Absolutely.

It’s hard not to live your whole life focused on the three inches right in front of your nose. Your interactions with others, their interactions with you. Your plans for the future and how those plans intersect with the plans of others. In the meantime, keeping a roof over your head and food on the plate consumes most of our TIME.

Because lord knows… their ain’t a whole lotta people out there who aren’t focused on the exact same thing!

Our family. Our close friends. Our congregations. Our community… individually, we can make changes in our lives; but many times those changes just happen to us, in the course of living our lives.

What we experience shapes us, it helps define who we will be.

…

https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2021-08-04/missouri-congresswoman-eviction-moratorium-fight

…

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/congress-scrambles-extend-eviction-moratorium-saturday-expiration-n1275485

…

Our interactions with others informs our decision making process… and those interactions can stick with us for the rest of our LIVES.

…

https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/2021.08.03_nyag_-_investigative_report.pdf

…

It’s reassuring to see that the leadership of the Democratic Party has finally found the COURAGE to SPEAK OUT. It’s disheartening to see the level of EVIDENCE that’s required for them to do so.

OPEN SECRETS. Hidden in plain sight… you wanna talk about conspiracy theories? Look no farther than our elected officials.

…

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/11/capitol-hills-sexual-harassment-problem/544946/

…

How many times does this happen? Everyday. In Congress. In the boardroom. In the course of everyday events. Financial Institutions. Making lending decisions based on SEX and SKIN COLOR. Who carries more RISK. ‘… you live where?!’

Sorry, you don’t have the financial backing necessary to secure a loan.

It’s because they are BEHOLDEN… they are forced to DANCE for the DOLLAR. Regulations. Oversight. Stripped away in the wake of a devastating financial crisis… for the benefit of WHOM?💰

In their eyes, our elected leaders believe they are doing what’s RIGHT because they are fighting the ‘good fight’. In their minds, they can’t bring about change if they aren’t re-elected… therefore they must do what’s necessary to get re-elected.

You put a DOLLAR in the machine and YOU get to pick the next song… how’s that for extensive knowledge of the bar.

…

That’s his “thing”, that’s his whole schtick. It doesn’t matter if there was no wrong-doing… the fact that there’s an investigation is all he needs.

How would that declaration have played out? There was nothing illegal… that’s how our elections WORK. Legislators legislate based on MONEY and the pursuit thereof.

…

https://thehill.com/homenews/house/566479-clyburn-says-he-planned-to-stay-out-of-ohio-race-until-he-was-called-stupid

…

Representative Clyburn may not be stupid… but he sure thinks the American People are. That’s the BEST ANSWER he’s got, hurt feelings and THIN SKIN?

IF ONLY they hadn’t gone and said bad things about a U.S. Representative, he might have stayed OUT of that particular election… the election that wasn’t even in his STATE.

… right.

He backed Nina Turner’s opponent because he didn’t want someone elected that would rock their BOAT. He wanted someone sympathetic to their cause. The status quo. Toe the LINE. Back to BRUNCH… there’s re-election campaigns to FUND.

…

https://www.newsweek.com/hillary-clinton-endorsed-candidate-shontel-brown-faces-potential-ethics-probe-1613460

…

It’s their cause. Their agenda. Senator Bernie Sanders has an (I) at the end of his name… the only thing Democrats LOVE about Bernie Sanders caucusing with their Party is his ability to FUNDRAISE.

…

https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/11/14/16640082/donna-brazile-warren-bernie-sanders-democratic-primary-rigged

…

https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/jim-clyburn-changed-everything-for-joe-bidens-campaign-hes-been-a-political-force-for-a-long-time/2020/03/30/7d054e98-6d33-11ea-aa80-c2470c6b2034_story.html

…

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2020/01/13/election-2020-cory-booker-drops-out-leaving-democratic-field-less-diverse/4454654002/

…

THIS is our Political System laid BARE. This is how the Political Infrastructure is RUN… and none of it is ILLEGAL.

There is no “US vs. THEM” anymore. The Political Parties are UNITED.

They work for the people who got them elected…

THE DONORS.

…

https://www.huduser.gov/portal/pdredge/pdr-edge-frm-asst-sec-061118.html

…

https://www.bls.gov/opub/reports/minimum-wage/2020/home.htm

…

The majority of us don’t have the time necessary to spend absorbing every act undertaken by Congress; and how every piece of legislation for the last two-and-a-half years that has passed the House, has gone on to die a slow death in the Senate. Mitch McConnell says the Democrats hold a SLIM majority in the House, while Republicans in the Senate hold a SIGNIFICANT minority.

Most people seem to forget… the Republicans held THREE BRANCHES for two years, and they only got ONE major piece of legislation PASSED. But my goodness…

They sure did raise a lot of MONEY.

…

https://www.cbpp.org/research/federal-tax/fundamentally-flawed-2017-tax-law-largely-leaves-low-and-moderate-income

…

https://itep.org/55-profitable-corporations-zero-corporate-tax/

…

What happens if 55% of us just don’t pay our taxes? This Country… and their agendas… would no longer exist. The American Middle Class is the MAJORITY. Every BAILOUT, HANDOUT, and SAFETY NET we’ve ever established has been FULLY FUNDED by the United States TAX PAYERS. Yet large corporations and dark money interests are allowed to write our legislation. They dictate to the legislators what legislation should be passed…

If only the American People could afford their own LOBBYISTS.

…

What happens when our elected officials break the law? When I break the law, I go to JAIL. The Wheels of Justice simply turn. Officers from TWO CITIES AWAY came and took me into custody once for an outstanding, $150 moving violation.

But when it comes to Congressmen and their decisions, well… if we start doing that, it might lead to elected officials being held ACCOUNTABLE for their actions. Could you imagine…

…

https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/capitol-commission-republicans-arrests-b1891650.html

…

This is not a game for the MAJORITY of this Country, the law is nothing to be toyed with. Yet the previous Administration could pick and choose when they would IGNORE Congress and face no consequences for their actions…

NO CONSEQUENCES.

In a land rooted firmly in PRECEDENT.

…

https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/amendment-14/section-3/

…

Where will that lead us in the end.

…

The price of our INACTION will be measured in LIVES.

…

No matter how much we disagree, we all still fight for the SAME THING. Liberty. Justice. The American Way. How we go about securing those promises… that’s where we disagree, and that’s where monied interests play their hand. The last thing they want is The People UNITED behind a common cause.

The system WORKS! On that we cannot disagree! The answers to our problems already EXIST… they’re being SILENCED by monied interests.

…

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/01/12/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-pac-dccc-dues/

…

https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2021/04/16/nancy-pelosi-house-speaker-book-susan-page-power-american-history/7231734002/

…

In this Country, that honor should be EARNED… not seized. Granted, at the discretion of The People. Defended in rigorous DEBATE.

In this moment, there is no debate. Among the party, leadership has SILENCED dissent. They say, ‘Look, we get it. There’s a bunch of legislation that YOU want us to pass, and there’s a bunch of legislation that WE wanna get passed… so let’s compromise.

‘We’ll pass all that legislation that WE want to pass and THEN… at the END of the session… but even if we don’t have time to get all that done… be sure to DONATE to our re-election campaign…’

Besides, who else you gonna vote for… these guys?

…

If we continue working only to avoid worst-case scenarios, we might achieve our goals… but we will never know what we might have had, if only we had dared to TRY. Raising the bar will not produce failure, failing to demand BETTER is where we fail to succeed.

This is OUR Electoral System… so long as we allow it to BE.

Absolute power corrupts.

-JC

Birds of a Feather

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/15/science/physics-neutrino-antimatter-ichikawa-t2k.html

…

The simple act of observing an event WILL CHANGE its outcome… it is a FACT. Demonstrated consistently, time and again.

…

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/joint-chiefs-chairman-feared-potential-reichstag-moment-aimed-at-keeping-trump-in-power/2021/07/14/a326f5fe-e4ec-11eb-a41e-c8442c213fa8_story.html

…

Being born of the SAME, our destinies are entangled. Our WILL can overcome the inevitable. The tide was turned with the glance of an EYE. Because we SPOKE OUT and cried for ACTION, because we stopped and witnessed devastation. United, we watched and said, “No more.”

As it was one Tuesday morning in September, we sat helpless and witnessed devastation playing out within our SKIES. United, we watched and cried, “No more,” and we were given the ability to manipulate TIME.

One of those four planes was unsuccessful that day… because we SPOKE OUT. We gave them that time.

The Will of the American People is REAL… and it is TANGIBLE.

…

…

There is no reason WHY that building should be standing. In the chaos of that moment, of that day. Within the grand scheme of things, within this chaotic Melting Pot of Passions… they said so themselves. Determined, they went there with a purpose. Who doubts the Will and ingenuity of the American People once they’ve settled on an agenda?

There is no reason that building should still be standing today…
and yet it does.

I am NO FOOL. It was built by the hands of man, someday it will fall. It will come down. But in the meantime… what allows it to STAND?

Is it the mortar or the stone? Is it the skeletal rigidity? The way in which it was constructed… the very force that will bring about its ultimate demise gives rise to its ability to continue to stand. The genius within the architecture gives rise to its longevity. Within those halls we create our FUTURE. Within those walls we find our shared destiny.

…

It doesn’t come from the structure itself, the generative force centered within the beating breast of our Democracy. That SPARK is not created by the vessel, the sum total is greater than the individual pieces from which it was made.

That energy is imparted on to it from us, The People. We are the LIGHT that illuminates the Shining City. We are the BEACON that lights the way for generations to come… it’s found within us ALL.

There are some who seek TRUTH and remain mired in DARKNESS; but we must remember, they still seek the TRUTH. We all journey toward the EAST, and our path bends toward the LIGHT.

…

5FC78D71-5D00-468B-A8BD-14B8854FC700 — A staircase within the US Capitol.

…

Once upon a time it was a path untrodden… unknown horizons within a virgin territory. Yet they were willing to fight and die for the CHANCE, for the opportunity to find out. Was Mankind destined to be ruled over, or could we govern ourselves justly and remain FREE.

Like the Rosary Beads of an aged adherent, like the meditative paths walked by devotees throughout the millennia; the rites of passage are followed through the LIGHT as well as through the shadows. We celebrate them in times of triumph, we cling to them in times of tragedy. They bear witness to our history, they guide us onward toward our destiny.

We hold these truths to be SELF-EVIDENT. That we are ALL created Equal… and we have PLEDGED our LIVES and our SACRED HONOR to this Cause. Our Rites and Rituals are celebrated daily, we pay respect to those who have fallen in defense of our Country every time we gather… knowing none of this would be possible without the SACRIFICES they have made.

…

Although it was never written, our victory was preordained. It echoes throughout time as a Fundamental Principal, a Universal Law that undergirds our reality. Our scientific endeavors have now proved what’s been written, in countless religious texts over the course of thousands of years. When the LIGHT overcomes the DARKNESS, through the FORGE and the FIRES… we are what remains.

**It now burns within us ALL.**

…

D92F3781-EE01-426C-8F07-00586161D776 — D-Day, colorized.

…

A FACT. Demonstrated consistently, time and again. What once was… no matter how much TIME has PASSED… is always just around the corner, threatening our future.

We tip the scales in the judgement between what is and what will BE. We decide the course, we plot the journey. The PEOPLE… the MAJORITY of the citizens of the United States of America. It was born OF us. It must ALWAYS be a reflection of the same.

If we are not fighting to secure our Democracy for everyone, then we are allowing it to FADE AWAY. Piecemeal. Watered down until it’s no longer possible for the PEOPLE to decide, and it won’t be due to any law that was PASSED… it will happen because we could not agree. INACTION will be the death of our Democracy.

We have paid the price of both Blood and Treasure. We have secured the KNOWLEDGE necessary to find ‘Peace in our time’…

Appeasement is NEVER an option. And we must STAND UP for the Rule of Law.

… some things never change.

-JC

Thank You Sir May I Have Another

Once upon a time there was a political party that came into power, sweeping all three branches of government. Believing they had a mandate, they were excited to do the work the People had sent them there to do.

But as they set about legislating, they soon found the minority party BLOCKED their agenda at every turn. As small gains accumulated, they continued to craft their “signature” legislation, just as they had campaigned on… for the People. But even within their own ranks they could not find UNITY.

As the President’s political base grew frustrated, he made policy changes and issued Executive Orders. He even directed the Department of Justice to pursue legal challenges to existing laws in an attempt to affect the changes Congress could not.

A grumpy old Senator of their own party even said NO at a crucial moment, killing an important piece of legislation… thereby setting in motion, a chain of events that would eventually lead to their losing the majority in one House of Congress… followed by TWO YEARS of infighting, fundraising, and INACTION… and then it was time for another Presidential Election.

It all seems like so long ago.

… right.

…

Once upon a time… time seemed infinite. It doesn’t matter how long it takes, eventually the tide will TURN. ‘The fight continues. The struggle marches on.’ Maybe it’s the ignorance of youth. Maybe it’s just eternal optimism. Besides… who am I to complain about the passage of TIME?

The Righteousness of the Cause of Equality is timeless. It STANDS as the yardstick. We can measure the passage of time by the distribution of Equality. With each passing year more people are seen as EQUALS. Each passing year brings us closer to the goal… the realization of that Dream.

But my concern isn’t for the passage of TIME. Years? I have plenty of those. No matter how many pass, they’re all just a dime-a-dozen. I’m more concerned about the passing of LIVES… and as the YEARS pass, those numbers continue to add up.

The ACA. The American Rescue Act… piece after piece of crucial legislation, passed in such a way as to AVOID the subject that must be addressed. ‘THIS is how bipartisanship looks. This is how bipartisanship WORKS…’

**So long as it’s related to the BUDGET and nothing else.**

I’ve seen this show before. I know this song… I even learned that dance.

…

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

…

What is the PRICE of our Political Theater. Who pays the admission fee for this SHOW. How many generations have now paid into that social system, a price irreconcilable with their actual loss?

Two years. Twenty-two years. Two hundred and forty years. Four Centuries… plus two more. TIME marches on. In the meantime… as we wait. Patiently at times. Other times not. We do not measure the passage of time in minuets. Days and weeks don’t suffice.

We measure the passage of time with EQUALITY. Slowly. Methodically. Surely.
It progresses.
No barrier. No border. No laws can bring about its end.

How much longer must we wait…
How much TIME must pass?

…

George Floyd’s 7-Year-Old Daughter Speaks at Chauvin’s Sentencing – YouTube

…

‘The fight continues. The struggle marches on.’

Until one day, once upon a time… it didn’t.

It wasn’t necessary anymore.

… tick tock tick tock…

-JC

In Memoriam

Every solider, in every branch of the United States Armed Forces who has fought and died, did so defending ONE THING…

The Constitution of the United States of America.

It was not to defend a POLITICAL PARTY.
It was not to defend a PHILOSOPHICAL IDEOLOGY.

They died believing in this Cause.

They fought to preserve this arena of ideas and ingenuity. To secure this space for the ascent of sound ideals. In their final moments, their fight was justified… they bore witness to the full intensity of DARKNESS, yet they continued to STAND.

The Cause for which they stood was WORTHY of nothing less.

The Cause for which we stand TODAY, is still worthy of the same.

…

Enshrined within a Temple made of stone, protected from the raging elements. Within the HEART of our Capital. Written on a faded piece of parchment… there are WORDS. As powerful now as they were 200 years ago.

IDEAS. Forged in the crucible of OPEN DEBATE. Their mere creation, an act of WAR. These are our shared ideals, and so it was written…

**We are ALL Created EQUAL.**

There is nothing more threatening to the rule of a tyrannical leader than the FREE and OPEN exchange of IDEAS. There is nothing more disturbing to an oppressor of the TRUTH than the question, ‘WHY?’

We stand UNITED in Common Cause… why do we see things in such differing ways? Why are we willing to trade FACT for FICTION… emphatically denying that which HALF of us sees as reality?

…

Who stands to PROFIT off of our division… who’s lives are more secure when the vision of THE PEOPLE stands in disarray?

…

The LIES and VENOM in our political discourse disappear when viewed in this context. Why would anyone advocate for taking up ARMS to fight a POLITICAL FIGHT? Why would anyone believe the words of a POLITICIAN in the first place.

The SAME politicians who tell people to take up ARMS in defense of a Political Ideology, BEG you for your DONATIONS with the very SAME BREATH…

… and the minuet that position becomes unprofitable, their beliefs will CHANGE.

…

What AMPLIFIES the false narrative…
What EMPOWERS the leader who deals in LIES?

What motivated Donald J. Trump to install, in the bathroom of his Manhattan Penthouse Apartment, a TOILET plated in gold…

The answer is one in the SAME. We all know what the problem is.💰

…

We give a PLEDGE. We swear an OATH.
On our HONOR… with Liberty and Justice for ALL.

IF we still believe in those WORDS, we must embrace what they SAY.

The Enemies of Democracy call for violence in-support of their position. The Champions of Democracy already know… we’ve already won, all we have to do is STOP FIGHTING. We were born under the SAME FLAG… we fight for the SAME THING.

The WAR… is OVER. We’ve seen this SHOW BEFORE, we’ve been educated by their mistakes. We’ve built monuments of marble and granite to remind us of those errors… who carries the COST of WAR. Who’s children will be called upon to bear the burdens of OUR GRUDGES?

**The only winning move is not to play.**

…

What lessons would these fallen share with us if they could… what message would they send?

It is for us… THE LIVING… to remember what comes from our DIVISION, and celebrate UNION and the inherent strength that comes from within.

-JC

Long live the CONSTITUTION of the UNITED STATES.

A Constitutional Convention

Not to undo, but to strengthen. To fully define that which has not been addressed. To CLARIFY. To express what it is this nation stands for in words so clear, no rational mind could stand opposed to their ascent… and once passed, no legal mind could undermine their intent.

We need a Constitutional Convention to propose and debate a set of Amendments, addressing those issues that have been hijacked by Party Politics, to enflame passions and raise MONEY… all while these problems remain UNRESOLVED, to the detriment of THE PEOPLE these legislators were elected to represent.

Every piece of historical precedent shows us what we should be working toward. Everyday, every one of us swears an oath, in our hearts and our minds, to protect and defend it. But we can clearly see… it is NOT as it should BE.

There is nothing to fear, we must believe our eyes. We’ve been given the gift that so many others did not have. The Framers of our Constitution foresaw the need to make changes…

We have the ability to Amend.

BEFORE the chaos that would eventually consume us. BEFORE the divisions are drawn and WALLS go up. The system… Our American Political System… is now BROKEN. Legislators legislate based on MONEY and the pursuit thereof. To FUND their re-election, to support their Political Party, to support their political careers. They cater to the interests of POLITICAL DONORS instead of working to pass legislation that would benefit the VOTERS they were elected to represent.

HALF of our Elected Officials are BEHOLDEN to DARK MONEY interests, and the OTHER HALF are hesitant to ACT because it would upset their DONORS.

Who Represents the American People in this DEBATE?

…

Though not written within our Constitution, by our consent, our system has settled into a two party system. Elections have, for the most part, provided a clear majority to establish a functioning government.

Although they continue to do so, our ‘functioning government’ consistently does the opposite of what the voters demand. More Americans have died due to gun violence THIS YEAR ALONE, than have American Soldiers throughout 20 YEARS of war… in two countries.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackbrewster/2021/04/16/more-than-one-mass-shooting-per-day-has-occurred-in-2021/?sh=d8b007c64932

American lives, lost… inaction in the United States Senate.

Essential Workers, HAILED as heroes just a few months ago, more than deserving of being paid a LIVABLE WAGE in every state. Now… $15 is just TOO MUCH. It seems our Senators believe we should prioritize the needs of the United States Armed Forces…

https://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2020-07-28/gop-tucks-8-billion-for-military-weaponry-in-virus-bill

… you wouldn’t want to see our soldiers go without PAY?

When you SEE something, SAY something.

Because once it is SEEN and we do not ACT, we become COMPLICIT in allowing it to continue. What comes from our inaction is the fruit we will bear… our SILENCE will water the seed.

It doesn’t matter what your political affiliation is. Left or Right, Red or Blue… we all know what the problem IS. MONEY in politics has unfairly tipped the scales against the Will of The People. If MONEY decides who will be allowed to legislate for the rest of us, legislation will continue to favor those with money over those WITHOUT.

…

What is the point of our Constitution? What were the ends that justified its creation? In order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, and to secure the Blessings of Liberty… for ourselves AND those yet to come.

The experiment was created for THE PEOPLE. We are the experiment. We are the balance upon which the entire experiment is judged. Today we reap the harvest from seeds sown by men who still feared a KING. A vision of what could be, seen through the haze of musket fire… and their own hypocrisy.

‘All men are created EQUAL’ they said… ‘except those we deem to be just three-fifths.’

So long as we are subjected to the structures that have arisen from the oppressive intent of the Three-Fifths Rule, the Will of the American People will never be fully realized.

…

The American People need CLARITY… not because it is easy, but because it is necessary. If we do not make the effort… if we do not seize the moment to secure the progress we have made, we remain at risk of losing it. It’s no longer hyperbole, it’s no longer a relic from a long forgotten PAST.

When you STAND UP and SPEAK OUT in defense of the Rights of others, you defend those Rights for YOURSELF. And when you do, you will NOT stand alone. You stand with the MAJORITY… and we STAND UNITED.

Every issue we struggle with has nuance and subtlety. We may differ on details and directions, but we agree on so much more than what is amplified in the media… by monied interests, who profit off of our division. Who make more MONEY if regulations are not passed. Who would prefer our legislatures remained deadlocked. And that suits the incumbents just fine…

You can’t FUNDRAISE on a problem that’s already been SOLVED.

… be sure to DONATE all you can to the candidate of choice this fall.

…

Right now, we stand engulfed within the Fog of War. The shots have already been fired… in our classrooms, in our houses of worship, on the streets of every city, in towns across every state… in communities of color AND communities of privilege.

Tens of thousands of American Citizens are dying, needlessly, every year, and HALF of our Congress supports doing NOTHING about it… the other half seems to think they make a strong point.

Who do these people work FOR?

Who SHOULD they be working for.

When every citizen is guaranteed access to the ballot, our National Dialogue will gain CLARITY. Ideas born of Bad Faith will fall away when exposed in the light of OPEN DEBATE.

Do not forget… if we do nothing, the actions taken by those who wish to overturn our elections will become precedent. They will be studied and expanded upon, just as it was twenty years ago the last time this happened. They’re testing every guardrail, looking for weaknesses… and practice makes perfect.

…

I am fortunate to have grown up in the Kansas City Metro area, surrounded by multiple World-Class sporting organizations. For many years, that wasn’t the case. Even today, where one year we are crowned World Champions, and the next year we are not… even when the roster is identical to the year before, on this day we came up short.

When we are on top, we remember where we once stood… looking UP to where we are now, where the eyes of the world are now trained. Where once stood another, one day another will stand. The only thing holding us back from remaining as great as we are now is our EGO.

Do we believe we are somehow better than all the rest, or do we remember that we are no different than everyone else… that if it were another standing in this place, we would be cheering them on just the same. Do we become complacent or do we strive to become better than ourselves?

It’s the microcosm vs. the macrocosm. As above, so below. The United States of America is the GOLD STANDARD. We are the envy of the world. When we STAND UNITED there is no force on Earth that can stop us… the only thing that can take that away is our OWN EGO. Do we fall victim to the hype, or do we remain HUMBLE and strive for everyone to have the same…

In order to solve the fundamental problems facing us today, we must clearly determine the Will of the People. Our Strength and Security depends on it. I believe in the judgement of the American People, whenever they are fully informed.

Democracy is NOT dying, it’s being STARVED of new ideas. Conversations being had about subjects and grudges held since the BIRTH of this Nation… old ideas die hard. But we aid in their descent when we find COMMON GROUND. No subject should be seen as taboo if we are to find the answers we seek. We must show others where they are right, and help them understand where they are wrong.

Why does HALF of this Country feel disenfranchised after the 2020 election?

Why does HALF of this Country feel disenfranchised after the 2016 election?

Why does HALF of this Country feel disenfranchised after the 2000 election?

… and on, and on, and on…

Let us stop the madness… while we still can.

-JC