the old man across the street

Justin Bieber is worth 265 million dollars. Queen Elizabeth is married to her cousin and has been for 70 years. America has endured its first attempted coupe of an elected president. Kanye West writes a blistering song about gold diggers then marries Kim Kardashian. School superintendents fight for the right of boys to follow girls into the bathrooms at school. Cher believes her daughter is her son.   Our grandparents and great grandparents living in nursing homes are taken from us by a virus forced on them by those entrusted to protect them, and us. Hate and violence, rioting, looting, and arson are now an acceptable form of "peaceful protesting," and defending the rule of law and order is now"racist." As America learns what happened in the weeks and months prior to our last presidential election, a member of the most corrupt administration this country has ever seen, a man who doesn't know his sister from his wife, is now running for president.

        

A pandemic has enveloped the world and changed the lives of every human being on earth but only black lives matter. Religion and guns are bad but bad people are victims. White is racist, words are racist, civility and law-abiding behavior are racist, corporations who don't hire and promote one race over another is now racist, history and statues are racist, an opposing viewpoint is racist, to express an opposing viewpoint is unthinkable and will not be tolerated, this post must now be racist, the American flag is racist and standing for the national anthem is abhorrent and racist, anything and everything that anyone finds offensive is racist, America itself, it's ideals and values and unlimited possibilities for all that most of the world can only dream about, all racist. We hold all these things to be true because those who are actually racist who are actively involved in tearing America down are demanding we believe in their lunacy diatribes or they will beat you to death with clubs or fists, throw human feces in your face, ransack and burn down your business or home and destroy your life. While the entire world watches in disbelief that this could even happen in America, the one beacon of hope for everyone on earth can be taken to its knees by a radicalized Marxist mob lead by democrats who are about to take power over every word you are allowed to speak, every thought you are allowed to think, your money, your business, and your future. 

Cities have fallen, states, people who you would never think could ever fall for anarchy in our streets at the hands of vermin who are beyond reach are kneeling before the mobs literally. Law enforcement, police chiefs, mayors, the military, some of your friends, and family members, those who grew up in an imperfect but God-fearing beautiful country have devolved into supporting a radicalized socialist ideology that in 3 short months is going to rule their lives.

And the old man across the street hangs his head in shame and disgust after living long enough to have lost some of his physical abilities and had to watch as some of the most precious loves of his life pass away, and now his country is dying too.

There appears to be just one man and a very few others mostly silenced and in fear standing between the greatest country in the world despite its flaws, and the full-blown hell of socialism.  That man has been paid for trying to stave off where we are headed while being crucified for his awkward audacity to put America and Americans in the crosshairs of prosperity, justice, and opportunity for all. 

My belief is that God has a plan for everyone and everything. There are no coincidences and luck is that which comes from following his plan, and not yours. The losses the old man across the street has suffered have brought him to this place where he can't do all the things he used to do but he can still try each day he is still here to find a reason to smile and maybe find something to look forward to. He would tell you those brighter tomorrows are still possible even when faced with hardship and heartache beyond measure but not for those who have a hand in evil. 

The use of hatred to fight perceived hate is just more hate and all life matters isn't a political statement or a slogan used and painted on streets to appease a domestic terrorist organization. The old man across the street tells me God's plan cannot be fulfilled for any of us while we are willingly consuming the hatred being shoved down our throats every day by those whose entire purpose is to foment that which is taking this society to a very dark place. He tells me to turn it off, log out, get it off your phone, don't watch the imagery on television, and refuse to buy into what you know to be political posturing to regain control of the lives and freedoms of 340 million of you and your money for power.

I've taken some of the old man's advice and still working on other parts. I took Twitter off my phone and stopped watching the news altogether. Went into Facebook and deleted everyone I actually knew from the "friend," list and re-populated that list only with people from the arts and photography world the old man said would probably be more satisfying and less stressful than all the group thinker back and forths until I get the point where I can delete all the ills of social media entirely. It's better now and I highly recommend the exercise of getting as far away from the ills of social media as possible. The old man is teaching me that spending less time wasted adds up in the end and the end comes soon enough-

the old man across the street