The January 6 Capitol Riot and Inhumanity Boiling Over

There have been a number of things over time that I have felt go without saying. 

However, violence and chaos in protest have no place in a civil society. Though perhaps we have not been so civil for some time. For a good part of last year, violence and chaos in protest were normalized by many on social media, on television, and from our leaders. I support my fellow Americans' right to assemble and protest - whether or not I support your cause - but I think we have all seen that when we lose control and resort to destruction, America loses. Indeed lives and livelihoods are lost as well. This cannot continue. 

In two weeks, we will have a new president, but that will not change how we have chosen to divide this country. First, we need to be honest and mindful and have fidelity to what makes us a people - neither color, nor party, nor religion, nor historical ethnicity. We don't have to always agree, but we do have to agree to disagree peacefully. Even if you believe your brother has strayed, you must always consider his humanity. Unfortunately, social media is prone to allowing us to treat one another with disdain, ridicule, and even inhumanity. That is either bleeding over into real human interaction or it is our nature which we have been trained to restrain in polite society. Either way, our country and our world depend on us being better. 

God, bless America.

I Can't Not Stand - A Former Coach's Perspective

I had inherited the habit of standing for the entire match from previous coaches of mine, although the trend at the time became that the soccer coach sits on the bench with the rest of the team. Discouraged and upset at our inability to play as I thought we were able one day, I took a seat on the bench to cool off. Coaches are quite cognizant that a myriad of actions, inactions, words, references, even intonations are crucial to conveying a message. I knew that just by sitting down, I was signaling my displeasure and frustration, but I only knew the half of it. Following our loss, my players walked off the field with sour looks on their faces. To my surprise, they were not as upset at their performance as they were with me.

"What is it?" I asked.

"You gave up on us; you sat down. You always stand," one of my players responded.

Dedicated as I was to my group of high school girls and our team's mission, that was a crushing statement. However, it was true and had a wisdom that I always remembered.

A simplistic, nevertheless accurate, way to look at America is that we are a team - a people bound together by circumstances, a common home territory, and necessity. Like all teams, we have our adversities - selfishness, ego, miscommunication, living up to past successes, and losing sight of the common goal or thread that binds us together. One element designed to keep us focused on the unity that is necessary for any team is our flag. Some view it as a piece of cloth, others see it as a tremendous reminder of what we can be or what we have accomplished, still others see oppression and fault.

What does it say when we decide not to stand and show respect for the one banner of our team?

America is not a monarchy. It is neither a dictatorship, nor an aristocracy. We are a democratic republic, and as such, we are a team of people responsible for our own success or failure. The flag does not represent some ruling elite that we can step back, take a knee, and defy in the name of protest. The flag is us and everything we learned in grade school that can be so right in an imperfect world of self-government. Our team fails often at many things - sometimes at events of great consequence. It may seem that kneeling for the national anthem is actually taking a stand against injustice, but what the rest of us see is that you are giving up on the idea of America. And any coach will tell you you cannot improve an ailing team by dividing it further.

Confrontation, however, is imperative. Except confrontation must be approached within the context of constructively working toward the common goal. I realize that polite discussion seldom solves deeply rooted problems. Oftentimes people need to be shocked into change, but disrespect always puts your adversary (or teammate) on the defensive and is unproductive. You may think that sitting out the national anthem is an effective manner of protest and showing solidarity with victims of injustice in this age of hashtag activism, but true meaningful protest is about engagement, rather than disengagement; sacrifice for a goal, not following trends; intellectual thought, not forwarding memes on social media; patient honesty, not jumping to conclusions; love, not hatred. I know it's hard to do all of this when people are getting killed, but protest is meant to be hard. I'm not saying don't act - act, we all must - but there are other ways to do it that don't signal you've given up on the team.

Raising awareness is only the first step. Too often in our culture today it is seen as an accomplishment, but true accomplishment occurs with a game plan, dedication, and hard work. Most sane Americans want to live in peace and harmony - free from fear and senseless violence. What's the game plan with taking a knee? Doing something is not the same as doing something productive.

Lastly, I will say that, yes, we are divided. For some reason, being out of the country for a year helps you see that even clearer. Not to neglect the reality of our problems, but we do seem rather unenraged by atrocities committed against black and other hued lives outside of our borders. Former Lakers coach Pat Riley may have included that in what he termed, "The Disease of Me." A team divided against itself cannot survive. We seem to constantly find ways to divide ourselves, and it is increasingly troubling. We can fix that, but we have to stand together.

Happy Forth - Thoughts of America from Abroad

One thing that intrigues me while I travel is how my country is perceived by people from around the world. To guess, based solely on what I hear people say at home or on the internet, I'd say everyone hates us. Never mind that lots and lots of people still visit or go through arduous processes to get to and live in America. Conventional wisdom seems to be that we are a violent, selfish, racist, arrogant, bully nation that is in need of some sort of enlightenment to regain the form of our youth.

Now, while I don't go around announcing my nationality or asking people on the street what they think of the United States, I do tend to meet people who ask me where I'm from, and sometimes we have a conversation. Pleasantly surprising, most meet my answer with a smile, and many times with some personal anecdote of their fondness for my country. Perhaps some are just being polite, but I get the feeling that many genuinely have a positive outlook on - even if not the government, then at least - our people. Even as recently as today, I still see people wearing American themed clothing - shirts, hats, and such. Yankees hats and Lakers jerseys are quite common on several continents, but even sporting gear aside, America still seems to be in fashion.

I can't tell you how distressing it is to have read the news for over a year now traveling, and there has just been divisive and upsetting story after story. Add in this nightmare of an election we are having, and many days, I just don't want to go back. People have asked me about guns, terrorism, sports, Indian tribes, the different states... but mostly Trump. Surprisingly, in Ireland, some folks weren't nearly as put off by him as many, however most seem to be of the opinion that he is either a joke or worse - a threat to world civilization.

However, what you see traveling the world is that every country has its conflicts and problems. Just this trip, I have seen: Nepal gain a new constitution that many would argue does not enough to address the inequality of women and minorities, the Philippines elect a new president who seems to have little regard for due process and a disdain for the media, and Great Britain decide to leave Europe. Since I began my trip, there has been an average of about 3 incidents of terrorism per day (7/day last month) throughout dozens of countries. Other plagues, such as poverty and various other injustices persist and would be too numerous to list.

I think people see us as a flawed giant, but recognize that we cannot be blamed for everything. Many see the work we do in delivering aid to those in need, working for peace and security where we think we can have an impact, and risking our lives to confront those who perpetrate evil and destruction. In seeing some of the pollution different parts of this world contribute and endure, it is difficult to imagine those people wagging their fingers at us any time soon. In short, as an American who has stepped out of his world to live within and among many other communities, we might just be being a little hard on ourselves.

Despite our many flaws, we have made it to our 240th birthday, and we are still here; people still look to us for influence. That certainly could change, but I think it is important to consider one thing - we are still capable of having an impact on the world and on our futures. In the 1960s, before we walked on the moon, the conditions were already set in motion that there was an African-American child who could aspire to and eventually win the Presidency of the United States of America. I like to think of this not to pretend some end of racism, but to consider what future is already possible for someone today when prospects seem incontrovertibly dim in the now. In the words of my dad, "look ahead!" Who knows what power we may have today to affect the reality of the future? I think that is still one of our greatest strengths, and others around the world can see it too.

Enjoy your burgers and fireworks. I'll probably have a pizza.