Profile in Courage

Last week, as I breathed a sigh of relief following the departure of Greg Bovino and his goons, I got a message on my iphone telling me that “Trump just called for Mark Kelly’s execution.” Of course this was the lead to a request for money, and I deleted it immediately, wondering if it was a con job. Then, a few days later, I learned it was true.

As I hope you all know, Kelly was one of a brave group of democratic lawmakers who put together a video directed to our armed forces and intelligence community affirming their right and duty to follow the law. Their courage was rewarded by accusations of treason punishable by death, made by the President who seems insistent upon using our troops illegally.

The Trump administration has placed our military in a difficult if not impossible position by its warlike posturing toward our own citizens (as we Chicagoans know so well) and by escalating warlike behavior abroad in Venezuela where war has not been declared. In these circumstances, when push comes to shove, the military are the last barrier between dictatorship and democracy. The lawmakers who spoke out clearly understand that fact. Thank you to Senators Mark Kelly and Elissa Slotkin , and to Representatives Jason Crow, Maggie Goodlander, and Chrissy Houlahan, we are all in your debt for saying what needs to be said.

What strikes me the most about all of this is that I very well could have missed it this whole story – just another sound bite in a sea of soundbites. The outrageous things we hear about become noise that begs to be tuned out, and the messages we receive cry out to be deleted in order to preserve our own sanity. Unless you’re one of the lawmakers whose lives have been endangered by Presidential threats.

Here’s what he said on Truth Social: SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL….“Each one of these traitors to our Country should be ARRESTED AND PUT ON TRIAL. Their words cannot be allowed to stand — We won’t have a Country anymore!!! An example MUST BE SET… SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!”

Now you may say this is last week’s news. But that’s my point. Something this crazy and this dangerous should not be, should never be, last week’s news. If we let it be, then government of the people, by the people and for the people will be last week’s news, as well. We need- all of us- to speak up loudly in support of those who are taking the risk of speaking up for us.

“We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately”- Benjamin Franklin