Charlie King wrote a song about Lisa Kalfledge, a WWII war bride who came to this country and was repeatedly questioned about her role in Nazi Germany. She had been a child in the war and had taken no part in the resistance and consequently was shamed by the question. The lyrics of the song are mostly her testimony in court where she was defending herself for having tried to blockade the shipment of arms to Vietnam. She was determined that her children would have an answer to the question of what she did to prevent war crimes.

We have invested all our resources in systems that not only do not serve the purposes for which they are intended, they have destroyed our finances and our communities. They have laid waste our collective youth and have created animosities that will linger for generations. They have despoiled our planet, and unless immediate steps are taken, they will have rendered Earth, our only home, unlivable. We will not survive this continued destruction.

The discussion in both the local and national arena remains the same with only small variations for party of choice. Congress goes on recess rather than deal with urgent climate reform legislation. Congress takes insurance company money and refuses to even discuss the only plan that covers everyone and costs less than any other proposal. In the face of unprecedented (and undocumented) poverty, Congress funds our military interventions. We are not made safe by these interventions, but business’ ability to extract the wealth of other nations is protected. Those in these nations who protest are silenced, bought out, intimidated or killed. Underlying these choices is the belief that the creation of wealth surpasses any other right.

The pollution of peoples’ drinking water has got to be more important than the money made from mining. The right of homeowners to maintain their community has got to transcend the right of the developer to make a profit. Government by the wealthy for the wealthy must disappear from the earth. The myopia that accompanies the capitalist mindset does not allow them to see beyond the next quarter’s bottom line, and they cannot bring us back from the brink of self destruction.

The people of our nation have believed we are a moral people and that we act with good faith for the benefit of all. It has been difficult for various administrations to promote their agendas without massive spin. Too many times they have had to make up stories out of whole cloth and lie about events to involve us in dirty deeds which, if the truth were known, we would never allow. We have participated frequently in crimes against our own morality. Someone must open the conversation and include all stakeholders. It clearly will not be someone who is struggling to succeed within the system as the system does not want this message to be heard. It cannot be someone who is dependent on a corporate paycheck as they would most certainly be fired. It must be someone who is willing to be ridiculed and attacked in all manner of ways.

I do not wish to have no answer to my grandchildren when they ask how our generation could have allowed this to happen. I have joined with the Green Party and with others of like mind to make the difference that must be made. I am honored that the Green Party has chosen me to be its candidate for Governor of Texas.