tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8210258.post7566389030352874204..comments2023-07-27T05:57:00.026-05:00Comments on SurfnPoetry: Election HangoverDoc Marahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07545489565402563432noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8210258.post-88396927643318353922010-11-04T14:46:45.906-05:002010-11-04T14:46:45.906-05:00Well, I don't share your optimism, but I like ...Well, I don't share your optimism, but I like to be around it. :)Sportnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8210258.post-87528894294209429222010-11-03T13:40:27.404-05:002010-11-03T13:40:27.404-05:00More and more, I'm becoming convinced that Ame...More and more, I'm becoming convinced that Americans need to engage more on the local level and only by changing their local communities will they be able to make a change at the state level and the national level. Not that people shouldn't be engaged nationally, but it's unlikely that I'm going to be able to play a role that shifts how Washington, DC operates on my own. If your local community is changed and operates such that it respects all people, then that community of people will be able to join with other communities that have done the same thing until together we can change DC. It won't be an overnight change, I know, but at the very least, it helps me to guide my daily actions, which is all I really have control over.<br /><br />I also think that it's important to remember that progress doesn't happen overnight. If we really look back, we'll see that society is making progress. So public education isn't uniformly great, but we have public education available and are focused on improving it. Yes, the justice system isn't always fair or accessible, but it is more fair than it once was and people are working to continue to make changes. And yes, we do still discriminate and bully people, but over the years as a society we've put laws in place to prevent discrimination and removed laws that people used to legalize discrimination. Certainly more work is needed, and we'll take sometimes gigantic steps backward, but I find it comforting to realize that overall we are moving forward and that our tiresome battles do make a difference. - KKate Bhttp://www.techno.lanoreply@blogger.com