Friday, September 27, 2013

Oh, Americans, Americans

I have spent the last few hours trying to think about what I think about those in the Republican party who want to shut down our government. It's difficult for me to remind myself that these men (and women?) have been elected by the people. It's equally difficult for me to understand that, we the people, when told that our government has been shut down, are likely to simply rant a bit inside our own homes or places of work (if we still have places of work) - - and -- that's it. Mad at you all? Hell no, I'm mad at me. 

We came here. We came here with fire in our bellies. We came here with hope in our hearts. We came here with more courage than fear. We came here because it was better than there. We came here because we did not want to be oppressed. We came here because we were drug here. We came here because we had a vision.  We came here because we were hungry.  We came here because we wanted to make a living. We stayed here. We made a living, a big living.  We made a living, a little living.  We fed ourselves. A lot. We fed ourselves, a little. We more than met our vision. Our great-great-great grandparents came here. We became Americans.  We never met our vision. We were brought here by our parents.  We remained oppressed. We found a way to beat oppression. Americans, that's what we are. We elected people like us, other Americans, real Americans, to represent us. Represent. To be an authorized delegate or representative of.....us.  We believed the people we elected would have us in mind.

I have health care.  But if I didn't have health care, I would most deeply want the person I elected to represent me to find a way to procure for health care for my family and me. That's a good thing. That makes sense. Rich people all have health insurance. Middle-class people used to have mostly have health-insurance, but it's getting real dicey out there, and nobody knows where the line is between lower and middle class anywhere.Yeah, where is it? Nobody knows.  Can we find it? No. How come? Dunno. Somethin' real bad's happen' out there.

 Obama-Care. Is there anyone so out of it out there that they don't know why it is called "Obama-care?"  Does anybody not get that? Because it has to do with him. You know. Him. That black guy. Ohhhhhhbama-Care.  Yes sirree. We will shut down the government. We will shut down medical research. We will shut down payments to our soldiers. We will shut down..........(take your time, fill in the blanks, it's late here).......because we do not want bad extra stuff like affordable health care and not attached to uh-huh.

So I believe what they are  saying or at least feeling, on a symbolic or unconscious level, (those agents of shame, hatred and chaos, like Ted Cruise), is that they really and truly want to hurt (use whatever word you like here) Obama. There's a black man who's president of these United States of America and we hate him so much.

Oh, God. We Republicans hate him so much.

You can call me naive, you can call me a race-monger, you can call me late for class but it smells bad out there. Just now I remember once having seen a bit of film showing Carl Jung saying something like, "People will do anything, no matter how absurd, in order to avoid facing their own souls," and I think there's a whole lot of Republican soul-negation goin' on. Shame on  you, Ted Cruise. Face your soul.