Elections, fires and more guns

There were so many thoughts roaming around in my head for this last week that I decided I needed a different way of getting it all out there.  Hence my new feature – the weekly roundup.  So these are my thoughts from the week ending November 10, 2018.

I had to let the election results sit with me for a couple of days.  I was disappointed with election night.  Not because my candidate lost.  That I completely expected because of the long odds facing anyone not GOP in this state.  No, I was bitterly disappointed that the Democrats lost ground in the Senate.  Everyone was focused on the House of Representatives which was a win for Democrats.  And there were several governor races and what is termed as down ballot races that were big for the Democratic Party.  And while I identify myself as an independent, for this mid-term election cycle I was most definitely in favor of the Democratic candidates.  Therefore, the losses in the Senate really hit me hard.  Not because of a divided Congress.  I actually believe that more gets done when neither party controls both parts of the Congress.  It forces both sides to work together or get nothing done and explain to the people why they were able to accomplish nothing.  No my bitterness had nothing to do with any of that and everything to do with the federal court system.  In all the hoopla to claim a victory for the Democrats, I think everyone forgot how catastrophic the losses in the Senate will be for the confirmations of judges.  Our judicial system is already rife with racial prejudice and after the elections last week, there’s very little relief in site.  The Republicans have caused damage to the court system that is going to take decades to undo.  And heaven forbid that another Supreme Court justice need to be appointed.  There is no longer a slim margin to at least force a semblance of cooperating with the other party.  No, the GOP now has a wide enough margin that they can do whatever they want and tell their opponents to stick it.  So, no I wasn’t feeling very good about the night.  It took a couple of days to get some perspective.  Twenty-seven NRA candidates went down to defeat, which is the largest number ever.  Women were the big winners of the election and finally have representation in Congress that they deserve.  States that used to be solidly red are now purple.  And there are more Democratic state legislatures than before which is incredibly important when it comes to voting rights and immigration.  Change takes time.  These mid-term elections show that change is happening, even if it’s not the way I thought it would look.  That gives me hope.  Hope and fortitude to survive until the next presidential election.

On a side note, I wasn’t the only one who nearly died from fright upon hearing the news that Ruth Bader Ginsberg had an accident and was in the hospital, right?  Frankly, it was a huge relief to hear it was only broken ribs.

The California wildfires are heartbreaking.  It’s so hard to watch the devastation and not cry.  Though I really don’t want to hear about which celebrity lost their summer home.  It’s hard to be concerned about someone that has the resources to rebuild and live.  My concern is with those people that actually lost everything.  The elderly man who lost his wife to cancer three months ago and now lost their home.  That same man that looked so broken when he said he wasn’t going to rebuild because there was nothing left there for him.  Concern for the woman who was crying because she wasn’t able to save all of her cats and was feeling guilt, as well as grieving the loss of her home.  Concern for the firefighters who are completely exhausted and dealing with the fire, loss of life and just the sheer destruction they are seeing from town to town.  Resilience is the word that comes to mind when I think of how we get through times like these.

And another mass shooting…307 in 311 days is the statistic that keeps running through my head.  I applaud the mother of one of the victims who told the New York Times that if they weren’t talking about gun control, then she had nothing to say and hung up on the reporter.  And she’s right.  What else is there to say on the subject?  Can we at least agree that this is an American problem?  Again we see the gunman is a U.S. citizen and not part of the immigration issue.  People keep looking for reasons as to why he would walk into that bar and do what he did, and I keep thinking that there is no reason so please stop trying to figure it out.  Mass shootings are not based on reasons, they are based on excuses.  The authorities and media will dig into the shooter’s background and all they will find are excuses and rationalizations to try and justify his actions.  There is no justification and we need to stop thinking one exists.  Americans have a problem with guns and mental health issues.  Until we agree to address them, there is nothing else to say.  I’m tired of the prayers and talk.  It’s time for action.

I ended my week at the theater watching a production of “The Sound of Music.”  Not my favorite musical, but the performance was incredible.  The quality of the stage performers was better than any I had seen come through our city with other touring companies.  When I originally saw the show on the schedule for this season, I was curious as to why you would do a revival.  But there’s a scene at the end where the family is singing in the festival shortly before they flee Austria and the Nazi banners unfurl as the backdrop.  It was a stark reminder of why this story was told and the relevance it still has today.  I sat there staring at what I consider to be the symbol that epitomizes hate and couldn’t help but make the connection to the issues of today.

Video pick of the week:  Christopher Robin.  Love it!  A person can never go wrong with Winnie-the-Pooh.  I just want hug Eeyore.

Someone has to explain to me why Florida’s elections are a disaster every single time.  How is it that they can’t seem to get it together?  There should be a drinking game that coincides with the number of times you hear a news anchor on the television say, “election irregularities in Florida…”.  In today’s technology age, there has to be a better way.  They used to launch the space shuttle from the state of Florida, but they can’t seem to count ballots correctly.  Maybe they could get Mickey and crew over to help?  Disney doesn’t seem to have any problems counting their money.  I’m sure that would translate to counting ballots.  Just a thought.

Just another week.