NICE GUYS FINISH LAST

 

A series of essays….

ALLOW YOUR BETTER SELF TO STOKE A FIRE IN YOUR BELLY!
IT’S THE FORCE BEHIND THE ACTIONS THAT SHAPE YOUR FUTURE.

….as seen through my eyes!

By: Jacqueline E Hughes

I wasn’t going to go here this soon since finding my happy place in writing about my childhood, grandchildren, friends, and trips taken—

Sitting here, fingers poised over the keyboard while gently directing my mind to be kind, gentle, and polite when the proverb “Nice guys always finish last,” comes to mind. People who are decent, friendly, and agreeable tend to be unsuccessful because they are outmaneuvered or overwhelmed by others who are not so decent, friendly, or agreeable. Am I ringing any bells here, people?

Being nice and decent and friendly might get us into heaven, or whatever space our souls might occupy after we discontinue walking this planet. It’s about time, politically speaking, that we ‘decent folk’ begin thinking more in terms of successfully challenging the “basket of deplorables” who have cajoled, outwitted, outmaneuvered, and overwhelmed us for years and years. Many of these deplorables happen to hold elected office in Washington D.C. and throughout the states!!

Yes, Hillary had named them properly several years ago during her presidential campaign speech and while attempting to fend off the immature creature who stalked her on the debate floor.

When a constitutional law that has set a precedence for the good of fifty percent of the population, Roe v. Wade, is overturned after a half a century of existence, it is safe to say that we, as a nation, have been successfully outmaneuvered and openly overwhelmed! Even though, the entire time he was stacking the Supreme Court with judges of a similar drumpf mind-set, he was, legitimately, telling us about his plans (the republican agenda) to take away a woman’s control over her own body!

Drumpf knew he could get away with murder and line his pockets with gold at the same time by inciting chaos while fueling the fear of Americans who feel unaccounted for, as well as those whose skin color, alone, makes them feel superior over all others. Taking his cues from oppressive dictatorships, past and present, and grasping a long-term republican plan dating back to, at least, the Reagan years, this Putin puppet continues to play his people to this very day.

Shall I bring up gerrymandering (long-term manipulation of voting districts), disallowing a sitting president to fill a vacant SCOTUS seat while having almost one year left in his term of office, or having the republican leader of the Senate literally dictate his venomous beliefs via his blatant lack of action for years? The vermin continue to skitter through the cracks in the form of nasty, gun toting women politicians, as well as seasoned male politicians who have been bought and sold so many times over the years that they are lucky to remember where their precious blood money is currently stashed.

If you feel like the stars above have not been aligning for those of us who are liberal minded and treasure the idea of helping others in as many ways as possible, you are not alone. What does it take to light that fire in our bellies? Is it possible to do so while maintaining our decency and not slipping down into the greed-slickened chutes of personal payoffs with the likes of Manchin and Sinema who refuse the ladders of hope offered to them by the current administration? 

I believe we can make a difference; short and simple. But we have to want it badly enough and be willing to break through the stigma of nice guy and not be overwhelmed by the people leading us back into time by erasing freedom and democracy from our lives through manipulation. For far too long, we have been nice guys getting pummeled by the not so decent guys. 

Without the intention of going down the slippery slope ourselves, it’s time we make a generous tactical maneuver of our own. Let’s begin with dry kindling and graduate up to small branches until the burning of larger logs eventually ignites our desire to get things done. Only then we will allow great changes to happen. We can’t afford to dilly-dally any longer; we need to take action, now!

If we don’t let our voices be heard, loud and clear, or allow our actions to be felt and fully comprehended—consistently—we will continue to slip down the rabbit hole of disgrace without an outlet or resolution of any kind. We’ve played the nice guy card long enough. It’s about time we spread our wings and get down to business. 

Just as the abortion card began with mild restrictions until having an abortion will soon become punishable by their own conservative laws, demeaning women in so many ways, liberals must advance, step by step, until all assault weapons, including the AR-15, are eliminated for private use. Until mass murders become history and the lives of those we love become more important than the guns that can kill them, the reason for fighting to stop their sale should hit all of us long and hard. This concept alone should have given us a stronger resolve, invincible backbone, and helped to save many innocent lives. Where have our strong liberal selves been hiding all of this time? We can do anything, together!

If enough voices are raised in unison, with one mindset and goal, the strength of this action alone would change the world. There is strength in numbers. We’ve done it before; we can do it again and again. But, as I’ve mentioned before, we have to want it badly enough. That fire in our bellies must be stoked by good intentions, true, but also continue to fuel the action needed to make important changes. We must never lose sight of our freedoms. We cannot allow democracy to slide down that greed-slickened chute along with the slimy creatures willing to breach our democracy for their own ill gotten gains.

Let’s stop the forward motion of hatred and strife, ethnic and civil, and redirect this energy to do good rather than evil. Let’s concentrate on making the world a better place for all of the people instead of the few who continue to use their elected powers to brainwash those who would rather work to disrupt the Establishment instead of working with it for the betterment of all.

Without shedding the nice guy approach altogether, (after all, why would we eliminate our own innate capacity to love?), let’s find the resolve to be stronger, more organized, and highly successful this time around. As a small child actually desires structure, discipline, and love in order to survive and grow stronger, the adult versions of ourselves must approach today as a brand new opportunity to decipher right from wrong and work like hell to apply it towards keeping democracy the practice of social equality by and for the people of this great nation.

Don’t you think it’s time; before it’s too late?

Copyright © 2022 by Jacqueline E Hughes

All rights reserved

BE COURAGEOUS: VOTE IN 2020...DEMOCRACY DEPENDS ON IT!

 A series of essays....

                          Courtesy of Wikipedia

....as seen through my eyes!

By: Jacqueline E Hughes

Struggling quite a bit in placing the right words down on the i-Pad screen this morning. Yes, my writing Blog means that much to me. It defines who I am as a person; my soul is exposed for all to see every Thursday morning. Whether I am talking about family, friends, a certain chapter in my particular book of travels, sharing a poem I’ve written, creating characters (Coffeehouse Chatter series) who explain life over a cup of coffee, or delving into current politics (the steam of my passion not always reflected in the final product ~ with good reason), I am always grateful for this opportunity to express myself by baring my soul to those I know and those of you I may never meet in person in my lifetime. I will always be eternally grateful that you are out there and reading what I have to say each week and sharing it with others. I appreciate each one of you!

One of the most important things Dan and I ever asked of our daughters throughout their lives was to always tell (us) the truth; and, believe it or not, the truth will set you free! There’s something so sweet and simple about never having to second guess what you’ve verbalized or written to others. It’s easier to recall the truth than to recall any lie you may have used to distract you from the truth. I’d like to think we taught them the values of right and wrong, the value of being an honest and tactful individual. 

Is being tactful and diplomatic overrated?  Especially when it comes down to dealing with people who lie and cheat to keep their Senate seat?  

I'd like to think that I am an honest person, writer, who wouldn’t rewrite another’s exact words without giving them credit for them. A person who wouldn’t use someone else’s photograph without extending them the 'courtesy' of using it. I do stand by my principles. I do believe it is far easier to be honest and tell the truth than to cover it up by applying untruths. In other words, I can recognize right from wrong. I have a conscience.

My conscience is what is making me hold back on my words  right now; inhibiting me from exploding, spewing, regurgitating the depths of my emotions onto this screen. Too weary of listening to the lies and horrendous, deceitful ideals to shut-down my conscious mind and allow myself the simple joy of a good night’s rest. So afraid that I will crossover the line of discretion and enter the world of hate and evil, the likes of which my parents taught me to avoid; what the instructional nuns at Catholic school would describe as sins to be confessed to our parish priest. 

Country before Party is a rare commodity these days. A nation that was originally based upon the principles of ‘by the people and for the people’ is now applying the blatant lies of this president as the ‘truth and nothing but the truth’ he desires us to endear, hold sacred, and live by. 

Each one of us has entered the distorted world of government and politics that has been skewed well beyond recognition...whether we acknowledge it or not. So far, we are survivors of a plan to completely shut-down what has been and was good for everyone only to be replaced by the greed of a dictatorship where a handful of people benefit from laws, funding, and the prospects of never having to worry about anyone other than themselves. 

We are being, slowly, absorbed within a long term plan that has eclipsed the cautionary political lies usually kept behind closed doors and given the permission to shoot someone on any street, in a school, theater, night club, or church anywhere in the United States.  And the founders of this plan are doing their damndest to make certain there is nothing we can do about it! 

Profiles In Courage, a book written in 1956 by Senator John F. Kennedy who won the Pulitzer Prize for this work, has been mentioned often during the past few weeks, and with good reason. The book is a volume of short biographies describing acts of bravery and integrity (may I stress this word?) by eight United States Senators who defied the opinions of their party and constituents to do what they felt was right and suffered severe criticism and losses in popularity because of their actions. 

Profile in Courage: Senator Doug Jones, "Simply a matter of right and wrong."  (D) Alabama

Profile in Courage: Senator Mitt Romney for voting with moral courage and finding the president guilty of abuse of power. (R) Utah

One could argue that each of today’s GOP senators must love themselves very much, even to the point of believing that what they do today is correct, righteous, with implications that they are born leaders with great integrity! I certainly hope so because there are many who have a long, long life ahead of them and it would be a shame if their own conscience ever stepped in to drive them insane with personal guilt and regrets. If and when that happens, it will be too late to protect the beloved country they represent as servants of the people who elected them in the first place.

With fingers hovering over black keys painted with white punctuation marks and capital letters, a standard English keyboard that has become a dear friend to me throughout the years, I know I will read and then reread the words above many times before clicking the orange ‘publish’ button on Thursday morning. Because I care. I care enough to tell the sad stories of corrupt politics as much as I care about the happier stories of travel, poetry, and identifiable characters sipping a caffe latte; a mixed bag of information designed around genuine honesty and often laced with hope and love.

It’s curious how the page before me is a reverse version of my trusty keyboard. Almost as though, after being typed, my words are rapidly pulled inside-out with black letters etched upon a white backdrop. This accurately describes my gut feelings today with one burning question inside: Will right  overcome wrong in the Senate and, if not, will there be enough time to recoup our many losses under the nefarious influences of the most corrupt administration our country has every encountered? 

I know there are a lot of good people out there. I say we continue to fill the streets with our physical disapproval, placards held up high with pride, and express our rights as citizens, taxpayers, and everyone who has or knows someone’s grandchild and worries about their future. Nancy Pelosi understood when she ripped-up a speech filled with distasteful untruths! Adam Schiff understood when he exposed his heart on his sleeve each time he spoke during the impeachment hearing and trial. And, each senator understands as he or she disavows their oath of office and beliefs in the Constitution when they decide NOT to impeach this president.

Make it a priority to go out and VOTE in 2020!!! Vote as if your life depended upon it because, it does. Never doubt that your vote will make a difference.

Well, I held my tongue (negativity) as best I could without losing my sense of graciousness towards myself, as well as you, my dear readers. I will always pledge to honor those who unselfishly care about our country and honor her people of all colors, nationalities, and religions. We must remain a melting-pot of ideas that come together in order to enrich and strengthen this land we love so much.

Copyright © 2020 by Jacqueline E Hughes

All rights reserved