I was going to take time today to write out the notes I took on our journey to El Salvador. But in the USA it is easy to get distracted or deflected and not get done what you want to do. Shopping, talking, emailing, whatever it may be, distractions seem to be a way of life.
Politicians seem to be especially good at distracting us from the issue, or some would call it, deflecting the issue. Our congresswoman is very good at that. When some of us met with her recently about her votes on war spending, she deflected and distracted our concern all over the place. Even in saying yes to our request for a public meeting on war spending, she was able to deflect the issue by throwing out the name of a well known anti-war congressman and including him in the public gathering. Some of the group bought this distraction and said how nice it was for her to meet with us and to invite to the public meeting this anti-war congressperson. Last week this anti-war congressperson initiated a resolution to pull our troops out of war by the end of year and our congresswoman voted against it. She was not distracted.
A friend of a friend, however, wrote tonight that he was in town for a meeting today when he came across the St. Patrick’s Day parade. He saw our congresswoman in the parade. Someone in the crowd yelled out to her: “Do the right thing… Vote against war appropriations.” She looked a little surprised, and then nodded her head. A well known deflector got distracted back.
It always struck me as odd that there were so many different organizations and groups working on the same issues and goals. I always wondered why they did not work together. It seems like they would be more effective. But now I know that many groups working separately on same issue was a simple way to keep everyone distracted and keep the focus off the real issue. They might form ‘coalitions’ at times but their separate identity is prime.
Last week a number of local university students were arrested while protesting an issue, the high cost of education. Although they should be supported, I noticed the focus has switched from the cost of education to the issue of their being arrested. Is this not another distraction from the main issue?
When one is poor and struggling for survival it is hard to get distracted. People might take time out from their day-to-day struggle for survival for a revolution, but an ordinary distraction is not worth it.
Perhaps if we can live our life in solidarity with the poor, if not actually being poor, we can keep our focus on what really matters and not be turned away by distractions and deflections.
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