There will be many that will look at this photo and say, “Why should the United States be responsible to help everyone?” At least, that’s been the dialogue I have seen when we have decided to pull aid from other countries around the world.
Let’s think about this attitude for a moment. As we have seen, many of the people who are fine with us pulling aid from countries, and humans that need it, also claim to be Christians and patriots. If you are Christian, then you follow Jesus and what he stood for. Those things were love, compassion, forgiveness, humility, and justice. He advocated for marginalized groups and challenged societal norms through his teachings and actions. Jesus emphasized loving one’s neighbor as oneself. If you look at our planet compared to the Universe as a whole, I would say our neighbors are all of humanity.
Further, Jesus showed a great amount of compassion for the sick, poor, and marginalized. He also taught the importance of forgiveness. Through his teachings he talked about the importance of serving others and not seeking power or status. He advocated for the rights of the oppressed and called for a more equitable society. Jesus spoke out against those that were worried more about accumulating material wealth than showing good inner character.
Now, let’s talk about what a patriot is because many who turn their backs on other countries and the aid that the United States has provided, call themselves patriots. Many hate groups like to use the word “Patriot” as part of their propaganda. It has become a word that the far right likes to use as a basis for their hateful actions. Be mindful that those hate groups who like to call themselves Patriots, also claim to be Christians. Do you see the conflict with that?
Being a patriot is often what we have been conditioned to believe. As a veteran, it once meant serving my country. However, as I have grown, it also means serving those less fortunate than myself, and being of service to my country and the world as a whole if needed. A patriot comes to the aid of others that are being harmed, whether that is one’s own countrymen or not. For instance, I believe the soldiers on D-day during World War Two, fighting against Germany and Hitler, considered themselves patriots, but their cause was for more than just the United States. They were fighting with, and for, their allies that needed them. They saw an evil person rise, so they came to the aid of others to take evil out.
The word “patriot” is often exploited and used from the right as if they are the only ones that believe in their country. There is nothing wrong with wanting to do good for your country, and be proud of it, but when leaders of your country are placing their needs above yours and others around the world, impacting the safety of your nation and its troops, and you still blindly follow them, I think the word “Patriotic” is thrown out the window and used for different reasons, possibly reasons of corruption. “Great patriots,” are not people who storm the nation’s capital, causing a great deal of harm to police officers, and threatening to harm elected officials. Those are criminals, not patriots. However, the rallying cry of a mob, using the word patriot, and then the great gaslighting that happened afterwards, can be convincing, and intimidating.
Now, let's go back to the picture of these children from another country who receive aid from the United States. Many of these children in these countries are dying, or will soon be dead, because we are not assisting them with necessary vaccines and food. For those that say we should not help them because we should help our own country first, think about this. Those are incredibly impoverished countries that do not have the food, medical supplies, or abilities that the United States has. Yes, we may have a homeless problem, drug problem, problem with violence, etc, in our country, but we also have systems in place, or at least we did, to help those in need. We do not see many people in our country actually starving and flies buzzing over their skeleton-like bodies. We have the means and aid to help most of our citizens, which brings me to another point. One man, the wealthiest in the world, and other billionaires, have enough money to end starvation. They have enough money to help American citizens and still be extremely wealthy, but they do not. Instead, we see our leader feeling sorry for them and putting their product on display on the Whitehouse lawn to promote them and try to earn them more money. Is that Christian? Is that patriotism?
I believe if we want to be seen as leaders in the world, on this small planet, and in the eyes of those who do want to harm us, we should be providing aid to those in need. Our adversaries will gain power and we will lose it, by turning a cruel eye away from countries in need. By not providing aid and services to impoverished nations, we have weakened our place in the world and have done nothing to help our own citizens. And, by turning away from those in need, we are also not being good Christians, like many who support our current leader say they are. Not helping people in need is the opposite of what Jesus taught, and is the opposite of being a true patriot. Our lack of empathy has only weakened us. Having empathy for those that are less fortunate strengthens us as a nation. Mr. Musk, you are wrong in your assessment of empathy.
To me, what I have been witnessing from our president, his followers, and also those who are on the far left preaching just as much hate, is a test of character. It is on full display. Many will struggle to read that because we want to pick sides and be divided. What would Jesus do? Actually, for many, they will be angered by that question because people that voted for Trump who claim to be Christian will not like to have to look inward and realize that their elected official is the opposite of Christ. I have also seen many people on the left claim that there is no Christ and mock religion. Think about that for a moment. With your mocking of someone else’s religion, it brings you to their level of hatred.
Perhaps, we need to come back to what is good character and what is bad. I believe people truly know when they are in the wrong. It is just hard to admit. We have been blinded by so much hate and anger that flawed character is overlooked because we selfishly want our side to be the only one heard. We want to win at all costs instead of being good at all costs. Here’s the truth. Eventually, if we want to survive and thrive, we will need to find common ground and common sense.
I am not sure if anything I just wrote will help the kids in the picture, or any other human on the planet that is in need and suffers. I just hope they realize that people do care about them, from one human to another, with empathy.
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