Division is toxic to the human family. Fear, oppression, tyranny and eventually war are the results if Americans allow our enemies (foreign and domestic) to divide us. For this reason, I feel I must write (and break my standard of relatively short posts).
Prejudice Divides US-Judging intent is a dangerous thing, especially when judging incorrectly or worse yet only to satisfy one's own bias or world view. Jesus warned that we will be judged with the same judgment with which we judge. Media sources, politicians, and corporations know the power of playing one side against another to motivate and effectively marshal their influence to protect their power and wealth--divide and conquer. Their marketing is becoming more and more focused on targeting individuals to exploit their differences. They will use any wedge issue they can and have developed algorithms to tailor what information is shared in order to amplify the effect of name-calling, taking offense, accusation, endless opinion pieces, character assassinations, etc. They filter out information that may be contrary so only the approved message remains and then progress to more and more extreme means to divide people wherever possible. We have a worldwide movement that employ these tactics to rewrite history to fit their twisted narrative and encourage their foot-soldiers to militate against any who might disagree. If you do not see examples of this, just listen to political debates, or news broadcasts today. With an "us vs. them" mentality humans have been known throughout history to justify horrific acts of oppression such as terrorism, murder, robbery, burning of books, mob violence, human trafficking, and even genocide. We were once encouraged to study history to learn what caused such events, as painful as it was to witness and prevent these atrocities from returning, but today it seems like we are intentionally being steered toward ignorantly reliving history.
Stereotypes Divide US-Some can be helpful in understanding general trends if they are based on fact, but interpersonally unless stereotypes are questioned we cannot know the truth nor the intent. In truth, we are all more the same than we are different. Rather than talking about our differences to learn from each other and grow closer, we are allowing organizations and governments to use our differences against us to promote races, promote beliefs, promote genders and discourage common understanding. Media sources, educational institutions, and other organizations unabashedly guilt us into blindly accepting false ideologies that further divide us. They promote offense and discourage forgiveness. They promote isolation and segregation rather than teamwork and cooperation. They shame people for reaching out to others to gain understanding. They promote false narratives to instill fear and further expand social programs, regulations, etc.
Injustice Divides US-There are those who will be caught in this world of words where black is white, good is bad, and there is no truth (only your own personal truth, that is if you believe what you should). We have allowed society to control us more and more and with this emphasis on division, we are allowing it to oppress the majority into submission to a fictional minority (insert specialty group of your choice based on the audience) that is only being used for purposes of maintaining power over the people. This movement has infiltrated our institutions and nearly completely controls our government bureaucracies. This division is designed to unjustly accuse dissenters, discredit them, hide them or even physically silence them. This is not the first time it has been done. Millions have been slaughtered because of such oppression. Socialism has at its root control of the masses, not liberty. Progressives, as they call themselves, seek to impose socialism by degrees and will use anything we might value to bait us and then use our outrage to employ more and more restrictions on our liberty and ability to change back.
Civility Rebirth is Needed-Peace can exist only if we as Americans coexist in harmony. None will stand if America falls. There must be a baseline of respect. Innocence until proven guilty of malice. The government was established to hold this line, to punish crimes against others, crimes against natural law–simple laws. But, in order to grow stronger governments never stop seeking to gain power. Our US Declaration of Independence (original draft that decries the evil of slavery), the US Constitution, and the Bill of Rights were the best attempt in history to limit this power. Sadly, all our branches of government have overstepped their bounds so often that these documents are nearly powerless now. Criminals have organized to exploit our civil society and have used fear to rob and plunder. They have been so successful that the government has also joined in through taxation, and regulation with the threat of imprisonment. Our educational institutions have combined to promote godless corrections to history, science, and civil society, hiding the very god given and blood sanctified liberty that has bought us such prosperity.
Free Speech Must be Preserved-We as humans have found it difficult to distinguish which God/s is/are the right one/s and as a result, history is riddled with humans making and worshiping their own imaginations of god and once in power those humans have shut down anyone whose divergent thought may threaten their authority. So, after millennia soaked in blood, our nation sought to establish a new standard of liberty to prevent abuse, by restricting the government from interfering with free speech and religious expression. Perhaps we should also have protected our education from governmental influence as well, but that said, religion and education are critical to true progress and liberty and should not be infringed or limited. Once our government extended its power enough banks, universities, corporations, and yes religions too, have found it useful to seek special privileges from our government to secure power over their competition and their customers. Lies and misinformation whose purpose is to deceive or harm should not be included in free speech because they harm, but honestly, our courts and society have looked the other way too long to correct the corruption.
Understanding-We can still learn the truth; we can still go to the source. We don't have to wait to investigate. We can reach out to our neighbors, friends, congregations, clubs and other associations to share information and debate. We can reach out to people that are different in civil ways and learn from them. We do not have to agree, but we can grow together even when we disagree. Friendship does not mean we have to be the same. Far from it. Our differences can become shared experiences and ways to open our minds to new and better possibilities. Some may do this to their own detriment in that they forget what they once knew and once benefited them, but this does not need to happen when we synergize together (win-win).
Offense-I don't usually let things get to me but, when someone is offended by me, I try to understand and sincerely apologize. This is no longer acceptable behavior today in today's PC world. People are treated differently based on special groups. Only the perception of offense is necessary to render a guilty verdict for non-protected classes and a sentence that will blacklist them will follow. It is systemic and designed to divide our nation. All organizations seem to be playing by these rules now.
Forgiveness is Needed-I believe this is essential to healing our nation. Seeking forgiveness is equally as important as giving forgiveness. Both are critical to healing. Neither can be done without compassion. It's like a deep wound. It must first be cleaned so it does not fester. We must encourage people to talk things out and reward the courage to talk about what hurts, so the dirt can be removed. Then we must bind the wound together with a salve to prevent reinfection and cover the wound to prevent further harm. We must also allow time for the division to heal. Pulling it apart repeatedly or separating the individuals will not allow the wound to heal. Looking the other way won't help either. I pray that we will be able to come together as a people and address the things that divide us and remove those who seek to divide us. The vote is just around the corner to check our government. Our spending determines what companies provide. Our participation influences organizations. Just be aware of what your actions are saying and who they are saying it to.
Governmental Protections-Government is the worst way to grow things. It is clunky and wields too much power. It's like using a rototiller to pick carrots. It sure loosens the soil around them, but the carrots are useless when it is done. Of course, the government needs a heavy hand to protect basic liberty and protect us from our enemies, but those should be the limits in my opinion. Thanks go out to all those who serve and protect our nation and its constitution. We could use a few million government bureaucrats to do those jobs that no-one else will do, to feed the hungry, lower prices and taxes.
I'm tired of ranting. Good night!
I'm tired of ranting. Good night!
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