Dare to ignore those who need help the most

I'm not a scholar of the Bible but one phrase jumps out at me, and, depending on which version it is, it's something to this effect:

"Inasmuch as you have done it to one of the least of these my brothers, you have done it to me."

Now, it doesn't matter what religion you are, because this is beyond religious labels. This is the basis of our human existence and connection on this planet.

Well, Illinois, the lovely state where I've resided for almost 30 years … the home of a growing percentage of wacko politicians and embarrassing scandals … the land of a string of greedy, corrupt individuals … yes, Illinois, is out to make history again as we teeter on a wave of cutbacks that will prove disastrous to the people who can do little or nothing for themselves, the disabled through birth, accident, disease or crime …

We now have a governor and legislature that are trying to wade out of this mess created by years of misplaced priorities, feeding pet projects, building monuments to themselves, mindless wastes of money, and simple loss of connection with the everyday lives families and individuals face.

It's time for politicians to stop being politicians. It's time to stop playing this political game of "I'll do this for you if you'll do this for me," tacking ridiculous self-serving amendments onto meaningful legislation or selling the souls of one segment of society to overstuff another. It's time to get past protocols that embellish egos so brightly that some people can't seem to stop admiring themselves in the mirror while many worlds fall into shambles around them. It's time to quit filling government job openings or college slots with friends and families and neighbors who don't have the credentials to do the job or who waste the professor's time.

We are a nation at the brink of collapsing … one individual at a time … and it's happening. Take away the respite care that gives caregivers the break they need … take away the group homes that provide specialized care and a unique emotional support system … take away the nursing home beds that provide essential 24-hour care in our loved ones' final days … take away the after-school and summer programs for children who are an inch away from becoming a casualty statistic in the streets … take away the mental health services that target those who have lost control of their lives …

Go ahead, dare to ignore those who need help the most.

Do that, and we will pay a price that is beyond the calculating capabilities of the most sophisticated minds and computers in the world.

Do that, and we will witness a wave of chaos, frustration, anger, abuse, abandonment and even death, because the human emotional support system will have been severed, stretched and stretched and stretched to a point where it snaps like an old dried out rubber band that falls in brittle pieces to the floor.

And I don't know about the rest of the country, but now Illinois has stopped funding the burial of indigents … just in time for summer when temperatures and tempers are already hot enough.

We all must accept responsibility for our fellow human beings, but we cannot pick up all the pieces when people refuse to fulfill their obligation as parents, as children, as spouses, as family, as friends, as employees, as bosses, as public servants … choosing instead to feed their own selfish needs and sing loud enough to drown out the cries around them.

The PEOPLE of Illinois, of any state, need to stand up and remember that those who need our help the most should not be the easiest to discard. These individuals didn't ask for birth defects, Alzheimer's, a drunk driver to hit them, to be shot in the head …

If we can't remember that first quote about caring for the least of our brothers, then give this one a try: "There but for the grace of God go I."