for T because of the pro-life position. She voted for T because it was an affirmation of her daughter's life. Yeah, I know that he debases women, but she doesn't see that.
I avoid the subject of T with people who are dug in with their positions, and I do not allow them to bring it up to me because of the bad feelings it engenders, so we have a strong loving bond.
@jeanne-mayell I think a lot of people voted for Trump because they are pro-life. I can understand that. I can also understand not wanting Hillary. My sister hates her, and a great job was done on taking her down.
However, Trump has done damage some of us won't live to see undone. One can be a Republican, a Christian, a pro-lifer and realize the man is destroying everything. I certainly know people like that. This is a very Republican area, and while I haven't queried all my many relatives, the older ones are probably Republicans. You can still have your values and want him out and want the Republicans to get someone else in there, though it's too late now for 2020. Pro-lifers surely know he has kids in cages. Yes, people watch Fox news, but I belong to a board that shows videos of anti-Trump people on Fox shows making good points and in fact, shutting down these newscasters, so it's not like nobody hears these things. I'm not buying total ignorance. How can you think COVID is a hoax when people around you are dying? That climate change is a hoax? My dad loved Nixon until he realized that he lied. I have to believe that somewhere in this world there are middle of the road Republicans who are a little more old-school who would at least address some of these issues in an intelligent way.
This to me is like all those Germans who had no idea what happened to their Jewish neighbors, you know, the ones who were taken away in the middle of the night. Sorry, not buying it.
@bluebelle, I've done my share of mouthing off and name calling. You should hear me at home sometimes; my language has become quite colorful from 4 years ago. I want to defend people who are bullied and disenfranchised, so when I witness an injustice or cruelty, I see red and off I go! Plus I'm making up for all of that compliant good-Catholic-girl time.
When I post in the forum I sometimes do it in a draft first, especially if I'm feeling emotional. Admittedly that lacks spontaneity and probably sounds a bit anal, but it saves me from hurting someone's feelings or potential embarrassment. Plus I kind of see it as a mindfulness 'pause'.
I love James Taylor’s “Shower the People” – now you've got me singing it! Like you, spirit also communicates with me through music and lyrics, but it's often with a sense of humor -- e.g. the Rolling Stones "You Can't Always Get What You Want." I think it's because I can take myself too seriously, so they often tell me to "lighten up."
I have to believe that somewhere in this world there are middle of the road Republicans who are a little more old-school who would at least address some of these issues in an intelligent way.
There are. I know some who are absolutely appalled by the current situation and will vote for Biden because they think he is a decent man. Mostly Goldwater-era type Republicans --but don't forget there are a lot of those "not dead yet".
First post from me. Hi everyone.
Jeanne predicted Seeing Donald sick one June. He just announced he’s been taking hydroxythoroquine for the last two weeks. Pretty sure he doesn’t have the healthiest heart
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/05/18/trump-says-hes-taking-unproven-anti-malarial-drug-265546
First post from me. Hi everyone.
Jeanne predicted Seeing Donald sick one June.
Hi @tybin. Welcome to the family! Sort of like the Addams family but with more pastels and glitter. (Doesn't wash off.)
@jeanne-mayell I hadn't seen the prediction Tybin's referring to (or don't recall it), but back a couple of weeks ago, I think, you shared an excellent Tarot spread for eliciting yes/no results. After I read it, I actually threw the spread with the question, "Will DJT be hospitalized for illness before November?" And the Wheel of Fortune landed right in the Yes column.
I actually took a photo of the spread, if anyone wants to see it, but here's the whole layout from left to right (Smith-Rider-Waite deck):
Top row: Three of Wands, Wheel of Fortune, Six of Cups, Seven of Swords
Bottom row: Knight of Pentacles, The Devil, Nine of Pentacles, Knight of Wands