Justice, Representation, and Liberty

This really isn’t a rosy after-Christmas post. But I’ve been wanting to write about this for a long time, however things kept coming up. I think it’s about time, though.

So, here’s the thing. Since last January, I’ve been pretty wound up about what is going on in Washington, which is trickling down to all of our lives. I was devouring news off the internet like it was chocolate chip cookies. Only it wasn’t making me happy like chocolate chip cookies do; it was raising my blood pressure and giving me chest pain.

At the end of August, when my personal world fell apart, I went on a “current events” fast. I didn’t read or watch any news. I still had high blood pressure and anxiety, but for a totally different reason.

But politics slowly crept back into my life, and I was soon back to reading several different news outlets online every morning, trying to find sources that were accurate and not skewed to one political party or the other. I followed what the politicians from my own state were doing. I wrote them multiple letters expressing my disappointment that they were only backing whichever party they belonged to, rather than working for the voters. I bit my tongue in public, but got into more arguments with my husband over things neither one of us had any control over.

I realized once again that none of that was healthy for me. So, here I am, with no knowledge of what either the Republican or Democratic machines are doing to this country at this time. But I still hear murmurs and glance at unavoidable posts on Facebook.

I’m also not an expert on history, but this is what I am pretty sure has happened to many other countries and what I see happening to ours.

The current political party will continue to push its personal agenda. Innocent people will get hurt in the process; guilty people will run the show. Things will get progressively worse until the country reaches a tipping point.

There will be even more craziness and chaos. Civil war? I don’t know about that, but enough people will push back against the current administration that even more innocent people will get hurt, and this time, even some guilty people.

I suspect this will take a couple more years. Until the next presidential election? Maybe. But maybe longer.

Anyway, then what happens? The other political party takes over, perhaps by force, and then our problems are over? Not even close.

Here’s how I see it. Right now, the far-right Conservatives and the far-left Liberals are both way too far out there. So, no, things won’t get better when the other party takes over; things will just be different.

After another maybe four to eight years, if all hasn’t been destroyed in World War III or if Jesus hasn’t returned to claim earth and carry out everything foretold in the book of Revelation, then maybe this country will slowly pick itself back up and rebuild. Maybe the freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution will be returned to us. Maybe politicians and the general public will embrace morals, common sense, and kindness towards one another. Maybe we will accept that we all have our differences and work towards making that work for the best for everyone.

Maybe. Sounds rather doomsday-esque, doesn’t it? I don’t know. Hopefully I’m wrong. Hopefully, someone out there with much more knowledge of world history will share an example of when this didn’t happen to any other countries and how it will not happen to the United States.

I welcome your opinions, but only if you share them with gentleness and without bashing either side. Thank you. And have a Happy New Year.

(The picture is of the Capitol building in historic Williamsburg, Virginia, where the people of Virginia discussed and debated the ideas of justice, representation, and liberty in the 1700s. And learned just what it means to be "We the People" – citizens with equal rights instead of subjects of a king.)