Ripples #1014: Interrupting Injustice!
Oct 29, 2018
PEBBLE
Few things are as encouraging as the realization that things can be different and that we have a role in making them so.
-Daniel Taylor, shared by Maggie in Eau Claire, WI
BOULDER
Peacemaking doesn’t mean passivity. It is the act of interrupting injustice without mirroring injustice, the act of disarming evil without destroying the evildoer, the act of finding a third way that is neither fight nor flight but the careful, arduous pursuit of reconciliation and justice. It is about a revolution of love that is big enough to set both the oppressed and oppressors free.
-Shane Claiborne, shared by Pidge in Pacifica, CA
PONDER
We live in complicated times. On the one hand, humans have progressed in truly remarkable ways: our advances in science, technology, and education have allowed us to see and appreciate and understand things that at one time seemed beyond comprehension. On the other hand, we continue to grapple with significant challenges and there are ways things seem to be getting worse instead of better.
Election day is just around the corner here in the U.S. I don’t have any interest in using this platform to try and tell you who to vote for, or what issues you should care about. I do, however, want to use this issue of Ripples to remind you that voting itself can be viewed as a sacred, heroic act of citizenship that less than half of eligible voters in our country follow through on.
If “Interrupting Injustice” is important to you, I invite you to step up your participation in the voting process. If you haven’t been a reliable voter in the past, perhaps you need help figuring out WHO and WHAT to vote for, or even WHETHER you are registered and WHERE to vote. Sites like Vote411.org and VoteSmart.org strive to provide non-partisan, balanced information…and can even confirm your voter registration and polling location. If you need help actually casting your vote, reach out to the campaigns you intend to vote for; they are eager to help make your vote count. If you are ready for the next level of involvement, there is still time to get involved with voter turnout efforts, again by contacting local candidates and groups that support issues that are important to you. If you’re already an actively engaged, the challenge might be to directly engage the people you are most closely connected to and encourage them to vote.
Your actions may seem insignificant; but remember that decisions get made by those that show up. Your voice and your vote matter; both make a difference!
Peace,
Paul
The Ripples Guy
P.S. A sincere thank you for anything you can say or do to help extend the positive ripples we unleash each week.
