Social Justice Plaster Saint

                         If it's not Trending, it's not Happening.

Photo: ​http://inspirebyaction.org/

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Disclaimer: This isn't about being left, or being right.  It's about being consistent.  I'm writing this because those of us who try to remain consistent see and hear things that are real eye rollers.  Maybe you'll feel this way about me.  But what follows are my words, fueled by a social media breaking point, after seeing a recent photo montage by an acquaintance whose only consistencies, is screaming about everything that is "trending".

If you’re sharing ad nauseum, outrage over the recent airport/immigration events, or crayola crayoning signs that say “You are Welcome, You are Loved”, and then post pictures of yourself guzzling margaritas at a resort in Dominican Republic (or really any other Caribbean Island), you are either an unbelievable hypocrite – or cruising the recesses of your brain with blinders on.  It’s proof positive that you really don't care about immigration and are woefully ignorant of the world & her citizens – and that all of your information in which you choose to rant about, comes from memes, headlines and trending indignation.
 
If you ever dare to stray beyond the walls and warning signs that separate the sandy beaches from atop your cute rented moped, you should know that so many of the people working at the resort, live in such a destitute level of poverty, that you couldn’t even begin to fathom the strife and worries they have on a daily basis.  Healthcare?  Forget it.  I-Phone 7? Shut up.  Hot Water?   What an interesting concept.  As are crosswalks.  Food and Education?  A tough topic.  If you were to travel to a village with eyes wide open, versus blissful ignorance, and were to look at nearly every person in it, despite their good nature and happiness, you should know, that many would do anything, literally, to just visit the U.S.  But they aren’t allowed to.  And they never have been.  There are only two ways they will leave that place nowadays – having lots of money/family ties with a years long convincing argument to the Visa center, or, the Major League Baseball machine likes what they see in a young player.  So unless selling garden vegetables in scorched earth suddenly becomes prosperous or you can hit a home run, you will never, ever, experience the joy of landing on U.S. soil.  And here all you had to do to travel, in between posting memes and tweets, was click ‘Book It!’ on Expedia.  That is American privilege; you cannot possibly identify with what it is like to not have it.  And if you want others to have it as you claim, you better enroll in a world history class and either become a real solution to the problems you see, or, carry on and just simply use these parts of the world for your pleasure.  
 
The rest of your trip will be fantastic I'm sure.  You will rejoice of your time there.  The joy on your intoxicated face posing with the smiling bartender that you pretend to care about says more to me about you than any meme that you post could. You probably didn't even bother learning basic Spanish greetings before going.  Next year, when you take a break from saving the world one hashtag at a time, you’ll go back.  Whether it’s by plane or cruise ship.  Whether it’s for the nickels on a dollar price, or the blue water, or more salacious reasons like partaking in legal prostitution (including children), you’ll go back. Maybe you'll share a heartfelt meme about Haiti next door, a literal hell on earth beyond the confines of the cruise ship port.  

Plaster Saint personified.   
 
So drink up, enjoy the all you can eat buffets of mangu and mofongo, clean sheets/towels - we look forward to your return and your empty, benighted and principled posts about world views, and how you left a five dollar bill to the maid who dredged your shower drain everyday.  You’re a real man of the world.  

​Photo: http://www.godominicanrepublic.com/destinations/punta-cana/