Are we....still United?

The saddest part of the human race is we're obsessed with this idea of 'us and them,' which is really a no-win situation, whether it's racial, cultural, religious or political.

-Author Unknown

Though Americans have differing reasons for it, a collective sadness permeates our country today.  A  civil discord has reared its ugly head and there appears no simple resolution.  Some see the issue as racial;  Some see it as an abuse of power by those in authority.  I think it's both, and neither.

Discrimination is a disease both rampant and pervasive.  This disease is characterized by condescension, and the assumed normalcy of one's self, when compared to the ways that others are different.  Ask a gay person about discrimination.  Ask a handicapped individual about discrimination.  Ask a woman paid less than her male counterparts, about discrimination.  Ask Baba, about discrimination...

Baba and his family came to the United States in 1996 to escape the horrors of Saddam Hussein.  A population of approximately 7000 Kurds were granted political asylum in this country, as they would have otherwise been executed in their home country.  THAT, is discrimination.  Baba and his family were given the opportunity to live safely in our United States, where his children and their children could grow up and thrive.

My own father fought in WWII for this country.  His service included feet on the ground in Germany, loss of comrades, as well as time in a POW prison.  

The Colonel served in our military for twenty years, inclusive of 3 deployments that ultimately cost him his own family.  

Did each of these men sacrifice all they did such that as we knock on the door of 2015, we would be living in a country with such civil discord?  It's shameful.

My heart hurts for Michael Brown's parents.  And for Darren Wilson.  And Eric Garner's family.  And the grand jury members.  And every officer involved in these high profile cases.  However, my heart hurts equally for the injustices that are not on CNN.  The women who are trafficked; the children of the Amber alerts; the individuals with terminal illnesses and those the victim of accidents they did not cause.

My Longmire serves and protects the public every day.  He experiences things that would keep me up at night, and yet, his glass is always half full.  Listening to him, I better understand there are no absolute truths in atrocities that the media chooses to portray.  No one will ever know with certainty what happened that night between Darren and Michael.  Thankfully, like Longmire, there are people protecting us who are integrous.  I know there are also 'bad cops' as well as bad accountants, bad teachers, and bad engineers.  

Our civil discord isn't about race; or authority; or good vs. evil.  The problem is that we've forgotten who we are and where we came from: 

One nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. 

In Faith and Prayer for our country, ~Shugie