Dear Folks,
The terrible tragedy of yesterday's shootings in Tucson, Arizona demands a comment.
We NEED to return to civil discourse in our conversations and comments. We can all still have lively discussions and disagreements without, as the Sheriff stated, political vitriol fueling and triggering unstable people to take, literal, inflammatory words and phrases. If we are frustrated with leadership and circumstances, change is made through our willingness to become engaged in change and do meaningful work and volunteering.
With the upcoming celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Civil Rights Day -- we should look at some of what Dr. King, asked people to do when they disagreed.
"Nonviolence means avoiding not only external physical violence but also internal violence of the spirit. You not only refuse to shoot a man, but you refuse to hate him." -- Martin Luther King Jr.
Sit down with family and friends and civilly talk over this tragedy. Keep Congresswoman Giffords, her family, the families of those who died and those who are injured in your peaceful thoughts and prayers, and ask the Good Lord, Great Spirit, or whomever you look to for comfort to guide our leaders and officials in better civil behavior, so they can actually "represent us" as we should be represented -- by setting good examples!
-- Catherine, The Herb Lady
