It's Good Beginnings Make Good Endings Thing

Dear America,

precepts, quotes, t-shirts, greeting cards...and bumper stickers, oh my!  these are the things that make me go hum...

and today is no exception.

cue the silver bumper of a Prius, just plastered with opinion, yesterday: 

WAR IS NOT THE ANSWER

 yes, indeed, we would like to hope so, anyway.

WHO for Pete's sake really wants WAR, for jiminy crickets?  (Besides Iran, North Korea, Boko Haram, ISIS, Hezbollah, Hamas, Al-Queda, Russia, Environmentalists, Atheists, Illegal Immigrants, Gay Marriage Enthusiasts, and the latest, the poor, black "children" of Baltimore....)

But I just sat there -- at the red light and with nowhere to run -- and looked at this liberal's rear end and sighed....heavily, and almost to the point of hyperventilation.  There was not an inch uncovered, but that's beside the point; this "war is not the answer" hit me upside the head a little differently than usual -- and left me broadsided and motionless upon the idea for hours.  

And as for this morning --  I still find myself hardly in the position to just shake it off.

Context is always fun; and how things change from generation to generation seems to be at the crux, as if the "olden days" are always set up against the latest modern conveniences of what is essential, or true.  Beliefs systems get tossed around, laws get upended, what is practiced and preached go into direct conflict with one another in each new day, escalating and overreaching with hidden agendas and propaganda, and all the while using the cultural divide to evolve and transform nearly everything under pressure, under duress.

I would have loved to have stopped this gal and ask, just how important was that Revolutionary War? Because , you know, lady -- the option of airing that vast, beautiful, ideological, opinion of yours everywhere you go came on the heels of granting you a certain independence dating back over two hundred years ago FROM THE OUTCOME OF A FRICKEN WAR!

Even better -- how about that CIVIL WAR?  You know -- the one that ended slavery in America!!!!!!!!!!!  [ Thank you, Lincoln -- a REPUBLICAN!]   

Of course, the sex slave industry -- here in the US, over there in Syria, and pretty much everywhere, especially during big sporting events like the Super Bowl -- is an industry doing a bang up job year over year, there is that; and what about the use of children to provide cheap labor all over the world? Slavery wars of inhumane terms and treatment, in tandem, and with no light in sight -- but then again, that's not the kind of war you are commenting on, am I right?

And given the context of the last 48 hours --  how about you take that soapbox piggybacking hope upon hope of yours directly to the streets of Baltimore -- perhaps popping it down right in front of that CVS Store that got burned, almost to the ground, and tell those "kids" to stop -- think about what you are doing -- in a 'war is not the answer' kind of way -- and see what kind of response you get.  Something tells me, from what you tell me about yourself all over that sassy little hybrid of yours, the war happening on the streets of Baltimore is something different; the violence being totally justified under the protections of a higher purpose under heaven, or something (no -- wait -- what did the bumper say; did you have anything about WWJD or no?)

Funny though --

considering how quickly emotions and reactions flared in real time --  who knew?

War...being at war and the senseless, violent acts of all kinds and measures to quell or control or change the world or protect, never works right?  Never a good reason, huh?   UNLESS YOU'RE A MOM!

Now famous -- the slap upside the head and heard 'round the world!   

And notice how her son did NOT slap her back.  He may not have shown respect to the police, or to his very own hometown of Baltimore, but he cowered, and ducked his little hoodie-head, weaving himself across the blacktop as fast as his feet could travel.  There were two sides:  his and her's.  And her's won; and nobody died in the process.

So perhaps -- in a lesson gleaned is a lesson learned kind of way -- next time we see trouble coming in our inner cities or otherwise, never mind the PoPo.  Just send in the moms.  Send in an army of moms and we'll have all the kids home with their hands washed and the table set in no time.

Now -- do we dare go down that road of having babies out of wedlock or families without dads?

As much as I applaud this  "get the fxxx over here" kind of mom -- taking care of her own business and making sure that all of her business ...all SIX of them...aren't all about town and misbehaving -- I must add my two cents:  kids need fathers, too!  Sure, it appears she's got things very much handled (get it?), but my second thought is that she needs reinforcement.

I know -- how old-fashioned, right?

The thing is -- and we have gone round and round with this more days than I can remember -- for a civil society to live long and prosper, nearly everything gets back to one major component being the priority.  The priority!  Not the "maybe it's highly recommended, but not mandatory" category; it's a priority!    And that component is the family unit.

That's it.

FAMILY -- with a mom and dad watching over our every move we make, teaching us values, making us go to school, supplying the unconditional love and support and balanced meals, restricting TV and video babysitting, taking us to church, promoting good grades and going to college, guarding us against gangs and drugs, teaching us manners and respect for authority, reading us bedtime stories and kissing us on the forehead goodnight -- these are the things a family is made of.

AND --  if we all did just this one thing, and did it well, throughout all America, what happened in Baltimore never would have happened.  Never.

And make no mistake --  it works whether rich or poor, liberal or conservative or libertarian, and no matter the color of thy skin.  It's a system indiscriminate and far-reaching and good for all.

Sure, it can be done, even in the inner-city -- raising a child well as a single mom.   Look at the shining example coming from Dr. Ben Carson!    And just look at his response to Baltimore, here.

But let's be clear.  This single mom thing is not the ideal (ask me how I know).

It's not ideal at all.
As a mom, it takes at least twice as much of everything; twice as much work, energy, courage, food, patience, grace,..including bubble baths and prayers.

What happened in Baltimore marks a sad, sad day that turned into two and is hardly over.

But the good news is we can fix it!

There are times when war is not the answer...like on the streets of Baltimore.

While sometimes, the answer is not creating the conditions on the ground in the first place.  

And that begins with going back to the BEGINNING -- before the animosity, before the crime is committed, before the child is lost, before the game begins.  It begins in the comfort of our homes and  within the confines and protections of family surroundings and upbringings.  While the left will never have you believe it could ever be that simple.

It begins with a mother and father bringing into the world a child -- coupled with their undying commitment and integrity to do their very best and TEACH their children WELL.

[And go ahead and laugh] but I have no problem with saying it is just that simple. 

So here's your G bumper sticker for today:

Good BEGINNINGS make good ENDINGS.

Make it a Good Day, G

let's pray for Nepal and pray for Baltimore and pray for America.