Today's Post is On the Spectrum: From Friendship to Political Rant

I started my morning with a virtual visit with my friend, Jen. It is always a joy to talk with her. Jen and her husband, Matt, are in the midst of major interior painting on their new home in Connecticut. The home they bought is amazing; however, it needs to be updated. The prior owner’s choice of wall texturizing, and colors were very unorthodox. Jen and Matt have artistic eyes so I know the result will be more to their tastes. It was lovely spending time with Jen this morning before she tackled more painting.

 

When reading the above quote, I realize how blessed I am to have quite a number of friends that are sanctuaries. I may even have taken for granted the quality of those friendships. Like attracts like. I think that means we attract and keep close people who share our values. My friends are certainly not carbon copies of each other and encompass a wide range of ages, religious beliefs, nationalities, educations, and customs. Politically my friends tend to be traditional conservatives (pre-2016) to extremely liberal. Over the years some of the friendships have opened my understanding to the LGBTQIA2S+ community.

I realize the most important part of friendships for me is that there is so much we can learn from each other through supporting a positive belief system. I think this is why intolerance and hate speech by politicians or groups like the Proud Boys are disturbing. Their message is basically that only people who are like them and accept their beliefs are acceptable. They are trying to save us from choices they deem wrong like women being able to make their own reproductive health choices, or people of color or immigrants having the same rights as someone born in America with white skin.

My 23andMe results show that I am 100% an immigrant. My blood is contaminated by German, French, Irish, and loads of other Western European stock. I do not have any Native American at all. Before anyone comments that it is only undocumented immigrants that gets people upset, this is not true. There are people all over this country assuming if someone “looks” Mexican or speaks with an accent they are not legally here.

Undocumented immigrant crimes are not rampant. When an undocumented immigrant commits a crime, it is held up as an example and made out to be the rule instead of the exception. Interesting that some of those same people are against gun laws because they consider themselves to be law abiding and not like the people killing children in school or other public places. Yet they are willing to put all undocumented immigrants into the category of criminals. Saying an undocumented person has already broken the law because they came to the country illegally, is not a truth either. There is a list of reasons someone was legally in the country and then are reclassified as “undocumented. That is why the term undocumented is more accurately descriptive of an immigrant’s situation.

We need immigration reform. The only reason we do not have reform already is that Donald Trump is more interested in making it a political issue during an election year. There is a bipartisan immigration bill that is sitting idle because Speaker Johnson refuses, at Trump’s request, to put it up for a vote. Does this mean any crimes committed by undocumented workers should now be laid at the feet of former President Trump and the extremist Republicans in Congress?

Head colds are no fun. Fortunately, I rarely get one. Unfortunately, I have one today. It started yesterday and today the coughing and sinus drainage are accompanied by fatigue. Fluids and rest are helpful.