If I concede that I have never walked in your shoes and faced the problems you have, will you concede that you have never walked in mine?
If I concede that you have the right to kneel in protest when the National Anthem is played will you concede that I have the right to stand and put my hat and hand over my heart?
One of my go to movies is "An American President". I don't necessarily agree or disagree with the politics of the movie, but there is a moment in there when the actor playing the part of the presidents says, "America isn't easy. America is advanced citizenship. You've got to want it bad, because it's gonna put up a fight."
The quote is longer, but you can look that up yourself. What I do know is that rights carry responsibilities, responsibilities to our country and each other. It doesn't matter if you are republican or democrat, or something else. We must stop the blame game. Our so called leaders in Washington are an absolute mess. The only thing they want to do is point fingers at each other and blame. And they do that for one reason, if the opponent looks bad enough they will look better. It is numbers and only numbers game. No solution, only blame.
Can we not rise above that and respect each other? Rioting and looting is not justifiable, but it points to deeper problems with our government. You know, the ones in Washington too busy blaming each other to do their jobs and protect the people of this country. We are better than that.
Author's Note: First published June 30, 2020 under the title "When I see the Flag."