Happy Easter, a Tale of Two Men, and a Whistleblower Speaks

It's Easter Sunday. In my previous life, I would have been rubbing elbows with the faithful at Hosanna this morning while listening to a condensed sermon from one of four or more services they would hold to be able to accommodate the demand of the C and E (Christmas and Easter) crowd. I used to love Hosanna—the convenience of its location, the meaning I would take away from the sermons, and the grounds (I used to mow the lawn at the church). I knew it was the right place for me at that time. I wrote about what I felt, and still feel, was a God experience the first time I attended a service there. It's an interesting read if you have the time. But it wouldn't last. Many years later, I would have a falling out with the lead pastor, and that left me disillusioned with organized religion. It's where I remain today. It too is an interesting read. 

I still see Easter as a time of renewal; a time to reevaluate my life and consider changes I can make to be a better person. I don't need a religion or belief system to do that, but my Christian roots still influence me in much of what I do. I'm in a far different place today, due to the politicization of the church at large, which caused me to question the authenticity of the religion. I was moving in that direction before MAGA people came along, but they caused me to speed up my departure. 

I believe God exists, but I no longer subscribe to the belief that the God of the Christian bible is the true God. I cannot say for sure–none of us can, no matter how much we believe we can. I'm agnostic these days, and mostly believe that there is a non-denominational higher power that I can't begin to describe with any certainty. It would be a big step for me to claim atheism. I don't see that ever happening. I believe we will all be stunned by how wrong we are in our beliefs when we breathe our last breath.

Having said all that, I wish those who celebrate a happy Easter. 

Joe Biden often said he was "fighting for the soul" of our nation, and he was right to frame it that way. He was a good president and man; he wasn't perfect, but most people would love his steady leadership again if they're honest with themselves. I know I would. This was Biden's Easter message from one year ago, and this was Trump's from today. See the difference? 

One man is a man of decent character while the other is a racist rapist who had to pay his victim, E. Gene Carroll, $83,300,000. One man is of decent character, while the other had to pay $350,000,000 for running a criminal enterprise called Trump Org. One man is of decent character, while the other was fined $25,000,000 for running a sham university and ripping off its students. One man is of decent character, while the other was fined $2,000,000 for stealing from his fake charity. See the difference?

The illegal deportations by Trump of immigrants without due process have been dominating the news. It's important because, without the eyes of the media focused on this illegal activity by our criminal president, it's only a matter of time before U.S.-born citizens that he deems an 'enemy of the state' will be targeted for deportation to whatever hellhole of a prison in whatever dictator-led country Trump can find to accept them. 

There have been and will continue to be protest marches in cities nationwide in the weeks and months ahead. Tammy and I will be attending whenever we can. 

Other news deserves attention, but it's had scant coverage. NPR reported earlier this week about Trump's DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) stooges infiltrating the NLRB (National Labor Relations Board) and accessing sensitive data maintained there, some of it related to criminal cases that had been brought against Elon Musk, the person in charge of DOGE. 

Rachel Maddow interviewed the whistleblower within the NLRB (from the NPR article) a few nights ago. Daniel Berulis described some nefarious activity that should concern us all. One of the more disturbing claims he made was how someone taped to his front door a threatening message with recent aerial photos of him walking his dog. He had only lived in his current residence for two months, but they knew where to find him. He wasn't deterred. He said his knowledge is too valuable to not elevate it. He knows of others in various agencies experiencing the same kind of data breaches, but they're afraid to come forward out of fear of retaliation. Daniel finished the interview by saying, "Fear and apathy are the death of democracy." 

Please take the time to watch the interview below. 

That's all I've got.