Written in Crayon

I don’t remember getting into trouble very often from my Mom & Dad. A few occasions stand out it my mind. I am sure it probably happened much more frequently than I remember. I’ve always been one of those people that buzz around the room a lot. I bet I was this way when I was little too.

But here is one I remember clearly. I was most likely in the 1st or 2nd Grade. My friend “Anja” (whose name has been changed for the sake of anonymity) and I were sitting at the Dining Room table. We were drawing, with Crayons.

She said to me, “Let me show you how to make a Swastika. You will love these. They are from Germany. My brother showed me these.”

She then pulled out a black crayon. She made one squared off “S” and then crossed it backward with another. “Do it again!” I said in wonder. She did. We did. I practiced them until my method was near perfect. “Now,” she continued, “Draw a big red circle, then a big red square, and fill it in.” She did. We did. I followed her cues, and without asking one question. I had no idea what these were. Not really. But I was making a page full of Nazi Flags. Swastikas.

My Dad walked through the Dining Room and asked how we were doing. He glanced over at our work, and stopped dead in his tracks. He picked up my paper, pointed at the Nazi Flags, at the Swastikas. He gave me a look that I will never forget, and then he spoke with a forcefulness in his voice. I had never heard that voice before. “Never. Never draw this again.” He folded over our papers and took them out of the room. My Father, a WWII Veteran, who served on the European Front.

This story came back to me this morning, because of our present. I’ll probably lose a lot of readers over this, but I feel I owe this due diligence.

I look around this country. And I see what is happening. People are not sitting with crayons, drawing swastikas, but they might as well be. The propaganda and the lies are spreading in much the same way.

Many people I know are cheering on everything Donald Trump is doing, including the potential nomination of a conservative Supreme Court Judge, saying it will be one who will “Uphold the Constitution.”

I disagree with their praises. They are hoping for a judge who will uphold THEIR religious beliefs — and not the Freedoms designated by our Constitution. These people wish for a white, Christian-religious, heterosexual America. And. Their main man is promising them these things.

Yet. The majority of America is crying out for them to stop the madness. But they don’t have to. Those Republicans in Congress can bulldoze over anything. They have the votes and the control.

But Mr. Trump, who lost the popular vote by nearly 3 million people, whose approval rating is at 40%, THAT Mr. Trump, is giving a false picture. In the real world, the big money and corporations will benefit the most, and the lowly-flag-waving-worker gets lowlier, and has less. We all will have less, including our Right to be Equals.

They are drawing with crayons. Signs of bigotry and discrimination.

Happy Independence Day.

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“Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves.” Abraham Lincoln.

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“The urge to save humanity is almost always a false face for the urge to rule it.” H.L. Mencken.

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“America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.” Abraham Lincoln

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