While some think liberals like me are only ever angry at the choices the president has made, are not supportive of him, are PUMAs or whatever, I want to dispel that notion.
I do not agree with the president’s education choices/ideology and will fight him and Duncan on that always. But when he inspires me, I speak up. I am not afraid to speak out when I support what the president says/does, anymore than when I do not agree or support his choices.
I truly believe ALL OF US have an obligation to speak out and influence our fellow citizens, our legislators, and colleagues. I have posted this on FB, knowing some of my friends and relatives are extremely right. Some get very angry at me. Some believe it is wrong to “speak publicly about politics with family and friends.” Not me. I believe it is a moral obligation to speak out.
Here is my note on FB.
YES! YES! YES! Mr. President and right on and I cheer for more righteous indignation. Paul Ryan is NOT a visionary, nor is he brave….and FINALLY it’s been said. Giving tax breaks to billionaires on the backs of the children and the elderly is morally reprehensible. Ryan is a lover of Ayn Rand and it’s obvious! And scary.
It is long past time for citizens to speak up LOUDLY and demand our representatives stop passing legislation to benefit the super rich and demand we get back to the core values of caring for “the least of us…because whatever we do for them really is what matters most.’ And oh yes, DEMAND they stop lying and insisting the billionaires create jobs when they get tax breaks. IT’S A PROVEN LIE.
SHARED SACRIFICE should be honest and not about giving more to the spoiled rich so they can have five or six houses while millions of our citizens are losing their homes while the thieves that stole their homes get bonuses and their companies are making the biggest profits ever despite having destroyed the lives of countless homeowners; while veterans are becoming homeless and while our workers are being denied health benefits as well as safe work places.
Paris Hilton does not need a tax cut; nor does Bill Gates; nor does Warren Buffet. Yet the same people demanding these people get tax cuts want to cut HEAD START; cut Education (and blame the educators);cut MEDICARE. While Ryan wants to give the rich MORE cuts, he wants seniors to paying an average of $6000 more out of pocket yearly. Seriously is this what the people really want????
Seriously it is time for ALL of us to speak out and let our voices be heard. If not now, when????
As I continue to listen to the aftermath, my blood boils as the networks give the tea party leaders a chance to voice THEIR views. Where are the members of the labor movement; where are teachers? Why the hell do the tea party folks get every chance to push their lies???
I want all of us who believe in democracy to be fighting for it, whether by blogging for it, speaking out on social media (it worked for Egypt), or speaking to friends and relatives no matter how much we get rebuked, or going to gatherings. Last week on April 4th I went to another gathering in support of labor. NAACP was there, as were reps from the Hispanic league, the gay and lesbian community, the AFL-CIO. There were retired teachers, firefighters and public employees from the city.
We sang “We Shall Overcome.” We cheered and made noise albeit we were only about 200. But we were there.
I would tell my students always: DEMOCRACY is not a passive form of government. It requires hard work. I think our citizens have been passive for way too long. It’s time for us to be activists again.
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