How Do We Get Off the Seesaw?

Everything I read in the news points to a political seesaw.  Democrats say Republicans disliked everything about Obama and were ready to stonewall any effort he made do anything, no matter what he wanted to do.  Republicans accuse Democrats of being against anything Trump wants to do.  Both sides seem to be right.  At this point, we might as well build that wall right down the aisle in Congress.

Here are my questions:  What happened to the rest of the republican party?  How do we get the left-leaning or even centrist republicans to stand up to the ultra-right?  How do we get both sides of Congress to work together on solutions we can all live with?  How do we make politics less partisan?

Please answer these questions on my blog, and please share them so we can get lots of suggestions.  Please share and answer whether you are democrat or republican!

justconversationzone.blogspot.com

Sound Off On Betsy DeVos

Now that the issue is at hand, I have a question to through out.  Please comment.
What, specifically, are you afraid that DeVos will do as Secretary of Education?

If Only I Could Teach the World to Do This

I went to book club, as I do every month and a half.  We had a political discussion.  Some of us are more pro-Trump.  Others of us are more anti-Trump. If you were a fly on the wall, you would not be able to tell which of us embraces which stance without listening carefully.  We disagreed without a single raised voice.  We politely corrected each other on unknown facts.  We asked each other why we believe as we do, and then we LISTENED.  As it turns out, nobody knows everything.  We each learned something. We can each learn from the "opposition".

I am saddened by people who lament that their families have been split apart by politics.  My own family comes from opposite camps.  But I will not stop talking to anyone because they love Trump.  I will question.  Then I will listen.  I will respond.  But I will not have my family split by this situation.  That would give bipartisan politics way too much power in my life.  I don't choose to yield that much control to any outside force.

We have to remember this.  Whether democrat or republican, we must be American first and foremost.

Learn from the Germans

Any time I read or watch a movie about WWII, even though we traditionally think of the Germans as the enemy, I can't help but think that that isn't quite right.  I view the Germans as the first victims of Hitler and Nazism.

Yes, those who joined underground resistances, sneaked people out of the country, and hid Jews in attics and basements are true heroes.  But what of the others, the silent majority?  Do we really have the right to throw stones at them from the safety and comfort of the future, after the fighting was over?

Recall the scene.  Hitler had come to power.  Teachers who spoke against him disappeared while children were encouraged, mandated, to join the Hitler Youth, where they were indoctrinated in the belief that there first duty was to the Fuehrer.  Thinking they were doing the right thing, these children listened to their parents' conversations, and reported anti-Hitler sentiment to their youth leaders.  Any German who spoke against the government could expect to be arrested and killed.  How many of us can say with any certainty that we would risk leaving our children orphaned in wartime so we could speak out?  If drafted, would we really run away to certain death?  If assigned to work at the concentration camps, who would speak out, condemning our own family to death?  When I was younger, I was sure that I would be one of the heroes.  But as a parent and a grandparent, I don't know that I would want to stand out in a regime that had no problem punishing the children for the sins of the parents.

We can see the 1930's clearly from 2017.  If the German people had spoken out together against Hitler, had they loudly requested alliances with their neighbors, had they found strength in numbers to openly resist the Nazis, history would have been different.

I sometimes feel like I'm being paranoid when I worry that we are rushing towards World War III.  Then I read headlines from every source imaginable, written by people who share my fear.

Doomsday Clock Closer to Midnight Than at Any Time Since 1953

Immigration Ban Stuns and Angers the World

Ex-Soviet Leader Mikhail Gorbachev: ‘World Is Preparing for War’

Let's learn from the Germans.  Let's not sit back and wait until madness overtakes us.  Let's stay cool but firm and organized.  Please post ideas.  What can we do now?  What can I, as a private citizen, do to help reverse the course we are on?  Please share this post, and PLEASE, PLEASE respond.

The March

SO many people gathered in Washington, around the country, and around the world to march on Saturday 1/21/2017.  For others, it was an ordinary day.  I wonder, when people gathered in Washington back in 1963 to hear Martin Luther King give the "I Have a Dream Speech" that we now view as iconic, was it an ordinary day for most people?  His crowds were much smaller, but the movement turned into something enormous.  Could it be that yesterday's massive crowds will someday be marked as a pivotal moment in history?

I do have a question about yesterday, and I am asking everyone who sees this question to answer as concisely as possible.  Write from the heart, plainly.

 For those people who attended a march (or wish your had):  What specifically do you want Donald Trump to do or not do?  In a nutshell, what is your cause?

For those people who oppose or don't understand the march:  Please explain why.

Again, please refrain from sarcasm and negativity.  Let's have a real conversation!

In Honor of King

It's good that Martin Luther King's birthday is a holiday.  His presence in human history deserves to be commemorated.  It's not just his life that we celebrate today, but the lives and sacrifices of all those who planned, marched, were beaten and jailed with him.  When I think of the civil rights movement of the 1960s, in my mind I lump it together with the quest for women's rights.  And workers' rights.  And LGBTQ rights.  And religious rights.  And fair healthcare rights.  And basic human rights.  For me, King is the embodiment of the quest for each individual to be free to be the most we can be, against the limitations placed on us by the norms of society, whatever they are in that time and place.  This quest was certainly not new to twentieth century America, but has been ongoing throughout human history.  Today we use King's likeness and words to celebrate the ongoing struggle for real freedom.  That's an awful lot of pressure on the legacy of one man.  We're all going to have to help.

The Challenge

In his farewell speech, President Obama challenged us to get out of our bubbles of people who look and think like us and let ourselves be challenged by other opinions.  I would like to accept this challenge right here on this blog.

I have heard from people I've spoken to, that I am not alone in my fears for our future under President Trump.  I do not think that everything he says is incorrect, and  I admire his tenacity and his ability to live life on his own terms.  I am in awe of his capacity to set a goal and make it so.  But I am afraid that he will do more harm than good as President.

I am afraid that he will lead this already unstable world into a major war.

 I am afraid during his administration the rich will get richer, leaving those who are not rich to struggle or become destitute.

I am afraid that Trump, whose appeal is his willingness to circumvent the ways of business as usual, will violate  boundaries and safeguards that keep the country and the world relatively stable.

 I fear that Trump, between his political inexperience and his tendency to blaze new and possibly unsafe trails, will be manipulated by the political machines of foreign countries, namely, but not limited to, Russia.

 I am afraid that in doing away with environmental regulation in an effort to support business, our already fragile environment will be ruined to the detriment of us all.

I am afraid that Trump will support the causes of his socially conservative   supporters because they are his supporters, leaving women, minorities, and people of unconventional sexuality to lose their hard-earned rights.

I am afraid that in his rush to repeal the imperfect Affordable Health Care Act, we will inadvertently reduce the availability of affordable health care to us.

Mostly, I am afraid that our recently past election campaigns have been deliberately polarized to gain news ratings.  In doing so,  people have become so staunchly Republican or so staunchly Democrat, that we've forgotten to be Americans first. We minimize common ground shared by politicians so we can watch a fight.

Whatever we face, whether war, environmental disaster, economic collapse, healthcare crisis, political oppression, or foreign takeover, we will face it together no matter what our political leanings.  I would rather we all work together rationally towards peace, environmental stability, economic success, good health, freedom, and the successful future of the United States and the world.

I am inviting everyone who reads this to share it with everyone you know, despite their point of view.  I would like to establish an online community of people of all opinions who want to work together for the common good.

 If I state a fact that you think is incorrect, please let me know why I am wrong.  Tell me where you got your information.

If your opinion differs from mine, explain your point of view.

Expressing opinions does not amount to action.  If we are against any given legislation, what can we do about it?  This is a forum for action.  Invite people who are politically savvy.  If you are able, invite posts from politicians. How do we get the attention of our legislators?  How do we invite Barrack Obama to express his insights to us?  Hillary Clinton?  Donald Trump?!

Here's the one thing I want to emphasize.  Obama was correct when we said that we all love this country.  We may not agree on particular issues, but we should listen to each other, not talk past each other.  This blog will not be a Trump bashing site or a conservative rant.  I see it as a place for rational, respectful conversation without name-calling or sarcasm.  It is a place to expand our views, gain understanding of opposing views, and hopefully it will be a launch pad for positive political participation.  

Please post your views and invite others to do the same.