no kings protest =freedom of speech

So this just happened…pull off 5th St exit on my way home from work and this guy is slumped in his seat at the stop sign. I pull over and call 911 and give them all the details: vomiting, convulsing, unconscious but breathing. I’m on the phone with 911, directing traffic around this guy’s truck coming off the exit and people are stopping at the intersection to take pictures of him and asking me if it’s from heroin. All I’m saying is ‘MOVE! You’re blocking traffic and not helping AT ALL!’ I told 911 no evidence of drug use or alcohol, even his vomit didn’t smell like it. The first cop that pulled up immediately said this guy was OD’ing. Now I’m well aware we’re fighting a horrendous drug epidemic – believe me, I get it – and I’m sure this officer followed protocol and did his job – but to an outsider and seeing this guy as a human instead of one of the many possible OD situations I’m sure they see everyday, it was immediate. He leaned in, looked at the guy and said ‘OD.’ Why? Because he was unconscious? Convulsing? Dying?! The ambulance pulls up pretty quickly, they start assessing the guy and get him awake and to the ambulance. They ask him if he’s done any drugs or had anything to drink and he says no. Now you might think ‘Well sure he’s gonna say “no” amirite? But then they ask him ‘Well why are you sweating so bad? What happened?’ And he says ‘I’m diabetic.’ DIABETIC!!! They continue to search his car, finding nothing while the ambulance takes him away and the couple that stopped before me and I are told we can leave. I just wanted to share this to let people know, not everyone that’s unconscious and needing medical attention is an addict OD’ing. And even if they are, SO WHAT?! There’s a human being in an emergency situation and needing help. Isn’t that what the concern should be instead of judging someone we know absolutely NOTHING about? What happened to “It takes a village” or “Love thy neighbor?” That could have been someone’s dad, son, brother, husband – and he could have died. That’s all that should matter. I hope this helps someone remember that.”On October 18, seven million people gathered in more than 2,500 communities across all 50 states, Puerto Rico and several foreign countries for an organized “No King” protests. A former fellow reporter, now a teacher and writer, Brad McLelland prepared his sign and joined the protest in Ponca, Oklahoma. During that protest he met and talked with a supporter of the current president. They stood on the curb and chatted for a while. He posted the following about their interchange: “On a street corner today at the No Kings protest in Ponca, I started up a conversation with a man holding a Trump flag to counter-protest. I started with the weather, then we admired a sweet T-bird passing us on the street. Then we started talking about our differences. He was a very nice, soft-spoken fellow who just so happens to believe that Nancy Pelosi caused the Jan. 6 insurrection and that Trump has saved our economy and that illegals are ‘burning down Chicago.’“In the end, of course, nothing I said got through to this man. So I tried a different approach. I put down my protest sign and asked the fellow if he would put down his, and I invited him to just hold the American flag with me to show that we are sick and tired of the division, sick and tired of someone telling us we are mortal enemies.“Friends, he wouldn’t even do that. He said he would ‘never’ put down his Trump sign, even to stand in solidarity with the American flag and nothing but the flag. He ended up walking away. And I’m telling you, it was very sad to see.”Sad, but perhaps that civilized conversation holds hope for future discussions. In Arkansas, similar rallies took place in fifteen communities. To prepare for the rallies organizers filed for permission and announced the time and place. They asked that those who joined behave peacefully, speak civilly and leave quietly when the time scheduled ended. According to the website for KARK news in Little Rock, the cities in Arkansas included the predictable major metropolises of Fayetteville and Little Rock as well as smaller communities like Mountain Home and Monticello. In six cities various organizations hosted the events.The other nine communities with official protests happened because volunteers said, “Let’s do it.” Various pictures of the peaceful protests can be found on the Internet. Folks of all ages joined. In one picture, two women in their 90s held signs proclaiming “not paid.” They wanted people to know how peeved they felt with recent events and changes in our country. Having lived through the Great Depression, World War II, the Korean, Vietnam and Mid-East Wars and the social upheaval of the 1960s, they have seen plenty. From a wealth of history they sat in their lawn chairs to protest against the current administration. While the millions primarily included much younger folks, these women in their nineties. along with other post retirement folks, know that speaking out matters. It also matters for every individual holding opposing viewpoints. If you object, say something.America succeeds because it began centuries ago with a group of men who rejected their king’s mandates. They agreed on the need for change, yet held differing viewpoints of how the new nation would operate. They worked out a new experimental approach to balance the reality of their differing viewpoints while aiming for the good of every citizen.Some, like the man McClelland met, will not want to hold the nation’s banner with anyone of a different viewpoint. Yet holding the flag together would have acknowledged one point on which we all should agree: even if we disagree, we each have a constitutional right to speak and be heard in this ongoing great experiment begun 250 years ago.