Sometimes, a patriot’s job is to resist

A listener sent me a quote many years ago. I didn't know the sender or the origination of the quote, but it meant a lot to me. During the run up to our invasion of Iraq, I stood on the Park Strip and street corners with a sign opposing the war. Some people didn't like it. I was accused of hating America.

The quote went, "America — love her when she's right, right her when she's wrong."

It felt like a directive. A responsibility. A birthright.

When has it ever been enough to moan about problems we have in our state and country? Waving a flag and claiming that we're the greatest country in the world hasn't solved anything either. We aren't. We certainly could be, but we aren't there. Oh, calm down. I'm not breaking up with America in some sort of junior high romance gone south. I'm saying we need some counseling and serious reflection if we want this grand experiment to be all it can be.

This week I was reminded of that quote and went in search of the origin of what has become a mantra.

Carl Schurz had been loosely quoted. He said, "My country, right or wrong; if right, to be kept right; and if wrong, to be set right." It's hard to believe that Mr. Schurz hasn't been remembered in our history books. He hid in a sewer pipe during his escape from Germany after being part of the revolution there in 1849. An immigrant, he became an American statesman, a general in the Union Army during our Civil War, President Lincoln's diplomatic appointment to Spain, a senator for the state of Missouri, and President Rutherford Hayes' Secretary of the Interior. He owned a newspaper and hired and edited the young Joseph Pulitzer.

It's in Schurz's spirit I believe we should address problems in our country. It's not a contest of who loves it most through symbols and dogma — but righting the wrongs we suffer.

[Exercise of free speech shouldn't rile a patriot]

This week the president declared a state of emergency regarding opioid addiction. Here's a statistic that should chill you: The leading cause of death of Americans under the age of 50 is drug overdose. What do you do in the case of emergency? Apparently, you cut aid to treat the problem. Trump and the GOP have agreed to cut three million Americans who depend on Medicaid for substance abuse treatment out of the program. Only 1 in 10 people who are addicted are getting any help and most don't have access to treatment. How can we cut off people who are trying to get well? KellyAnne Conway, spokesmodel for the White House, says "they shouldn't start in the first place." That's nice. Put that one next to, "Just say no." It didn't work either.

The plight of the survivors of the Las Vegas shooting is worse than we knew. Many didn't have insurance, or have high co-pays for hundreds of thousands of dollars. There are gofundme pages set up so people can donate to even make a dent in the bills of victims. This is wrong. Had the shooter been detained and put in prison he would have a constitutional right to health care, but his victims? Nope.

If we aren't going to have reasonable gun laws, we should have health care for all. Why? Thoughts and prayers don't pay medical benefits bills. Not even close. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 100,000 people are shot every year in America to the tune of $2.8 billion dollars in medical costs.

What's right about our country? In the last 5 years, abortion is down by 25 percent. That makes me happy! Less abortion because of access to birth control is a win. Let's keep this trend going until abortion is unneeded because of choice, not laws trying to control women.

My dear reader, there is much work to do to make our country great. Don't despair. We are building on the backs of great people. Write Carl Schurz's words down and put them somewhere to remind yourself our duty as citizens. I leave you with another of his quotes: "We have come to a point where it is loyalty to resist, and treason to submit."

Resist.

Shannyn Moore is a radio broadcaster.

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