The Doors of Perception

To be polarized… what exactly does that mean? Are we referring to the idea that we stand at odds. OPPOSED… as in magnetic polar opposites.

…

This polarization suggests opposition is the heart of our problem, because we are unable to find common ground from which to govern… ‘Government is the problem’. Being representative of The People who elected them, a dysfunctional government MUST be the product of a dysfunctional electorate… ‘It’s those damn voters. They just don’t understand’.

…

@1:18 in the video: ”Because of the lack of gatekeepers and people who have a historical perspective… there’s a real vulnerability in the electorate.”

…

Instead of believing we stand in opposition, could it be that we are actually being polarized? As in photons of LIGHT, forced into a decision between TWO DOORS…

…

IF we are the LIGHT that illuminates that Shining City on a hill… maybe it’s time we considered what that means.

…

If information must pass through a predetermined filter, we will never realize the full potential of this experiment. Legislative arteries, intentionally clogged by years of LARD and CORRUPTION… now working to ensure our National Security within a 21st Century Information Space.

…

Can we see through the shadows… their shadows… and still see the LIGHT?

Let there be NO DOUBT!

It’s part of who we ARE, a light so bright it pierces the DARKEST night. Recognizable, no matter where you STAND.

…

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2022/01/january-6-insurrection-trump-coup-2024-election/620843/?utm_source=msn

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

Now… I may be just a simple man, but it doesn’t take an Albert Einstein to see what’s happening here. It’s the motivating factor and it’s the catalyst that allows the misinformation to GROW.

I know it. The Legislators know it. The American People know it…

Do the DONORS know it?

Do they understand that the short-term gains will not outweigh the devastating long-term consequences? I don’t know… we don’t know who they ARE.

They could be titans of industry or any number of wealthy individuals, all pooling millions of dollars into dark money SUPER-PACS. Facelessly. Anonymously… have they no sense of history at all?

There is no ROI once Democracy dies.

…

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/23/world/asia/apple-daily-hong-kong.html

…

Left or Right, Red or Blue. We all know what the problem is. 💰

It does not matter who you are or how much money you have, there will come a time where it’s not enough… appeasement is never an option.

But we must remember, polarized light passed through multiple filters will restore CLARITY. Our polarization unites us… we are the target of their polarization.

…

Demonstrated within the first two minutes of the video

…

We must secure our elections from outside interference, ensure our elections reflect the Will of The People directly, and defend the right to vote for every citizen. That is how we secure our Democracy.

Corruption is inevitable, no matter what laws we create. It’s up to us to CHOOSE who should have access to the reins of power. THE PEOPLE.

More participation equals BETTER GOVERNANCE. Always.

-JC

Insert Issue HERE ______ .

…

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/11/26/kevin-strickland-gofundme-donations/

…

Is that not the embodiment of ALL our worst fears? There are few things that compare to false imprisonment… how can we call ours JUST, if this continues to happen. Is THIS what we’ve fought and died for… when it could be so much MORE…

Because I am SELFISH. I don’t want what happened to Mr. Strickland to happen to ME. Because I don’t want what happened, to happen to MY friends or MY family. Because I know… if we are SILENT, we could be next.

On this ideal we stand UNITED.

…

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gadsden_flag

…

Railroaded. By those who were entrusted with AUTHORITY and POWER. The inkwell may have SPILLED all over this case, but how many others are sprinkled with the ink of their quills… how many lives were impacted by their office, in such ways that we’ll never know…

And this is just ONE case. In ONE city. In ONE STATE.

When we allow bias and prejudice against ONE, it leads to MORE. Based on race… based on gender… based on nation of origin… based on MONEY. Ideals that are not held by the MAJORITY thrive when we stand divided… chasing SHADOWS instead of establishing LAW.

…

Clarity. Before ALL ELSE… let us establish what it is we are striving FOR… is it for HATRED? Is it for EXCLUSION? Or is it for UNION… already established. Does anyone else worry we’re fighting amongst ourselves, while the other side doesn’t understand what it is their opponents are fighting FOR?

We’re just throwing around a bunch of pre-packaged political rhetoric that means NOTHING when exposed in the light of actual thought and conversation. It evokes within us a guttural response. Instead of asking QUESTIONS we simply rely on our preconceived notions… most of which were misinformed from the start.

…

https://apnews.com/article/fact-checking-160551360299

…

https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/Is-shoplifting-forcing-Walgreens-to-cut-back-in-16536960.php

…

That was the solution for overcrowded prisons? Changing the dollar amount has the window-dressings of addressing a societal problem, but it does so at ARMS LENGTH. It doesn’t address the underlying issues that lead people to resort to such extreme measures.

…

https://www.archdaily.com/972133/lehrer-architects-designs-new-tiny-home-villages-for-homeless-residents-in-los-angeles

…

… it’s not a permanent solution, but it is a good start.

The answers we seek already exist. We’re being presented with what’s leftover… only after it’s been approved of by the DONORS.

…

…

Explains why Democrats could only get HALF their agenda passed.

…

https://nypost.com/2021/11/11/manchin-against-tax-credits-for-union-made-electric-vehicles/

…

https://www.axios.com/manchin-senate-spending-biden-87a445c2-cfdf-4bba-bc20-dd62db2a613a.html

…

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/manchin-dems-2t-bill-faces-senate-gauntlet-81366189

…

https://www.dailyposter.com/pharma-front-group-has-spent-1-2-million-backing-sinema/

…

**Insert issue HERE _____.**

The insanity generated by a vocal MINORITY on both sides is being amped up by BOTH political parties, in order to motivate people to DONATE. Legislators legislate based on MONEY and the pursuit thereof. Instead of solving problems, they FUNDRAISE… they can’t raise MONEY on a problem that’s already been SOLVED.

…

http://www.immigrationimpact.com/2018/08/28/john-mccain-legacy-immigration/#.YaQWCi9MEgo

http://www.vox.com/2020/10/22/21529710/trump-debate-family-separations

…

http://www.politico.com/story/2019/08/21/federal-scientists-opioid-crisis-1673694

http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/americas-heroin-epidemic/drug-overdose-deaths-rise-dramatically-places-president-trump-calls-home-n810186

…

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killing_of_Eric_Garner

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_George_Floyd

…

http://www.thehill.com/homenews/senate/454742-mcconnell-blocks-two-election-security-bills

http://www.cnn.com/2020/12/16/politics/mitch-mcconnell-donald-trump-election-fraud/index.html

…

… and the struggle marches ON.

Because this has been going on for GENERATIONS… beyond my lifetime. I was born the year Kevin Strickland went to prison. My kids will be 18 in just a few years.

Will they be just as frustrated as I am today, attempting to teach their children the SAME LESSONS tomorrow… fighting the SAME FIGHTS for things that seem so close, yet just out of reach?

Kevin Strickland is PROOF they will not.
Ahmaud Arbery is PROOF they will not.

Laws have CHANGED. Knowledge has been codified. Acknowledging that, what once was believed to be Justified… is not. Changing the way we live our daily lives. A new understanding… lessons, learned the hard way.

…

“An error doesn’t become a mistake, until we refuse to correct it.”
-John F. Kennedy

…

If we put aside the confusion and focus solely on the GOAL… the Mission Statement, the Ark of OUR Covenant. As She STANDS, with no biases to blind us… humility and compassion will guide us HOME.

Because that could be YOU… because that could be ME.

…

https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/politics/2021/11/22/adam-johnson-photographed-capitol-riot-pelosi-lectern-pleads-guilty/8725500002/

…

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/30/us/police-killings-undercounted-study.html

…

We are all but MEN, susceptible to fallacy and vice. We will find comfort in humility… because we find strength in numbers.

-JC

The Problem is Systemic… and it Must Change.

…

Is there any DOUBT? After this week… how can anyone NOT see it?

…

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/more-bubbas-no-black-pastors-attorney-man-accused-killing-arbery-n1284089

…

https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/03/us/ahmaud-arbery-jury-what-we-know/index.html

…

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/17/nyregion/malcolm-x-killing-exonerated.html

…

The problem is SYSTEMIC. It permeates the entire Judicial System. From the way LAWS are created to the way they are enforced, to the way Justice is carried out… how much more PROOF do we need?

…

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/18/nyregion/christopher-belter-rape-sentence.html

…

https://www.kcur.org/news/2021-06-03/missouri-governor-does-not-pardon-kevin-strickland-who-prosecutor-says-is-wrongfully-imprisoned

…

On January 15, 2021, James Comey was on The Beat w/ Ari Melber, talking about possible charges being brought in connection with the January 6th insurrection. While speaking about potential investigatory strategies that might be pursued by the FBI, Dir. Comey spoke about “prosecutorial discretion”.

…

I tried to find the footage from that interview but… apparently it has fallen down the memory hole.

As an example of the potential unwarranted collateral damage the FBI could cause simply by bringing charges and issuing warrants for arrest, Dir. Comey suggested a hypothetical case of two parents being charged with drug trafficking.

IF there were multiple children in the home, prosecutorial discretion could be used and charges might only be brought against ONE parent instead of BOTH… for the well-being of the children.

Prosecutorial Discretion… boy, if that’s not a euphemism then I don’t know what is.

…

When I was seventeen, I think it was the winter before my senior year in high school, me and three buddies all piled into Jason’s 86 Buick Skylark… alcohol may have DEFINITELY been involved.

We stopped at a brand new gas station that had just recently opened. It was fully automated. Back in 1997, this was something we’d never seen before. As soon as we realized there were no gas station attendants on-site… we decided to trash the place.

Window squeegees tossed, paper towels all thrown out, gas pump handles unholstered… I don’t know why, male stupidity fueled by Mad Dog 20/20 I suppose. In the moment, all four of us thought it was a GOOD IDEA.

Three days later when the COPS showed up at Jason’s house, we realized we’d messed up… apparently we forgot surveillance cameras exist.

After school that day, Jason’s Dad told us what happened. Since we only caused superficial damage, the owners of the gas station decided not to press charges… the Officers just wanted to let him know it was his son’s CAR they saw on the footage.

We spent the next three Saturdays raking leaves and doing odd jobs to “pay off our debts”… instead of being arrested.

And that’s just ONE example.

My roommate and I threw a party one night when I was living in my first apartment. As more alcohol was consumed we got louder. Some time after midnight, my roommate challenged one of his friends to some Greco-Roman-style wrestling (as he was known to do) in the living room of our second floor apartment… and shortly after that, the COPS arrived.

They confiscated some questionable paraphernalia and poured out the bottles that were on the kitchen counter. After a search of the apartment and a promise that none of us were driving anywhere the rest of the evening, they issued us a citation for Minor In Possession of Alcohol and left…

Ignoring the THREE OUNCES of MARIJUANA I had sitting out on a pizza pan, lying on top of a pile of dirty clothes on the floor of my closet.

…

https://www.aclu.org/gallery/marijuana-arrests-numbers

…

My roommate and his buddies liked to drink… a lot. I liked to smoke pot like it was going extinct… all of us were amazed that no one was arrested that night.

At the time we chalked it up to the idea that they were just looking for something else… harder drugs, people with warrants, etc. I don’t think the idea that we were a bunch of WHITE KIDS ever crossed our minds, it may not have even crossed those Officers’ minds. But I can’t help but think… would that night have turned out differently if we were BLACK?

Every piece of evidence I’ve seen over the last twenty-some years since that night tells me, yes… it would have been different.

…

While I am grateful for having been given the gift of a second chance, I feel guilty about the way in which it was given. How many of us can point to a particular point in TIME where compassion was shown; where if it had not, our lives wouldn’t have turned out the same? Traffic stops, speeding tickets, random encounters…

**How many of us cannot?**

…

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Driving_while_black

…

I was GUILTY of possessing a CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE… what crime did Philando Castile commit? What crime did Jacob Blake commit? Where is the BALANCE… the EQUITY in that?

I don’t want things to change because I believe more WHITE PEOPLE should be arrested and sent to jail. Things need to change because I believe EVERYONE should be treated with the same level of compassion and respect that I was shown…

Regardless of the color of your SKIN. Regardless of the clothes on your BACK. Regardless of the numbers in your BANK ACCOUNT.

…

It seems like a futile endeavor, attempting to establish EQUITY within a system that is inequitable at its heart. To ignore the fact that EQUALITY is absent and still continue to pursue EQUITY is like offering someone a BRIBE. A PAY-OFF… a SETTLEMENT.

‘Sorry the system screwed you and will continue to do so in the future… here’s some MONEY. Now we’re even.’

The system is UN-EQUAL. Why continue to work to lift up downtrodden parts of our society if the system continues to be UN-EQUAL in its operation? Without Equal Protection Under Law, any progress that is made will simply wash away with the passage of TIME… under a different Administration. During another chaotic period in time.

It seems like it would require more effort and resources to make an UN-EQUAL system more EQUITABLE, than it would if we were to simply ensure EQUALITY is what the system is based upon from the start. Once we’ve established a foundation of EQUALITY, then we can work to ensure it is equitable for EVERYONE.

The problem is SYSTEMIC and it must CHANGE. If it can happen to ONE of us… then it can happen to us ALL.

-JC

The Long Game

The simple act of driving a car demonstrates our ability to see the FUTURE. Two tons of steel, flying along at 70 miles an hour, just inches above a reinforced slab of concrete… with a huge degree of accuracy, we can state exactly what will happen 30 seconds into the future… 60 seconds into the future…

Much beyond that… too many variables can effect the outcome and our accuracy starts to fade. But we can reduce the number of potential outcomes if we apply the law of probability…

I probably won’t hit a DEER.
I probably won’t drive off the BRIDGE.

A flat tire, a broken fan belt, a dead battery aside… if I’ve maintained the vehicle properly, the ENGINE probably won’t seize before the next exit.

In so far as it is under my control, I probably won’t strike another vehicle.

It’s because of our INFLUENCE on the system… our ACTIONS make the difference. If we do not act, chaos rules.

…

Have we not had enough of all the bickering and fighting? Fighting amongst ourselves. Fighting endless battles abroad. Fighting over issues of LIFE and DEATH. Fighting over the mundane and trivial.

…

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2021/11/08/ted-cruz-slaps-down-big-bird-for-vaccine-propaganda-and-gets-tarred-and-feathered/

…

Fighting fights instigated by others, over things on which all of us thought we had already found COMMON GROUND.

The only common ground we can seem to find now is, BOTH SIDES believe the other is out to get them… and that is extremely telling in and of itself.

…

https://www.statnews.com/feature/prescription-politics/federal-full-data-set/

…

No, it’s not the Republicans who want to overthrow our elections.
No, it’s not the Democrats who want to take away our Liberties.
Neither side wants these things to happen.

…

…

Who does then… who stands to BENEFIT from our INACTION?

Who stands to profit when our Legislatures cannot find UNITY on TAXING BILLIONAIRES…

THE DONORS.

The WRITER, DIRECTOR, and PRODUCER of the legislative shit-show that’s playing out in our Congress today. If this wasn’t exactly what they wanted to see, why would they continue to DONATE to their re-election campaigns.

The allowing of unlimited amounts of MONEY in our elections by the Supreme Court has poisoned our Government. It can barely establish a functioning majority to simply keep the lights on.

…

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/08/06/usps-dejoy-xpo-logistics/

…

Yet it can whip up the votes necessary to give a TRILLION DOLLARS to a myriad of corporations and entities in exchange for their continued SUPPORT NEXT ELECTION…

… next election. dammit man. How do you say that to George Floyd’s family… how do you say that to the students of Marjorie Stoneman Douglas… how do you say that to the families of Sandy Hook Elementary…

…

https://www.npr.org/2021/11/09/1049054141/a-secret-tape-made-after-columbine-shows-the-nras-evolution-on-school-shootings

…

How do you say that to the Officers who stood in the BREACH on January 6th… how many ZEROS need to be on that check.

And even on that we can’t seem to find COMMON GROUND, except for the fact that those people were there with a purpose. Those people where there to force their Will upon the MAJORITY.

Because they said so… while President Trump sat SILENT.
They carried HIS banner. They waved HIS flags.

Those who did carry the flag of this Nation on that day, used it as an implement of OPPRESSION… against Law Enforcement Officers. In their OWN HOME.

…

May God Bless every one of those Officers.
They are the reason OUR BANNER still flies today.

…

49E46113-AD89-4C42-A898-72A4D056E4C4 — Damage from January 6th, still visible on the steps of the U.S. Capitol. (8/27/2021)

…

**But we will make AMENDS.**

We will seek to MAKE WHOLE that which was damaged, even as some scars will never fade. Every person who died because of the events of that day were AMERICAN CITIZENS… no different than YOU or I.

What’s the difference. What paints the picture… what sets the STAGE.

…

Contents of pockets of Abraham Lincoln (born today 1809) at moment of assassination, 1865, Ford’s Theatre—not shown to public for 111 years: pic.twitter.com/awYPjgup4R
— Michael Beschloss (@BeschlossDC) February 12, 2021

In his pocket, he carried a five dollar Confederate note…

…

I may not know all the WORDS. I might not even know all the NOTES… but I know the TUNE. I can only do my BEST, to express what it is that I see, knowing that there are others out there who feel the same.

I believe we can achieve the impossible… because we’ve now witnessed it with our OWN EYES. Donald Trump brought to fruition concepts and agendas I never thought I would see in my lifetime, nor that of my children.

But it has happened.

I believe in precedent. I also believe in the Rule of Law.

…

https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/your-air-force/2021/01/07/woman-shot-and-killed-at-capitol-was-security-forces-airman-qanon-adherent/

…

https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/556030-trump-midterms-fuel-gops-squashing-jan-6-commission

…

When you SEE something… SAY something.

…

Forgive me if this seems offensive, but this is what I was taught in my school. This is what I learned from MY elders. Every fiber of my being tells me THIS is that slippery slope… THIS is that path. We must remember the stories taught to us by our grandparents.

…

https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2021/11/virginia-school-board-members-call-public-book-burning-gay-books/

…

When you defend the rights of others, you defend those rights for YOURSELF. Where will we draw the LINE? What PRICE are we willing to pay? We ALL lose when they start burning books.

If what we’ve pledged ourselves to defend has become corrupt and dirty, it is our DUTY to do what is necessary to restore its HONOR. It cannot be ignored. Complacency. Negligence. ROT. We have been warned… INACTION will be the death of our Democracy.

To be SILENT is to be COMPLICIT.

-JC

Because There Is a Need

…

This is what we get when we’re forced to vote against someone, instead of for them. When we vote against someone else, we are forced to take on all the baggage carried by the ‘lesser of two evils’… and decisions are made that are opposed to the Will of The People, because their positions stand opposed to the will of the candidate.

…

When I wake up in the morning, the first thing I focus on is making sure others have something to eat. Then… it’s usually caffeine. IF everything goes to plan, after the kids… after the critters… if everything is in order, then I can find time for myself.

Sure, it might help if I wake up at 0430 every morning, but I’m a night person. In a busy household, that’s usually the best time to find some PEACE… when everyone else is asleep.

Priorities. ‘What is it that I’m trying to accomplish? What is the goal I’m trying to reach?’ There may only be 24 hours in a single day, but there are many more days to come after this one; and most goals worth attaining require multiple days… multiple years… to complete. It’s all about maximizing your time, as well as biding it.

…

We are ALL created EQUAL. That is the foundation upon which our society was built. That is the goal the Framers had in mind when they set about constructing a Just form of Governance.

It was a DESTINATION to be reached. The outcome of this endeavor.

What is done to ONE of us is done to us ALL.

Because that is how we ensure it cannot happen to ME. It’s the most selfish and most honorable act anyone can engage in. When we defend the Rights of OTHERS… we defend those Rights for OURSELVES.

…

3B85329D-4EE7-45F0-B5F1-53C5971B429C — Arizona rally for the Equal Rights Amendment, 2018.

…

Our history informs us. It gives our current situation CONTEXT. It frames the moment that surrounds us and gives us a glimpse of how things might be.

Our history inspires us… because of the injustice that endures, our HEROES have been found. Out of the ashes have risen our Nation’s finest hours. In acts of COURAGE, undertaken as an act of defiance. Our history is defined by struggle. Toward what do we struggle… toward what do we strive. If we cannot NAME IT, then how can we expect to SOLVE IT?

HALF of the citizens of this Nation do not have EQUAL STANDING under our Constitution. In Civil Rights. In Reproductive Rights. In Property Rights. In EQUAL PAY. Women are treated as second-class citizens, subject to the dictates of whomever holds office at the time…

If it can happen to ONE of us, then it can happen to us ALL.

…

In September, 2010, when Justice Scalia shared his views on discrimination on the basis of sex, he said:

“Certainly the Constitution doesn’t require discrimination on the basis of sex, the only question is whether it prohibits it.

It doesn’t.

…

It demonstrated clearly what the opinion of the United States Supreme Court is on the issue of Equality:

Equality doesn’t exist.

Legal precedent. Dating all the way back to THE DOCUMENT itself.

“No one ever voted for that.”

…

There is NO LAW restricting any of my Reproductive Rights. It should be the SAME for everyone… EQUALLY. If we allow the government to dictate to us when we can exercise our basic human rights, someday they will have legal precedent to tell us when we cannot.

…