Knights on a White Horses

 The Monks and Aloka are home in their temple in Texas after their 2,300-mile Walk for Peace.

February 17, 2026

 

And here’s a new honoring of the Walk;

 

 

Last night I watched Steven Colbert interview Rep. James Talarico, who is running of the office of Senator for Texas.

What a sweet guy, and why oh why would such a nice guy be banned from the airways?

Talarico promotes the separation of Church and state, now how absurd is that? And he is a Christian who says that God has two laws: one, to love God; two, to love one’s neighbor. That's it.

How radical.

Love your neighbor includes Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Gnostics, Agnostics, Atheists, and the many others I don’t know about. For us to become a “Christian” country is to ignore our basic premise, one that we have guarded for 70 years—and that is that we welcome all faiths, and we practice the separation of Church and State.

The FCC ordered Colbert, in no uncertain terms, NOT to have Talarico on his show. So, what did Colbert do?

He had him on his show.

First, Colbert gave notice on his time slot that Talarico would be appearing that night, but his interview would not be aired on the TV channel. It would be on YouTube.

Here is the link:

Rep. James Talarico On Confronting Christian Nationalism, And Strange Days In The Texas Legislature.  

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiTJ7Pz_59A/

 

Of course, the real reason is that the present administration is afraid that Texas will elect a Democratic Senator and flip the state.

Geesh, and Nixon resigned when he was caught breaking into the Democratic Headquarters. Boy, have we come a long way. Now it is blatant interference, stealing, lying, and oppression.

Hey, we’re better than that. We came from good stock—immigrants.

And…

If you heard me complaining that I had to take a continuing ed course for my Real Estate License, here’s proof that I did.  

I also said that I’m not selling houses. But I have a voice, paper, and a pen, and I will continue to throw out tidbits of information if anyone is interested. If not, ignore it.

 

But not this: 

Once upon a time, a man named William Levitt had the funds and smarts to capitalize on a good thing. Veterans were coming home from the war, marrying, starting families, and needing homes. And they had the VA bill to help them.

Remember the cookie-cutter houses of the 50s? That was Levittown, Levitt’s brainchild. He mass-produced 17,000 homes with a covenant that ran with the land—meaning it applied no matter how many times the house sold. That covenant stipulated that the owners could sell only to white people.

A violation meant risking losing the property.

Levitt’s was a large development, but not the only one. Levitt charged only a $100 down payment, zero dollars for Vets, but not black vets.

Levitt set the stage for a housing shortage.  Although built in the 50’s by 2017, 75% of the Levitt houses were white, 14.6% were Hispanic, 7% were Asian, and only 1% was black.

I’m telling you this to emphasize how hard it is to get people to change, and that discrimination has long-reaching consequences.

Enter: A Knight on a White Horse:

Times were bad in the 60’s with rioting and burning in the streets. President Lyndon Johnson, long an advocate for Civil Rights, asked why the black community was so stirred up, especially after Kennedy’s Civil Rights Act.

The answer? There was still a great disparity between the blacks and the whites.

At the time, a Fair Housing Bill was languishing on the Senate floor, being argued over, and fought over.

Johnson called Congress, and said, "Pass that Bill." 

The Fair Housing Act (FHA) passed the very next day. April 11, 1968.

Now it is unlawful to deny the purchase of a home based on Race, Color, National Origin, Age, (except for 55 and older housing) Religion, Familial (meaning children), Disabilities* and Sex* (gender).

*These two came later.

And notice that one individual can affect the quality of the day and the status of individuals.

Be a rider of white horses.

The Heart Knows

Spiritual Warriors

Last night I went to bed with joy swelling in my heart. For I had watched the awakening of America, and I felt proud once again to be an American.

I understand how we have felt beaten down. Once I saw a movie where, in a Nazi concentration camp, a man was stripped naked, tied to a post as tribal hunters would bring home a fresh kill, sprayed with water, and allowed to freeze to death.

The inmates were forced to watch.

I was screaming inside, " Rush him, you are more than him, rush the man with the hose, the man with the gun. He will only shoot one or two of you before the rest overpowers him.

But who wants to be the first?

You need a unified group behind you. Otherwise, you are just another dead idealist.

We value our lives and want to live. And if the one inmate had spoken, had suggested the overrun, he would have been a goner, and the others would be back in fear and captivity.

We needed a small group of warriors to silently walk for peace. To stir our hearts to health and hope once again.

 

 

And the I.C.E  killings lit the spark that exists in the hearts of many of us, that we aren’t going to take it anymore.

 

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DUMXkqbjYyv/

And this is only a part of the people. They are taking to the streets in LA, San Diego, Boston, all over. We are watching history—we are always making history, but this is unprecedented. I began copying photos to save for posterity and to share. (It’s all over Instagram—for that’s where people are photographing and posting, and where you see kind hearts all over the place. People have lined up for 7 miles to praise the Monks on their 2,300-mile hike for peace. But if you aren’t watching Instagram, you can miss it.

This morning, my surging heart dropped a notch when I turned on my computer and saw nothing about the marches, the assemblages of people all over America who say, “We aren’t going to take it anymore.” I did see that a judge issued a ruling on I.C.E.’s presence in Minnesota.

 

“U.S. District Judge Katherine Menendez denied a request from Minnesota officials for a temporary restraining order, despite acknowledging what she described as “profound and even heart breaking” consequences for communities in the state.”

She said “those are not the only harms to be considered,” however.

“The Eighth Circuit has recently reiterated that entry or injunction barring the federal government from enforcing federal law imposes significant harm on the government,” the judge wrote.”

 “Significant harm on the government?!!! Brother! Hey, did you notice, I.C.E. is killing people, and the government is blaming the victims? And the President will not intervene in a Democratic jurisdiction unless they say, "Please." Silly me, I thought we were a two party system.

 

There is a sign over the door at the Cardo Rehab Gym at the River Bend Hospital in Springfield, Oregon that reads:

“The heart can do anything.”

 

P.S. I have opened a New Newsletter, and for the past four days have posted small comments. I would love it if you would join me. 

click on the image

 

 

This is what commitment looks like: