Two thoughts during a week of chaos

I know you’ve heard it ad nauseam like I have.
You can’t turn on the TV, listen to a news broadcast 

or read an article on your phone without hearing it.

It seems to be #45’s obsession:

Collusion. – even if he can’t spell it correctly.

And every time I hear him say it, 

I keep waiting for some reporter, somewhere, to ask him for a definition; 

to ask him for HIS understanding of the term.

Does anyone honestly think he could give an explanation of what’s involved – 

or explain how his behavior 

and the behavior of his cohorts 

doesn't fit that category of behavior?

Given his level of vocabulary and his rudimentary grasp on reality, 

he probably thinks we mean ‘collision’! 

No, there was no collision! 

I would have remembered! 

The media is assuming he’s operating 

with the same definition the rest of us are using – 

and I’m fairly certain he’s NOT.

Frankly, it’s not all that complicated.
We can break it down for him.

Collusion:
Collusion occurs when two persons or representatives of an entity or organization 

make an agreement to deceive or mislead another. 

Such agreements are usually secretive, and involve fraud 

or gaining an unfair advantage over a third party, competitors, consumers 

or others with whom they are negotiating.

Don’t look now, pal, but that’s a line you crossed long ago!

I also can’t help but wonder WHAT incriminating evidence Russia has on him.
I’m convinced it’s not merely a pee-pee tape;

that simply wouldn’t be enough to explain why he’s willing to commit treason.  

The whack ado base of his would certainly excuse a tape of ‘golden showers’; 

they’ve excused every sexual peccadillo he’s shown so far. 

No, we’re still missing WHY he’s such a willing Russian asset.

I know I’ve said for over 2 years 

that I believe he’s been laundering money for the Russian mafia – 

and I still believe that. 

I think it’s the basis of his financial ‘empire’; 

without the Russians, his crooked house of cards crumbles. 

But even THAT isn’t enough to explain the fear, 

the abject prostrating himself to Putin that we saw this week.

It’s either a ‘snuff film’, child porn, incest 

or one of his kids participating in any of the above.

I almost hope he’s doing it to protect one of his kids.
At least that would give a glimpse

that he’s capable of loving someone else more than himself 

Oh, who am I kidding?
THAT’S not it.

4th of July

The flag was weaponized for me back in the 60's.

The whole "My country, love it or leave it",

was wrapped in a flag and hurled at anyone who disagreed 

with an immoral war in Southeast Asia;

it changed my perception of this symbol forever.

It's the prime reason why I haven't enjoyed the 4th of July

since then.

It's especially hard 

when your government has kidnapped children and is holding them hostage.

I live in a small town;

one that celebrates the day with a parade, carnival 

and elevating all the virtues of living in a primarily white bubble to a high art.

And, at the risk of being run out of town, I hate it.

Instead of focusing on all that's hypocritical and objectionable about this day,

I'll focus instead on the March for Families that occurred this past weekend.

It felt fabulous to take a stand

and say, "Hell No; not in my name.

The government may NOT kidnap infants and children from their parents

and send them across the country in some bizarre flexing of patriotic muscle."

It was nice to be part of 'the tribe' again.

I was proud to represent with a friend from work.

If only it hadn't been 100 degrees!

I was doing alright until 3 hours in ...

then I had to find a tree, some shade and take a break

until the stars started to clear.

It was a great morning.

Lady Liberty may be down

but she'll be back!

#wherearethechildren?

The first 34 years of my career were spent on the front lines of child abuse in a pediatric hospital.

 I covered both the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) and the Emergency room.

I was frequently the first person to whom a child disclosed abuse.

I've seen the range of expression a child's pain can take -

from being rendered incoherent with inarticulate moans and whimpers 

to being completely shut down emotionally, 

with clinically detached renditions of horrendous abuse

with absolutely no corresponding emotional expressions 

to match the details being provided.

For the past 3 years, I've coordinated a clinic for children in foster care; 

a clinic which tracks and follows children as they traverse the maze of the foster care system, 

with its multiple placements, ever changing caseworkers and hit or miss health care

.

In the 3 years the clinic has been in operation, we've seen over 1600 children. 

Because children enter foster care at a faster rate than they leave, 

we're still following almost 1200 and the numbers continue to rise.

Trust me, 

I know exactly how complicated a task it can be to follow children in foster care - 

and it's complicated even when the vast majority of children, staff and alternative caregivers 

speak the same language; 

its complicated even with licensing guidelines, inspection and oversight 

established for the facilities 

and caregivers entrusted with caring for these children.

It doesn't begin to cover the difficulties of monitoring secret shelters, 

shut off from regulations and monitoring by recognized child protection agencies.

What are the staff/child ratios?

Have all the providers had background checks

 to make sure staff caring for these kids at secret facilities don't have child abuse convictions?

Have these kids received medical care?

Are they getting mental health assessments?

Did someone speak to their parents long enough to obtain past medical histories?

I have seen first hand the toll that separation from biological families 

takes on a child's psyche and their physical well being - 

even when they are removed for their own safety 

due to an imminent risk of harm from their parents. 

Children love their parents - 

even if that attachments comes with the potential of a life threatening event.

All that past work experience and knowledge 

makes the situation playing itself out on our southern border 

feel like a sucker punch to the gut; 

it leaves me sick and breathless.

There's a sense of urgency to act - to do something -

to mitigate the damage being done to these children 

because I KNOW that this administration is inflicting lifelong damage 

under the guise of keeping us safe.

I don't need to be protected from a 2yr old child, a breastfeeding infant or even a 10 yr old.

(And for the love of God, can someone shut the President up when talking about MS13?

It's NOT a Mexican gang. It started in the 1980's in Los Angeles - and it is still smaller than the Crips, the Bloods and the Latin Kings. Of the hundreds of thousands of 'unaccompanied minors' coming  to the US since 2012, only 56 have been suspected of being tied, in any way, to MS13.)

The medical community has known for decades the impact of adverse childhood experiences 
upon a child's developing brain and body. 

Kaiser Permanente has developed and field tested a conceptual framework of measuring and quantifying the cumulative effect of childhood trauma.

 (Anyone interested in knowing more can go the the Center for Disease Control website 

and look at the ACES study).

Long story short - 

our government is doing irreparable damage to children - 

and this damage will last a lifetime.

I used to have a recurring nightmare that I had 'cleared' some child to go home from the ED

only to have that child re-victimized, raped or murdered 

by the same people to whom I released him/her. 

That nightmare has now been supplanted by the vision of a young, pre-verbal child

who, after weeks or months of traveling at night under harrowing conditions, 

with no consistent routine of sleeping and eating, 

arrives in a strange place, 

where no one speaks in a language they can understand, 

being torn away from their parents, 

placed in a cage where they are surrounded by other children 

screaming and crying 

or curled up silently in a fetal position; 

with no one smiling, touching, comforting or offering any type of solace.

What kind of world are we living in?

How can we allow this to go on in our name?

How is the government allowed to kidnap over 2000 children?

How are they allowed to transport them across state lines without parental consent?

It's human trafficking.

It's abduction.
It's state sponsored child abuse.

 It is morally reprehensible.

I don't understand why everyone isn't shouting on a daily basis.

#wherearethechildren?

Life goes on ...

despite all the political nonsense which can consume any given day,

life goes on.

The endless cycle of working, talking to loved ones,

planning visits, enjoying beauty, meeting friends for dinner,

as well as the general upkeep that goes along with aging -

going to the doctors, taking medication, 

getting xrays, going to physical therapy,

paying bills, 

calling the tree man when a huge branch of your giant pin oak 

threatens to come crashing down on a neighbors house ...

oh wait, maybe that's just me.

I've been doing all the usual, 

as well as taking my first trip of the summer back to Rosebud;

 working for a week with friends 

who are committed to being present and being of service;

learning from people whose lives have been so different from ours

and yet, in every respect that matters, exactly the same.

It's a long way there

but the drive gives me plenty of time to reflect and look back

while moving forward ...

a fine way to pass the time.

I appreciate that folks on either coast think of this as 'flyover land'.

Frankly, they don't know what they're missing.

 I see beauty, 

no matter what the view.

 The sky is as much a part of the topography out there as any 'land feature'.

I could spend hours watching different cloud formations and fronts move through.

Admit it.

You don't exactly think 'water falls' when you think of Nebraska.

(to give you an idea of scale).

It wasn't all a walk in nature.

We did some building.

 We entertained royalty.

 Little Miss Rodeo.

We listened to our Elders.

 

We looked for beauty in the simple things.

 We did some deconstructing.

 It was, as usual, a great week.

Can't wait to go back in August!

Although, home has its attractions too.

 18 months, 

going on 5!

Spit it out

Before going on about where I've been and where I'm going next,

I'm gonna have to just lay it out on the table;

otherwise it's ignoring the elephant in the room.

I do it as much to remind myself as to remind any of you ...

 what we're experiencing in our national life is not normal.

~~~~~

It is not normal for the government to kidnap over 2000 indigenous children

and hide them in secret 'shelters' spread across the country,

with no plans whatsoever to reunite them with their families.

Yes, I suspect I know, more than most, that it's been done before;

when Native children were sent to boarding schools that were designed

"to kill the Indian in order to save the child".

(A cup that was found among my great grandmothers possessions when she died in 1958)

The fact that evil was previously done in our name

in no way mitigates the pain and horror of it being done again.

We're supposed to be evolving, people;

not giving in to our basest instincts and fears.

~~~~~

It is not normal to have a leader with co-morbid conditions of

 malignant narcissism, pathological inability to tell the truth and galloping capriciousness.

~~~~~
 It is not normal for said leader to create and provoke an international crisis
with an equally insecure, immature and stunted political leader
with nuclear weapons

 and then expect prizes when a staged photo op reportedly 'ends'
all the trash talk.
~~~~~

It is not normal that we have a First Lady who blatantly admits not caring 

about her role or any interest beyond her own family.

As disturbing as it is,

some of us wish her husband would be equally as honest.

 ~~~~~

 It is not normal to have a government
that steals money from the majority of its citizens

 in order to benefit the 1%.

~~~~~

It is not normal for the government to propose abolishing child labor laws

and combining the Departments of Education and Labor.

~~~~~

Maybe I should clarify;

it is not normal for a functioning, participatory democracy 

to have any of those conditions;

it's perfectly consistent, however, for a declining democracy
that is rapidly sinking into a fascist state.

~~~~~

It is not normal to have so many citizens

blinded by what's happening in our country.

It is not normal to feel such despair about the irreversible damage
being done to our country and the people who inhabit it,
the ones who are woke
and the ones who are not.

Nothing about our current national life is 'normal' in any sense of the word.