loving art, science and creative kids

      View from a Bridge 

                             What good is beautiful landscaping, great architecture, and city design reviews if t people walking the                                      streets trash their environment?

 Whack a mole

      Wham! Bam! Don’t you wish it was easy to get rid of problems you thought resolved? I am continuously surprised to watch society revisit the same issues over and over again without making progress. I keep thinking we’re moving forward only to see well considered resolutions erode and push us backwards. The following are a few items I thought were behind us.

      Trashing Neighborhoods. Whack! There was a time when city streets were littered with trash. People thought nothing of throwing cigarette   and fast food wrappers on the ground or out car windows. And then, in 1965, came Lady Bird Johnson with a campaign to clean up America. She began beautifying D.C. and then took  her mission nationwide. She believed that a cleaner, more beautiful country would calm people and bring them together. Her efforts had some success, and for years people picked up after themselves. My partner, Ray, often describes his father starting to throw a gum wrapper out the window when he stopped and said, "Lady Bird wouldn't like that." Today there's a new wave of litterers who trash and mar our streets, reminding me of third world country slums. Bam! Hit it down! Let’s restore Johnson’s original goal and beautify our cities, clean up trash, and border roadways with natural vegetation. 

     Nuclear Proliferation. Whack! Though not perfect, international steps were made to reduce nuclear weapons. Treaties with Russia and Iran were hailed as milestones. Stopping North Korea from atomic prowess was a high priority. Over the last two years we’ve pulled out of agreements with Russia and Iran and are playing footsie with a North Korean dictator. The U.S. has started a new arms race. I remember years of fear when schoolchildren were taught to take shelter under their desks in case of a nuclear attack. Why is this nonsense happening again? Nuclear proliferation is a no win situation except for arms manufacturers. Bam! Hit it down!

      Abortion.  Whack!  I thought the topic was put to rest 50 years ago. Citizens and the Supreme Court agreed that women had rights to make decisions about their own bodies. It wasn’t up to the government to interfere in conversations that belong in the doctor’s office and family living rooms. The current rush for states to pass abortion bills and revisit the issue reverses years of discussion, research and agreement. If passed, these bills will return women to seeking back room abortions, abandoning thousands of unwanted infants to a life of poverty and crime. Discussing abortion rights divides the nation by putting us on vitriolic sides that make neighbors hate each other. Bam! Hit it down.

      Low income housing. Whack! There was a time when poor people didn’t wander  the streets of America? Through HUD and other social services we made sure all citizens received a subsidy insuring they were housed. Over the last two years, the White House has directly attacked our efforts to house the poor. They are now calling for a 10.25 billion dollar reduction in funds for public housing assistance, partnership programs, housing for persons with disabilities and the elderly.  These budget cuts follow on last year’s push to slash eighteen percent of HUD’s budget despite studies, like one done by the University of North Carolina, showing it is significantly cheaper to house the homeless than leave them on the streets. Bam! Hit it down!

      Prison Reform. Whack!  Since our country’s beginning, prison reformers have struggled with how to punish criminals while preserving their humanity, how to protect the public while allowing prisoners to renter society and how to satisfy the desire of victims for justice and revenge. Americans view incarceration as just punishment. It is supposed to take away personal freedoms while protecting the public.The problem is that strict punishment and long sentences don’t stop people from committing crimes. It does not increase public safety but it does cost society money. The three strikes and you’re out crime law blossomed prisons with low level criminals (mostly marijuana smokers) who are disproportionately African American. When released they remain a burden to society. Bam! Hit it down! The current administration is trying to bring about reform by placing prisoners closer to their families, reducing unfair sentences, giving federal judges more discretion in low-level cases and limiting some mandatory minimum sentences. It is a beginning, but the federal system accounts for only 10 percent of the prison system as a whole. Let’s start working on reforms within the states and get rid of private companies managing prisons. Bam! Hit it down! Fight for decarceration.

      Climate Change and Global Warming. Whack!  When did our country adopt such uneducated, uncaring and destructive outlooks about the environment. For years scientists spoke of the disaster humankind was bringing on itself through carbon emissions and other pollutants released in the atmosphere. We've proven that it is possible for countries to come together to solve world problems. Nations joined in an effort get rid the world of chloroflourocarbons and close the Ozone hole. Why can’t we do the same and solve global warming. The Paris Climate accord was an excellent beginning, yet the United States selfishly pulled out. No one likes change but sometimes it is necessary. Bam! Hit it down! Human beings were given a brain. We’re made to think, solve problems, to preserve the planet and to insure our very existence.

     There are many other subjects that see-saw their way into the news and family discussions. Please share a few on my blog site that bother you.

References

(2019) No New Housing:Impact of the Trump 2020 HUD Budget. Affordable Housing, retrieved from https://affordablehousingonline.com/fy20-hud-budget-cuts

McKay, T (2014) Study Reveals it Costs Less to Give the Homeless Housing Than Leave Them on the Street. MIC. Retrieved from https://www.mic.com/articles/86251/study-reveals-it-costs-less-to-give-the-homeless-housing-than-to-leave-them-on-the-street

Gale,T (2007) Prison Reform Movement. Encyclopedia.com. retrieved from https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/prison-reform-movement

Berger, D. (2019) “Prison Reform” Is Not Enough. In 2019 Let’s fight for Decarceration. Trending. retrieved from https://truthout.org/articles/prison-reform-is-not-enough-in-2019-lets-fight-for-decarceration/

Global Climate Change. (2019() NASA. retrieved from website at  https://climate.nasa.gov/

Lady Bird Johnson. Portrait of a First Lady. OPB. retried from  https://www.pbs.org/ladybird/shattereddreams/shattereddreams_report.html

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