We Really Can Find Honorable People Today

I felt deflated on November 8, 2016. I has expected more out of people in the election. I was naive. People hadn’t changed, Really, it was just that power shifted and anger changed. Then, in 2017, the Missouri Legislature screwed Missouri workers by making it harder for workers who have been victim to unlawful discrimination to get justice.  I became further disillusioned. Yet, the brave and honorable victims continued to fight on.

When I worry that I will discover the worst about people, I oftentimes learn the best about people. Juries have surprised me by their care, concern and compassion for litigants when I fear that apathy will prevail.  In one of my last race discrimination trials, I steeled myself for a defense verdict.  The jury voted unanimously for my deserving, brave client in just 2 hours. For awhile, my faith in justice and the fairness of others was restored.  That renewed faith in humanity buoyed me for months.

Then things come out of the mouth of the blowhard in the White House, and I forget that most people want to do right, be fair and be kind. I cannot predict our political future, but I still believe in the kindness of our brothers and sisters on this earth.

Two weeks ago, I lost my iPad at a hotel ATM in Washington, D.C..   I did not know where I had left it and I was sure it was stolen. I use my iPad all day, every day, for work and leisure.  I was surprised how dependent I am on this machinery, but I am. I told the hotel manager, filled out a report, and went to bed convinced I needed to buy a replacement. I was angry when I went to bed.

The next morning, we promptly headed to the airport sans iPad. Once seated outside the gate, I received a call from the hotel and I took it. I learned someone had turned the iPad into the lost and found. It was found at the ATM. since I was already at the airport to return home, the manager sent a shuttle driver to come bring me the iPad (which I am using as I write this blog) to the airport. They went above and beyond to help me.

THIS IS THE SEASON OF GIVING, OR SO THEY SAY. BUT, I SUBMIT THAT EVERYDAY PEOPLE GIVE TO OTHERS ALL OF THE TIME. GIVING IS HUMAN NATURE.


So, maybe some people in power irk me. Maybe they do not care about the injured, the poor, or others different from them.  But the kind people usually prevail. We just need to be sure to support the caring ones, and not the others.