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THOUGHTS ON LOSING FREEDOMS [1]
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Date: 2022-08-12
FARESPITHE THOUGHTS ON LOSING FREEDOMS TO A DICTATOR/FACIST/NAZI WANNABE
(FARESPITHE stands for faith, religion, spirituality, theology: “fare” like fair; “spithe” like with)
All week long the thought of why any US citizen would want to give away and/or lose authentic freedoms to a dictator/fascist/nazi wannabe has bewitched, bothered, and bewildered me. It is my taught understanding that when many of the Germans began to be willing followers of Hitler is was at least partly because the allies after WWI had been so punitive to Germany that most Germans felt beaten down economically, personally, politically, and in regards to their standing and acceptance in the world community. Hitler realized that, and feeling personally victimized himself—as a Jewish doctor could not save his smothering, over-protective mother to whom he was overly attached and dependent—he strongly, manipulatively used/abused that victimization of Germans to the highest/worst level possible!
We all know the result, but to remind us: 70-85 million died worldwide, including about 70,000 Germans, though that doesn’t count the 9 million Germans who were Jews, gypsies, gays, handicapped, and others who Hitler had exterminated. There were more civilians than combatants killed—21-25.5 million military deaths, 29-30.5 million civilian deaths—all of this with Germans not being restored to any of the economic, personal, political, or world standing and acceptance levels that Hitler promised them—indeed completely the opposite!
And during it all the German people lost personal, community, town, city, and national freedom after freedom! All to serve the individual nasty ugliness of one person’s psychopathic/sociopathic revenge driven desire to rule the world. Such is what the reality can become when any autocratic, despotic, dictator-functioning, fascist, nazi, caring-only-about-himself person manages to get in power of any one nation equipped to build and deploy significant machinery of modern warfare. And ordinary, everyday people are mostly the ones who lose freedom and their lives because of it! Yes, it has happened throughout history without modern warfare machinery, but such machinery now is more dangerous to the entire world than when Genghis Kahn or even the Romans did their nastiness to as many as possible.
The reality in the United States of America is that the founders, as intentionally and as intensely as they could, wrote a Constitution they expected to prevent any autocrat, dictator, king, or any other such functioning only-one-ruler/leader, who essentially makes all the laws and the decisions as to what is acceptable and what is not. And that Constitution is the only document to which anyone in an elected position of President, Representative, or Senator, or Supreme Court Justice, or all executive and judicial officers of the states, or all who serve in the military must ever swear or affirm an oath to affirm and support, and/or to protect and defend, thus never any oath ever sworn or affirmed to any specific leader or other elected official! If you actually read the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence it is as obvious as it can be that they wanted nothing more ever to do with any king, or any other only one ruler despot!
The current reality in the USA is that even our poor people—though there really shouldn’t be any poor given the tremendous, unbelievable amount of wealth in this country, though the inequality of wealth distribution assures there are poor people—have much more than most poor people around the world, though the homeless poor in the USA may be as beaten down as those beaten down in the rest of the world. Most of the people that claim they are beaten down economically, personally, politically, and in regards to their standing and acceptance in the USA are nowhere near the low level of beaten down people in other countries.
That they are angry about their feeling perception of how put down or beaten down they are is certain. Their primary claim seems to be that their jobs are being taken by people of color and immigrants, with the vast majority of them being “white” people who do not want most of the jobs that the people of color and immigrants will accept and work. However, that doesn’t mean it is acceptable for them to respond with violence—most especially against people of color, and within that most especially against “blacks” and “browns”—or against immigrants, or Jews, or Muslims, or any other religious group. Or by responding through an armed and violent insurrection attempt to overturn an election, dismissing and violating that Constitution they claim to be seeking to defend. It is not defending when your are violently violating its specific method of certifying an election and peacefully transferring power—even if you passionately— though wrongly —believe that the election was somehow stolen!
We would all do well to remember that the only person in our lifetime who began talking about a rigged election was toxic waste dump (twd), aka “the former guy”, who even claimed the 2016 election was being rigged—though once he won that claim disappeared even if it was partially rigged through the help of Russian interference to defeat Hillary. He would revive that “rigged” false/fraud nastiness so he could claim he won even when he didn’t in 2020.
Yet to return to the people who are claiming that they are beaten down, the vast majority are “white”, racist, white supremacists, christian nationalists (small c intentional because authentic followers of the life and teachings of Jesus would NOT believe such nasty ugliness, nor act on such beliefs), and perhaps even most are militant militia participants, or at least supporters of such! They really are NOT anywhere nearly beaten down as were those Germans, and their claims of such are irrational and unreasonable—not that this means any will stop making those claims, though not to call attention to this is to make sure they never stop, and by calling attention to this maybe some actually will realize why they should stop. Hope is essential even in the context of this horrific problem of terribly wrong belief and action!
But on top of that they have chosen, or accepted, or simply given into as their “champion” one who couldn’t care less about them because he cares only about himself. However, by only caring about himself, he is completely and totally willing to destroy the freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution that are established even for those who support him, from whom he would uncaringly and willingly take those freedoms.
Like the freedom to seek to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, and promote the general welfare of the people in and through the Constitution of the United States of America which can be legally amended as necessary, so that the rule of law established by that Constitution will be the governing essential for all people.
Like the freedom of free and fair elections that choose our leaders and representatives.
Like the freedom of one person one vote , with that vote legally and legitimately counted.
Like the freedom not to have elections simply ruled null and void by the overly partisan whim of one person like a state secretary of state, or one political party, just because they refuse to accept the vote count results that do not agree with what they prefer.
Like the freedom of speech and religion with no law ever made to respect the establishment of any religion, so that it is an authentic, true freedom of religion for all.
Like the f reedom to make your own decisions about your own healthcare, including abortion and contraception.
Like the freedom to marry who you love , whether of a different color, race, or religion, or whether of the same gender.
Like the freedom to unionize and collectively bargain for better pay and benefits which is what created the middle class in this country and lifted millions out of poverty.
Like the freedom of life liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Like the freedom that all persons are created equal.
Like the freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures.
Like the freedom that no one person is ever above the law, not even any president.
Like the freedom not to ever be ruled by an autocrat, dictator, emperor, fascist, king, nazi, queen, sheik, tyrant, or any other such non-elected ruler using one-person rule.
This obviously does not exhaust the list of freedoms that the Constitution guarantees, but it is a worthwhile list to note and remember. The reality that the former guy demonstrated beyond all reasonable doubt that he was willing to violate his oath of office; violate the provisions of the Constitution to certify the presidential election and accomplish the peaceful transfer of power; and call for, inspire, support, and defend a violent insurrection to violate the Constitution demonstrates beyond debate, doubt, or question that he is a wannabe autocrat, if not dictator, if not fascist, if not nazi (remember he kept a copy of Mein Kampf by his bed), if not tyrant who wants to rule as one person for the rest of his life (which he has actually said in public), thus causing the loss of the very freedoms the Constitution of the United States of America guarantees for all citizens.
We simply cannot allow ourselves to accept any person as president who would rule in a dictator like way. That would be the end of this democratically elected republic. That would be the end of what has made this country, even with all its many faults, a beacon for freedom around the world. We do not allow it by voting for those who will not allow it, who are almost all Ds! If our country has any claim whatsoever to anything even approaching greatness, IT IS THE CONSTITUTION THAT GUARANTEES THE FREEDOMS IT DOES! For anyone to claim it needs to be made great again while definitely, decidedly, seeking willingly and with malice aforethought to violate that Constitution through violent insurrection is as wrong as wrong can ever be! Our country is not perfect, but its Constitution with its freedom guarantees, makes it worthwhile for any and all freedom loving peoples anywhere—which has been unquestionably demonstrated by the millions of immigrants who have come here for as long as it has existed—many, if not the vast majority, seeking precisely those freedoms guaranteed in the Constitution of the USA because where they immigrated from did not allow those freedoms.
Love, grace, hope, joy, compassion, peace,
Rodney Noel Saunders
August 7, 2022
Ps(a): Let’s rid the world of nuclear weapons because they are threatened to be used!
Ps(b): Let’s rid the world of climate crisis because it threatens the life of everyone and the entire planet!
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