Invictus

Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeoning of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find me, unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.

Things look pretty grim, right now, don't they? I know a lot of the ladies are pretty pissed off. “Stuck between tears and rage” as one of my Facebook friend put it. I'm not going to be patronizing and say I understand that. I'll simply say “I hear you.”

Here's the thing: Last night I watched on CNN and FOX News in the break room at work as Trump met with Obama and (in the words of the FOX News ticker no less) “sought his counsel.” On some level, that had to burn. That's a glaring admission that Trump isn't the all-knowing Right-Wing Jesus he's been claiming to be. These same news channels then trotted out 25 years worth of Republican Rejects as potential advisers and cabinet members and staff. Newt, Rudy, Sarah...hell I'm surprised no one has proposed Wile E. Coyote for some Cabinet post or other. All of these people have a history, and its demonstrably terrible and every last one of these people has the kind of track record that tells you if Trump was as smart as he says he is he wouldn't appoint them to be White House toilet cleaner. Trump is not a god-man with magical powers, he's a human being and he's picking shitty help. We have another case of (as Jim Wright put it) “The Decider.” He'll just make shitty decisions. I'm not making light of that. People will be hurt, people will die, shit will get screwed up and it will suck. That's life, unfortunately. (Doesn't make it right, either.)

...And Hillary Clinton flamed out. But it is always in times such as these that New heroes (and heroines) will rise.

I want you to think about this, think about it hard, hold on and don't let go:

Tammy Duckworth got elected to the Senate, to none other than Barack Obama's old seat. Duckworth, a former United States Army Reserve/Illinois Army National Guard helicopter pilot, the first female double amputee from the Iraq War, PhD-holder, assistant Department of Veterans Affairs secretary, and member of the House of Representatives...is as worthy of a person to sit in that seat as any I can imagine.

Kamala Harris, the Attorney General of California, was elected to the Senate, replacing the outgoing Barbara Boxer in representing California, thus becoming only the second African-American female And the first Indian American female elected to the United States Senate. To directly quote the Wikipedia article on her “There are media reports that Harris could defeat the unpopular Donald Trump in 2020 becoming the first woman, first African-American woman, Indian-American woman and first Asian-American woman president.”

Catherine Cortez Masto, former Attorney General of Nevada, was elected to the Senate replacing Harry Reid, thus becoming the first Latina ever to serve as a United States Senator.

Further down, Ilhan Omar, a Somali-American Muslim from Minnesota became the first Somali-American legislator in the United States with her election to the Minnesota House as a member of the Democratic Farm Labor party (Minnesota's unique iteration of the Democratic Party.)

Speaking of Minnesota, I also saw on CNN last night that Keith Ellison, the first Muslim member of the House of Representatives, is a strong contender to become chairman of the Democratic National Committee. Some things I've seen suggest that Bernie Sanders (of all people!) is yet another possibility.

Yes, things will be rough for at least a couple of years, oh yes they will. But at least on the Democratic side of the fence what will emerge is likely to be stronger in the long run.

In Clint Eastwood's film Invictus, Nelson Mandela (played by Morgan Freeman) and Francois Pienaar (played by Matt Damon) have the following conversation:

Nelson Mandela: How do you inspire your team to do their best?

Francois Pienaar: By example. I've always thought to lead by example, sir.

Nelson Mandela: Well, that is right. That is exactly right. But how do we get them to be better then they think they CAN be? That is very difficult, I find. Inspiration, perhaps. How do we inspire ourselves to greatness when nothing less will do? How do we inspire everyone around us? I sometimes think it is by using the work of others.

The real Nelson Mandela (who himself had at least one part in a movie, appearing in Spike Lee's “Malcolm X”) said thus:

The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.

Together, we rise.

We all have a fight ahead, not least I think in facing down and prevailing against homophobic, racist and sexist idiots, but in this struggle, new heroes and heroines will rise...indeed have risen. Something tells me, that against this last stand of the Old White Guys, that's going to count for a lot.

I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear. ~Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela.