Do You Trust Politicians?

Do you trust politicians? 

I can’t help but smile when I type that title, and no, it’s not a rhetorical question.  Although it seems almost painfully clear what 99% of people would say: “FUCK NO!” or some variation of that. 

Politician is synonymous with cheater, liar, deceiver, and all sorts of expletives.  It is pretty common knowledge/belief that to get anywhere in politics who you know is more important than what you know. Greed is a powerful sickness and politicians will always protect themselves first.  But the government works for us, remember?  It is time we have a government that represents the needs and wants of the people, of the 99% who have been ignored for far too long. 

If you disagree, and you respect and admire our politicians and feel that they are representing you fairly then you should stay home this Saturday. If you don’t care that gay people are denied the same rights as straight people then you should stay home.  If you don’t care that political money and corporate corruption stand in the way of cheap, clean energy then you should stay home.  If you don’t care that our teachers make shit for money and the educational system is failing our children, then please stay home.  If you don’t care that people you love are losing jobs and homes with no hope in sight, stay home.  If you don’t care about the mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, sisters, and brothers who have died in a war with no clear purpose and no clear end, then stay home on Saturday, I beg you.

 If you are like me and you are disgusted by the corruption and saddened by the hopelessness you see in our government and the politicians that run this state and country then you should be part of Occupy Phoenix this Saturday, October 15 at 12:00pm in Cesar Chavez Plaza (or whatever local protests currently happening in your state!) .

I hope you all consider going.  I hope you invite your friends, family, coworkers, churches, knitting club, biker gang to come together in love and peace as we demonstrate our hope for the idealization of the promises America has made us:  a chance at equality and fairness, truth and honesty.  I hope we can witness the strength of people positively united against a force bigger than ourselves.  We are only strong when we have each other; the beauty of America is that all of us are important; each and every one of us is a unique and necessary piece to the puzzle.  This is our country, our home; be proud and cherish your right to stand up for the things you believe.   

We are at a crossroads in America; it has been a tumultuous ten years and for our generation, this is the defining moment.  We have lived our adolescence through a dubious war and an economic depression.  We have graduated from colleges with worthless diplomas and incalculable loans.  We have witnessed the first real gain in diversity to the Presidential Office in our lifetime and subsequently the grade-school style bullying and stubbornness from the opposition.  Party lines continue to be unbending, continue to divide, but one thing the people have in common is that we are underserved, underrepresented, and unhappy.  I urge any of you who think this is a “left” movement to ask yourself if it matters. This is an American movement, for an America that is true to its democracy and the rights of all its’ people. 

My Grandma told me the other night that she would be out there this Saturday if she was younger.  Now, my Grandma is really fucking cool but I doubt that she’s the only senior citizen out there who feels disgust at our government.  They have seen this country through World War II and the Great Depression; they know what it’s like to fight and to suffer.  They witnessed Jim Crow Laws and the Civil Rights Movement. They have seen the birth and death of the American dream, the rise and fall of the American government.  So for my Grandma, the world, and the future of our existence I will be joining Occupy Phoenix this weekend and I hope to see you there.