Blind Trust

When I was a Freshman in college, I went on a retreat with a Christian group called Wesley Fellowship. Like most retreats there were plenty of ice breaking and team building exercises. One of them had me blindfolded and led around by an older student. The point of the exercise was the need to learn trust in one another. At one point, the other student put something in my hand. Not being able to see, I went with other senses. I immediately tried to taste it but it was a branch off a tree. This elicited much laughter from those who were observing. I learned not so much how to trust others but when NOT to trust blindly.

Democratic constituents and voters need to learn the same thing. We are told we  must follow the party line in order to elect more Democrats; it is for the greater good. It IS true that electing Republicans has resulted in nothing getting done in Washington D.C. and that much mischief is being done on state and local levels. Election laws are being overturned that were designed to protect our right to vote. Gerrymandering creates districts that will heavily favor Republicans. Laws are being passed to eliminate a woman's right to make choices about her reproductive health. Republicans are passing laws written in part or wholly by outside organizations at the behest of moneyed special interests like the Koch Brothers and the oil industry or corporate agriculture or the financial services industry to name just a few. Democracy, as we know it, is being undermined by these special interests who are able, increasingly, to channel contributions to lawmakers in a positions to help them. This is not, however, limited to the Republicans. For instance, Senator Debbie Stabenow, Democrat from Michigan, overwhelmingly receives her funding from major agricultural interests because she is a senior member of the Committee on Agriculture. Representative Gary Peters (MI-12th) sits on the Committee which provides oversight of the Financial Services industry. Hence, his campaign contributions come from, you guess it, the bankers.

Yet we are told to blindly vote for these folks because it is in our best interests. It is true that the Democrats are not overtly attempting to destroy Democracy for political reason. They appear to be protecting the poor, women, students and the elderly. However, that is not always the case as the examples of Stabenow and Peters demonstrate. Debbie Stabenow regularly votes in favor of Bills pushed by "Big Ag". She even voted for a Farm Bill that would have cut SNAP (food stamps) for millions of Americans, many of whom are her constituents. Gary Peters, even though he calls himself a Democrat, supports the Keystone XL Pipeline which would carry the very dirty tar sands oil over environmentally sensitive farmlands. He also supports a Trans-Pacific trade agreement that is pretty well secret in nature. It will, however, greatly aid American investors as well as investors overseas. Again, where does Rep. Peters' campaign funding come from? Largely from the financial services sector. Our leaders in the Democratic party have their own conflicts of interest and we need to be skeptical. Democrats frequently take positions contrary to what major sectors of their constituents believe. And it happens enough to make me question the party line. Not every Democrat deserves our support equally.

What American citizens need to do is learn the lesson of the branch: Do not blindly trust that our leaders are acting in OUR interests, We must learn to make up our own minds, given the facts as we can best determine. We have a voice and we need to use it wisely. We may well still support people like Rep. Peters and Senator Stabenow but it will be because we have weighed the facts not because we are told to do so.

No Justice, No Peace

George Zimmerman was found not guilty by a 6 person jury yesterday, in spite of the fact that no one disputed that he took the life of Trayvon Martin, a 17 year old who did nothing more than walk down the public street. Mr. Zimmerman left his vehicle after the 911 dispatcher told him not to do so. He engaged Trayvon and shot him. Those facts are not in dispute. A young black youth is dead at the hands of a self-styled vigilante and yet he was allowed to go free. 

What if it had been the other way around? What if the black youth had taken the life of George Zimmerman? Does anyone really think there would have been a not guilty verdict? No, because we all KNOW that young black males are profiled and judged before the evidence is presented. There IS no justice if you are young and black. Many think there is no justice, period. 

The banks destroy the economy with their predatory lending practices, foreclose on millions and put them out on the streets. Though we all condemn the behavior of the banks, not one person is convicted of a crime, except some who try to keep their homes. Not one bank official. Not one.

Oil companies devastate the environment and  there are small penalties, if any. Spill after spill and still they continue to act with impunity. The people of the Gulf Coast still pay for their negligence as does the ecosystem of the Gulf itself. There is no justice here either.

Millions of Americans were forced onto S.N.A.P. (Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program), better known as Food Stamps. Some 42 million now receive benefits because they make so little money. Some 48 millions are nutritionally vulnerable,i.e. hungry. And now the Republicans in the House of Representatives want to gut or eliminate the program that is the lifeline for these people. Where is the justice?

These are but examples of the situation as it stands in the United States. Justice is hard to come by especially if you're poor, elderly, unemployed, a woman or a minority. The Republicans have turned their backs and care only for the powerful and rich. Everything they do seems intended to make make the lives of ordinary Americans more difficult.

But there are consequences for this immoral behavior. And the Bible is clear that where there is no justice, there can be no peace in the eyes of the Lord. The prophet Amos lays it out succinctly in these snippets (Amos 6:7-24, NIV):

⁷ There are those who turn justice into bitterness
    and cast righteousness to the ground....

⁹ ...With a blinding flash he destroys the stronghold
    and brings the fortified city to ruin.
 

¹⁰ There are those who hate the one who upholds justice in court
    and detest the one who tells the truth.

¹¹ You levy a straw tax on the poor
    and impose a tax on their grain.
Therefore, though you have built stone mansions,
    you will not live in them;
though you have planted lush vineyards,
    you will not drink their wine.
¹² For I know how many are your offenses
    and how great your sins.

There are those who oppress the innocent and take bribes
    and deprive the poor of justice in the courts.
¹³ Therefore the prudent keep quiet in such times,
    for the times are evil.

¹⁴ Seek good, not evil,
    that you may live.
Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you,
    just as you say he is.
¹⁵ Hate evil, love good;
    maintain justice in the courts.
Perhaps the Lord God Almighty will have mercy
    on the remnant of Joseph.

¹⁶ Therefore this is what the Lord, the Lord God Almighty, says:

“There will be wailing in all the streets
    and cries of anguish in every public square...

 ²¹ “I hate, I despise your religious festivals;
    your assemblies are a stench to me.
²² Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings,
    I will not accept them.
Though you bring choice fellowship offerings,
    I will have no regard for them.
²³ Away with the noise of your songs!
    I will not listen to the music of your harps.
²⁴ But let justice roll on like a river,
    righteousness like a never-failing stream!

This is the language of the Bible, the consequences of sin in the eyes of God,  but it is also a fundamental truth: there are consequences for every action. In physics the language is this:for every action there is and equal and opposite reaction. Whatever the way you say it, injustice has it's consequences for the oppressor. There may not be justice now for Trayvon today or for those who lost their homes, or for the hungry but IT WILL COME. It always has and it always will. It is a universal truth and those who oppress should repent now (repent simply means, "To turn around").
Turn from their evil ways and right their wrongs where they can. Otherwise, in the words of a current saying, "Karma can be a  _itch."  If there is no justice, there will be no peace.

Hunger USA

I read an article in the Detroit News (1) today about the fact that the U.S. House of Representatives voted for a Farm Bill which did not include funding for S.N.A.P. (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program i.e, food stamps). This action was taken after the defeat of a measure that "only" cut S.N.A.P. for millions of Americans. The Republicans regrouped and came back with an even worse bill, at least from the perspective of the 42 million Americans who receive S.N.A.P. benefits. They dropped it from the Farm Bill altogether which leaves even more Americans at risk for going hungry in the richest nation in the world.

What appalls me even more, however, is the response of so many Americans who think S.N.A.P. OUGHT to be discontinued because it is not needed and is abused. I am quite sure many of these people think they are Christians. They forget that Jesus fed the hungry (Feeding of the 5000). I wonder if they would say that Jesus shouldn't have fed those people because one or two people ate twice, because it only encouraged those people to come back for more, etc. It is even possible that some of the disciples thought the same thing, or close to it. Maybe Judas, who thought Jesus needed to take on the Roman Empire and the Jewish establishment. "Jesus, you're wasting time with this miracle. You'd do better in Jerusalem where the action is. These people can go home and eat."  Or maybe Matthew, the Tax Collector: "Jesus, this is not very cost effective. You are distributing scarce resources among people who will not appreciate it and who can do nothing for you." But Jesus went on doing the Will of the Father as expressed in the Book of Isiah:

Isaiah 58:6-10

⁶ “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
    and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
    and break every yoke?
⁷ Is it not to share your food with the hungry
    and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
    and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
⁸ Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
    and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness will go before you,
    and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.
⁹ Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;
    you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.

“If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
    with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
¹⁰ and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
    and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,    and your night will become like the noonday. (NIV)

Jesus, unlike his disciples at times, knew what God required of Him (and of us as His followers). It is "To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God" (Micah 6:, NIV)

Why, on earth do we never learn? Why do we still point fingers and oppress the poor and the suffering?  Why all the trash talk about the poor and hungry being unworthy and cheaters? Those of us who call ourselves Christian need to learn what it really takes to follow Jesus. Faith is all well and good but not if it results in doing nothing in this world. Faith which separates us from the world God so loved is no faith at all. It is a cop out. We need to open our eyes and see the facts and let them convict us. 

The FACT is that some 48 million Americans are subject to food insecurity each and every day. That is over 14% of Americans and includes some 16 million children. (2) More than 1:5 children are at risk for hunger. (3)

The facts go on and on.  Nearly half of all children will receive S.N.A.P. benefits at some time before they turn 20.  One in seven people in the US are enrolled in S.N.A.P.. One in seven Americans live below the poverty line (which is $22,000 for a family of four). More that 90% of S.N.A.P. benefits are used up by the 3rd week of the month (4).

"Low-income households already spend a greater share of their income on food. Food accounts for 16.4 percent of spending for households making less than $10,000 per year compared to the U.S. average of 12.7 percent." (5)
 
Many people go hungry or are at extreme risk in this, the richest country in the world, and there is no good reason for it. We should be able to feed everyone. And we could if there was the will. We need both the will and the way. Most of all, Americans who have enough to eat need to develop their compassion. 

ENDNOTES

1.  Marisa Schultz,"Food Stamps At Risk for 1.7 Million In Michigan." Detroit News, http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20130713/METRO08/307130027/ , 13 July 2013.

2.  Household Food Security in the United States, 2010. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, September 2011. (Table 1A, Table 1B. Quoted from http://www.bread.org/hunger/us/facts.html). 

3.  Household Food Security in the United States, 2010. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, September 2011. (Table 1B, Table 3), Ibid).

4. Quoted from http://www.bread.org/hunger/us/facts.html).

5.   Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Expenditure Survey, 2006  Quoted from http://www.bread.org/hunger/us/facts.html).

The Republican Terrorists

Today, the U.S. House of Representatives is voting on a Farm Bill, which traditionally gets passed without much hoopla. It is different this year because House Republicans (Tea Party) seek to cut SNAP (The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), ie., food stamps. In the first go around they simply tried to cut SOME hungry people off the program. That met with resistance so now they came back with a version that totally fails to mention SNAP, which effectively defunds food assistance for some 42 million Americans. They are doing a very good job of scaring  a LOT of people with this Bill. 

As of July 1st, the House also failed to stop a scheduled increase in the interest rates paid by students who have government loans. The increase doubled the interest rate for students while banks and other major corporations pay half as much. This occurred because the House of Representatives simply failed to take action even though the Senate already had passed relief legislation.  Thirty-Seven million American students will be affected.

Between those two outrageous actions, the United States House Republicans (who control the House) have put 79 million Americans behind the proverbial eight ball. The Republican House has effectively terrorized all these people. They have deliberately sought to intimidate and coerce a significant part of the population of these United States and have done so for purely political purposes. The definition of Terrorism , according to the World English Dictionary is, " the systematic use of violence and intimidation to achieve some goal."  Not all violence is physical. Indeed, the worst part of terrorism is precisely the fear and panic it causes.  The Tea Party Republicans have done precisely that - caused fear and attempted to force the American People and the Democratic Party to accede to their will. They cannot win elections without threats, cheating and intimidation so this is what they have become. The no longer govern  (" to exercise restraint over; regulate or direct", Free Online Dictionary), instead they impose a reign of terror.  It is Robespierre all over again. One only hopes they do not manage to send 79 million people to the guillotine. 

Fear and Fundamentalism

I was reading about the fall of the Roman empire yesterday and came upon an interesting tidbit. Apparently some folks in St. Augustine's time were blaming the attack on Rome by the Visigoths on the abandonment of traditional pagan religions in favor of Christianity ("Augustine on the Fall of America, uh, Rome", The God Project. Net, March 17, 2011).  I found that intriguing because so many among the Tea Party/Religious Right in the United States blame the "Fall of America" on straying from Christian values. It seems that in both cases the religion(s) of  the traditional majority blamed the decay of empire on straying from religion. The pagans in the time of the Fall of Rome blamed the Christians and now the "Christians" in this era blame heathens. The more things change the more they stay the same.

There is, however, another comparison. The Religious Right (Tea Party) is similar in many ways to another radical and extremist group:

"I am going to ask a series of statements. See if you can determine which group each statement applies to.
1). This group wants to dominate women and tell them how to act. Taliban? Or Religious Right?
2). This group wants there to be a national religion, barring other religions from the country. Taliban? Or Religious Right?
3). This group wants prayer to be a prominent part of education. Taliban? Or Religious Right?
4). This group wants to dictate their morals to the rest of the population, with severe penalties for non-compliance. Taliban? Or Religious Right?
5). This group is not interested in freedom of speech. Taliban? Or Religious Right?
6). This group is not interested in freedom of religion. Taliban? Or Religious Right?
7). This group wants their “law” to be the law of the land, regardless of what the people might want. Taliban? Or Religious Right?
8). This group wants to convert the entire world into their way of thinking. Taliban? Or Religious Right?
9). This group thinks homosexuality is an abomination and should be eradicated from the face of the Earth. Taliban? Or Religious Right?
If you answered both to every one of these statements, then you are correct. As you can see, other than the country they are operating in, there is little, if any, difference between the two groups" (by outofstepper, "Taliban or Religious Right?" in The Daily Kos, September 21, 2010).

It is no accident that the comparison can be made. There are psychological reasons both groups exist. At their core, both the Religious Right and the Taliban are afraid of and therefore hate the ambiguities and uncertainties  of contemporary existence (Walter A. Davis, "The Psychology of Christian Fundamentalism" in Counterpunch, January 8-10, 2005). That fear based hatred seems to express itself everywhere, from the fear of women which expresses itself in attacks on contraception and abortion to the fear of those who are different, as in Muslims. The Taliban exhibit the same fear and hatred. The irony and danger, of course, lies in letting the two forms of extremism interact with one another. Fear and hatred on both sides leads to war and worse, to holy war. We are in our current predicament with fear of being attacked by terrorists precisely because of  xenophobia and the only way out of the mess that has been created is to let go of fear. When the other is feared nothing can be seen or heard clearly. The only way out is to go through the process of really listening and seeing. The question remains as to whether that is even possible.

The PRISM of Power

There was a tweet on Twitter earlier that asked, "Sandy Levin, why do you support spying on Americans?"  I realized that it's a very good question. My congressman is a lifelong Democrat and a fairly liberal one at that. So why would he support NSA surveillance on American citizens along with N.D.A.A, the Patriot Act and F.I.S.A.?  Part of the answer may lie in his very close relationship with his brother Carl, who is chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Undoubtedly he is privy to more sensitive information than the average congressman. It may partially be the case that Rep. Sander Levin has information that would seem to justify the government's actions infringing upon individual liberties and privacy. I do not know what  could  justify these policies but they presumably do have reasons. Perhaps not good reasons but reasons nonetheless. 

The best justification I can think of is that these policies are needed to prevent another 9/11 style attack on this country. In fact, when Eric Snowden broke the news that the NSA has been spying on American citizens, the agency defended itself by saying that dozens of attacks had been thwarted by their use of PRISM (the data mining program that stores billions of electronic messages from email to cell phones and beyond). However, they do not provide concrete instances as evidence so we are essentially being told to take them at their word. Since they have been lying to the American people from the get go trust is not very likely.  

Neither are their reasons likely to hold water. There was plenty of evidence of an impending attack on this country prior to 9/11 but no one was able to put the pieces together. What we have in PRISM is a gigantic collector of information. Why on earth would it be any better at pulling out relevant information than human agents? All they have succeeded in doing is adding another layer of bureaucracy with a lot more capability to invade citizens privacy and to violate basic constitutional rights. So, why would my congressman be interested in supporting such massive spying on citizens regardless of guilt or innocence? 

It may, upon reflection, be a product of his support for Israel. Information gathered here could easily be used to aid Israel in protecting itself from attack (with the same problems in logic as the American focus on Americans). Nevertheless, Israel does not have the best track record when it comes to preserving basic civil rights (especially if you happen to be Palestinian). I doubt they would have much problem with using the NSA data collection system when it suits their interest. And I am inclined to believe that they have supporters in Congress who would not have problems either. 

Lastly, I have to wonder if our representatives and senators have some other reasons for supporting such surveillance. This all depends, however, on how the information gathered is actually used. Do they gather information for political reasons? If so (like the IRS) this information can easily be misused by the government as well as politicians. Imagine a politician wanting information about an opponent...or about an ex-spouse and so on. Or what about corporations? They would have a field day with this huge collection of data records. The possibilities are endless and our representatives and senators are influenced by many outside interests. Heaven only knows what the truth may be. I just know that it is inevitable that this super-surveillance will be misused. As famously said by Lord Acton, "Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely." 

Liberty For All?

My congressman asked what Independence Day means to us. I immediately thought of the Declaration of Independence and the list of grievances the Colonists laid out against the King of England. And I thought of the present day situation in these United States. I wondered what Thomas Jefferson would have made of the Patriot Act, of the National Security Agency spying on our own citizens. I know what Benjamin Franklin would have said because he did: "He who gives up essential liberty for a little security deserves neither."

The founders gave their all for liberty and I know it would have appalled them to see us throwing it away in the name of short term safety. Safety is never assured even if all citizens voluntarily give up their freedoms for that purpose. In that moment when we cede our liberties we have betrayed the spirit of the American Revolution. 

The rise of the power of corporations in this country (and worldwide) is also quite alarming. Power concentrated in fewer and fewer hands creates a situation much like the one that confronted the American colonists. With the East India Company monopolizing trade rights, the colonists faced excessive taxation and the inability to purchase needed items from anyone else. The burdens these policies caused led directly to revolution.

Today, we have corporations wielding growing power in Congress and the Courts (especially the US Supreme Court) and to some extent in the Executive branch as well. The greater the power of corporations the less power the proletariat (or the 99%) have.

The Citizens United ruling by the Supreme Court was a perfect illustration. The Court ruled that corporations have the right to express themselves through essentially unlimited financial contributions to political campaigns. The idea that corporations are people makes a mockery of the First Amendment but the divided Court saw it differently. Corporations now have unlimited power to influence and direct political campaigns. The ordinary American citizen is thus left essentially voiceless in comparison.

The state of the Union this Independence Day is quite questionable. We lose our freedoms by the inch. We seem to be headed down the slippery slope towards totalitarianism and the complete undermining of the Constitution. The only thing that can reverse this trend is the united action of the People. We must rise up and be heard before it is too late.

A Place At The Table

A few evenings ago I had the opportunity to attend a screening of the film, "A Place At The Table", starring Jeff Bridges. It was a very thought provoking and emotional film about hunger in America. I highly recommend it as a way to elicit conversation and discussion about the very real crisis. There are many facts about hunger in the film, elucidated by various experts but the experiences of a number of people (primarily of single mothers!) were what stuck out to me. Much is said about hunger in this country but we do not often stop to think about the individuals who are affected. Numbers and statistics are dry and it is tempting to focus on them rather than people because, as this film points out, people are harder to ignore; they are harder to forget. 

It is impossible for me to forget the little girl who lived in squalor and went to school hungry most days. The devastating effect hunger has on children was most disturbingly demonstrated by her situation. She could not concentrate or focus on school work when her stomach was growling. For me, this situation hit all too close to home. As I watched Rosie, I saw myself as a child. 

When I was in first grade, one of the teachers who knew my father (she had been his teacher as well) took me aside and talked to me about breakfast and then talked to my parents. I was always being sent to the corner because I was tired and couldn't concentrate. I never made the connection between that and not having eaten in the morning. This film became very  personal. I remember my family had government issued canned peanut butter and also cheese. I never paid much attention, I guess I figured everyone had the same. 

Hungry children are nothing new in the country but the epidemic certainly is, at least since the 1960's when president after president issued wars on hunger. The school lunch program and, later, the school breakfast program cut childhood hunger drastically. What changed? Why are 1:6 children in this country suffering from food insecurity? Watch the film and you will find out. 

To discover more about the issue you can visit: http://www.takepart.com/place-at-the-table/film.