QUARANTINE LIFE: MOVING ON?

Even Jesus said some things that weren't nice, but they were necessary. Being nice doesn't mean condoning or failing to address foolishness.

Already, people are trying to sweep Wednesday under the rug. "Let's move on!"

No.

Not this time.

I hope the images of Wednesday's madness remain in the faces of those who fueled it.

I hope the people who are sweating bullets waiting for the FBI to knock on their doors, even if they never get caught, are on their knees vowing to keep their noses clean for the rest of their lives.

I'm sure that no one thought about what being incarcerated during a pandemic--even for a little while-- is like when they were traipsing through the Capitol like drunken frat boys in "Animal House".

There's a contingency of people who believe they're above the law because, frankly, they are.

The prospect of that changing is probably mind-blowing.

It's time out for no consequences. Haven't we had enough repeat performances because we refuse to hold people accountable after they've shown us who they are, and what they're capable of?

It's amazing what we can be vocal about; dismissive and critical of-- until the folks behaving badly are our own.

It's amazing how one person's "thug" is another person's "troubled soul"; how an outright insurrection can be categorized as a mere protest; and how perpetrators can paint themselves as victims.

Some get awfully understanding, forgiving, forgetful and Kumbaya--ish when the heat is close to them. They really want to know what they did wrong!

Projection is strong these days. None of those complicit want to be seen as the criminals they are. They want to be called "patriots".

Stop saying, "We're better than this". No we're not. I've been Black in America for 60 years. America has been coddling racism, bigotry, injustice, and oppression for a lot longer. How do I know? I had Black parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents who all had stories to tell---and specific instructions and strategies how to maneuver in this unfair world that judges others based on the skin they're in.

I was taught how to love, be polite, respectful, considerate, generous, empathetic, but never was I taught that I was better than anyone else. Never was I taught that I had more rights than anyone else. Never was I taught to hate or demean anyone else, but I was warned that those things were taught to others. I learned very early that I didn't have to do anything to inspire hatred. It was a given.

Stop saying, "This isn't who we are".

Yes it is. It's EXACTLY who we are.

America's go-to when she can't have her entitled, oppressive, Jim Crow way, is terrorism.

She likes to keep people in their places, submissive, void of rights, and afraid. That's why she can so easily identify terrorism when it occurs elsewhere in the world. She perfected it---against her own.

She is so afraid that one day, she's going to be treated the way she has treated others.

One day, she will wake up and realize how much her evil has cost in resources and lives.

#insurrection

#january6