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Good Morning Tom, Sybil, and Jay.

Tom, before I get started today, I’d like to send some love and hope to Haiti for as you know yesterday was the one year anniversary of the devastating earthquake there…they remain in my thoughts and prayers…

Tom, make no mistake about it, the shooting outside an Arizona grocery store this past Saturday that seriously injured Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, killed six people, and wounded 13 others was a horrible manifestation of the bitter and ugly political times we live in…

As everyone knows by now, the assassination attempt by 22 year-old Jared Lee Loughner sent a bullet through Giffords’ brain, leaving her in critical condition, and also took the lives, among others, of U.S. District Judge John Roll, and 9 year-old Christina Green…

A 9 year-old girl, Tom, by all accounts, a smart and talented little girl who loved life, baseball, dancing and politics, and who attended the event because she had just been elected to the student council at her school and was interested in government…

Government and politics were actually activities she aspired to do… She genuinely believed that they were effective ways to change lives, make the world a better place and prevent the kind of violence that marked both her birth and her death…

You see, Christina was born on Sept. 11, 2001 – the infamous 9/11… In fact, she was proud that she was born on this date and felt that her birth in the midst of such tragedy provided “a note of hope…”

Sybil, there’s a quote you may have heard before that says, “Children are the living messages we send to a time we will not see.”

Well they most certainly are and the fact that there were numerous children across this country who were born on Sept 11, 2001 and on Saturday, January 8, 2011, shows not only that life and hope spring eternal, even amidst death and destruction, but that we have to look beyond our own turmoil to know and understand that our children are inheriting and reflecting the world we give them…

So I ask, what messages are we giving them? What messages did we give Christina Green…?

She was born, nine years ago, amidst the chaos created by international politics, and yet she wanted to engage in politics to try and eliminate the kind of vitriol and death that surrounded her birth…

And sadly, it looks as if political vitriol played a huge role in eliminating her young life…

As a society, what are we doing? At what point does enough become enough? Our networks and politicians spew unadulterated hate across the airwaves 24/7 and then we act as if this was unexpected?

And maybe this tragedy touched me so deeply because I thought of my own children and particularly of my son Trey just turned 10 (a day before this tragedy) and who also loves politics.  That there, but for the grace of God –it could have been him.

But I’m not just talking about any one child…I’m talking about all of our children who really just want a roof over their heads, food on their tables, and to know that someone loves them – unconditionally loves them.

And sadly, Tom, even though it took the loss of precious lives to do it, I’m praying that this tragedy may be a turning point in our society…

There are things we can do. As always, we can speak out against the type of political discourse that incites violence with ‘lists of targets’ and loosely-veiled assassination analogies…

Indeed, there is also an online petition being circulated by The Campaign for Community Change and MoveOn.org calling on every member of Congress, as well as the major TV and cable news networks, to “put an end to the hateful rhetoric and all overt or implied appeals to violence…”

You can go to MoveOn.org to sign the “debate not hate” petition…

But most importantly, we have to work to build our children a much better society than we have right now—so that we can give them messages of love and hope to carry into the future…

I’ll end today with a quote from a poet and Nobel Laureate said:

“Every child comes with the message that God is not yet discouraged of man.”

Until Next Time, this is Stephanie in Love and Hope.

admin Events, International Events Haiti

As you guys know, Last week my commentary focused on Haiti, and I want to begin by asking that we extend our love and support to the Haitian people as that country is recovering, yet again, from a natural disaster. Haiti’s tragedy comes right before Dr. Martin Luther King’s actual birthday, tomorrow January 15th, even though we celebrate the official holiday this Monday, the 19th…

Tom, I am so pleased that you’ll be in Haiti tomorrow, I know that we’ll all be listening.  We’ll also tune in on Monday as you host the MSNBC Townhall on Race.  I am soooo happy that you’re getting this important conversation started.…and I’ll be speaking this Monday morning to the MLK Support Group of South East Texas at the Bob Bowers Civic Center in Port Arthur Texas in celebration of the holiday…So if you’re in the area, stop in and see me… So, what would Dr. King say about all those suffering souls in Haiti?  First, he would encourage us to pray, pray, and pray even more.  Second, Dr. King might use this as an occasion for the country to re-examine its priorities.  Dr. King might remind us of the old metaphor used in macroeconomic theory: ‘Guns vs. Butter.’

We’ve all heard this in one form or another, but here’s how it works. The ‘Guns vs. Butter’ economic model teaches us about the relationship between investment in the military versus investment in goods and services to civilians. While it’s intended to be an over-simplification of national spending, the ‘Guns vs. Butter’ model teaches us that the more guns we buy, the less butter we have to feed the hungry. So countries have to make a choice.  Do we invest in guns, or do we invest in butter.

When catastrophic disasters occur, like the one in Haiti, the United States of America should be first in line to pour as many resources as needed to come to the aide of suffering people. But, as a country, we’re broke.   We’re broke because we are fighting two wars – still – with no real end in sight.  We’re broke because we have failed to invest in working class people, the backbone of our country.  We’re broke because we’ve chosen to buy guns, guns, and more guns, and little butter.  So, what would Dr. King say today?

Today, I think Dr. King would be rallying us on behalf of the poor and the disenfranchised, those hit hardest by our current economic hardship –disproportionately of color – who have lost homes, are struggling to feed children, or are lining the streets, the shelters and the soup kitchens of our country…

Today, Dr. King would be organizing on behalf of the uninsured and underinsured – disproportionately of color—who can’t afford much-needed prescriptions, who risk sharing medications with those unable to purchase them, or who are turned away from the emergency rooms in our country

Today, Dr. King would denounce America’s engagement in the international conflicts fought disproportionately by people of color in both Iraq AND Afghanistan, conflicts largely driven by corporate interests and a still-active military industrial complex…

Today, Dr. King would say that the country has a duty – indeed, a moral obligation – to provide relief to the thousands of families both here and in Haiti, who have lost people and who are affected by this earthquake.

Today, Dr. King would say that we should ‘study war no more’ and focus on people, suffering people, hungry people, displaced people, sick people, homeless people . . . .

…and today, here in 2010, as he did 50 years ago, I think Dr. King would be a fearless advocate and activist with his incredible brand of Love and Hope to inspire us — with the power of faith, the spirit of perseverance, and the fire of righteousness…

So today, as we celebrate King on what would be his 81st birthday, let us remember that his work is not done, and that Dr. King himself –in his soul-stirring voice– would remind us that “the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”

Until next time, this is Stephanie in Love and Hope.



admin Haiti Haiti, Martin Luther King