“We have met the enemy and he is us.”
lasarina stumbled upon a reference to Pogo and the famous poster by Walt Kelley today. The phrase entered the American lexicon as a result of that 1970 Earth Day poster. It applies in so many other ways now though. Global warming, erosion of civil rights, loss of species and habitat, inadequate medical care system, sanctioned torture. In so many ways, we truly are our own worst enemies. We want to blame our government, but too soon we forget that we are that government.
I have said it before. “You get the government you deserve.” I tend not to apply this to myself as often as I should. Yes, there are those who would subvert the process in order to further the protection of their corporate oligarchy. But we don’t get what we say we want in this nation for one simple reason. We don’t participate in the process. We sit back and watch it and we bemoan the state of the world and of this nation.
This time, we really can effect change, if we get off our collective buttocks and do something. Talk to someone whose beliefs are different than yours. Be informed about the candidates running for office where you live. Know where they stand on issues that matter to you. And if your choice gets elected, don’t go back to sleep. Stay on top of what he or she is doing. If they don’t, make sure that whomever was elected hears from you on things that matter to you. That’s the way the system works. That’s the only way the system will work.
I will not live in fear.
I will vote my conscience.
An Aging Trans Woman 
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