ToT: Current Events

So . . . today's Together on Tuesday topics is either a wild card or your thoughts on some current events . . . namely, the Aurora, CO shootings and the Chick-fil-A drama around anti-gay marriage comments and contributions. I have a wild card formulating, but it seems kind of shallow to write about clothes--even ethically-sourced clothes--with these subjects on the table. Good grief, the whole point about this blog is how to impact and respond to society in a way that promotes justice, mercy, and humility. Plus, I'm a social worker. People usually do NOT want to hear me speak on this type of topic. I often have a lot to say, and in these cases, much of what I think, feel, and believe has already been said by others elsewhere. So, I am going to tackle both topics with the same principle in mind.

There are real people involved in these issues.

These kinds of situations prompt theoretical and political debates galore. People get riled up and assert their beliefs, emotions flare, and scenarios are debated. But here's the thing: In Colorado, people are waking up without their loved ones. A mother bears the grief that her (clearly ill) son committed a heinous act that destroyed many lives. All over the country, people who love each other and are trying to live some semblance of a normal life are ostracized, rejected, made to feel as if they are deplorable. And people who deeply believe that they understand the way to eternal peace are grieved that other people are missing out.

And, among all of these people are many, many people who are very, very afraid.

I just wonder how things would go if more lawmakers, journalists, people in general would remember that theory and debate are fine, but often irrelevant to people living these truths. I wonder what would happen if they focused on coming together instead of stoking people's worst fears.

Here's my thing about guns (full disclosure): I hate them. I cannot understand why people love them, but I know people do. I know most people who love guns have no intention of killing ANYONE. I get that. And I get lots of the theoretical arguments for having guns. But I still hate them. I have never understood the "guns don't kill people, people kill people" rhetoric . . . a huge hole in that statement is that quite often, the people who kill people do it with a gun. And the thing about guns is they make it REALLY easy for someone with poor judgement and poor impulse control--due to immaturity, mental instability, emotional distress, or often a combo of all three--to inflict real, horrific, permanent damage. Would gun control laws have prevented this guy in CO from his rampage? Who knows. He planned ahead, it is quite likely he would have found a way. But I know that guns in the hands of people who shouldn't have them are unspeakably dangerous. And I know that it's easy to find pat answers if you've never found yourself or someone you love on either side of a gun that turned deadly.

Oh, Marky Mark . . . he's really upset about the petroleum. I get it.

And then there's Chick-fil-A. People are very angry, either because of they way Chick-fil-A is spending their money or because of people's reaction to the way Chick-fil-A is spending their money. So here's my thing about consumerism: Shop Your Values. I firmly believe that shopping our values is an effective way to make a statement--in this culture, money talks. And it's a great way to carry out a mission to live justly and love mercy. So, if you agree with Chick-fil-A, eat there. If not, don't. Beyond that, though . . . while I don't eat at Chick-fil-A (I'm not into hate groups, and I don't eat chickens, especially factory-farmed beakless chickens who live in tiny cages), it can be very difficult to shop our values. At least Chick-fil-A disclosed theirs. I wonder what all these people who are so upset (or supportive) about Chick-fil-A's political alliances think about their phone and cable companies, banks, gas stations, etc. LOTS of them contribute to or profit from some pretty sketchy causes, from massive political contributions to funding warlords and dictatorships that support their business purposes. (To quote I Heart Huckabees . . . "If you use petroleum, you're a murderer, that's a fact." A bit drastic, but not as wrong as we want it to be.) There are real people connected to all of those causes, too. Green America is a great place to see where your companies stand on issues you find important. (Another post should be brewing on the saga of breaking up with our big businesses . . . we need to take the plunge.) And there are some really good people working for some of these companies who are just trying to live their lives, earn a buck, and do their best--they don't have a say in everything that happens at the upper level, but they bear the brunt of our frustration. Kindness and respect--both ways--goes a long way. (Also, for the record, there are lots of ways to be a Christian. And the Bible has been used to justify a lot of things we can all agree are abhorrent today. And there are much greater threats to 'traditional marriage,' which in the time of Levitical law was polygamous with wives considered as property, than what someone else does in their own home. I like Rachel Held Evans' thoughts here.)

So, there's not a lot of policy talk or political debate for me on these issues. I could do that, but I have found it doesn't really accomplish much. There is such a wave of playing to differences and capitalizing on fear, and election season doesn't help. I am pretty sure that most gun owners want a safe, civil society without random gun deaths or massacres. I am pretty sure people who don't like guns want the same thing. I am pretty sure most people who want to be married are hoping for a life of peace and happiness and want the freedom to enjoy their lives. I am pretty sure most employees and business owners want to make a comfortable living. I am pretty sure most religious people want the best for everyone . . . well, I want to be sure of that. At least that's what I want, in my own faith. I am pretty sure that if we stopped arguing all the dang time and actually listened to each other, we might be able to find our commonality. And beyond that, why not have friends with different opinions? I have learned a lot from people with whom I don't always agree. Thomas Jefferson said "Every difference of opinion is not a difference of principle." I keep hoping if we can focus on the principle and let go of our own opinions enough to hear the other side and really see people for who they are, we might actually make some progress one of these days. I hope I get the chance to find out.

See what the other Together on Tuesday bloggers are saying about these issues by following the links on the right.