Veterans Day 2020

Another Veterans Day (see my post of November 14, 2018). But not like any other in my lifetime, or yours I would bet. Still a day to remember all of those who risked everything to do what was asked of them and a good day to think about what is important, what we stand for, who we want to be. I am not naïve and tend to look at things with a fair dose of skepticism but say to those who chose to fuel the fire by lies, disinformation, venal self-interest, bullying, and cowardice that my father and millions of others like him fought for something better than that.

I am hopeful for a time when every day is not a crisis, a chaotic, undisciplined mess, when we can roll up our sleeves and address at least some of the serious issues we face. The pandemic, obviously, and our readiness to respond as a country, systemic racism, gender bias in all its forms, wealth inequality, the environment. Not to mention, among other things, jobs, healthcare, immigration reform, education, criminal justice reform. There is a lot of really hard work to do and we need to make the space to do it. I find it bizarre to have to say this, but I am also hopeful for a time when truth matters, when science matters, when respect and decency matter, when decisions are made not on a personal whim but for reasons (which may or not turn out to be the right ones) beyond the personal interests of those making the decisions. Is that too much to wish for?

It seems to me that greatness is measured only in part by what you achieve as a person or as a country, but also how you strive to improve, to do better, to right wrongs, to look at yourself in the mirror and try to be honest about who you are and who you can be. This is a time to do that. Actually, every moment is a time to do that. Thank you to those who serve. And to those that do not, who serve only themselves and their parochial interests, be it power or money or something else, it is time for you to look in the mirror or to get out of the way.

Since this is my first post in a while, I would like to take a moment to pay tribute to the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg. Many others have spoken eloquently about her and what she achieved and how she lived her life, but I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge her contributions. She lived an extraordinary life and cannot be replaced.

And notwithstanding everything we are dealing with right now, we still need to bring the light. We need art and books and music and those things that sustain us, that bring us solace and hope, so I hope to be able to speak again about those things in future posts.