Check it out - I've gone blue! Crazy, huh? No, it's not some mid-life trying-to-get-my-youth-back thing. OK, maybe - I would never have been allowed to have blue hair in my youth, and my mom's reaction when she saw this was soooo worth it! Sorry Mom!!
Seriously, this is for Teddy. Teddy is an 8 year old boy who is a classmate and teammate of my oldest son, and his mom has become my good friend. Teddy is one of the most genuinely sweet and innocent boys you'll ever know. Right now, Teddy is stuck in his house and he can't go to school and risk illness. Teddy has a brain tumor, in probably the worst possible place a brain tumor could be. In addition to the worry and anxiety he is feeling about just having to deal with this, we was worried about having to shave his head for the surgery. A group of his friends have promised to shave their heads with him to show him support. I wanted to do something too, but am not brave enough to go bald, so I asked Teddy what his favorite color was, and I dyed my hair in his honor. I promised him the blue hair will stay until he is fully recovered. The added bonus is that blue hair always elicits comments, which gives me the opportunity to share Teddy's story and grow his prayer army. If you are reading this, I hope you too, will join the growing legions praying for this boy, because he really is very special. If you happen to be on Facebook, you can also join a page called "Support for Teddy" and leave him messages, keep up with the latest updates, and get to know his family. And if you're feeling a little crazy, dye your hair blue!
Dear Democratic Members of Congress -
I have never before felt so betrayed by my government. You, the elected members of the Democratic Party have completely betrayed me, my children, and every other voter who fought for your right to represent us in 2008. I have a child with a disability that no health insurance will touch. So we plan for his adult support knowing that if the system remains as is, he will be forced to live in poverty just to qualify for basic care. I had such high hopes that his future wouldn't have to be that way. I thought we finally had a government that really and truly cared about its people. I thought we finally had a government that wanted to do something about the 40,000 people who die every year needlessly because insurance companies won't cover them. It is so heartbreaking to realize I was wrong.
You have the majority. Tonight you have one seat less, but you still have the majority in both houses. Instead of assuring us that you will continue to work on reform, you back away from the fight? There is not one single reason beyond your own ineptitude that we shouldn't have reform by now. It was, and still is, what the American people want. It is why we elected you. So what have you done? You have allowed a minority party, whose stated purpose is to stop anything and everything you propose, to do just that. You have allowed a minority party, that spent the last eight years trashing this country, to bring the halls of Congress to a standstill. You have allowed a minority party that cares only about defeating the President who WE voted for, to stand in the way of any progress on an agenda that the majority of Americans support.
WHY? You do not have to allow this. You are the majority, and you still represent the majority of Americans who still want change. You have the power to set set the rules - and to change them when they are so badly abused. But you don't. WHY? Where is your courage? Where is your conviction? Where is your moral spine?
I truly fear for the future of our country. We have a two-party system, with one party who doesn't want to govern, and one who can't govern. Where does that leave the rest of us?
You have ten months to prove to us that you are not the gutless, spineless whelps we see today. You have ten months to DO what we want you to do. Are you going to stand up, or are you going to lay down? How I hope and pray you stand, but if the last several months are any indication, I fear it won't be the case. I can't tell you how sad that makes me, especially when I look into the eyes of my sweet boy.
Democrats need to get off their asses, and I don't mean Congress. I'm talking to you, Voting Public. The ease with which so many have fallen into complacency is disconcerting, to say the least. This election year is important. Dare I say, more important than the last. Last year we overwhelmingly voted in a new administration with high hopes and unrealistic expectations. Since the change we voted for hasn't been delivered in a nice, complete package, people are discouraged and becoming disengaged. This is a mistake.
The frustrations are justified. We have yet to see what we envisioned when we voted 14 moths ago come to fruition. Which is why it is more important than ever to stay engaged, to keep ourselves in the dialogue and to continue to vote! The euphemism I have most commonly heard is that this is a marathon and not a sprint. We need to keep up the drive and the energy, and I agree. But I tend to think of it another way - I think of the Sistine Chapel, arguably one of Michelangelo's greatest works. Imagine if Pope Julius II had decided after one year, that progress was too slow and unsatisfactory. What if he had decided he wasn't seeing what he wanted to see, and cancelled the project, or brought in someone else.
The painting of the Sistine Chapel ceiling was a daunting task, and it took Michelangelo four years to complete. Rather than painting a single canvas or wall, Michelangelo had to plan for an area 133 feet long and 50 feet wide, which was 65 feet off the ground, and curved. Before he could even begin he had to plan not just what he would paint, but how he would paint. A full scale scaffold built from the floor up wasn't possible because the Pope wanted to be able to continue to use the chapel for services, so Michelangelo had to design a scaffold that was supported from the walls near the ceiling. When he finally got to the actual painting of the fresco, he had to stand with his head tilted fully back day in and day out. It was a long and arduous process, but in the end, what he accomplished is one of the world's greatest artistic achievements.
The process of making the changes we want is much like the process that led to the masterpiece that is the Sistine Chapel ceiling. Right now, we are still building the scaffolding, and we will never see the paint on the wall unless we enforce that scaffolding and support the painters. We began to put that scaffolding into place by electing a new President and a majority in both houses. Unfortunately, we have seen that scaffolding weakened by a minority that has lost all sense of moral objective. Rather than negotiate and compromise, they have decided to alter the function of the government so that a simple majority is no longer sufficient for governance. They have stymied, objected, obstructed, and abused the procedures and protocols to shut down any and all progress. They have made it necessary to have a super majority in order to get anything done. This is NOT how our forefathers designed our government to function.
So what do we do? We put a super majority in place. If we can build a stronger scaffolding in 2010, then 2011 we will finally see the paint applied to the walls, and real change can start to happen. That can only happen if we stay focused and engaged. Do not allow the frustrations of this year discourage you - let them motivate you. Show up, make your voice heard, keep pushing for change - and demand it with your vote. The Sistine Chapel wasn't painted in a day, or even a year, but what it became after years of hard work, has stood for centuries. We can make change that will withstand the test of time, too, but we have to do it one paint stroke at a time.
I've opined previously that health care is a Christian value, that Jesus exhorted us to care for each other, and we should support policies that espouse that value. Real health care reform epitomizes the very core of Christ's teachings: "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." I have asked fellow Christians why they would fight against this reform and none of what they have offered as reasons can be reconciled to that which Christ has taught us.
I have been told Christ wants us to act as individuals, and not have the government "force it" upon us. Where in the bible does Christ say that "Do unto others, but don't ask the same from your government?" If we care about acting upon Christ's teachings, why would we not support policies that do the same? Why would we support policies that oppose helping the least among us? How does one reconcile wanting to help others on an individual level, but support policies that undermine that effort? Beyond that, is it realistic to expect that individual Christians can provide health care? Can we as individuals provide access to MRIs, or chemotherapy, or surgery, for those who need it and don't otherwise have access? WE CAN'T. This is a need that is far greater than what individuals can provide, which is why we, as individuals, are failing miserably. Tens of thousands of people die every year, because we cannot fill this need. So we should support policies that will fulfill this need, and we should not give in to the fear and falsehoods that are being argued against it.
Another argument I have heard, along the same vein, is that people shouldn't have their hard earned money taken from them to support people who . . . and you can fill in the rest of that with all manner of judgment; who chose to go without insurance; who are going to use that care to seek abortion (a whole other conversation in and of itself), who are sick because they are drug addicts or alcoholics . . . the list is endless. To those who make these arguments, I have one simple question. What would have become of us if Jesus had approached caring for others with the same level of judgment and condemnation? What if Jesus had said "You know, Heavenly Father, I don't want to spill my blood for people who are so sinful and unrighteous and just plain undeserving." Where would we be if Jesus had decided we just don't deserve his mercy and sacrifice? Christ gave it all away for free. He asked for nothing in return. Not a commitment of faith, not a promise of piety. He gave his life without judgment. If we are to be TRUE followers of Christ, then we should strive to do the same. Christ didn't beseech us to provide for only those we deem worthy.
Returning to the abortion excuse - there are a number of tangents to be addressed. Believe me when I say I understand the position that says,"I don't want my money used to fund something that my faith tells me is wrong." I get it, because we are now in year eight of a war about which I feel exactly the same. My money has been spent waging an illegal and unjustified war that has resulted in thousands of innocents dying. My money has been spent torturing people, many of whom are innocent. This is the nature of democracy. We all will have our tax money support things to which we are morally opposed. It is the giant grain of salt we all must swallow if we want to live in a country that respects all views and beliefs. Beyond that simple truth, however, is a far more complex and grey issue that is being used as a weapon to deny people the most basic of care. Using abortion as an argument against health care is to willingly sacrifice the lives of husbands, wives, fathers and mothers. The vast majority of the uninsured, the people who would be covered by tax dollars, are not going to be getting abortions. They are going to be getting well checks and preventative care and, when necessary, treatment for serious illness. Are you willing to say to these people,"Sorry, but I don't want to provide for your healthcare because a small minority of you *might* seek an abortion"? Trade places for a moment and ask, are you willing to sacrifice your own life, or your child's life to prevent someone else from seeking an abortion? Abortion is not a clear black and white issue, because even a majority of "pro-life" proponents can say "I oppose abortion EXCEPT IN CASES OF . . . " Where there is exception is where the issue becomes grey. Abortion is an issue that is complicated and is completely separate from the black and white issue of whether everyone deserves access to health care. It is wrong to use the former as an excuse to prevent the latter. Which brings me back to the basic point. Christ wanted us to care for each other, to tend to each other, to feed the hungry, house the homeless, to tend to the sick WITHOUT EXCEPTION, WITHOUT JUDGMENT. True followers of Christ should support the policies that champion that basic tenet. Health care for all does just that and Christians should be fighting for its passage, not against it.
