(C) Daily Kos
This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered.
. . . . . . . . . .
Pious Slacktivism, Thoughts & Prayers. [1]
['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']
Date: 2025-09-02
CW: Cussing and ranting. Angry woman, proceed with caution.
•••
From January 1 to September 1 2025, there have been 244 days.
In those 244 days at least 290 mass shootings have been recorded. At least 225 deaths. At least 1,300 injuries.
Thoughts and prayers incoming.
•••
In the church I was raised in the congregation was exhorted to pray for people at the start of every service. The pastor would read from a list he'd compiled of congregants facing difficulties. Someone was sick, someone else had been in a car accident. Another had a house fire. The list would end with what was in truth public shaming; some congregant, their spouse, or their child was in grave danger of falling away from the path of righteousness and needed to be brought back into the loving embrace of the Lord and his church. Everyone on the pastor's prayer needs list was identified. Including alcoholic husbands, errant wives, and disobedient children. My name showed up in that part of the list a number of times. It was one of several reasons why I stopped going to church.
Anyway, everyone had to pray for those folks. People seemed to enjoy doing it. I think it made them feel good, like they were helping.
The needs of the pastor himself didn't come up until the end of the service. Right before the offering plate was passed around. He was not shy about stating exactly what was required. Whether it was the parking lot needing repaved or the pastor needing a new car, prayer was nice but not enough. Action was required. Specifically, opening one's wallet or checkbook.
If it was a problem, pray about it. If it was an important problem, pray and then throw money at it. This was the prescribed plan of action I was raised with. It was part of what I eventually walked away from forever.
Amen! Now, where we going for lunch?
In 2011 a family friend, who was also a member of my parents' church, was seriously ill. Housebound, all but bedridden, eating only things that didn't require more effort than opening a can. My dad told me all of this with sadness. I asked, What's being done for him? The answer was We're all praying for him, honey. It's all we can do. Frank is in God's hands now.
That pissed me off. But I didn't feel like arguing with my dad again so I asked for Frank's phone number instead.
I ended up going out to Frank's place twice a week until he died about a month later. Maybe a pagan did the Lord's work that time.
A year later the Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting happened. That was when I first noticed what had already become a predictable thing. A tide of social media posts of a size to rival Noah's flood. Thoughts and prayers.Thoughts and prayers! God's in charge, God has a plan, his will be done! Gun law reform? Not gonna happen. What we need is THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS.
Keep 'em coming!
Every. Single. Time.
I know that some people will donate to fundraisers for the families of the victims. I also know that fraudulent fundraisers will pop up like toadstools after a good rain, to take advantage of those people. Others will speak up once more for gun control. And promptly get shut down just like the last time.
While far too many more will, with sincerity, post their tweets, memes, and GIFs again. Like an email to God's heavenly customer service department. Maybe add their name to an online petition demanding an end to gun violence (and before you go can you chip in $5?)
It's quick, effortless, and lets them feel like they're helping.
Sorry you had to provide a DNA sample so your dead child can be identified. Here, have a pretty meme.
Here's your digital sympathy card.
They might even say an actual prayer. So many thoughts. So many prayers.
So much pious slacktivism.
"It's all we can do."
If thoughts and prayers alone could accomplish any damned thing there'd be no need for presidents and their families to have Secret Service details. Billionaires wouldn't surround themselves with armed bodyguards. Schools would not be installing metal detectors. Parents wouldn't be shopping for bulletproof backpacks for their kids. Churches wouldn't be asking congregants owning firearms to take turns standing guard at the sanctuary doors. (My dad did that for a time. He was very pleased to have been asked).
Where I live it's easier to legally obtain a firearm than it is to get a driver's license. I know this because I've done both. It took me two tries to pass the road test part of the driver's license exam. I had to prove that I could parallel park without dinging someone's bumper. There's no equivalent test for firearms. For firearms, there's a background check. Not a problem for me but if I was worried about it I could just buy from a private party instead of a licensed retailer. No background checks required. It's perfectly legal. And it's not just Arizona. Some two dozen US states provide legal loopholes for avoiding background checks. Nearly half of our country.
And that is nothing less than shameful.
This didn't happen overnight. It's been decades in the making. Decades of fat campaign contributions, decades of escalating violence. Decades of loopholes in watered-down laws. Decades of hearing "now is not the time to talk about it" (it's never the right time).
Decades of thoughts and prayers.
America, your pious slacktivism is fucking useless. Get your shit together. if you're unsure about how to begin, here's my suggestion- stop the sad resigned "it's all we can do" bullshit. Start letting yourself feel angry. Start with that.
Yes, it can be uncomfortable, maybe even scary. Still better than burying someone you love. Or being buried yourself.
Pray all you want. I do it myself several times a day. Bearing in mind that gods are not cosmic vending machines. We still need to make an effort to help ourselves.
•••••••
Thank you for reading. This is an open thread.
[END]
---
[1] Url:
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/9/2/2340983/-Pious-Slacktivism-Thoughts-amp-Prayers?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=more_community&pm_medium=web
Published and (C) by Daily Kos
Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified.
via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds:
gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/
