On December 23, 1783, General George Washington stood in front of the Confederation Congress, meeting in the senate chamber of the Maryland State House, to resign his wartime commission.
Today’s Americans (most of them) have no idea what they inherited … or are about to lose. If they did, we’d have 90+ percent voting in elections instead of 50 percent… and Trump would be in prison. 😔😢💔🇺🇸
There is MANDATORY voting in Australia for all citizens age 18 and older. If citizens don't vote, they are fined, and this includes local, state, and federal elections.
We have this in Belgium, too, and elections are held on Sunday so that more people are free than would be on a weekday. People who work election day can vote by proxy.
I love, love reading that Heather is read around the world. It makes me hopeful that we (the collective "we") can get through this horrific mess and come out the other end. Wiser, I hope.
How very interesting. I wish we we had the same here in the U.S. Perhaps instead of holding issues up in the Congress or Senate, for partizan reasons, more would get done in a more Democratic fashion and maybe, just maybe this country would be less divisive.
If the US government was run by truly serious people, they would institute mandatory voting as well, and they would also give the District of Columbia statehood. We are not the democracy beacon to the world. That’s a story we tell. It’s a con job.
American officials have never wanted all citizens voting, because they are fearful of losing their power if we do. The Founders expressly limited the right to vote to propertied white men. White women gained the right to vote in some Western states and territories in the 19th century, and received the right to vote nationwide in 1921. It doesn’t surprise me at all that the Christian Nationalists want to deprive women of the franchise, or to require married women to vote the way their husbands do.
African Americans were deliberately disenfranchised through “legal” mechanisms and terror until the 1960s, and the state and federal governments have been retreating from it ever since. Latino voters experienced similar disenfranchisement in Southwestern states, and many of their ancestors were there long before white Americans. This Supreme Court majority is rank with corruption, favors the wealthy and corporate interests, and is uninterested in ensuring there is a meaningful right to vote. It has decided to strip Section 3 from the Voting Rights Act and to legalize campaign finance bribery with Citizens United. What is clear is that we need acts to protect and ensure voters’ rights throughout the nation. We are not and never have been a truly representative country, and it is time we became one.
Kathy-You detail well the evolution of America as we struggle to live up to the stated ideals of a nation that has sorted human beings into a hierarchy based on skin color and gender.
Tom Nichols wrote an article in the November 2024 issue of the Atlantic entitled, The Moment of Truth. He compared and contrasted George Washington with Trump. The bottom line was that character and love of country matter most.
Nichols noted that in his farewell speech Washington said, “sooner or later the chief of some prevailing faction” would manipulate the public’s emotions and their partisan loyalties “to the purposes of his own elevation, on the ruins of public liberty”.
We have arrived. It will indeed be interesting to see how history will portray the American people’s response to returning someone with Trump’s character to the presidency. I’m hoping that we will continue to evolve in such a way that “people power” overrules “corrupt power”.
USA is listed as among the "imperfect" democracies worldwide. Your essay suggests a lot of the reasons why. In Nov 2024 abt 66% of eligible voted, which means that Trump took the White House with abt 33% of eligible voters. ie one half of 66%. And 2024 was one of the highest turnouts in many years.
America’s foundation was the idea that all men are created equal. We have made that idea into an idol because we don’t act on that idea. It’s time we did.
We should, and we definitely need to return to educating Americans about American government and the humanities. With teaching to tests and clumsy attempts to censor the bad aspects of our history, students as adults get sucked into listening to the wingnut disinformation machine. It’s easy to mock some of Trump’s groupies as idiots, when the real problem is that they’re badly and deliberately by misinformed by their information sources. MSM has also fallen into that trap by trying to emulate Fox and boosted Trump for ratings, without anyone stopping to ask whether it was in the public interest to do so. Democrats should have invested in an alternative media apparatus years ago, but didn’t do it. Now it is too late and Trump won’t hesitate to lie about the press, particularly when they report unflattering and true information about Trump. Malignant narcissists like Trump don’t like it when they hear unwelcome truths about themselves.
Interesting guy, spend tons $$$ trying to become presidential candidate in 2020 but failed... sound familiar? Until $$$ talks is limited, USA is going to keep having more of what just happened.
Kathy-If we don’t find a way to effectively disseminate the truth, educate people about our history and inspire people to engage in the best aspects of democracy and humanity’s goodness, then we are surely doomed.
Voting is important but it’s more than that-we can’t wait until the next time to vote. We have to be engaged in bringing people to the light so they will wake up. Being “woke” is not a bad thing!
And they also try to make it festive and fun. Election day is on a Saturday so working people can vote more easily and usually includes a semi-obligatory sausage sizzle.
I don't think mandatory voting would be a good solution to the problem in this country. We don't need more uninformed voters who get their news from social media. We need people to engage in civil discourse and pay attention to policy proposals. Uninformed voters is how we find ourselves in this mess.
I fear you're right, Jenni Plumer. If everyone had been required to vote in the last election, I think the results would have been the same just with higher numbers. It's a real problem that Americans are so uncaring and uneducated about issues and history.
I think it's a combo, Jenni, even if its only a tax incentive vs a tax penalty or whatever in the voting booth. Biased news sources has been the norm in the US since political parties got their biggest boost. Andrew Jackson I think.
While people are not compelled to vote in Germany, all people are registered to vote automatically when they turn 18, and elections are on Sundays. One can also vote by mail.
Maybe... MAYBE... if we required voting as Australia does, people would actually pay attention to law and politics and a grotesque, deeply flawed vulgarian like Trump would never have had a sniff of real power.
To make things easier, they run eatery stands at the voting stations. For most Aussies, it's long become a civil duty. After all, who can get in a car without mandatory license and training requirements. You might think this would be a no-brainer, but not so! .... https://www.wikiwand.com/en/articles/Compulsory_voting#Modern_era
Steve, My view of this era differs from yours. I see us preparing to protect at every turn freedoms and rights that, indeed, are in peril. In this regard, I am banking on many millions of us to resist the spread of the staggeringly harmful agenda set to be imposed on the country. The leadoff 2-year mission, as I understand it, is to maintain some amount of democracy until 2026 and achieve significant victories in the midterms—breaking MAGA’s hold on Congress and state legislatures prior to our entering the 2028 election cycle.
In signing off perhaps until 2025, I start by quoting a standout U.S. Supreme Court Justice— Louis Brandeis—and conclude with a statement of my own. Quoting Brandeis, he once wrote, “Most of the things worth doing in the world had been declared impossible before they were done.”
Ending with me, I would note, as with most historical movements that met with repeated frustration and failure before making significant progress, I say we view our current struggle, despite the odds not seeming in our favor, as a continuation of virtually all past struggles that didn’t stop those who came before us; nor will it stop us either.
Brandeis also said something else that is still true: “We can have democracy in this country, or we can have great wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can't have both.”
Kathy, Thank you for noting this observation that aligns with the importance of prescribed forms of public accountability for vastly disproportionate amounts of wealth, power. and influence. This is not a matter of demonizing status, but an issue of democratic survival.
This "concentration of wealth" in the few as the many continue to suffer is why so many feel the system is rigged. Hence, they feel hopeless, disenfranchised, disgusted and disengaged. 90 million who could vote who didn't.
Most Trumpers are unconvincable. Forget about it. But there are millions who have just given up who can be reached if we channel their troubles and offer some real help.
And if we are to preserve democracy in any meaningful form, our campaigns in the next couple of years need to be centered on that issue. As Senator Chris Murphy (CT) reminds us, economic justice and a new populism must be the center pole of a tent that includes people with many other strong concerns.
There can be no democracy, no social justice, no rule of law without Economic Justice.
2025 must be the year Democrats became Economic Populists. Musk, Bezos, Zuckerberg, Ellison, Thiel, Koch, Mercer, Mellon,Walton and just a few more own too much and flex too much influence on every element of our nation. They are predators. They are eating our lunch. Literally.
The reaction to the recent shooting of a health company executive (I don't use the word care) tells us just how much is wrong and how much discontent there is to tap into. Enough!
Money in America needs to be rearranged. And there are lots of ways to do it. Google Patriotic Millionaires to start.
Hi there, I am an Irish Canadian and know there are issues everywhere. This needs much more work, but I have created a Project Peace and Joy 2025 Mighty Network. I will use this to teach meditation and invite those North and South of the border upset about Musk, Trump, and Poilievre. I hope to be able to give you some respite here and maybe make all you good people laugh.......
One of our biggest problems is that many people see protest as futile because they cannot afford to sacrifice their jobs or pay in order to protest. The threadbare social safety net Musk and Trump want to destroy won’t protect them in the event they lose their jobs.
Kathy, While you make a valid point and I surely empathize, I imagine as people increasingly recognize that the plan largely is to tear down democracy, crash the economy and sell off its parts, they could grow increasingly more receptive to siding with the half of the country committed to helping one another realize their potential as productive beings.
Dems have lost elections before, after all democracy is a back and forth thing. And this one was nearly razor thin. So let's not jump to "odds not seeming in our favor" too quickly.
Frank, I included that phrase because, in my view, preventing a tyrant from attaining power is a far different challenge from removing one who was democratically elected.
Thank you, Daniel. As I’ve heard someone else say, America is an un serious democracy. In other words, those in Power tolerate the lowest amount of participation by the citizenry as possible. Because they really don’t want it to be our government. They want it to be their government. And that goes for the Democrats too.
Although it is the fashion to beat up on Democrats, I dissent. Sherrod Brown, Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Sheldon Whitehouse, Jamie Raskin and a whole host of others do not feel that way. Many Democrats are in public office to be public servants. The facile "blame politicians" trope is what elected Trump.
We have all the same issues in Canada. Poilievre is a Trump wannabe. To cheer us up. I am working on a Project Peace and Joy 2025 Mighty Network. I am taking a break for Christmas. Check this out if you have a minute
Your words emulate my own. I imagine most people don't even know anything about the people they voted for because they choose other mediums of information. Or none at all..When the mainstream News media like CNN chooses people who look nice and make them engage in discussion and call that news it's disgusting. Those mentioned take governing seriously. And there are no doubt others like them. If it weren't for the serious people of the Democrats who are lead by Mr Jeffries there would have been no CR passed in the House. We Dems are serious people. And we care about democracy.
Then tell me, please, which one of them is going to use section 3 of the 14th amendment to prevent Trump from taking office? If the answer is none of them, then that proves my point.
If it comes to pass that we do lose our democracy(such as it is) the song "Big Yellow Taxi" by Joni Mitchell will be playing in the heads of many...''Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone...''
But we've still got a chance... lots of big surprises are coming out way I suspect.
And if they truly wanted people to vote there would be drop boxes everywhere instead of what Texas did, which was to remove them so that it would make it more difficult.
Steve, a perfect comment. Our history is filled with tremendous sacrifices of lives and treasure to have what we have. Those who obviously have zero appreciation and don't vote and those who ignorantly vote for a criminal who cares nothing about the country only himself will deserve what is coming. There have been great empires that have come and gone and this once great country has devolved into a polarized mess, soon to be run by oligarchs. Less than half of the half that voted, voted for this mess. We would not be in this predicament if it were not for a system that was set up to help the slave states giving to much power to minority representatives, i.e. the Senate.
Thank you. We would also not be in this mess if America had listened to George Washington. In his farewell address, he argued against the creation of separate political parties. He knew they would divide the country. There is nothing in the Constitution that requires America to have separate political parties. Yet here we are… Divided and about to collapse permanently.
President Biden, though under very different circumstances and with persuasion, also exemplified that commitment to country and some modicum of similar integrity. Grateful that my grandchildren will have heroes to look up to in that vein.
The key to George Washington's honor was that it took no outside persuasion for him to step aside. I think Biden was, generally, a good president, but he besmirched his reputation by backing out of his promise to be a one-term president and tried to continue, well beyond his time of competence. At a late hour and after Democratic primaries had been held, he relented, then proposed that his vice president, Kamala Harris, be the Democratic nominee. She was not the will of Democrats when she ran for president in 2020 and she failed to win in 2024, thus saddling our country once more with Donald Trump. As the proverb says, "For want of a nail, the shoe was lost...." Biden was that nail, which is now his legacy.
Attempting to compare President Biden to George Washington is just silly.
When Washington was President the US had just under 4,000,000 people according to the US census of 1790.
Under Biden around 335 million.
Biden has put together the best cabinet in US History. Perhaps Heather, would argue with me on that, but I'd like to know which cabinet accomplished more. And they did all of this in spite of having an extremely partisan SCOTUS and a House of Representatives that is unable to agree on virtually anything.
The Biden administration brought us out of the Trump recession and the pandemic while the Republicans did everything they could to sabotage the economy.
Please provide proof of anything the Biden administration has done that would show that Joe is incompetent.
Agree! Perhaps John’s perspective is overly influenced by the media, which seemed to take pleasure (profit?) in disparaging President Biden and his many accomplishments. One can only wonder if a fraction of his accomplishments were better highlighted in media coverage (rather than focusing on his age and imagined or exaggerated shortcomings) how things may have turned out differently.
Unfortunately, as much as Biden accomplished, his failings may stand out more. Harris ran an excellent campaign, unfortunately, she was tarred and feathered over the transgender issue where a fortune was spent in highlighting her words out of context in ads targeting critical voters. I believe, that issue was what cost her the election. Biden dragged his heels on the border issue of unchecked immigrants, which was an issue, and his withdrawal from running was way too slow in coming.
I disagree. Trump PROMISED to hire 15000 additional border patrol and custom's agents. He added about 400 at a cost exceeding $70.000 per hire. Had he actually been able to add these agents Biden wouldn't have had such an issue at the border.
Check it out -- 3 times as many undocumented immigrants cross the northern border as the southern border. If I wanted to I could illegally cross the northern border almost everywhere on the northern border, where there isn't water.
And Trump's border wall is a joke. 49 miles of fencing slightly more secure than snow fencing. Not to mention that Trump didn't build the wall in the most crossed over places. Do you realize the border wall has been breached over 5000 times where Trump built it and it is still being breached dozens of times every day.
Trump is 100% to blame for the so called open border so don't hang this on Biden.
"Please provide proof ... that would show that Joe is incompetent"
Biden's decision to seek a second term, despite his promise not to, prevented an open primary and gave the Groper-in-Chief and President Musk the election. That is incompetence on steroids.
Trump has been hiding his own cognitive problems by attacking President Biden incessantly. He has always projected his own problems and faults onto other people. Biden has slowed down, but I don’t think he has cognitive impairments. On the other hand, I think Trump definitely has cognitive problems, and he and his minions are doing all they can to disguise this fact. He may very well have a non-Alzheimer type of dementia, and it could be neurological based upon some difficulties he shows with his gait and body movements.
Penny, just watching Biden walk says it all. Many believe his primary role as president was to prevent Trump from returning to office, and if nothing else, some think that might define his legacy.
I hold out hope that if we can survive Trump’, we might emerge stronger and more appreciative as a nation. As I like to say, there’s nothing like a little—or in this case, a lot—of deprivation to remind us of what truly matters.
I cannot agree that President Biden besmirched anything, nor that he backed out of anything. He was hounded, in ways that are peculiar to the lawless age in which we live, and had the courage to take the path he took, immediately naming his vice-president as his worthy successor.
To pin one person's actions on the panorama of the past 9 years with one decision is inaccurate to say the least.
Joe Biden has sacrificed his life for this Country. Unless you have walked in his shoes for over 50 years in his time in Government your judgement is just plain wrong.
The Trump people say Biden was going to win and I agree. He had the vision and knowledge and had done a great job normalizing government and had things on the right track. He probably would not have made 4 more years but then Kamala would have been President. Not satisfied with hounding him out the nervous Nellies now blame him for the loss.
Janis, I was a strong supporter of Biden because, in part, I knew that a vote for him was also a vote for Harris to assume the role of POTUS should the need arise. I was likewise thrilled (I did not “know it” until the feeling hit after the announcement) when Harris assumed the task…AND I really liked her choice for a VP in Walz. To me they both were “real” and I could relate….sadly more Americans did not agree (still pissed that so many sat this one out).
Biden did NOT commit to one term! His aides "signaled" he would be a one term president but in his interview linked below he said he would NOT COMMIT TO ONE TERM. If someone has a link to him stating otherwise (not rumor or spin) I'd like to see it.
I agree. It’s Biden’s fault that trump and the MAGA republicans will get another chance to destroy our country. That fault is shared by the willful ignorance of republicans
Really? The voters in 2016 had nothing to do with it? The massive Russian disinformation system in play for years had nothing to do with it? The influx of huge amounts of oligarch money has nothing to do it? The Murdoch empire and the bias of the legacy media had nothing to do with it? The massively uninformed and lazy voter had nothing to do with it?
To place the panorama or politics for the years since Gingrich, Reagan, Nixon, Bush and the complete democratic system on one man's shoulders makes him a king. And Joe Biden certainly has never wanted to be king.
Mitch’s name should live in infamy as one of the chief architects of the destruction of the idea of democratic governance. So should Trump’s minions, to say nothing of Trump and Musk themselves.
This is the primary reason that I don’t take claims of machine manipulation seriously. It makes us sound like Trump and his partisans with these claims. The real problems occur well before voting, and they have to do with citizens who are and who are not permitted to vote. We need to clean our own house first.
The whole unitary executive concept is made up of whole cloth . For all of their professed “originalism,” the SCOTUS majority wants to throw out centuries of constitutional precedent and stare decisis when it comes to deciding cases. They bend and twist legal precedent into something other than what it is to reach the outcome they want. Their decision in U.S. v. Trump is a prime example of this.
The unitary executive theory in my view violates two important concepts in the constitution. It violates the express separation of powers in the constitution, and it violates the Founders’ express intent that even the President was not above the law.
No it's the collective fault of the people who voted for Trump. No one else. Or the people who FAILED to vote for Harris Walz or refused to vote at all.
Thank you, Ally, for focussing on what really counts in Dr Cox Richardson's esssay: that men and women can aspire to, and sustain, that high mark of integrity.
JLG: You can say that again - last night I decided to take a nap while the turkey was cooking...the result looks like something that might have accompanied a Pharaoh into his sealed tomb.
I fear that in a few years we may look back at Joe Biden and his refusal to use the power (of immunity from prosecution for “official acts”) given him by the SCOTUS to take any action that would have prevented the collapse of our democratic republic as the new (and final?) high watermark of commitment and integrity.
Power is enchanting too many of our current politicians and representatives. They are jockeying for it, competing for attention, and generally ignoring the task of governing as though it is too pedestrian for them.
Yes. The first focus of many politicians is loyalty to party when it should be thinking through history, deep understanding of needs, solutions, and strategies. So many of them are egocentric and power-hungry and they carry that baggage into the chambers of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. They need term limits, too. And stronger consequences for failing to honor their oath and code of ethics.
And Code of Ethics. My profession requires me to complete a two hour course w formal exam at the end of it every two years. I’m
Always pleased when I accomplish this as I have studied the current challenges that have come before our ethics board of examiners in past two years upon which I am now being examined.
I don’t think Washington would have turned over the Presidency to someone who cheated to win the election. I think that’s what happened here. President Biden needs to use his executive order to demand a hand recount in the swing states where there was an obvious algorithmic
This is an excellent video summary of the Smart Elections (smartelections.us) data findings, for those that may be having difficulty wrapping their head around it:
Watch on your computer with the volume on. It is SHOCKING!
Data collected / analyzed by Smart Elections is gut wrenching, hopefully greater attention will be given as more results are released. Something definitely is not right.
Heather reminds us of what a person of integrity does instead of seeking unending power. Quite the contrast to death star and his henchman muskrat. Now we are wallowing in the swamp of corruption and criminality. I have been having trouble wishing people a happy new year when I know it will be nothing but chaos.
Me too, Michele! Writing Christmas card this year with salutations for the new year were challenging at best…didn’t want to “freak” on a holiday card, so pulled my punches despite wanting to vent….*shaking fist at the sky*….sigh….
JaKsaa, we are so used to TFFFG bloviating every little thing that it has become the norm….it shouldn’t be. I could be totally wrong, but think that maybe the Harris team is quietly doing their job & likely have plans/options on both the front and back burner….they just don’t have the need to blurt it out to everyone…or *jazz hands!!* be in the spotlight. Sometimes the best sauce is simmered on a low heat before serving. Harris is accomplished and talented and I hope she moves in a direction that fulfills HER life’s mission/goals/wishes. Ditto for Tim Walz…did not know of him before, but am now a fan of his down to earth people-positive message/action. Best wishes that both live long and prosper. 🖖
I hear what you’re saying Barbara, but in the 107 days to get Harris/Walz elected for Biden was an intense volunteer project, not just a casual recreational hobby — “there’s nothing quite like the bond that forms when you strive toward a common goal together. Whether it’s pulling late nights, solving problems, or just grinding through a tough season, those shared experiences are where trust is forged”.
Helping on an important and intense campaign deadline where thousands of voters contributed time and money, we focused not only on results and tasks. To achieve collaboration in our teamwork of strangers - we were also invested in the process, in the work itself, where dependency and trust is truly built. When you’ve been in the trenches with someone — whether that’s literal or figurative — you know you can count on them. It’s through those shared struggles that leaders earn the trust of their teams.
I would not trust or count on Harris as a Leader after seeing her disappear and ignore all the campaign volunteers who would of liked to have seen us address the lessons learned with Harris/Walz. Both Kamala and Tim could of headed a professional legal vetting process to get the ballot counts verified, especially in the way A.I. will affect the future, or how about where the Press dropped the ball (on democracy) with hiding the regime change under Project 2025, or investigate laws that need to prevent super PACs from future corruption of our democracy using Elon Musk and other elites as examples.
Example of someone who’s been passed over for a chance to be in the running for President, and keeps working year over year to represent whats needed for an ethical government >>> Bernie Sanders.
Thanks for sharing. Imagine a leader with such courage and integrity, whose love of country set the standard that would stand a a measure of leadership that has lasted for over 240 years.
Men like this no longer exist. We are in for some tough times in the not to distant future.
I disagree Mike, men like this and women as well most certainly do still exist, our military is full of them, I know it was when I served in VN, but there are many others, academia is but one example. Where they are in very short supply are among the maggot faithful and those closely associated with the insipid orange turd. I do agree with your statement that we are in for some tough times, made temporarily more difficult by our adherence to the rules of law and the golden rule 🙏
She knows we have many more craven individuals in public life today who want more power. They cannot conceive of doing any public service, only using positions of power to rachet their own imagined superiority more, and to reward the nihilist rich who pay well for sycophancy.
Daniel Markovits, author of the recent "The Meritocracy Trap," distinguishes between all the ways our culture today pushes superiority games, and the opposite, schools and other places that nurture ways of seeing the many varieties of excellence in others.
Anders Hansen, a Swedish psychiatrist, in one of his books, called "The Attention Fix," goes into detail on how social media feeds depression and other ill feeling from the many youth especially who spend too much time on social media, and come away feeling they are always losing the competition games.
He doesn't pay any attention to schools, and how their standardized testing just vaults more of the superiority trap -- and in same proportion less ability to value excellence in others.
But we can take Heather's short one today as a reminder indeed, that there are excellent others out there to emulate, to appreciate. As we had Washington on December 23 long ago. And as we have apparently many more today sold down the river by oligarchs, convicted criminals, con men, rapists, frauds, liars, and sycophants to the billionaire class.
In at least one case we all know of, all those poisoned qualities today reside in one fat, orange guy.
Phil, so well said. The superiority games is an excellent phase to describe what goes on in too many places. People who secure within themselves do not have to be the top dog all the time. Believing that I am the best, the smartest, or whatever to me would be an intolerable burden.
Of course, though, Anne-Louise, Musk is no "friend."
The orange felon has never in his life had any friends.
Many Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization (RICO) co-conspirators.
Many female victims of rape, sexual harassment, sex abuse, and pu** y-grabbing.
Many short term victims of his lifelong transactional-only business grifting.
Millions of fans of his on-stage "bing-bing-boing-bong" sound effects, fat man" dance" moves, oral sex on microphones, and hawking of gold sneakers, $60 Bibles, $100,000 watches, perfume, guitars, himself-as-hero-adulation cards (four collections of NFTs so far), and mug shot t-shirts.
And all the corrupt billionaires and dictators in the world.
You’re right about this. Trump dropped his esteemed mentor, Roy Cohn, once he heard Cohn had developed AIDS. All of his relationships with people, including his various wives and his children, are entirely transactional. Trump’s malignant narcissism and sociopathy prevent him from developing true friendships.
There’s a reason why those boys formed the Sons of Cincinnatus, who was the Roman general who was pulled out of retirement and then resigned as soon as the threat from the Aequi (one of the Italic groups the Romans were trying to conquer and who had invaded) was over. They revered the Roman Republic that Livy described as the most honorable of states. In the same vein, the Rule of St Benedict says never elect as abbot the guy who wants to be abbot. I actually think that a better role model is Cornelia, daughter of Scipio Africanus, and mother of the Gracchi brothers who wanted to democratize the plebiscite to prevent the rise of the oligarchs. Think Elizabeth Warren with a spindle . . .
Interesting how the Republic worked. I read a book on how the Republic became the Empire because people used the rules designed to keep the oligarchs from seizing power ultimately to seize it.
Anne-Louise, I am delighted! As you no doubt already know, my brain operates in the deep past and I admit that teaching Women in the Ancient World (as well as regular Greek and Roman history and of course all the medieval stuff) for close to 40 years to undergraduates was one of my great pleasures. I provided a different perspective on the usual boilerplate stuff (like the idea that the Roman Empire was a good thing--it was not).
Cincinnatus patented the original "mike drop" with an honorable twist, when he left plow and oxen awaiting in the field, as he went back once again lured by the always lingering call of duty. Cornelia, as opposed to King Lear's daughter Cordelia, is a great role model, Linda! Good call.
I can't remember if it was her son, Scipio Aemilianus who led the final, awful destruction of Carthage.
Her son-in-law (and first cousin!) was Scipio Aemilianus. Cornelia had twelve children with Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus, including the two who led the Social Wars (Tiberius and Gaius) and were both murdered by the denizens of the patrician oligarchy because they were "in danger" of becoming too successful. Cornelia was survived only by her daughter, Sempronia, who was the wife of her cousin Aemilianus.
Cato the Elder (aka Cato the Censor) was indeed a horrible man. It's why I refuse to consider the Cato Institute anything moral or good: it is essentially a secretly fascistic organization.
That is very interesting! Thanks! I have always liked Roman history. Not college educated but still love the history. I should have paid more attention in my high school Latin class. I regret that to this day
We need to remember that not only did General Washington resign his wartime commission, as shown in the painting, after two terms as President, when he most likely would have been elected to a third term, he declined to run again. A man of honor and integrity, indeed.
And his farewell address, Washington warned against the creation of separate political parties. He knew they would divide the nation. And so here we are with the nation about to collapse.
I don’t believe anyone has ever been as patriotic as George Washington. Lincoln was believer of freedom of all men. FDR, a believer of the working man, but Washington, a believer in this nation.
I have nothing to add to the previous well stated comments. Thank you Prof Richardson for again illuminating the history that brought us forward. Hard to recognize and understand why we are here.
Yes that is the great lesson of our democracy. We the people vote for representatives who use balance of power to achieve governing for the common good. Government is not for the rich guys. The government needs to consider what is best for all the people
George Washington did not quest after power for himself. Quite the reverse. But when asked and demanded, he took the responsibility and served the country. There was nothing he wanted more than to go home to his beloved Mount Vernon to take care of his plants and agriculture, as the financially struggling farmer that he was. But his values were true guides to his responsible and effective behavior.
In my experience, some of the best performers and workers were those who had to be recruited and convinced by others to undertake the job. Some of the worst performers were those who craved power, adulation, and domination over others.
Identify good people first, then try to recruit these reluctant individuals to political positions. Our system encourages and enables the worst kind of power grabbers, which include the ambitious political status seekers and the wealthy individuals and corporations that vet our politicians.
I have been wondering if, after the richest man in the world, Elon Musk poured over 200 million dollars into his Trump PAC and another $77 million into down ticket races if John Roberts has had second thoughts about the Citizens United decision. Is this what you intended to enable Chief Justice Roberts? Is this what you think the founding fathers intended?
Today’s Americans (most of them) have no idea what they inherited … or are about to lose. If they did, we’d have 90+ percent voting in elections instead of 50 percent… and Trump would be in prison. 😔😢💔🇺🇸
There is MANDATORY voting in Australia for all citizens age 18 and older. If citizens don't vote, they are fined, and this includes local, state, and federal elections.
Would that we had that in the U.S.
We have this in Belgium, too, and elections are held on Sunday so that more people are free than would be on a weekday. People who work election day can vote by proxy.
I love, love reading that Heather is read around the world. It makes me hopeful that we (the collective "we") can get through this horrific mess and come out the other end. Wiser, I hope.
I discovered this while on a trip to Belgium and the Netherlands in June of this year. So envious!
How very interesting. I wish we we had the same here in the U.S. Perhaps instead of holding issues up in the Congress or Senate, for partizan reasons, more would get done in a more Democratic fashion and maybe, just maybe this country would be less divisive.
If the US government was run by truly serious people, they would institute mandatory voting as well, and they would also give the District of Columbia statehood. We are not the democracy beacon to the world. That’s a story we tell. It’s a con job.
American officials have never wanted all citizens voting, because they are fearful of losing their power if we do. The Founders expressly limited the right to vote to propertied white men. White women gained the right to vote in some Western states and territories in the 19th century, and received the right to vote nationwide in 1921. It doesn’t surprise me at all that the Christian Nationalists want to deprive women of the franchise, or to require married women to vote the way their husbands do.
African Americans were deliberately disenfranchised through “legal” mechanisms and terror until the 1960s, and the state and federal governments have been retreating from it ever since. Latino voters experienced similar disenfranchisement in Southwestern states, and many of their ancestors were there long before white Americans. This Supreme Court majority is rank with corruption, favors the wealthy and corporate interests, and is uninterested in ensuring there is a meaningful right to vote. It has decided to strip Section 3 from the Voting Rights Act and to legalize campaign finance bribery with Citizens United. What is clear is that we need acts to protect and ensure voters’ rights throughout the nation. We are not and never have been a truly representative country, and it is time we became one.
Adding to your list, Native Americans couldn’t vote until 1948, and are still having issues with voting rights.
Kathy-You detail well the evolution of America as we struggle to live up to the stated ideals of a nation that has sorted human beings into a hierarchy based on skin color and gender.
Tom Nichols wrote an article in the November 2024 issue of the Atlantic entitled, The Moment of Truth. He compared and contrasted George Washington with Trump. The bottom line was that character and love of country matter most.
Nichols noted that in his farewell speech Washington said, “sooner or later the chief of some prevailing faction” would manipulate the public’s emotions and their partisan loyalties “to the purposes of his own elevation, on the ruins of public liberty”.
We have arrived. It will indeed be interesting to see how history will portray the American people’s response to returning someone with Trump’s character to the presidency. I’m hoping that we will continue to evolve in such a way that “people power” overrules “corrupt power”.
USA is listed as among the "imperfect" democracies worldwide. Your essay suggests a lot of the reasons why. In Nov 2024 abt 66% of eligible voted, which means that Trump took the White House with abt 33% of eligible voters. ie one half of 66%. And 2024 was one of the highest turnouts in many years.
American oligarchs have decided that truly representative government is a luxury they can no longer afford.
The Electoral College has to go. We could then attempt to approach a true democracy.
America’s foundation was the idea that all men are created equal. We have made that idea into an idol because we don’t act on that idea. It’s time we did.
Hmm so true.
We should, and we definitely need to return to educating Americans about American government and the humanities. With teaching to tests and clumsy attempts to censor the bad aspects of our history, students as adults get sucked into listening to the wingnut disinformation machine. It’s easy to mock some of Trump’s groupies as idiots, when the real problem is that they’re badly and deliberately by misinformed by their information sources. MSM has also fallen into that trap by trying to emulate Fox and boosted Trump for ratings, without anyone stopping to ask whether it was in the public interest to do so. Democrats should have invested in an alternative media apparatus years ago, but didn’t do it. Now it is too late and Trump won’t hesitate to lie about the press, particularly when they report unflattering and true information about Trump. Malignant narcissists like Trump don’t like it when they hear unwelcome truths about themselves.
Dem alternative media outlet. For awhile I thought it would be Bloomberg but Dems pissed on him.
Interesting guy, spend tons $$$ trying to become presidential candidate in 2020 but failed... sound familiar? Until $$$ talks is limited, USA is going to keep having more of what just happened.
Two of the state universities in Florida just eliminated Humanities as a focus of study. Watch to fight against it spreading.
Kathy-If we don’t find a way to effectively disseminate the truth, educate people about our history and inspire people to engage in the best aspects of democracy and humanity’s goodness, then we are surely doomed.
Voting is important but it’s more than that-we can’t wait until the next time to vote. We have to be engaged in bringing people to the light so they will wake up. Being “woke” is not a bad thing!
And they also try to make it festive and fun. Election day is on a Saturday so working people can vote more easily and usually includes a semi-obligatory sausage sizzle.
This is sounding very humane, and country specific treats!
Yep!
I don't think mandatory voting would be a good solution to the problem in this country. We don't need more uninformed voters who get their news from social media. We need people to engage in civil discourse and pay attention to policy proposals. Uninformed voters is how we find ourselves in this mess.
I fear you're right, Jenni Plumer. If everyone had been required to vote in the last election, I think the results would have been the same just with higher numbers. It's a real problem that Americans are so uncaring and uneducated about issues and history.
I think it's a combo, Jenni, even if its only a tax incentive vs a tax penalty or whatever in the voting booth. Biased news sources has been the norm in the US since political parties got their biggest boost. Andrew Jackson I think.
While people are not compelled to vote in Germany, all people are registered to vote automatically when they turn 18, and elections are on Sundays. One can also vote by mail.
German turnout has been quite variable, often in the 80s, lately in the mid 70%
How easy is it to become a new citizen in Germany when you were not born there?
Maybe... MAYBE... if we required voting as Australia does, people would actually pay attention to law and politics and a grotesque, deeply flawed vulgarian like Trump would never have had a sniff of real power.
To make things easier, they run eatery stands at the voting stations. For most Aussies, it's long become a civil duty. After all, who can get in a car without mandatory license and training requirements. You might think this would be a no-brainer, but not so! .... https://www.wikiwand.com/en/articles/Compulsory_voting#Modern_era
We would claim that we are not free.
We could vote this IN with a bit of effort 😄
Yes, but it amounts to a 'nuisance fee' essentially.
Steve, My view of this era differs from yours. I see us preparing to protect at every turn freedoms and rights that, indeed, are in peril. In this regard, I am banking on many millions of us to resist the spread of the staggeringly harmful agenda set to be imposed on the country. The leadoff 2-year mission, as I understand it, is to maintain some amount of democracy until 2026 and achieve significant victories in the midterms—breaking MAGA’s hold on Congress and state legislatures prior to our entering the 2028 election cycle.
In signing off perhaps until 2025, I start by quoting a standout U.S. Supreme Court Justice— Louis Brandeis—and conclude with a statement of my own. Quoting Brandeis, he once wrote, “Most of the things worth doing in the world had been declared impossible before they were done.”
Ending with me, I would note, as with most historical movements that met with repeated frustration and failure before making significant progress, I say we view our current struggle, despite the odds not seeming in our favor, as a continuation of virtually all past struggles that didn’t stop those who came before us; nor will it stop us either.
Brandeis also said something else that is still true: “We can have democracy in this country, or we can have great wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can't have both.”
Kathy, Thank you for noting this observation that aligns with the importance of prescribed forms of public accountability for vastly disproportionate amounts of wealth, power. and influence. This is not a matter of demonizing status, but an issue of democratic survival.
This "concentration of wealth" in the few as the many continue to suffer is why so many feel the system is rigged. Hence, they feel hopeless, disenfranchised, disgusted and disengaged. 90 million who could vote who didn't.
Most Trumpers are unconvincable. Forget about it. But there are millions who have just given up who can be reached if we channel their troubles and offer some real help.
And if we are to preserve democracy in any meaningful form, our campaigns in the next couple of years need to be centered on that issue. As Senator Chris Murphy (CT) reminds us, economic justice and a new populism must be the center pole of a tent that includes people with many other strong concerns.
There can be no democracy, no social justice, no rule of law without Economic Justice.
2025 must be the year Democrats became Economic Populists. Musk, Bezos, Zuckerberg, Ellison, Thiel, Koch, Mercer, Mellon,Walton and just a few more own too much and flex too much influence on every element of our nation. They are predators. They are eating our lunch. Literally.
The reaction to the recent shooting of a health company executive (I don't use the word care) tells us just how much is wrong and how much discontent there is to tap into. Enough!
Money in America needs to be rearranged. And there are lots of ways to do it. Google Patriotic Millionaires to start.
Good points, but remember the 66% who voted is among the high water mark of turnouts in very many years. Turnout has fluctuated around 60%. https://www.electproject.org/national-1789-present
Thanks Frank-really interesting data noting that 1840 and 1860 were high marks for voter turnout.
Hi there, I am an Irish Canadian and know there are issues everywhere. This needs much more work, but I have created a Project Peace and Joy 2025 Mighty Network. I will use this to teach meditation and invite those North and South of the border upset about Musk, Trump, and Poilievre. I hope to be able to give you some respite here and maybe make all you good people laugh.......
https://becompassionatenl.mn.co/share/6HrUl9lTA_QXmwjR?utm_source=manual
Wonderful plan - I’d like to participate in Project Peace and Joy 2025 Mighty Network!
One of our biggest problems is that many people see protest as futile because they cannot afford to sacrifice their jobs or pay in order to protest. The threadbare social safety net Musk and Trump want to destroy won’t protect them in the event they lose their jobs.
Kathy, While you make a valid point and I surely empathize, I imagine as people increasingly recognize that the plan largely is to tear down democracy, crash the economy and sell off its parts, they could grow increasingly more receptive to siding with the half of the country committed to helping one another realize their potential as productive beings.
Remember, guys, that autocrats need mass markets to sell their corporate products and services as much as anyone else.
Dems have lost elections before, after all democracy is a back and forth thing. And this one was nearly razor thin. So let's not jump to "odds not seeming in our favor" too quickly.
Frank, I included that phrase because, in my view, preventing a tyrant from attaining power is a far different challenge from removing one who was democratically elected.
As to what Steve B said above “ Today’s Americans (most of them) have no idea what they inherited … or are about to lose.”
I would recall Joni Mitchell who sang…
“Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got
Till it's gone…”
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=94bdMSCdw20&pp=ygUPYmlnIHllbGxvdyB0YXhp
Pave paradise and put up a parking lot...
Pave paradise put up a data center.
Truer words were never spoken, Steve.
Thank you, Daniel. As I’ve heard someone else say, America is an un serious democracy. In other words, those in Power tolerate the lowest amount of participation by the citizenry as possible. Because they really don’t want it to be our government. They want it to be their government. And that goes for the Democrats too.
Although it is the fashion to beat up on Democrats, I dissent. Sherrod Brown, Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Sheldon Whitehouse, Jamie Raskin and a whole host of others do not feel that way. Many Democrats are in public office to be public servants. The facile "blame politicians" trope is what elected Trump.
We have all the same issues in Canada. Poilievre is a Trump wannabe. To cheer us up. I am working on a Project Peace and Joy 2025 Mighty Network. I am taking a break for Christmas. Check this out if you have a minute
https://becompassionatenl.mn.co/share/6HrUl9lTA_QXmwjR?utm_source=manual
Oh, please Canada, don’t follow America down the path to ruin. Learn what NOT to do…..we didn’t
I’m not surprised, and I’ve heard plenty about Pierre Poilievre. Poilievre, like Trump, would naturally build his own opposition by his own actions.
Your words emulate my own. I imagine most people don't even know anything about the people they voted for because they choose other mediums of information. Or none at all..When the mainstream News media like CNN chooses people who look nice and make them engage in discussion and call that news it's disgusting. Those mentioned take governing seriously. And there are no doubt others like them. If it weren't for the serious people of the Democrats who are lead by Mr Jeffries there would have been no CR passed in the House. We Dems are serious people. And we care about democracy.
Just another example of the PARTISAN agenda being fought by Democrats on our behalf. https://flylordsmag.com/utah-and-14-other-states-attacking-public-lands-slippery-slope-towards-privatization/
Then tell me, please, which one of them is going to use section 3 of the 14th amendment to prevent Trump from taking office? If the answer is none of them, then that proves my point.
They will take whatever we let them get away wth.
Always
If it comes to pass that we do lose our democracy(such as it is) the song "Big Yellow Taxi" by Joni Mitchell will be playing in the heads of many...''Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone...''
But we've still got a chance... lots of big surprises are coming out way I suspect.
And if they truly wanted people to vote there would be drop boxes everywhere instead of what Texas did, which was to remove them so that it would make it more difficult.
Word, and well said.
Yes
Steve, a perfect comment. Our history is filled with tremendous sacrifices of lives and treasure to have what we have. Those who obviously have zero appreciation and don't vote and those who ignorantly vote for a criminal who cares nothing about the country only himself will deserve what is coming. There have been great empires that have come and gone and this once great country has devolved into a polarized mess, soon to be run by oligarchs. Less than half of the half that voted, voted for this mess. We would not be in this predicament if it were not for a system that was set up to help the slave states giving to much power to minority representatives, i.e. the Senate.
Thank you. We would also not be in this mess if America had listened to George Washington. In his farewell address, he argued against the creation of separate political parties. He knew they would divide the country. There is nothing in the Constitution that requires America to have separate political parties. Yet here we are… Divided and about to collapse permanently.
So True. Thank you for this reminder.
That remains the high water mark of commitment and integrity. Would that leaders today could emulate that honor.
President Biden, though under very different circumstances and with persuasion, also exemplified that commitment to country and some modicum of similar integrity. Grateful that my grandchildren will have heroes to look up to in that vein.
The key to George Washington's honor was that it took no outside persuasion for him to step aside. I think Biden was, generally, a good president, but he besmirched his reputation by backing out of his promise to be a one-term president and tried to continue, well beyond his time of competence. At a late hour and after Democratic primaries had been held, he relented, then proposed that his vice president, Kamala Harris, be the Democratic nominee. She was not the will of Democrats when she ran for president in 2020 and she failed to win in 2024, thus saddling our country once more with Donald Trump. As the proverb says, "For want of a nail, the shoe was lost...." Biden was that nail, which is now his legacy.
I respectfully disagree.
Attempting to compare President Biden to George Washington is just silly.
When Washington was President the US had just under 4,000,000 people according to the US census of 1790.
Under Biden around 335 million.
Biden has put together the best cabinet in US History. Perhaps Heather, would argue with me on that, but I'd like to know which cabinet accomplished more. And they did all of this in spite of having an extremely partisan SCOTUS and a House of Representatives that is unable to agree on virtually anything.
The Biden administration brought us out of the Trump recession and the pandemic while the Republicans did everything they could to sabotage the economy.
Please provide proof of anything the Biden administration has done that would show that Joe is incompetent.
Agree! Perhaps John’s perspective is overly influenced by the media, which seemed to take pleasure (profit?) in disparaging President Biden and his many accomplishments. One can only wonder if a fraction of his accomplishments were better highlighted in media coverage (rather than focusing on his age and imagined or exaggerated shortcomings) how things may have turned out differently.
Unfortunately, as much as Biden accomplished, his failings may stand out more. Harris ran an excellent campaign, unfortunately, she was tarred and feathered over the transgender issue where a fortune was spent in highlighting her words out of context in ads targeting critical voters. I believe, that issue was what cost her the election. Biden dragged his heels on the border issue of unchecked immigrants, which was an issue, and his withdrawal from running was way too slow in coming.
I disagree. Trump PROMISED to hire 15000 additional border patrol and custom's agents. He added about 400 at a cost exceeding $70.000 per hire. Had he actually been able to add these agents Biden wouldn't have had such an issue at the border.
Check it out -- 3 times as many undocumented immigrants cross the northern border as the southern border. If I wanted to I could illegally cross the northern border almost everywhere on the northern border, where there isn't water.
And Trump's border wall is a joke. 49 miles of fencing slightly more secure than snow fencing. Not to mention that Trump didn't build the wall in the most crossed over places. Do you realize the border wall has been breached over 5000 times where Trump built it and it is still being breached dozens of times every day.
Trump is 100% to blame for the so called open border so don't hang this on Biden.
"Please provide proof ... that would show that Joe is incompetent"
Biden's decision to seek a second term, despite his promise not to, prevented an open primary and gave the Groper-in-Chief and President Musk the election. That is incompetence on steroids.
I disagree that Biden was or is incompetent to continue to hold office through the end of his current term or to be able to function in a second term.
Trump has been hiding his own cognitive problems by attacking President Biden incessantly. He has always projected his own problems and faults onto other people. Biden has slowed down, but I don’t think he has cognitive impairments. On the other hand, I think Trump definitely has cognitive problems, and he and his minions are doing all they can to disguise this fact. He may very well have a non-Alzheimer type of dementia, and it could be neurological based upon some difficulties he shows with his gait and body movements.
Penny, just watching Biden walk says it all. Many believe his primary role as president was to prevent Trump from returning to office, and if nothing else, some think that might define his legacy.
I hold out hope that if we can survive Trump’, we might emerge stronger and more appreciative as a nation. As I like to say, there’s nothing like a little—or in this case, a lot—of deprivation to remind us of what truly matters.
I cannot agree that President Biden besmirched anything, nor that he backed out of anything. He was hounded, in ways that are peculiar to the lawless age in which we live, and had the courage to take the path he took, immediately naming his vice-president as his worthy successor.
"besmirched"? Hardly.
To pin one person's actions on the panorama of the past 9 years with one decision is inaccurate to say the least.
Joe Biden has sacrificed his life for this Country. Unless you have walked in his shoes for over 50 years in his time in Government your judgement is just plain wrong.
The Trump people say Biden was going to win and I agree. He had the vision and knowledge and had done a great job normalizing government and had things on the right track. He probably would not have made 4 more years but then Kamala would have been President. Not satisfied with hounding him out the nervous Nellies now blame him for the loss.
Janis, I was a strong supporter of Biden because, in part, I knew that a vote for him was also a vote for Harris to assume the role of POTUS should the need arise. I was likewise thrilled (I did not “know it” until the feeling hit after the announcement) when Harris assumed the task…AND I really liked her choice for a VP in Walz. To me they both were “real” and I could relate….sadly more Americans did not agree (still pissed that so many sat this one out).
When did Biden ever say he will be a one term President? Can you please send us some links?
Biden did NOT commit to one term! His aides "signaled" he would be a one term president but in his interview linked below he said he would NOT COMMIT TO ONE TERM. If someone has a link to him stating otherwise (not rumor or spin) I'd like to see it.
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=590969924737462
And for more, there's this: https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2024/06/biden-president-trump-rematch-one-term-promise-nate-silver.html
I agree. It’s Biden’s fault that trump and the MAGA republicans will get another chance to destroy our country. That fault is shared by the willful ignorance of republicans
Really? The voters in 2016 had nothing to do with it? The massive Russian disinformation system in play for years had nothing to do with it? The influx of huge amounts of oligarch money has nothing to do it? The Murdoch empire and the bias of the legacy media had nothing to do with it? The massively uninformed and lazy voter had nothing to do with it?
To place the panorama or politics for the years since Gingrich, Reagan, Nixon, Bush and the complete democratic system on one man's shoulders makes him a king. And Joe Biden certainly has never wanted to be king.
You forgot Mitch McConnell.
Indeed. His regret and newfound patriotism ring hollow.
Mitch’s name should live in infamy as one of the chief architects of the destruction of the idea of democratic governance. So should Trump’s minions, to say nothing of Trump and Musk themselves.
Don't forget, Barbara...voter suppression.
And gerrymandering. Thanks Lynell for the reminder. (I think)
Corrupt deliberate sabotage of the foundation of the Republic. In actual fact.
This is the primary reason that I don’t take claims of machine manipulation seriously. It makes us sound like Trump and his partisans with these claims. The real problems occur well before voting, and they have to do with citizens who are and who are not permitted to vote. We need to clean our own house first.
Happy Holidays, Lynell! May we be granted peace in our time. 🕊️🎅🏼🕎
And certainly the framers of the Constitution never wanted there to ever be a king.
The whole unitary executive concept is made up of whole cloth . For all of their professed “originalism,” the SCOTUS majority wants to throw out centuries of constitutional precedent and stare decisis when it comes to deciding cases. They bend and twist legal precedent into something other than what it is to reach the outcome they want. Their decision in U.S. v. Trump is a prime example of this.
The unitary executive theory in my view violates two important concepts in the constitution. It violates the express separation of powers in the constitution, and it violates the Founders’ express intent that even the President was not above the law.
No it's the collective fault of the people who voted for Trump. No one else. Or the people who FAILED to vote for Harris Walz or refused to vote at all.
Hum…
The first time I saw that image in person, I stood there for a very, very long time contemplating and in awe.
We had the same experience. All the background noise of other visitors just faded away. See it if you can.
I think other than Trump, every President has honored that example. The peaceful transition of power is the keystone to a successful democracy.
To state the obvious, Trump should never have been President. And without insidious outside interference, would not have been.
Thank you, Ally, for focussing on what really counts in Dr Cox Richardson's esssay: that men and women can aspire to, and sustain, that high mark of integrity.
Integrity? There is very little of these day among politicians who are owned by their donors.
George Washington and Trump disproves evolution theory of man.
It just proves if you snooze, you lose.
JLG: You can say that again - last night I decided to take a nap while the turkey was cooking...the result looks like something that might have accompanied a Pharaoh into his sealed tomb.
HA! We have all had those disasters, Anne-Louise!
:))
Devolution!
Some of them have.
I fear that in a few years we may look back at Joe Biden and his refusal to use the power (of immunity from prosecution for “official acts”) given him by the SCOTUS to take any action that would have prevented the collapse of our democratic republic as the new (and final?) high watermark of commitment and integrity.
Power is enchanting too many of our current politicians and representatives. They are jockeying for it, competing for attention, and generally ignoring the task of governing as though it is too pedestrian for them.
Yes. The first focus of many politicians is loyalty to party when it should be thinking through history, deep understanding of needs, solutions, and strategies. So many of them are egocentric and power-hungry and they carry that baggage into the chambers of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. They need term limits, too. And stronger consequences for failing to honor their oath and code of ethics.
Start w definitions of each: oath
And Code of Ethics. My profession requires me to complete a two hour course w formal exam at the end of it every two years. I’m
Always pleased when I accomplish this as I have studied the current challenges that have come before our ethics board of examiners in past two years upon which I am now being examined.
The more screen time, the better!
Because George Washington was an honorable man.
Honor — a quality in very short supply in these very troubling days.
I think it's still around, but missing, utterly, in some spotlight places. Kinda bumped by the power of money.
“Money is speech” rules John Robert’s. That’s why we have president Elon Musk … that none of us voted for.
Truly
I don’t think Washington would have turned over the Presidency to someone who cheated to win the election. I think that’s what happened here. President Biden needs to use his executive order to demand a hand recount in the swing states where there was an obvious algorithmic
This is an excellent video summary of the Smart Elections (smartelections.us) data findings, for those that may be having difficulty wrapping their head around it:
Watch on your computer with the volume on. It is SHOCKING!
https://youtu.be/fF22jp2VBJg?
Data collected / analyzed by Smart Elections is gut wrenching, hopefully greater attention will be given as more results are released. Something definitely is not right.
Heather reminds us of what a person of integrity does instead of seeking unending power. Quite the contrast to death star and his henchman muskrat. Now we are wallowing in the swamp of corruption and criminality. I have been having trouble wishing people a happy new year when I know it will be nothing but chaos.
Me too, Michele! Writing Christmas card this year with salutations for the new year were challenging at best…didn’t want to “freak” on a holiday card, so pulled my punches despite wanting to vent….*shaking fist at the sky*….sigh….
Similarly, Kamala Harris has served the country well. She kept her word and ran an admirable campaign. She was a major reason Trump lost in 2020.
Why did Harris disappear and go silent after Nov 7th? Biden does not speak of his VP from Nov 7th too.
This sends such a defeatist profile.
JaKsaa, we are so used to TFFFG bloviating every little thing that it has become the norm….it shouldn’t be. I could be totally wrong, but think that maybe the Harris team is quietly doing their job & likely have plans/options on both the front and back burner….they just don’t have the need to blurt it out to everyone…or *jazz hands!!* be in the spotlight. Sometimes the best sauce is simmered on a low heat before serving. Harris is accomplished and talented and I hope she moves in a direction that fulfills HER life’s mission/goals/wishes. Ditto for Tim Walz…did not know of him before, but am now a fan of his down to earth people-positive message/action. Best wishes that both live long and prosper. 🖖
I hear what you’re saying Barbara, but in the 107 days to get Harris/Walz elected for Biden was an intense volunteer project, not just a casual recreational hobby — “there’s nothing quite like the bond that forms when you strive toward a common goal together. Whether it’s pulling late nights, solving problems, or just grinding through a tough season, those shared experiences are where trust is forged”.
Helping on an important and intense campaign deadline where thousands of voters contributed time and money, we focused not only on results and tasks. To achieve collaboration in our teamwork of strangers - we were also invested in the process, in the work itself, where dependency and trust is truly built. When you’ve been in the trenches with someone — whether that’s literal or figurative — you know you can count on them. It’s through those shared struggles that leaders earn the trust of their teams.
I would not trust or count on Harris as a Leader after seeing her disappear and ignore all the campaign volunteers who would of liked to have seen us address the lessons learned with Harris/Walz. Both Kamala and Tim could of headed a professional legal vetting process to get the ballot counts verified, especially in the way A.I. will affect the future, or how about where the Press dropped the ball (on democracy) with hiding the regime change under Project 2025, or investigate laws that need to prevent super PACs from future corruption of our democracy using Elon Musk and other elites as examples.
Example of someone who’s been passed over for a chance to be in the running for President, and keeps working year over year to represent whats needed for an ethical government >>> Bernie Sanders.
Thanks for sharing. Imagine a leader with such courage and integrity, whose love of country set the standard that would stand a a measure of leadership that has lasted for over 240 years.
Men like this no longer exist. We are in for some tough times in the not to distant future.
I disagree Mike, men like this and women as well most certainly do still exist, our military is full of them, I know it was when I served in VN, but there are many others, academia is but one example. Where they are in very short supply are among the maggot faithful and those closely associated with the insipid orange turd. I do agree with your statement that we are in for some tough times, made temporarily more difficult by our adherence to the rules of law and the golden rule 🙏
Heather has a short one today -- but so apt.
She knows we have many more craven individuals in public life today who want more power. They cannot conceive of doing any public service, only using positions of power to rachet their own imagined superiority more, and to reward the nihilist rich who pay well for sycophancy.
Daniel Markovits, author of the recent "The Meritocracy Trap," distinguishes between all the ways our culture today pushes superiority games, and the opposite, schools and other places that nurture ways of seeing the many varieties of excellence in others.
Anders Hansen, a Swedish psychiatrist, in one of his books, called "The Attention Fix," goes into detail on how social media feeds depression and other ill feeling from the many youth especially who spend too much time on social media, and come away feeling they are always losing the competition games.
He doesn't pay any attention to schools, and how their standardized testing just vaults more of the superiority trap -- and in same proportion less ability to value excellence in others.
But we can take Heather's short one today as a reminder indeed, that there are excellent others out there to emulate, to appreciate. As we had Washington on December 23 long ago. And as we have apparently many more today sold down the river by oligarchs, convicted criminals, con men, rapists, frauds, liars, and sycophants to the billionaire class.
In at least one case we all know of, all those poisoned qualities today reside in one fat, orange guy.
Phil, so well said. The superiority games is an excellent phase to describe what goes on in too many places. People who secure within themselves do not have to be the top dog all the time. Believing that I am the best, the smartest, or whatever to me would be an intolerable burden.
And his erratic, self-interested friend.
Of course, though, Anne-Louise, Musk is no "friend."
The orange felon has never in his life had any friends.
Many Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization (RICO) co-conspirators.
Many female victims of rape, sexual harassment, sex abuse, and pu** y-grabbing.
Many short term victims of his lifelong transactional-only business grifting.
Millions of fans of his on-stage "bing-bing-boing-bong" sound effects, fat man" dance" moves, oral sex on microphones, and hawking of gold sneakers, $60 Bibles, $100,000 watches, perfume, guitars, himself-as-hero-adulation cards (four collections of NFTs so far), and mug shot t-shirts.
And all the corrupt billionaires and dictators in the world.
But friend, as in a personal life, a human being?
You’re right about this. Trump dropped his esteemed mentor, Roy Cohn, once he heard Cohn had developed AIDS. All of his relationships with people, including his various wives and his children, are entirely transactional. Trump’s malignant narcissism and sociopathy prevent him from developing true friendships.
I'd say most of the same things of Musk.
There’s a reason why those boys formed the Sons of Cincinnatus, who was the Roman general who was pulled out of retirement and then resigned as soon as the threat from the Aequi (one of the Italic groups the Romans were trying to conquer and who had invaded) was over. They revered the Roman Republic that Livy described as the most honorable of states. In the same vein, the Rule of St Benedict says never elect as abbot the guy who wants to be abbot. I actually think that a better role model is Cornelia, daughter of Scipio Africanus, and mother of the Gracchi brothers who wanted to democratize the plebiscite to prevent the rise of the oligarchs. Think Elizabeth Warren with a spindle . . .
Interesting how the Republic worked. I read a book on how the Republic became the Empire because people used the rules designed to keep the oligarchs from seizing power ultimately to seize it.
Why does that sound familiar Michele....
Indeed!!
Linda, I wriggle with pleasure. You're talking my language.
Anne-Louise, I am delighted! As you no doubt already know, my brain operates in the deep past and I admit that teaching Women in the Ancient World (as well as regular Greek and Roman history and of course all the medieval stuff) for close to 40 years to undergraduates was one of my great pleasures. I provided a different perspective on the usual boilerplate stuff (like the idea that the Roman Empire was a good thing--it was not).
Cincinnatus patented the original "mike drop" with an honorable twist, when he left plow and oxen awaiting in the field, as he went back once again lured by the always lingering call of duty. Cornelia, as opposed to King Lear's daughter Cordelia, is a great role model, Linda! Good call.
I can't remember if it was her son, Scipio Aemilianus who led the final, awful destruction of Carthage.
Her son-in-law (and first cousin!) was Scipio Aemilianus. Cornelia had twelve children with Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus, including the two who led the Social Wars (Tiberius and Gaius) and were both murdered by the denizens of the patrician oligarchy because they were "in danger" of becoming too successful. Cornelia was survived only by her daughter, Sempronia, who was the wife of her cousin Aemilianus.
Carthago delenda est!
A horrible thing it was.
Cato the Elder (aka Cato the Censor) was indeed a horrible man. It's why I refuse to consider the Cato Institute anything moral or good: it is essentially a secretly fascistic organization.
That is very interesting! Thanks! I have always liked Roman history. Not college educated but still love the history. I should have paid more attention in my high school Latin class. I regret that to this day
We need to remember that not only did General Washington resign his wartime commission, as shown in the painting, after two terms as President, when he most likely would have been elected to a third term, he declined to run again. A man of honor and integrity, indeed.
And his farewell address, Washington warned against the creation of separate political parties. He knew they would divide the nation. And so here we are with the nation about to collapse.
Washington’s Farewell address should be required reading.
I don’t believe anyone has ever been as patriotic as George Washington. Lincoln was believer of freedom of all men. FDR, a believer of the working man, but Washington, a believer in this nation.
Honor.
Honor is a concept that Trump and Musk are quite unable of understanding.
I have nothing to add to the previous well stated comments. Thank you Prof Richardson for again illuminating the history that brought us forward. Hard to recognize and understand why we are here.
Vision of what should be!
Yes that is the great lesson of our democracy. We the people vote for representatives who use balance of power to achieve governing for the common good. Government is not for the rich guys. The government needs to consider what is best for all the people
George Washington did not quest after power for himself. Quite the reverse. But when asked and demanded, he took the responsibility and served the country. There was nothing he wanted more than to go home to his beloved Mount Vernon to take care of his plants and agriculture, as the financially struggling farmer that he was. But his values were true guides to his responsible and effective behavior.
In my experience, some of the best performers and workers were those who had to be recruited and convinced by others to undertake the job. Some of the worst performers were those who craved power, adulation, and domination over others.
Identify good people first, then try to recruit these reluctant individuals to political positions. Our system encourages and enables the worst kind of power grabbers, which include the ambitious political status seekers and the wealthy individuals and corporations that vet our politicians.
A big help in that direction would be over ruling Citizens United nonsense and a new 'Fairness Doctrine' for the 21st century.
I have been wondering if, after the richest man in the world, Elon Musk poured over 200 million dollars into his Trump PAC and another $77 million into down ticket races if John Roberts has had second thoughts about the Citizens United decision. Is this what you intended to enable Chief Justice Roberts? Is this what you think the founding fathers intended?
You don't have to wonder about John Robert's conscience -- he has never uttered a regret that I recall over any decision SCOTUS has made.
If it wasn't for RBG, many more bad decisions would have been decided.
He truly is unworthy of being Chief Justice.
That would suggest that he had a conscience but I don’t see it.
Spot on comment about those desiring power for power’s sake. A recent management study said the same thing about CEOs.
C suites often are havens for sociopaths.