#LIVELIKEAIDEN

*PS added.

Changed my title - this is better :)

So now, the Springfield City Manager, the Springfield Police, and Ohio's governor have all confirmed that there have been zero reported incidents of pet-eating. 

Now, we know that politicians lie - but we are in a new era where the lies, false accusations, and fearmongering have become dangerous.

You would think, that at this point, Trump Republicans would start saying to themselves "WHAT? Oh, come on, that's not true." 

But they don't.  

I don't know if they really believe this crazy stuff or they don't care - they just know that fearmongering and hate work to win elections.

I have heard crazy rumors like this since I was a child about immigrants - about anyone different than the majority.

Maybe it's just me, but I have always thought, even as a child ...

What if that's not true?

What if I immigrated to a new country, after already living in fear and/or poverty, and rumors like this went viral about me, just because of where I'm from or my skin color or faith?

Guess that makes me in the minority, for thinking about that, rather than getting a sense of ethnic superiority from these rumors - but I am happy to be in that minority, then. 

However, the power of suggestion is a powerful thing, when it comes to most people, unfortunately - and Trump Republicans know it!

And since then, I actually have experienced being smeared online and in my community and watched it catch fire, to the point that even people whom I thought should know me better started to believe it without proof (helped along by hacking and impersonation of me) and of course, anyone in real life that I ever had so much as a disagreement with used it ...

... but I never made their chosen actions about anyone's ethnicity, gender, skin color, immigration status, or faith - the thought never even occurred to me.

If I was pressed to make it about those things, these things were done by a little gang of bored, educated, white people, who ganged up on me because:  A) I rejected one of them romantically and/or B) Witnessed/experienced them doing something I wish to God I hadn't and/or C) at least one of them considered me competition  (attention, politics) - and boom - you have a gang up/(cyber)bullying.

In fact, any pain, abuse, violence, or crime inflicted upon me in my life was performed exclusively by other white, Christian, natural-born American citizens - and yet I do NOT blame the color of their skin, their gender, their ethnicity, their immigration status, or their faith.

(As I said, the thought doesn't even occur to me, with the exception of my being floored that other supposed fellow Christians were behaving like this, as well as acknowledging the arrogance and power abuse by some white males is a problem in this country.)

It has to do with those particular individuals being crappy humans beings, regardless of their skin color, ethnicity, gender, faith or immigration status.

And if you think anyone ever comes back to apologize for believing lies spread by people over competition ... or being rejected romantically ...  or simply to deflect off their own misdeeds - think again, even when those involved are later arrested.

Instead, people usually just avoid you altogether, so they don't have to think about what kind of psychopathic bandwagon they jumped on, or worse, some even still believe lies -  because their psyches just won't allow them to think about what they went along with, and in some cases, were even complicit with, so they have to believe you  must've deserved it.

The people that spew this stuff either forget, or don't care, that these are real people being falsely accused and that there are real people affected by tragedy - and that not everyone makes tragedies about ethnicity, skin color, immigration status, gender or faith.

For example, the Haitian immigrant that ran a red light and hit a school bus, killing 11-year-old Aiden Clark, was not drunk or on drugs.  He did not "murder" 11-year-old Aidan Clark, it was an accident - which even Aiden Clark's father, Nathan Clark has said.

In fact, here's a video of Nathan asking Trump and JD Vance to stop using his son's name over politics and it's pretty powerful.

Nathan Clark said this: 

"I wish that Aiden would've been killed by a 60-year-old white man. 

I bet you never thought anyone would say something so blunt. 

But if THAT guy had killed my 11-year-old son, then the incessant group of hate-spewing people would leave us alone.  

 

The last thing that we need is to have the worst day of our lives violently and constantly shoved in our faces.  

But even that's not good enough for them, they take it one step further.   

They make it seem like our wonderful Aiden appreciates their hate - that we should follow their hate.  

 

And look what you've done to us - we have to get up here and beg them to stop.  

 

Using Aiden as a political tool is, to say the least, reprehensible, and speaking of morally bankrupt, politicians -  Bernie Moreno, Chip Roy, JD Vance, and Donald Trump.

They have spoken my son's name and used his death for political gain.  

This needs to stop - NOW.

 

They can vomit all the hate they want about illegal immigrants, the border crisis, and even untrue claims about fluffy pets being ravaged and eaten by community members ... 

...however, they are not allowed - nor have they ever been allowed - to mention Aiden Clark from Springfield, Ohio.  

 

I will listen to them one more time - to hear their apologies. 

 

To clear the air, my son, Aiden Clark, was not murdered. 

He was accidentally killed by an immigrant from Haiti.

This tragedy is felt all over this community, the state, and even the nation - but don't spin this towards hate.

 

In order to live like Aiden, you need to accept everyone.

Choose to shine, make the difference, lead the way, and be the inspiration.

(Aiden's mother, Danielle, holds up a T-shirt that says "#LiveLikeAiden" )

 

What many people in this community and state and nation are doing is the opposite of what you should be doing. 

Sure, we have our problems here in Springfield and in the U.S. - but does Aiden Clark have anything to do with that?

 

Did you know that an 11-year-old boy could be passionate about gardening?

That he could haggle for a better price at a yard sale?

Did you know that he researched different cultures to better appreciate and understand people that he interacted with?

Did you know that one of the worst feelings in the world is to not be able to protect your child?

Even worse, we can't even protect his memory, when he's gone.

 

Please stop the hate.

I said to Aiden that I would try to make a difference in his honor - this is it. 

Live like Aiden."

Those poor people :(

And bravo for them, not only for refusing to hate the person that accidentally killed their son and for not making this about his ethnicity, but finding the courage during their pain to fight back against Trump and Vance using their son's name for their own political gain.

I can't even imagine what they're going through or what it took for them to stand before the world, stand up to JD Vance and Donald Trump, and say this.

What an amazing couple, amazing parents - God bless them.

_________________________________

PS - So our honorary, adopted son went to Wittenberg University, which is in Springfield.  

As a matter of fact, he just moved away from there a couple of months ago.

He - and his fiance - are Dems, like us, so I just now texted them, joking: "Y'all need to quit letting cats and dogs get eaten in Springfield."  😂😂😂