Author: partikaposts

We as a people are all sitting on the wrong side of history.  Nobody, from the left nor the right, has bettered themselves and come out as a leader in the fight against racism, incoherent nationalism, and a bigoted belief system in the neo-Nazi party.

Nobody.

As hateful fear-mongers came out from their shells and filled the streets of Charlottesville to scream and express their wrongful opinions, thousands of people who opposed this kind of racism filled the other side of the roads.  They were screaming right back at them.

For years, the neo-Nazi Ku Klux Klan white supremacists (yes, I am categorizing these hate groups into one, unified wrong) have been ignored by the general public – and for good reason.  They have been ignored because their message was not only denounced by everyone, but also because the best defense to this kind of unprecedented hate is silence from the other side.  By not feeding fuel to the fire, our society has silenced these groups for years.

Years went by, the social media world grew, tensions in an unordinary presidential election rose to new heights, and the wrong became more prominent.

Instead of ignoring these once silent protesters, who would often perform their sickening rituals in hidden forests across the country, people began to speak out.  People began to show their pre-existing disapproval with this racist behavior.

Although speaking out against hate and bigotry has always been the way to improving our society, this American experience is different.  The white supremacists should and have been disapproved by nearly every public official, but this experience still is different.

I feel entirely bad for these racists who exist in America.  Not only, for some odd reason, do they believe that they are the superior race because of the color of their skin, but they also believe that they can change any good person’s opinion on race in this country.

They can’t.

But changing the American opinion on race is not the only goal that these people have.  What they want is exposure.  They want the television sets to be blaring footage of their hate-filled rallies.  They want us to see that they are here.  And the sad part is, they are winning.

As they line the streets, opposition to them lines up on the other side.  We outnumber them – and they know that.  We don’t want them in our cities and neighborhoods – and they know that, too.  But we as a people can’t be broadcasting their message.  We can’t be allowing them to show what they stand for.  We know they are here, but we can’t allow ourselves to hear their voices.

Take the cameras away, ignore their calls of injustice and discrimination, and stop lining the streets against them.  Our country is against their actions, but they will never go away unless we do.

Soon enough they will be protesting to nobody.  Nobody will hear their desperate, pathetic calls.  Nobody will be standing by them, fueling their anger.

It is so critical to understand that we will never change the derogatory opinions of the monsters who are apart of the KKK, neo-Nazi, and ‘alt-right’ groups.  We never will.  Their backwards beliefs will continue to reverse their livelihood, and we will march on as a progressive society with values so deeply rooted in equality and fairness that racism will not be tolerated in the most miniscule form.  Racism and hate should never be tolerated, especially to the extent that the past year has allowed it to be.

The only way to get rid of this rearview mirror type of behavior is to spread the right message.  Spread the message of acceptance and fairness that both Republicans and Democrats know is right.  This is NOT a partisan issue.  By putting blame on one side of the aisle is to create a lie, because the only force acting on the side of the alt-right is hate.  Their hate towards people’s religion, people’s skin color, and people’s beliefs is the only fuel they have as long as we continue to not give in.

Silence out the hate and spread the right message.  Just spread love.  If all that can be done, the David Dukes and Richard Spencers of the world will crawl back into their holes and fade away.  Do not feed their fire.  They want your undivided attention, so don’t give them it.

Do not line the streets against them, because they will fade away.  Do not scream back hate in their faces, because they are not worthy.  Do not give them your attention, because you have more relevant issues in your life to cover.

Nobody wants these groups to come to their neighborhood.  By ignoring their protests and childish cries, they will fade away.  But by fueling their fire, they will only continue to grow.  We cannot let their hate grow.

To the alt-right, neo-Nazi, KKK, white extremists:  I do not want your vile protests near me.  Nobody wants your hate-filled message and nobody wants you around.  I can assure you that America has no place for you, and I can promise you that my city of Pittsburgh has no place for you.

The City of Champions has no place for losers.

Bryan,

Let me open up by saying you do not need anybody.  You do not need someone to tell you what to do; you do not need someone to tell you where to go to school; you do not need someone to tell you how to live.

The most important thing for you to realize is that if you are not being your own person, then you are lost and will not be found until you change that attitude.  If you listen to what everyone else is saying, you can learn a lot about what you don’t want to be, where you don’t want to go.

Every day you are told to go work, save money, hangout with your friends, take advanced courses in schools, and find a cheap college while majoring in something extremely practical.

That is not what you should do.

As far as working goes when you’re young and in high school, be sure to do it in moderation.  Working 40 hours a week and working weekend nights are simply not worth it (not that you ever did).  Always stick to the small jobs; stick to the babysitting, the refereeing flag football, and the cutting grass.  Use that extra time to relax at home or hangout with friends.  Those moments are far superior.  You have the rest of your life to work and worry about money.

Speaking of money, be sure to save some.  And no, I don’t mean putting every cent you earn into the bank.  I mean by taking a portion out of every check you make.  With every small job you do, you should be putting 10% of it away.  Put it somewhere you won’t touch it.  Somewhere that you can never get to it.  Just 10% of everything you make – is that too much to ask?  Obviously, since your bank account is extremely subpar today.

One thing that you were never good at is making time.  Something that is so vitally important to you before you go off on your separate ways is to hangout with those people that helped support you to where you are today.  Make time with your friends, and I don’t mean going out to eat at Applebee’s after every football game.  Go travel, even if only for a day; go to festivals, even if the attractions are mediocre.  Make time for those people, because I promise you each and every one of them has different plans for college and beyond.  Not all of those plans have an end-destination in your small hometown.

While your school friends are important, so is your grades.  You have to make sure you study, but don’t overbook yourself; schedule more art classes.  Those advanced AP courses and STEM Physics class is honestly just not worth it for you.  Most colleges could care less about what classes you took.  The things that are important are your GPA and your ACT/SAT score.  Spend more time studying for the standardized tests and take those tests more than just once – which I know you didn’t do.  The AP courses in English are far more important than the others, but the AP Calculus’s and AP History’s of the world served only as stressors for fields of work you knew all along that you didn’t want to go into.

Next is finding a college.  No matter what anyone says or thinks, just go with your gut.  You don’t need to go to a big state school and become a little fish in a big pond.  Just like in your hometown, you want to play a bigger role on a smaller stage.  Like you did, you went to a small school.  Somewhere that has a different feel to it; somewhere that you know no names.

Your major is also important, but it is not everything.  You’ll switch your major multiple times before you find that one (or perhaps two) fields of concentration that interest you.  Take your time and make the most of the experiences that your university offers.  At those school clubs and events and conferences is where you will get the most of your education.

Finally, it is going to be increasingly important to keep a document of references.  Whether it is acquaintances, teachers, employers, or just people you know – they all will come in handy one day.  And since you chose a small university, they will also know you by name, know your story, and know your challenges.

The importance of patience during this time in your life will help you tremendously.  The people you will meet and the opportunities that will be presented are what will drive you into a career.

Patience, patience, patience.

As I finally get into the swing of things in D.C., I find myself seeing the connections.  The errands I run for the staff on a daily basis take me to some amazing places.  Never in my life have I been to somewhere so secure, so debauched.  People are running left and right down the tunnels of the offices of the United States Congress; they know exactly where they are going.

For miles and miles, I am not running cross country; for miles and miles, I am running through the halls of legislation.

The Capitol building is connected to all the House offices as well. An absorbedly small subway train takes people to and from the offices to the Capitol building itself.  There, debate and conference take place.

It is fascinating to see the numerous amount of people walking through the basement of the House offices to get to this tiny little subway system (which by the way only saves them about a 200-meter walk).  But the importance of everybody’s purpose on that miniscule subway car is what makes captivates me.

Bills to be signed, cosigns to be made, meetings to attend.

Is it really that bad in the United States?  Every day, this country displays to me how lucky I am to be here and not there.

On the other side of the planet, an influential election is taking place in Iran.  Hard-line candidate Ibrahim Raisi is challenging incumbent Hassan Rouhani to become the next Iranian president in this Friday’s election.  Rouhani has been known as a moderate president during his five years as the head of the country.  His moderation is not exactly humanistic, many say.

During his tenure, Rouhani has been an enemy to the advancement of human rights in the Middle East and the rest of the world.  According to Human Rights Watch, Rouhani has not fulfilled many of his campaign promises he made when he first ran for office. Drug-related offenders have been executed at an alarming rate and free speech continues to be a massive hurdle for Iranians. Facebook, Twitter, and hundreds of websites are barred from use.

Here in America, no matter how hard he has tried, Donald Trump has not been able to block any portion of the first amendment that has and will continue to be used against him during his time as president.

Over in Iran, users of Telegram and Instagram have been subject to arrest by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.  This proves to me just another reason why we have been so blessed in this country.  Freely, we can say what we want, post what we want, and spread all the fake news that our little heart’s desire.  Even our nation’s president can say whatever he wants, showcasing just how free our press stands.

As I sit in Tim Ryan’s congressional office on my second day, it is clear to see and hear the frustration around me with the Trump presidency.  Some of the calls to the office that I answer as an intern are simply therapy sessions for people worried about our president and his ties to Russia.  And believe me, there have been many.  Nevertheless, I sit here – writing what I want.

Here in America, the debates are about if a drug offender should be incarcerated for ten years or two.  In Iran, a drug-related offense can lead to an execution.

How lucky is the American public?

I walked into my first day of work to think that I’d be busy and at the end of the day ultimately, to be exhausted.  I did end up being exhausted, but that was only due to my lack of sleep the night before and the constant traveling I have been doing; I have gone from Pittsburgh to Youngstown to Pittsburgh again, and finally to Washington – in three days.

One of the first things I did today was sign a confidential agreement with the Congressional Office; this agreement bars me from talking or writing about specific meetings, visits, and other information that goes around the Ryan office at Longworth House Office Building.

Today’s tasks were not too daunting.  My job mainly consists of answering phone calls, sending constituents to people on Tim’s staff, and taking notes on certain briefings to Congress.  The briefings are posted weekly and for the most part, as an intern, I get to pick and choose which ones I want to attend if I am interested in them.  This Thursday, I get to attend one involved NASA.

As I watched people come in and out of the office today for meetings with Ryan’s staff, I thought just how different it would be if Tim was elected Democratic House leader.  Nancy Pelosi is on television every day, always at a podium (tonight she is being featured on a CNN Town Hall).  Of course, Ryan is a rising star on Capitol Hill and wears many hats for the Democratic Party; but just how many more meetings would be happening in the office that I work in if Ryan was the Democratic leader?

How much more confidential would these meetings be?