The Evil Man Always Thinks Others Are Like Him

And the stupid man thinks compassion is a crime

I often wonder what trauma must have befallen those who call themselves Republicans. What terrible thing(s) must have happened to make so many so cynical, dark, craven, suspicious, and ready to default to assuming the worst of others?

Do troglodytes like Sen. Blunt look at a beautiful sunset and immediately suspect a Liberal plot to convert good, God-fearing White Conservative heterosexual patriots to become Democrats suddenly?

Do they gaze out over a pristine mountain meadow and think, “Hey, we can drill for oil here!!”

Do they see a mother with an infant in a stroller and immediately wonder how many abortions she’s had and how many handouts she’s taken from the government??

Not everything in life is political. Not everything in life needs to be viewed through a partisan lens. Sometimes, providing food and water to people waiting in line to vote is simply the decent and compassionate thing to do. This is especially true since Republicans are, in most cases, the ones responsible for long voting lines in the first place.

In Georgia, which recently passed the law Sen Blunt refers to, standing in line for hours on Election Day can often mean waiting outside in oppressive heat and humidity. If people are denied food and water, it’s possible that the elderly or infirm may not be able to hold out long enough to exercise their franchise.

Or is this perhaps what Republicans are actually after…and Sen. Blunt knows that?

Whatever your political/ideological orientation happens to be, compassion and kindness shouldn’t be criminalized. Simple human acts of decency, of looking out for one another, shouldn’t be met with threats of arrest and possible jail terms. Not only is that unreasonable and inhuman, it’s also a perversion of the criminal justice system.

Whatever side of the ideological fence you happen to call home, shouldn’t we all be able to agree that looking out for one another isn’t a criminal act? Shouldn’t kindness toward our fellow human beings be something that we can agree is and should remain nonpartisan?

I don’t know what it is that could have made Sen. Blunt and his fellow Republicans so deeply cynical and so remarkably hateful and distrusting that they’d deny an opportunity for kindness and compassion.

Whatever has blackened their souls, it doesn’t have to do the same for the rest of us. We have a choice; we can determine if we’ll care for and about our fellow human beings…or go through life assuming the worst of those who don’t live, love, think, and/or believe as we do.

Compassion and kindness aren’t proof of criminal intent.