Christmas Address From Pope Francis Crushes Hearts And Toes

Noted below are the 15 critiques of Pope Francis of Argentina.  

When elected pontiff, Francis was given a mandate of reforming the Curia- the religious body of leaders (mostly Italian) housed in the Holy Vatican in Rome, Italy.  Prior to his election, Francis of Argentina, had not been a part of the Curia in Rome, so he is uncovering the corruptions of this body as an outsider who was granted access within.  

Rarely have we seen such a powerful figure speak with the power of his conviction. What he speaks about inspires me daily to find (or create) the kind of fellowship that would actually please Christ.  In many ways, our modern expression of religion is but a re-working of the things Christ seemed to be freeing us from.  Sadly, constantly searching for physical evidence of our spiritual liberty relegates lifelong Christians to the same status as brand new Christians- saved and confused. Humility and introspection remain the hallmark of God's hope for mankind and the church, while the status and longevity of the devout disagree.

Pope Francis spoke words that virtually exposed the leaders they most applied to.  The discomfort in the room was palpable, even on television, and the scene reminded me of that twice a year sermon that always happened when I was young in which nobody but the first lady said Amen.  Divine compulsion might have forced Pope Francis to somewhat abandon his original Christmas address in place of the admonishment that he delivered, because this address was spirit-filled and honest.  It was almost too honest to be written and not edited away from the toes that it stepped on.

More than anything,Francis helped me to confirm my own compulsion towards uncomfortable truths.  When it appeared that several of the cardinals could not calm their angst sufficiently, I clung to the image with an equal feeling of inspiration towards their agitator and fear for the imagination of the powerful men being agitated.

There was a time when Pope Francis would be subject to the same danger that befalls every leader that dared to be honest with the church.  Pope's have always been targets for physical attacks or assassination attempts by outsiders, but has Francis suddenly invited the indignation of the righteously indignant within? If Christ intended to free the Jew from justification by ritual, has the Catholic simply changed the name but kept the game the same?  How many of those cardinals who were responsible for the selection of Francis feel slighted by the Pope?  How many of those who did not want Francis feel enraged?

If not for the fact that the Pope was speaking directly to the influence of politics within the Vatican, I would have little concern for the direction that papal politics shall take in response.  The reason truth and honesty are in such small supply in our world is because we usually kill it off.  Whatever spirits Pope Francis decided to protest against are spirits that live within the Curia.  Destructive spirits naturally operate on a kill or be killed mentality.

Pope Francis constantly makes me a better me, and this speech was true to form.  Nonetheless, this time I am more inspired and afraid for him than ever before.

15 Critiques from Pope Francis 

1) Feeling immortal, immune or indispensable. "A Curia that doesn't criticize itself, that doesn't update itself, that doesn't seek to improve itself is a sick body."

2) Working too hard. "Rest for those who have done their work is necessary, good and should be taken seriously."

3) Becoming spiritually and mentally hardened. "It's dangerous to lose that human sensibility that lets you cry with those who are crying, and celebrate those who are joyful."

4) Planning too much. "Preparing things well is necessary, but don't fall into the temptation of trying to close or direct the freedom of the Holy Spirit, which is bigger and more generous than any human plan."

5) Working without coordination, like an orchestra that produces noise. "When the foot tells the hand, 'I don't need you' or the hand tells the head 'I'm in charge.'"

6) Having 'spiritual Alzheimer's.' "We see it in the people who have forgotten their encounter with the Lord ... in those who depend completely on their here and now, on their passions, whims and manias, in those who build walls around themselves and become enslaved to the idols that they have built with their own hands."

7) Being rivals or boastful. "When one's appearance, the color of one's vestments or honorific titles become the primary objective of life."

8) Suffering from 'existential schizophrenia.' "It's the sickness of those who live a double life, fruit of hypocrisy that is typical of mediocre and progressive spiritual emptiness that academic degrees cannot fill. It's a sickness that often affects those who, abandoning pastoral service, limit themselves to bureaucratic work, losing contact with reality and concrete people."

9) Committing the 'terrorism of gossip.' "It's the sickness of cowardly people who, not having the courage to speak directly, talk behind people's backs."

10) Glorifying one's bosses. "It's the sickness of those who court their superiors, hoping for their benevolence. They are victims of careerism and opportunism, they honor people who aren't God."

11) Being indifferent to others. "When, out of jealousy or cunning, one finds joy in seeing another fall rather than helping him up and encouraging him."

12) Having a 'funereal face.' "In reality, theatrical severity and sterile pessimism are often symptoms of fear and insecurity. The apostle must be polite, serene, enthusiastic and happy and transmit joy wherever he goes."

13) Wanting more. "When the apostle tries to fill an existential emptiness in his heart by accumulating material goods, not because he needs them but because he'll feel more secure."

14) Forming 'closed circles' that seek to be stronger than the whole. "This sickness always starts with good intentions but as time goes by, it enslaves its members by becoming a cancer that threatens the harmony of the body and causes so much bad — scandals — especially to our younger brothers."

15) Seeking worldly profit and showing off. "It's the sickness of those who insatiably try to multiply their powers and to do so are capable of calumny, defamation and discrediting others, even in newspapers and magazines, naturally to show themselves as being more capable than others."

Community Policing Begins With Redefining The Word "Community"

Isn't it funny how things come full circle?

Years ago it was a cooperative effort of left wing extremism and concerned cops who came together to make efforts towards furthering the gun restrictions.  In the wake of so much domestic terror, the war of words over the war with guns has now drawn the battle lines so clearly that proponents of gun restrictions are growing weary with the intensity of the NRA (National Rifle Association) attack against any reasonable restriction of guns

Obviously, the NRA has a vested interest in the revenues that are lost when any gun loses favor in the market, even guns with 7 inch bullets that can take down an airplane, much less a police officer. Yet, NRA supporters will rightfully remind you that even a .22 caliber gun would have worked in the hands of this recent cop killer. As a result, restrictions to gun ownership -that might insure mentally ill people can't easily shoot their girlfriends and then catch a bus to New York to shoot a couple of cops - get treated as misdirected rhetoric.  According to a few disgruntled cops, the mayor of New York Bill DeBlasio and Obama (because everything must be connected to Obama) are the reason for the senseless killing of New York police officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos.

David Koresh (above) and
Randy Weaver sparked the Oklahoma
City retaliation of Tim McVeigh.

While my heart goes out to the nation and the family of these officers, this incident is one of  very few noteworthy episodes of retaliatory behavior against law enforcement.  This killer thought he had killed his girlfriend, whom he shot and left critically wounded- and then he traveled to kill the officers in New York. The plan to kill these officers might have been concocted prior to the plan to kill his girlfriend, but the story seems to suggest something else.

Family of Ismaaiyl Brinsley say that he was troubled for some time and had been in and out of jail without getting help for obvious mental problems.  Social media sites from Brinsley confirm his troubled mind and led Baltimore police to attempt to send warnings to New York officials regarding the developing plans of Brinsley.


Had social media sites been available during the domestic terrorism of Tim McVeigh, they would have shown angered posting towards the US government regarding the killing of David Koresh and the Branch Dividian group outside of Waco, Texas, as well as the deadly FBI confrontation of Randy Weaver at Ruby Ridge in Idaho. Crazed lunatics who use their frustration with government to make a murderous statement towards those we pay to protect are uncommon.  We may remember Brinsley's name decades from now like we do McVeigh, but only because he has joined select company.

Tim McVeigh is the only noteworthy retaliation of record.

During all of the protests that have occurred since Michael Brown Jr. and Eric Garner were killed, no reports of police retaliatory murders have happened outside of Liu and Ramos even though hundreds of police line the path of protest.  Neither my news engulfed brain nor Google could uncover anything noteworthy, other than Tim McVeigh, as a clear example of murderous retaliation against law enforcement for the perception of excessive abuse.   Police killings happen all of the time, but retaliation towards police is so rare that blaming anyone for the actions of Brinsley seems opportunistic.

Retaliatory killing of cops might be limited because the risk of return fire provides a significant deterrent, but most protesters have repeatedly stated that 98% or more of police officers are absolutely amazing.  This is a problem of a few bad hires and bad laws that defend bad cops, and the negative perceptions that cloud both sides of this community debate.

Former Ferguson, MO police officer Darren Wilson described the neighborhood that he was policing when he killed Michael Brown Jr. as a place of shame to the community.  What he didn't respect is that 99% of those citizens in that neighborhood are fully law abiding people who totally respect law enforcement even if they live with distrust towards them. Colored by this two-way street of negative perceptions, its no wonder that Michael Brown Jr. lost his life that day. The only surprise came from the 4 hours he lay dead in the street and the lack of accountability when video captured Eric Garner's last cry for breath. If protests against bad policing are as toxic as some are now calling them, then shouldn't we have seen more retaliation?

Its been to all of our surprise, and remorse, that New York has added two of its finest to this conversation of community policing across the nation.  Their place in this conversation might be as necessary as it is tragic. Reports have uncovered that officer Ramos saw his job as a ministry and was studying to become certified as a chaplain.  In many ways, Liu and Ramos were the embodiment of peace officers who were positively committed to representing community policing.  Brown Jr., Garner, Liu and Ramos.  Each of these deaths can surely serve a greater purpose if cooler heads would allow.

All violence is a solution that shuns the quiet whisper of cooler heads.  Our culture of violence has reached a significant crossroad in which we must determine if stronger militarism, more arming of common citizens or better arming of  our police forces is a better approach to violence than the peaceful alternatives that seldom gain attention. Since police officers are growing into a para-military force, the peace officer is becoming a distant dream of the past. Liu and Ramos prove that this is not the full reality, but if the perception towards cops doesn't improve, neither shall their safety....or ours.

The real question of the hour?:

Who is most responsible for the image of the police; the police or the communities that they police?  When finally WE no longer separate our image of police from our image of the community, than WE shall see that the community and the police are inextricably ONE and the same.

Tony Romo For MVP? The Notion Alone Might Secure Dallas A Crown

For the love of Peyton, I actually started to think of my own team, the Denver Broncos, as Americas new team.  And then the Tony Romo for MVP conversation brought me out of my Mile High cloud.

Make no mistake.  The Dallas Cowboys are, and may forever be Americas team.  The roots of sports fandom run so deep that they create upshoots that appear throughout the world.  Michael Jordan is much more than an American sports hero and the Bulls are the NBA equivalent of the NFL's Cowboys as a result.  Cowboy fans may have quieted themselves over the past decade of mediocrity, but their silence was that of a malignant tumor waiting for any positive sign of the greatness of old.  Winning as the Cowboys have won in the past is a hard elixir to ignore once its sweetness has caressed your palate.

Jerry Jones probably have squeezed the hope out of every chance his team has had to return to the pinnacle of greatness by managing his organization with an iron fist that seldom yields the nectar of champions.  Whether or not his iron fist has finally squeezed out a running game of consequence and a defense that will complement shall unfold in the coming weeks.  Demarco Murray has performed so well that Tony Romo even thinks he is just better at football now. His team clearly didn't trust their MVP quarterback to let him go without the broken hand on Murray who played in yesterdays game with an injury.

So does the emergence of the C.J. Anderson run game in Denver mean Peyton Manning is worse or better as a quarterback because his team is winning without his typical exploits too?  Are we really of the notion that Tony Romo can read defenses better than he used to, and that run game thing is only fortunate to be along for the ride?  Romo has never been a horrible quarterback, and the Dallas Cowboys have never been a horrible team,  They have been consistently projected for greatness because the 8-8 mediocrity simply didn't fit the talent on paper.  The emergence of the Cowboys during this season comes when most of the analyst had given up on the notion of them being anything better than average.

One week ago, the Cowboys were actually on the fence between winning the division or being left out of the playoffs altogether.  That fate fell to the Philadelphia Eagles, but not until last night when the Cowboys trounced the Indianapolis Colts and the Washington Redskins pulled of an upset victory over a conference rival in the Eagles.  Not a moment before that unexpected occurrence has anyone mentioned Tony Romo as a potential MVP and suddenly he is leading the conversation?

The real reason for this debate is the reason Romo and the Cowboys are likely to be one and done in the playoffs.  The true MVP's of the league; Manning, Watt, Gronkowski, Brady, are either playing defense or playing on teams with an exceptional defense backing them.  Seattle titled the axis of power in the league and every team with a great quarterback has had to adjust to the demand of winning from the defensive side of the ball as a result.  Doing this demands an efficient run attack in order to win the TIME OF POSSESSION war that insures great defenses remain great on every play.  Overworking any defense will expose them, which is why the likely odds for a Superbowl matchup will be a Superbowl rematch including the two teams with the best defenses and the best run game/quarterback play to support said run games. (Sorry New England, but Gronkowski can't run the ball too....can he?)

Russell Wilson and Marshawn Lynch will be assigned to insure that the Legion of Boom remains sonic while Peyton Manning and C.J. Anderson will be responsible for unveiling their defense to a national audience hopeful that the John Elway influence will make this game more entertaining than the last.  I expect Manning to be unleashed in the second half of this years Superbowl game since he will essentially have been under wrap for nearly half of the season, but Wilson is always waiting to unwrap his talents.  If Tony Romo and DeMarco Murray make it through, it will be only because Romo shocked the world and outfoxed the defending champion Hawks, which I consider highly unlikely. If the lack of D in Dallas forces Romo to open up again and take the kind of chances that typically produced Cowboy mediocrity, the Legion of Boom (or some other playoff team) will spell his doom.

Foreshadowing the NFL.  Romo wins MVP while Broncos
and Seahawks repeat last years matchup.

Denver has the D to win it all, but Denver's defense will need to be other worldly because the wheels and skills of Wilson are slowly elevating themselves to a realm that we may have never witnessed in one player.  Elway had great mobility and an arm to boot, but even he couldn't make people miss so eloquently as does Wilson.  The end game ability of Wilson is a direct by-product of his willingness to win ugly or win off of the exploits of his run game and his defense, if need be.

Absent any lasting injuries to either teams key players, this match up is virtually etched in stone to my eyes.  Even the offensive barrage that I see happening in the second half of this epic Superbowl rematch lives in my imagination like a foreshadowed prophecy.  I fear the Seahawks quarterback more than I trust my own, but thanks to the Denver  D, the Broncos will avenge their loss by winning the Superbowl, but one day prior, Tony Romo will be named MVP of the league even though he won't make it to the Superbowl along the way(voting happens at the end of the regular season).

Barring an exceptional final game performance from one of the other top five MVP alternatives to Romo, Romo will win MVP because America's team won't be home for post-Christmas revelry this year. Romo will win it because every other candidate will have reasons why they haven't outshined an opportunity to recognize America's team again.  The Cowboys and Tony Romo will truly be lucky to even win one playoff game with the weaknesses in their defense, but Romo might still be handed an MVP trophy; not because he deserves it, but America's team does.  



POSTSCRIPT:

While listening to Dan Patrick talk about the belligerence of Marshawn Lynch, who chose to answer every  post-game question from reporters, with the words "thanks for asking that question", and nothing more, Patrick declared that Lynch should be suspended.  I wonder if DanPatrick thinks Bill Belichick or Greg Popovich or even Phil Jackson during his zen moments should be fired for being belligerent towards the media?

I think not.


ONE MORE THING!

Can't wait to watch the (6-9)Atlanta Falcons and the (6-9)Carolina Panthers fight for the division crown next week.   #dontchangeAthing

Cuba Searching For Greener Grass. For America Its Just Business

The problem with living in the shadows is having a view of the sun.

The problem with living in the sun is skin cancer.

Fidel Castro in front of a Havana statue of Cuban
 national hero José Martí in 2003. (wikipedia)

The decision to place trade embargo's against the nation of Cuba was made over a half century ago and it was made in support of the people of Cuba who asked the nation of free flowing sunshine to force the shadowy Castro regime out of power.  In essence, their belief was that squeezing the life out of Cuba would harm so many people that Fidel Castro (and now Raul, his brother) would be compelled by love of country to do the right thing.

It didn't work.

Not only has the embargo not worked, it has only hurt the people it was intended to liberate. If the embargo was intended to expand the entrepreneurial spirit of the people of Cuba who have taken their desolate situation and turned it into an opportunity to display the vibrant shine of Cuba and its people, then it did work. Cubans have survived the "mutually belligerent" policies (as Alan Gross called it) of Cuba and America, and America should not only embrace the vast entrepreneurial wave within Cuba, we should invest in it because Cubans and Americans have never been at odds even if our mutually belligerent policies are.

In fact, every nation in the world, except the US, does business in Cuba, and even WE fly directly their from Florida to accommodate particular interests that congress had to deem "acceptable", since congress is the only institution in America with the power to lift the embargo.  What congress does not have the power to do is stop the conversation that has started towards normalization.  Cubanos throughout the nation of Cuba stand resolute in their belief that it is time to normalize relations, so the primary reason that we continue to take our stand against the shadow is because we have determined ourselves to be the sun.

The greatest impact of the embargo has been all of the Cuban dissidents/exiles and their children that enriched our nation and our brain chest of ideas.  Marco Rubio stands as a significant example, but he grew up believing that Castro deserves punishment for what he caused to happen to families like the Rubio's.  For the Castro regime to receive three of theirs in exchange for one of ours represents having accomplished "everything he was asking for" according to Rubio.

While it is questionable if these three comprades are everything the Castro's wanted from America, it is not questionable that the embargo that they would prefer to address is still fully within the control of Rubio and his cohorts in congress.  In addition, this embargo reflected the will of a people that have changed their minds.  Those who chose to relinquish their Cuban citizenship in protest of Castro also relinquished their voice in the decisions of future inhabitants.  The future is now and the voices are calling for a change.  If Rubio would rather listen to Cuban-American opinion over Cuban-Cuban decisions, than he is showing an allegiance to exiled families, to the past and to his understanding of an issue that has changed since his father and countless others got away from it all.

The Cold War civilization of 1959 has evolved into Americans who somewhat correctly call their own president a communist, and China being the nation we borrow from the most. Lines between capitalism (called democracy) and socialism (called evil) is one more big American welfare program or Hong Kong student protest away from blurring completely across the globe. Socialism shouldn't even draw such comparisons to capitalism in that one is a system of governance and the other is suppose to be an economic system; however, those who honestly embrace capitalism or desperately temper it with socialism know better.  As Rubio and the anti-Castro regime clamor for a more democratic Cuba, they also quietly approve back-alley expansions in campaign financing that makes it easier for rich people to dictate democracy in America.

If Cuba is stuck with the Castro's and should be a victim of their governance, it will be for another 30 years or less, America will be dictated by rich men infinitum.

Peyton Manning Who? Defending the Gospel of John

Just a quick reminder.

Peyton Manning is the quarterback that threw all of those passes to the league leading receiving duo, Demarius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders.  Add the early season exploits of Julius Thomas who dominated touchdown receptions even afer he was out for several weeks with injury and Manning was setting a pace to annihilate the record books that he already destroyed  last season.

Another quick reminder.

During those games I boldly declared the Denver Broncos defense to be the most complete and therefore BEST defense of them all.  As it stands today, Denver's D ranks #4, but no other team with a top 5 defense has the top receiving corp as well.  With national concern raging over the spiritual transformation of the Broncos, skeptics who question this type of miraculous change quickly pursue reasonable explanations as to how sinners can become saints and how Manning has relented to the "run the ball", defensive Gospel of John.

C.J. Anderson's has evoked claims of blasphemy towards those who dare call him another Terrell Davis, but the numbers and the first defender who keeps falling on their face makes you wonder if C.J. (Christ Jesus?..) is the hope of Denver's football salvation. The Gospel of John included the potential to strike you with a timely pass in between T.D.'s exploits, but it also might have involved a quarterback sneak or two just to remind you of who was the Hall of Fame player and who was not.

In Sunday's game against the San Diego Chargers, the Broncos ran the ball all the way down field and within 2 yards of scoring a touchdown, and tried their best to let their Hall of Fame QB finish it off in the only way that he can.  It resulted in a 3 point score instead of a touchdown, but it mostly resulted in a deepening question of "what's wrong with Peyton" and what happened to the flag football team that he use to be the leader of?

Is his arm finally showing the results of age?  Is he injured in some way that the team doesn't care to reveal so they've been babying his ailments with the support of a run game? What gives?

The real question that fuels this concern is whether or not the Broncos can win it all with or without the finely tuned weapon of their lead gunslinger and will he have rusty bullets when it comes time to pull the trigger in a real gun fight?

Will Manning frown his way to a championship victory?

With all due respect to everything that he has accomplished in the league, and for my team over the past few season's, SCREW PEYTON MANNING.  He had better be glad that Father John Elway had the foresight to compile the BEST DEFENSE IN THE LEAGUE.  If  Aqib Talib is actually healthy again and can bring his field knowledge to bear in the takeaway game then we are even better than I expected when I first made the claim.  Talib's defensive player of the week selection (8 tackles and 1 interception) says he is. Had the Broncos chosen to prepare for December and January football when they were still lighting up the skies, Denver's defense would easily rank at the top of the league. The fact that they are 4th in defense and  are the most dangerous offensive team in the league is exactly what Father John envisioned.  If he had to place the championship hopes of  his team into the palms of an old quarterback, he probably would rather put a uniform on himself.

Manning's dismal results in the playoffs are worthy of consideration and alternative planning.  Some guys are simply way too wired for success to properly embrace it at significant moments.  Having the courage to fail miserably is the pinnacle of true success.  Manning simply doesn't seem comfortable enough with failure to pull the best out of himself when the risk of failure is at its zenith.  He is hardly alone in this malady since very few us are able to rise above our greatest fears without choking up a bit, but Manning is on track to be considered the most accomplished choker of all-time.

Father John could pursue the doctrine of Thomas (Julius or Demarius) and he certainly saw the value of Emmanuel (Sanders) and C.J. (don't call me Christ Jesus) Anderson, but all of these valuable pieces of the puzzle are not the focal point of the picture.  Denver's defense is where the money was spent and where the future lies.  Brandon Marshall will need to hurry back and continue to remind us that we forgot all about Danny Trevathan, the player he so capably replaced, but super safety T.J. Ward is a special player that can plug that hole a bit until Marshall returns to the line-up.  Ward is certain to repeat as a Pro Bowl selection and might need to be locked up long term similar to the way Chris Harris Jr. was locked up with a long term contract.

Every week seems to be a new question of who is best, the front 4 or the secondary.  Denver's secondary took a lead after last week, but due to the consistency up front, the debate rages on.

What is no longer worthy of debate is the Gospel of John.  This is a formula for victory and now, only backsliding will pull this team from their destiny.  Denver might have to travel through New England to win  it all, but they seem unafraid of the journey because defense and run games travel very nicely.

Thanks for everything Peyton, but the more we forget about you the better.

Recognizing Game: Obama Builds His Legacy With Cuban Normalization

While pondering the deeper meaning of "legacy", Obama must have realized
 that Cuban relations must be normalized.

BAM!

When you start talking legacy, you can save that crap for George W. Bush.  The Obama legacy began from the day he took over the worst market failure since the Great Depression.  Now he has watched gas drop below $2 and the market reach record numbers, and....

He is normalizing relations with Cuba, and...
He has exposed the truth about Cheney the torturing Dick, and...
He is moving towards resolving the Immigration issue once and for all, and....
He has initiated the international effort to stop ISIS, and....
He did achieve Universal Healthcare, and....
He is going after student loan debt, and...
He assigned his Attorney General to provide chest cams in Ferguson which should save a few young black men  from unnecessary death by cop.  New York is following suit and nationwide black men are safer today than they were yesterday just because of the conversation started under his watch.

He may be the reason we are more polarized as a country, but its likely that he is nothing more than a scab, not the wound.  If Obama is the reason that we have had to take an unwanted stare into a dirty mirror, he will also be the reason why we begin to clean the reflection.

His critics speak colloquially about him, saying he's too ________________ to be a good president or Benghazi, Benghazi, Benghazi, but the record he has compiled belies their commentary and their own final assessment on Benghazi.  Should we work with hostile mid-eastern regimes who will help stop ISIS today but kill Americans tomorrow and still refuse to normalize relations with Cuba?

Its time to stop repeating the failures of history and to learn from them, and it is time to recognize the breadth of the Obama legacy which is being written before our eyes.

I Support The Police Brutality Protesters...But I Stand With The Police

WE may not be too interested in running out to vote in high percentages during elections that a black man is not a presidential candidate on the ballot, but America is full of courageous and proud advocates for change.

Those young folks in Ferguson might be changing the world. At the least, the town of Ferguson will never be the same again and the rest of the world has taken notice.  Eric Garner triggered bi-partisan disgust, but even he only achieved this stature aided by a long history of police violence towards black men. WE know it is a problem, but due to laws that limit the reporting of such violence- and no video before Rodney King got caught on camera- all of America has been free to sweep their police violence dirt beneath a carpet.  Michael Brown Jr. could have become the villain that Darren Wilson supporters believe him to be, but a spray of bullets from Wilson's gun insured that his body alone would represent a dirty carpet that lives in every community of color.  When, at last, the carpet was pulled up from the filthy concrete, a cloud of dusty memories spread throughout a horrified world waiting in anticipation for a sign of something other than the same foggy feeling of injustice.

They are still waiting.

Within all of our confusion over who is most worthy of blame when black men lay dead in the streets at the hands of police, most agree to the presence of a problem and one that prisons are exacerbating, not curing.  Love 'em or hate 'em, the police officer unions are sworn to the protection of officers just as the officers are supposedly sworn to the protection of the communities they police.  In an increasingly violent society, the promise to be officers of peace has evolved into cops who promise Friends and Family that they will do everything they can to get home alive.

When the mission evolves from preserving the peace to getting home alive, trigger fingers grow itchy.  Nationwide, violent crime is on a sharp decline- just don't tell that to someone who was a recent victim.  They may be alive today because of a cop who answered the 911 call. But let's not get it twisted.  We pay taxes for the benefit of such things, so those who choose service careers do so with an understanding that society will find someone to do the job simply because it must.  Conflating the prevalence of black deaths by cops to nothing more than a Human Resource issue seems extremely simplistic, but is diversity hiring and/or diversity training the key to quieting the thousands of protesters around the world? As we work to change the face of policing, do we run the risk of running off good cops while starting a manhunt to remove bad ones? At what point do we put all lives in greater danger while protesting against the unreasonable deaths of  a few too many black men?

In principal, I stand with the cops because I know too many good ones to stand anywhere else, and standing on the other side of the man with the gun and an itchy trigger finger is how you get shot in the first place.  We live in a world full of racial distrust and ethnic biases.  These biases reveal themselves in all aspects of society so it seems peculiar that we don't expect these things in the realm of law enforcement as well.  The remedy for racially motivated killings by law enforcement is similar to the remedy for reducing the unusually high suspension rates for black kindergarten children versus white children of the same grade level.  Blacks represent too small a percentage of inhabitants in America to be so heavily incarcerated, or killed by cops, or suspended from kindergarten compared to other racial groups.

The Chain of Humanity is only as strong as its weakest link.
Lets focus on the chains that bind us together.

So what is the answer?

Faith and Family.  WE all have (or need) families and we mostly pray to the same God if we pray at all. The effectual, fervent prayer of like-minded people must come to bare if change is to occur. Things WE have in common are the only chains that bind us. In the end, WE will only be as strong as our weakest link, so our strength will come from the kind of Faith WE can share.  If blacks unnecessarily killed by cops are humanized by the tears of their mourning families, the cops must too be humanized by the tears of joy from the children who hug their policing parents when they survive another dangerous night of law enforcement.

In God WE trust?!  Through faith and family we live and thrive. 

God Bless America!

"I Hate Christmas" A Seasonal Perspective On The Value Of Goodness.

I hate Christmas.

Not Christmas personally, but the season in which people do the act of Christmas'ing.  You know, the lights, the decorations, that reindeer and Santa frivolity.  All of that stuff would be so much easier for me to simply enjoy if it weren't for all of those Christmas songs that declare "every day should be Christmas".

I do understand that this is typically a Christian declaration that everybody should stop treating each other like crap all year long and then sing carols and play nice for a few weeks, but isn't that just another way of asking WWJD, what would Jesus do, which is something you are probably not even thinking about when speeding shoppers cut you off on the road in pursuit of the same sale you are chasing?

Every day should be Christmas- which would make the actual day that Christ was born an inconsequential detail that we often debate at this time of year as well.  Americans should freely enjoy whatever day they choose to commemorate the life of Christ, or the goodness of Santa because in actuality, they both represent pretty cool dudes. The religious indignation of Christmas brought the Happy Holidays compromise- so now Santa is thoroughly dominating Jesus Christ who is suppose to be the reason for the season.  Fans of both seasonal icons fully agree that good isn't bad, and since Christian's don't have a birth right to good behavior, Santa or Hanukah or Kwanzaa or anything reasonably good is a reasonable expression of holiday cheer.

Yet,  typically we fight over who is celebrating this holiday correctly and whether a made up birthday holiday is legitimate anyway.

Maybe its just me, but some of the meanest people in America seem to be the most ardent participants in the revelry of this season.  They cuss their way through long lines at the discount stores just so they can purchase the cheap lights and insure that they have the best display on the block- most likely to be mean about how great their decorations look.  During the holiday season, mean Christians (especially from holiness churches that stay in session too long) don't even wait until they get home from church in their Sunday's best before they tell off a clerk in the deli for helping someone out of order. Before long, even the normally nice become mean during this time of the year simply because it becomes a means of surviving mean people.

I have sincere questions about whether or not Christ came to establish a new church that bears his name, which makes me really wonder how cool Jesus is with the Christmas holiday that is supposedly in his honor as well?  Christ spent way too little time in church for anyone to determine his message being one of traditional religious pursuit.  Christ came to redefine the church and to redefine religion in a way that we still question, hence the many variation of Christian beliefs. Since we can't agree about Christ, we've stopped letting him taking prominence during the holiday season.  If Christ simply is no longer the reason for Christmas, are Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and Santa just part of the many ways that we will soon choose to celebrate the holiday's (don't call it Christmas because that means Christ)? If so, then this already stressful time of the year might get even worse as stores scramble to meet the demands of our divided holiday expressions of Christmas in fear of the backlash from excluding someone.

Truly good people don't let any season dictate their treatment of others because they realize that every moment that we encounter someone probably was ordained from on high.  Even if life is not so divinely ordered, truly good people would never leave it to chance.  Seasonally good people don't often even live up to their season of choice.  Like a broken resolution, holiday cheer is typically manufactured by spirits and ruined by over-consumption and a promise to do better next year. The spirit of this season has become people who's childhood memories are too precious to minimize with  reasonable perspective, so they make unreasonable grasps at the past. Christ is worthy of a season, but including Christ in your celebration of the season is likely to remind you of something greater than yourself, which is quite a bummer when Christmas hopes run high. Santa, on the other hand, only expects us to be a little nicer while we indulge in our selfish holiday dreams.

Dr. Kent Brantly.  Ebola survivor.

But again.  Nice is nice enough to make the world go around- but we try to pull it off during the hardest time of the year to actually be nice.  No amount of pretty lights in the world can overcome the frustration of a Walmart line during Christmas. For that you need perspective.

Like the kind of perspective that comes from surviving Ebola; or the kind that comes from losing your son and having him lay dead in the street for over 4 hours.

Parents of Michael Brown

 

Perspective is a simple thing to inject upon life, but we either choose to gain it vicariously, or we are doomed to learn it personally.

Choose carefully.

Merry Christmas.