Today is my dad’s birthday, and anyone who knew him knows I would have his blessing on this particular topic. If he were alive we would be drinking Greek coffee over at his studio right now, me in his comfy arm chair recliner and him steadily pacing back and forth, watching the morning news together, and he would always be able to talk me down from emotional overwhelm. I miss him so much it hurts and I need him now more than ever.
We as a country have officially made it very clear where we stand when it comes to our global allies.
We have voted against the United Nations. Against. The UN.
All of our loyal European allies.. they are our friends no longer.
(Editors note: this is in reference to the vote in the United Nations Monday to vote against a resolution condemning Russia’s war against Ukraine. The U.S. joined Russia, North Korea and Belarus in the vote.)
I am really trying to let this one sink in. I can’t wrap my head around it. This entire thing is like a train wreck but I can’t look away.
I did not buy a ticket for this sh#% show of a ride, and I would really, really like to get off of it now.
I would like to state for the record that I prefer democracy and not dictatorship. It is not red or blue.. you no longer have to choose.. It’s democracy or dictatorship now and things are moving very fast.
You are allowed to say, at any point, “I can’t support this.”
Even if you did. Even if you were unsure. You can at any point say, “This has gone too far.” And while the best time to say that was earlier, the second best time is now. You can, at any point, call your representative and tell them Trump has gone too far. It’s anonymous, no one will find out, and you don’t have to tell your family. You can just call privately and speak out. You can simply say that Trump has gone too far, and you do not wish to live in a dictatorship under Putin’s thumb. When you live in a dictatorship, liberty is lost and you cannot get her back. If you don’t want dictatorship, then it’s no longer about red or blue or arguing with one another. If you don’t want dictatorship then we have to unite together and call. Our representatives will listen if it’s all of us. If it’s both red and blue calling, then they HAVE to listen.
That’s literally what Democracy is all about.
Now is the time to voice it, or it will be lost.
Everything our constitution stands for now will no longer stand. If you are a patriot? If you swore at any point to defend and uphold our Constitution, the time is now. A true patriot loves democracy, a true patriot stands in allegiance to the Republic, we are one Nation under God with liberty and justice for all.
My dad was a US war veteran. He was a hero and a true patriot he fought for a country that wasn’t even his, he was the last in his platoon to survive and then he came home and got spat on by the country he fought for. He was a Patriot if there ever was, and he hated Trump with every fiber of his being. I debated posting this but today is my dad’s birthday and I know he would be so upset by all this, we would be drinking coffee together this morning and raising hell so I’m going to do it in his honor. I know he would be proud of me and he would support me.
Trump is literally firing US war veterans, national heroes, from their federal jobs and kicking them to the streets. “Thanks for your service” and then he spits on them. Can you support that? He is going to take your grandma’s only source of income. It’s going to get so much worse if you do not call. We aren’t going to make it to midterms. Our Democracy will not make it if we roll over and take it. The moment we all say “oh well, it was a great country, but I’m just going to roll over and take it” that is the moment our great country is lost.
It’s lost for our kids and their kids and they won’t be able to get it back
My dad almost died for this country. I’m not just going to lay here and take it, I’m not going to let my daughters inherit a dictatorship.
I understand if you don’t trust the government and you want it to be more efficient but firing all the worker bees at the very bottom, the ones who keep things afloat, shutting it down completely, is not the right way. Medicaid is not for sale, NASA is not for sale, our Post Office is not for sale, our National Parks and federal forest lands are not for sale, America is not for sale!! Shutting it down completely is not the answer. I understand if you don’t trust the government but Elon is not looking out for you, I promise. Shutting it all down to a group of fascist oligarchs, sacrificing it for the sake of a dictatorship under someone who thinks he is a king is not the way. Maybe to you he was the lesser of two evils but do you really want to see his face and be under his leadership beyond these next four years….?? Indefinitely!!? He has no idea what is actually happening because Putin literally has him by the balls. Do you feel safe in this situation?
Then call your reps and tell them “Trump has gone too far and we as true Patriots of our magnificent country do not align with Vladimir Putin” or if you want to take a different route you could say “Trump has gone too far and our national parks are treasures and they belong to both parties, they belong to the People, to everyone, to our children and our grandchildren and I don’t want the forest lands falling into his fossil fuel agenda and my kids and their kids won’t know what Yosemite was like, what Yellowstone was like, what the Grand Canyon was like” or “Trump has gone too far, _________________” – you can fill in the blank, however, he has crossed the line for you personally.
I feel like the threat of dictatorship should cross the line for everyone though?
Our parents and their parents fought for our freedom, for our liberty. Dictatorship takes that all away. The least we can do is make a phone call, all of us together, to preserve our democracy for our children.
Here is the phone number: 202-225-3121.
Do you remember that analogy…back when we were all voting..you are on a flight and the airplane steward asks you:
“Good evening sir. For our dinner service, would you like the chicken, or this plate of shit with broken glass?”
You think about it and then you ask.. “well, actually.. how is the chicken cooked?”
(Steward tells you how the chicken is cooked).
You pause, you think about it for awhile.
“Eh….that’s not really how I like my chicken cooked..because grocery prices are kind of high and all politicians are bad in general so I’ll just take the latter option.”
Here’s your plate of sh#% with broken glass.
I really hope that everyone who reads these words makes a call today (and tomorrow) to their Representative on behalf of what and who they love and cherish. 202-225-3121.
–Kalotina Reilly
South Lake Tahoe, Calif.