Not a good time

Friends, sorry not to post yesterday, and struggling with time today.  I will get something together later, but just wanted to vent my fear and frustration. Voters last year put our state government in the hands of a solid majority of mostly rightist Repubs who can pretty much do what they want (because 14 State Senators really can't keep running off to Illinois, bless them all!!)  The biennium budget is a disaster for this state, as are the measures being passed to consolidate power in the office of our gov who sees himself as a servant of God in gutting our quality of life and increasing the suffering and disenfranchisement of the most vulnerable among us.

So why write this: please, don't give up!!  Because this bad time in our history is a bad time in our history and another time can be created. We can use this bad time to feel overwhelmed, depressed and defeated - or to get really angry and focused and motivated about what we care about, and to work for that in our lives, our families, our neighborhoods, our schools, our various community groups.

The way to defend our rights is by defending our rights - and the rights of those around us. It's the old adage about a threat to one being a threat to all. The only way to turn this back around is to make sure we don't get consumed by defending our own sector interests, but that we become part of the broad solidarity required to take back from the anti-democratic right-wing the values, hopes, and dreams of our democracy.