It's not just for drugs any more

I have been enormously impressed by the Badlands National Park.  Have you been following this story?  My source is Scientific American, which I consider reputable.  Incidentally, my sister Pat and I have spent many happy days at Badlands National Park in South Dakota.  One of the trails we regularly hiked is marked by metal stakes in the ground, maybe 4' high (I'm bad at judging such things) with red paint on the top few inches.  Stand by a stake and sight the next one, walk to it and sight the next one.  I was used to trails you followed because they were beaten dirt in the midst of undergrowth and stuff.  The Badlands are really fascinating.

ANYWAY . . . One of the first things the Trump administration has done is to shut down scientific public communications. The National Park Service was ordered not to tweet.  The EPA was not only prohibited from using social media but required to remove a page on climate change from its website.  Grants and contracting were frozen.  The USDA was silent for several days.  While the main Twitter feed of the National Park Service followed orders, Badlands National Park started tweeting climate change statistics, 140 characters at a time.  Here's a screenshot of some of them:

If I'm not mistaken, they started sending out these tweets on January 24.  That afternoon, everything was erased.  However, a new account called AltUSNatParkService was created.  Here was their stated reason for existing:

(I believe credit for these screen shots goes to Dana Hunter.  Good job, Dana!)

See, the thing is, sometimes you have to Just Say No.  When "they" tell you you have to do something, or you're not allowed to do something, sometimes you have to Just Say No.  Let's not beat around the bush -- that can get you into big trouble.  But somehow I feel if the folks at Badlands should lose their jobs, or the ones behind AltUSNatParkService are found out and punished, they'll feel that it was worth it.  The truth needs to be spoken.  Lies need to be exposed.  And simply giving in to bad orders gives too much power to the bad order givers.  Sometimes you have to Just Say No.

In 1846, Henry David Thoreau was jailed for not paying his poll tax.  He was visited in jail by Ralph Waldo Emerson.  Emerson said, "Henry, what are you doing in there?"  Thoreau responded, "Ralph, what are you doing out there?"  Disobedience is sometimes called for.  Disobedience in order to stand up for the truth and refuse to legitimize tyranny is not unpatriotic.

Sometimes the genuine patriot needs to Just Say No.

Women's March

The reason I reconceptualized this blog was feeling so cut off from events in the U.S., helpless to do anything about anything.  So, as so many people I know were preparing to march in Washington or closer to home, here I sat again, unable to participate.

WELL . . . Sarah of the Jubilee House suddenly up and decided yesterday that she needed to be a presence today outside the U.S. embassy in Managua.  Did anybody want to go with her?  Most of us from Jubilee House wanted to, including both Kathleen's mother and Becca's mother, our long-term volunteer Grace, and four Nicaraguan women from our personnel staff.  Sarah, Grace, and Becca sent out announcements on a couple of lists they belong to.

And this morning, on less than 24-hour notice, we had a group of FIFTY PEOPLE standing outside the U.S. embassy with signs of solidarity and protest.  Mostly women, but an impressive number of men, one of whom had a sign that said, "Real men are feminists."  Mostly folks from the U.S., but a good representation of Nicaraguans as well.  A number of children (our two Jubilee House children included, of course), the littlest of whom had a sign that said, "Be tolerant of unicorns and all living beings."  Saturday morning -- there probably weren't very many people in the actual embassy to notice us.  But we held up our signs for passing vehicles, and when a driver tooted her or his support, we sent back a rousing cheer.

It was really nice to feel part of a group of people, all come together to say "no" to our nightmare visions of what the Trump administration could be and "yes" to unity, respect, and solidarity.

The media showed up and took pictures and interviewed as many people as they could.  I translated for Peggy, Kathleen's mom, who was there in her wheelchair.  She avowed that when people were equal, things went better.  The reporter then asked me why I was there.  I said, "I'm afraid of what might happen in the Trump administration.  So I'm here to express . . . " and then since I was speaking Spanish, I concluded, "el pueblo unido jamas sera vencido."  Which means a united people can never be defeated.  The reporter gave me a huge smile for that one.

Here's a picture.  I am the tubby little woman with the red shirt and long blue and white skirt.  Many people were wearing pink (one woman had even improvised herself a pussy hat), but I decided red-white-and-blue was the way to go for this one.

And all because Sarah up and decided to go.  Puts me in mind of Margaret Meade's famous quote:  Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.

P.S.  A friend of mine tried to comment on my last entry, and her comments kept vanishing.  If anybody else has the same experience or a different one, let me know.  I can't see anything amiss in my settings.  Thanks!

Inauguration Day

I've been thinking for days that as the inauguration came nearer I really should write an entry to this blog.  I've been too depressed to come up with anything to say.  For weeks in our community worship time when invited to share good things with each other, I've said, "Trump isn't President yet."  I can't say that anymore.

Together with many other Americans, I refused to watch the inauguration as it was happening.  I did, however, read the text of the inaugural address.  [It's going to take me a while to be able to use the phrase "President Trump" in a sentence -- as in "President Trump's address."]

I was, actually, amazed.  If I hadn't known whose speech it was, I might not have guessed Donald Trump.  I agree with almost 100% of the things he said.  And although I didn't agree with all of them, he invited me to dialogue honestly about disagreements.

If the man who is about to take the reins of government turns out to be faithful to the words expressed in this speech, I will happily be able to speak about President Trump.

Perhaps cynically, I have a hard time understanding how a millionaire is going to represent the millions of people suffering from the hardships of stagnant local economies and generations of inner-city poverty.  I have a hard time understanding how our educational system is going to be improved for our beautiful youth if Trump's nominee for Secretary of Education doesn't think the federal government should support education for students with special needs.  I'm not even sure how the planet is going to survive if the Secretary of Energy and the head of the EPA don't believe in climate change.  To be honest, I don't have a lot more hope than I had yesterday.

But, you know, maybe I do have a LITTLE bit of hope.  Maybe he does believe those things he said, and maybe he will try to act on them.  If yesterday I had no hope at all and today I have a little bit, that's an infinite improvement, isn't it?

I'm still going to join our local Women's March tomorrow in Managua, Nicaragua.  Whether Trump really intends to govern as he said, or whether it's just more political you-know-what, we -- the people -- need to hold him accountable for the general welfare.