All I can do is bear witness

I guess you probably heard what happened yesterday in DC. Just in case you didn’t, the sitting president incited a mob of his followers to march up to the capitol building. 

If they’d protested at The National Mall, that would have been fine. It would have been part of a time-honored tradition in our country. That’s what we’re supposed to do. There is a beautiful tradition of civil disobedience in America.

That’s not what happened, though. The mob descended on the capitol building. They broke in, many of them were armed. They took down our American flag and replaced it with a Trump flag. They flew the Confederate flag, the flag of traitors, outside our Capitol building. They threatened our politicians. VP Pence had to be removed from the building for his safety. I have no love for Pence, but neither do I want him harmed. 

Four people were killed. 

Several bombs were found that would have taken many more lives. 

Armed people broke into our capital and were largely greeting as friends by the police officers who should have been protecting the people within. The same police who violently attacked protestors on the National Mall when Trump wanted a photo op. 

Trump was responsible for all of this. He had to be banned from social media to keep from doing more harm.

These are facts, they cannot be disputed. 

You probably already know all of this. So why am I telling you again? 

Man, I wish I could go back to talking about books and tv and dragons all the time. 

But here’s the thing. I’m saying this because it needs to be said over and over again until it stops. Politicians need to say it, actors and influencers need to say it. Even content creators like me need to say it. Silence is complacency, and now is not the time for complacency. 

I’m also saying this because I have only my voice and my vote. If I want my vote to keep counting, I’d better use my voice. Because right now, there’s a massive mob of people who think they can use violence to overthrow our votes. 

This isn’t how we do things. I didn’t want Trump to win in 2016, but I sure as hell didn’t attack my own politicians. That’s not how a democracy works. 

We must bear witness to this moment in our history. It’s the moment when we decide if we want a government by the people and for the people, or if we’re willing to allow bullies to threaten and scare us into obedience. 

Will you bear witness?