Government Shut Down
For those people I know, and those I do not, who have been furloughed - life has happened to you. Someone else made a “decision” and your lives where changed. I am outraged and I am utterly perplexed by elected officials who are moving our country, my country, so far away from the intentions set by our founders.
Here is how I see it:
The folks that have been furloughed are people who work for agencies that do not directly “protect” this country – instead they do the awesome work of ensuring that we remain moving toward the intentions set forth when this country was founded. These lofty goals – all are created equal all are endowed with the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness - like any goal must be lived. Intentions must be embodied into actions in order them to become real, and that often mean watching out for human activity. Making sure that we use nuclear power safely, ensuring that we take care to test drugs and food, that we safeguard the standards by which we run little things like the internet these are examples for me of how our government lives into the potential of those intentions. This does not mean the gov always gets it right but getting it right all the time is NOT THE POINT. I expect government to hold onto these ideals because I know business, with a focus toward profits, cannot. For a biblical reference – from a guy named Jesus, you cannot serve both wealth and god. G-d here is that intention to act justly, behave kindly, and live as if others matter. I think this is why the government shut down feels so raw to me. For two Friday's I spent time with people that have held onto the intentions of our founders for me. I feel bereft that they have been told they are not important and outraged that my government has implied that these truths that I believe in no longer mater. I want to say clearly, as an individual within this community, I hear you, I bear witness, I write letters and I vote.
If there is any help out there - send it to Washington DC to help these fine people remember why we have a government in the first place - to protect, yes, to protect the vision set forth so long ago by a groups of people willing to take risks to live their principles. By the way they did not get it right all the time either - but mistakes (even entrenched choices) did not stop them from trying to live the intentions they espoused.
Come on folks we are better than this - at least we were at one point.
For those people I know, and those I do not, who have been furloughed - life has happened to you. Someone else made a “decision” and your lives where changed. I am outraged and I am utterly perplexed by elected officials who are moving our country, my country, so far away from the intentions set by our founders.
Here is how I see it:
The folks that have been furloughed are people who work for agencies that do not directly “protect” this country – instead they do the awesome work of ensuring that we remain moving toward the intentions set forth when this country was founded. These lofty goals – all are created equal all are endowed with the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness - like any goal must be lived. Intentions must be embodied into actions in order them to become real, and that often mean watching out for human activity. Making sure that we use nuclear power safely, ensuring that we take care to test drugs and food, that we safeguard the standards by which we run little things like the internet these are examples for me of how our government lives into the potential of those intentions. This does not mean the gov always gets it right but getting it right all the time is NOT THE POINT. I expect government to hold onto these ideals because I know business, with a focus toward profits, cannot. For a biblical reference – from a guy named Jesus, you cannot serve both wealth and god. G-d here is that intention to act justly, behave kindly, and live as if others matter. I think this is why the government shut down feels so raw to me. For two Friday's I spent time with people that have held onto the intentions of our founders for me. I feel bereft that they have been told they are not important and outraged that my government has implied that these truths that I believe in no longer mater. I want to say clearly, as an individual within this community, I hear you, I bear witness, I write letters and I vote.
If there is any help out there - send it to Washington DC to help these fine people remember why we have a government in the first place - to protect, yes, to protect the vision set forth so long ago by a groups of people willing to take risks to live their principles. By the way they did not get it right all the time either - but mistakes (even entrenched choices) did not stop them from trying to live the intentions they espoused.
Come on folks we are better than this - at least we were at one point.
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