Skip to main content

Glee


Good morning. I’m here today to talk to you about glee. No, not this glee. And not the glee with which the reindeer shouted out to Rudolph. I’m here to address an accusation made by a prominent local Republican this week. His words came in response to an acknowledgement of the late Elijah Cummings after the vote on the articles of impeachment.

What is sad is that you are hiding your glee behind the death of a congressman.

There was accompanying pontification on how local Democrats’ demeanor was unseemly. They were clearly expressing delight when they should have been reflecting a somber mood. 

The delight is very telling. Sad.

I could not disagree more. 

Do not tell me that I should feel that the vote on articles of impeachment is “a sad day for our country.”  The sad day for our country was when the current office holder was installed in spite of losing the popular vote and through the machinations of a party so eager to win that they accepted help from groups whose aim is to break down and destroy our democratic process.

That was the sad day. Wednesday was a day of reckoning. Wednesday the nation fought back.

I’m going to share a photograph which has been making the rounds on social media lately. 


 Courtesy of the Gross family)


These women have just learned that they are being freed and will not be continuing on to Nazi death camps. Examine their facial expressions. Their emotions are understandably complex but their joy is clear. The unspeakable horrors they were facing have now been smashed by their liberation. It is not a sad day. No one will fault them for their delight.

Right now we have a president and an unwavering cadre of legislative supporters who separate parents and children, who place people in camps, who allow human beings to suffer and die alone without adequate medical care. He uses the powers of his office to gut laws that protect the environment, LGBTQ Rights, safe food handling. He takes food benefits from hungry families and children. He fosters an environment of hatred and intolerance against anyone who is different or who dares to oppose him. He pressures other nations to perform tasks solely for his personal benefit.

The day that the congress of the United States holds this President responsible for his actions against the nation is not a sad one. It is a triumph of the very process the founders laid out to protect the survival of our democracy. If this vote opens a door to stopping the pain that this administration is causing?

That would be a very happy day.

You’re darn right I’m gleeful. Who would not be if it meant that there might be a possibility that this horrific suffering might be ended? How could you not be joyful? We the People have the power to push back and censure tyrants and insist that our elected officials stand for something more than the worship of riches and the callous promotion of human suffering.

You can’t shame me. I’ll take your glee and raise it one. I’m proud.

*****











Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Teacher Gifts

Today is the last day of school before the Winter Break. It’s a good time to remember the far-reaching nature of our public school system. You may not have children. You may have sent your children to independent schools. It matters not. You will be impacted one way or another. Yesterday I read a long thread on Facebook about several waves of illness in the schools right now. There’s influenza A and norovirus, I believe. And of course there’s COVID. Apparently in some individual schools the rate of illness is high enough for school admin to notify parents.  When I was little the acceptable holiday gift for a teacher was one of those lovely floral handkerchief squares. (I don’t know what it was for male teachers. They were rare in my elementary years.) These days the range of teacher gifts is wider and I have fond memories of Target gift cards which I have written about before. I think it’s safe to say that giving one’s teacher Influenza, norovirus, or COVID is not the ideal holiday...
1 comment
Read more

They Can Wait

This is not a typical Saturday post. That’s because, in my community, it’s not a typical Saturday.  Oakland Mills High School, after years of deferred repair, needs massive renovation. It’s pretty simple: when you don’t fix a problem it gets bigger. The school system itself said the the OMHS school building was  "no longer conducive to learning" back in 2018.  2018 .  But Thursday the Boad of Education voted to push it out of the lineup of important projects which will be given the go-ahead to proceed soonest.  In my opinion it’s a terrible decision and sets a dangerous precedent. To explain, here’s the advocacy letter I sent in support of Oakland Mills High School. I was rather proud of it. I am writing to ask you to proceed with needed renovation at Oakland Mills High School in the most timely and comprehensive manner humanly possible. I have read the letter sent to you by the Oakland Mills Community Association and I am in complete agreement. You are extremel...
1 comment
Read more

Columbia Chance Connection

  Last night, as my husband and I were about to sit down to dinner, our front door swung open and a cheery voice announced, “I’m ba—ack!”  We weren’t expecting anyone. Clearly the only people who’d walk right in to our house would be one of our offspring. I had my reading glasses on so I wasn’t seeing too clearly. It seemed too tall for our youngest, but we knew our eldest was at work. I took off my glasses to see a friendly but confused face scanning our living room. When her gaze landed on us we all had a sudden realization. We didn’t know eachother. “Oh I’m so sorry! I’m in the wrong house! My daughter just moved in and she needed hooks for the kitchen so I ran out to get them.” She waved the package. “All these houses look the same and I don’t know the neighborhood yet. I thought this was my daughter’s house.” We were all getting a bit giggly. “That’s okay. For a quick second we thought you were our daughter,” said my husband. I told her our names and said she should defin...
Post a Comment
Read more