On Not Being Horrible

Y'all know Anna Caudill? She's one of those people who's so relentlessly honest that she's notoriously useless to the God Grift. She's an existential threat to every phony. And yet....she's hellbent on helping anyone who's ready to behave like a fellow human being. Anyway, she’s offered us a short and amazing piece on where she’s been, what her own commitment to human life has looked like, and what’s required of us in Tennessee now that forced birth legislation has become the law of the land. Let me put it country simple. As of this writing, Tennessee is now a Forced Birth State. It’s time to stop coddling folks whose brutal and brutalizing fantasies about other people’s lives have brought us to this moment. Anna is kind, but she doesn’t coddle.

Kristin Du Mez recently offered some words that bring Anna to mind:

The thing about prophets…is that they don’t go into the business of prophetic critique with the goal to impress. They don’t expect to garner huge followings. They speak because they feel compelled to speak. They do so knowing full well that they may lose their place in “the tribe,” lose positions of power, alienate friends and family.

That’s Anna all over. She tells the truth and lets the chips fall. On Twitter, she’s been maligned and blocked by pundits, pastors, and politicians who can’t handle the truth. She occupies the radical middle where people aren’t afraid or dismissive of incoming data. She risks an awful lot by speaking with the candor, courage, and conscience she offers here. It’s my hope that Anna’s words will inspire more Tennesseans to risk a little more when and where they can. Diana Butler Bass speaks of “risky goodness.” We need more of it.

I sometimes think conflict avoidance costs us everything. Anna isn’t afraid to speak as if she lives in Tennessee. I’m sad that so many Tennesseans with so much to say about so many things are sitting this one out. My mind turns to the millionaires and billionaires our beautiful state so lovingly sustains. Why they would defer to a wealthy man without a uterus at a time like this is a real puzzler. What are they afraid of? What is Ford Motor Company afraid of? What is Thomas Nelson author and the Nashville Predators’ own Bill Haslam afraid of? What is Doctor Bill Frist afraid of?

We’re responsible for the terror our elected officials carry out in our name. It’s time to speak up. If not now, when?