As one considers Trump’s request of GA Governor Kemp to conduct an audit of ballot envelope signatures, it is essential to understand what he seeks to accomplish. Once the ballot envelope signatures are judged by election officials representing both parties as matching signature records, the actual ballots are separated from the envelop…
As one considers Trump’s request of GA Governor Kemp to conduct an audit of ballot envelope signatures, it is essential to understand what he seeks to accomplish. Once the ballot envelope signatures are judged by election officials representing both parties as matching signature records, the actual ballots are separated from the envelopes. To preserve secrecy of the ballot, the actual ballot carries no individual identification. This ensures there is no way to identify which candidate an individual voted for. Trump is not seeking to cast out some number of votes, but rather to delegitimize the entire electoral process and simply declare his victory by proclamation. This is the very essence of autocracy attacking the core of democracy, free and fair elections.
Only days after the 2016 election, Masha Gessen’s prescient column published in the New York Review titled, ”Auocracy: Rules for Survival," warned about this outcome. This column later served as the basis for her book, ”Surviving Autocracy.”
Democracy and Rule of Law are not inevitable. Norms thought to protect democracy are not enshrined in law, they depend on the virtue and morality of those in power. When political leaders lack that virtue norms are ineffective. Citizens can allow democracy to vanish as they are distracted by day to day events or grievances. This is how autocrats raise to power, not through conquest but by apathy and false grievance.
We have been warned and seen all this before in history. Professor Richardson now and earlier Professors Masha Gessen and Timothy Snyder in their writings have foretold the slide into autocracy. Resistance is an imperative if democracy and the American Experiment is to survive. A good outcome is not assured. Do not be complacent. Do not believe it will all work out or that it is merely Trump being Trump. The crisis is very real and depends on citizens demanding upholding the Rule of Law and free and fair elections be protected and actual election outcomes be upheld.
Victory does not come by proclamation it must reflect the will of the majority of those governed.
Excellent comment, Bruce. I ask how do we as citizens prevent this autocracy from occurring. I have been signing petitions from Common Cause and Change.org. Is there more we can do?
In the article, Gessen warns us, that Trump is not a regular politician and the 2016 election was not a regular election. She says, "Trump will be only the fourth candidate in history and the second in more than a century to win the presidency after losing the popular vote. He is also probably the first candidate in history to win the presidency despite having been shown repeatedly by the national media to be a chronic liar, sexual predator, serial tax-avoider, and race-baiter who has attracted the likes of the Ku Klux Klan. Most important, Trump is the first candidate in memory who ran not for president but for autocrat - and won."
Gessen offers in the article 6 Rules for Surviving Autocracy. She knows of what she speaks, having lived under autocracies most of her life and studied and written extensively on Vladimir Putin. I urge you to read her article cited above.
Briefly, the rules she offers are:
1. Believe the autocrat. He means what he says.
2. Do not be taken in by small signs of normality.
3. Institutions will not save you.
4. Be outraged.
5. Don't make compromises.
6. Remember the future.
Gessen offers great insight in her article on each of these. What to watch for, examples from the history of other rising autocracies, why each of these rules is important, and what to do to follow each of these rules. She foretells exactly what we have seen under Donald Trump ... exactly. Unfortunately for us all, we have failed to heed her warnings or follow her rules.
You will also find her recent book, "Surviving Autocracy," a significant elaboration of her initial New Yorker piece well worth reading. She also was recently interviewed by The Guardian. In the interview, she opines that Trump is both worse than she anticipated in her 2016 article and in fact, worse also than Vladimir Putin. She continues to fear for America. I do as well. We all should.
When I read her New Yorker article in 2016 almost immediately after the Trump election victory I was concerned but could not have imagined then how right and prescient she would be.
Be aware and pay attention. Apathy and complacency are the enemy. Be an educated and informed citizen and voter. Know the issues and candidates positions on them and the candidates histories.
Be engaged, be active. Activism is your ally. Activism connects you to others who will work together. A single person or small group is opposition but thousands are the resistance. Plan, strategize, organize, activate, and execute together. There is strength in numbers and support each other.
Communicate collectively and individually the group’s message to others. Letters, post cards, phone calls to legislators and officials. Write to local news sources, letters to the editor and guest columns. Be polite, be succinct, identify problems and solutions, suggest actions and investigations. Get the message out and heard.
Be persistent. The challenge will not go away. The battle is not a new one, nor will victory be easy. The challenge persists, so must we persist as well.
Prepare the next generation of activists and citizens. Prepare, not indoctrinate. Support News Literacy and responsible use of social media. See the News Literacy Project and their Checkology tips and tools (https://newslit.org/). Support and advocate for the teaching of civics in public schools.
And above all vote. A vote is the most powerful way we have to express our viewss.
Shutdown DC is targeting hotels hosting ralliers in the Dec 12 white supremacy/MAGA rally - seems this has already forced ralliers to change hotels, and this action might force them to change again. Let's not make it easy to get people sick and threaten violence in the name of white supremacy! Voting is not always enough in these times. Here is text copied from an email I received - I emailed these hotels with a respectful note along the lines of the call script - if you decide to contact the hotels, please be civil and respectful, of course!:
...one of the main Trumpist groups coming to DC on December 12 has told their members to avoid downtown hotels and stay at these hotels instead:
That means we need your help calling and emailing these new hotels! Can you contact these hotels today? You can use the same script as below.
Hi, my name is [NAME]. I'm calling because I am concerned that your hotel may be hosting organizations coming from outside DC to spread hate and COVID-19. The rate of new Coronavirus cases has risen nearly 30% in DC since November 14th, when conspiracy theorists, white supremacists, Proud Boys, and MAGA supporters marched on our streets while refusing to wear masks. They put Black lives in danger, ripped down memorials, and committed violence against DC residents including the stabbing of 3 people. Will your hotel commit to preventing the spread of violence and disease by:
1. Publicly denouncing white supremacy via social media in a published statement before December 12th? Specifically denouncing the white supremacist groups the Proud Boys and Patriot Front.
2. Refusing services to anyone who refuses to wear a mask?
3. Adhering to DC travel quarantine guidelines by ensuring that guests from high risk areas provide negative COVID-19 testing verification upon check in and placing them on isolated floors of the hotel?
Thank you, Bruce. And thank you for posting the link to Gessen’s article. I read the article previously and have also posted it here in the past and purchased her book when it became available. I agree with you on your assessment of her work. I have also read much of Snyder’s work. Thank you for the summation of Gessen’s action points. We would all be wise to heed and follow them.
Seek out a local Indivisible group (https://indivisible.org/) and get involved. You will be able to connect with other activists and effectively advocate for responsible democratic government. They are among the most effective activist organizations. Form a local Social Justice Advocacy group aligned with other local Social, Racial, Economic, and Climate Justice organizations. Volunteer with local non-profit organizations doing good and effective work in your community. This is a great way to meet others committed to doing good work in your neighborhood and community and concerned enough about social causes to do something about them.
I want to become involved in reviving The Fairness Doctrine. Do you have any ideas about how to go about that? Is there a national group I can join forces with? Thank you for your insight. I've just ordered 'Surviving Autocracy'!
I do too! I don't know of any organizations now, but would love to connect with one or join forces to start one. I'm in rural TN and am angered how badly people are being used to unknowingly endanger their and others' lives.
One of the best organizations promoting News Literacy, responsible use of social media, and sifting truth from misinformation is the News Literacy Project I have already mentioned. I encourage all to visit their website, review and use their education tools and tips, and support them. The work they do is invaluable today and in the future. You can find them at https://newslit.org.
I wonder if there's a group specifically targeting the issue of having to provide proof, tell the truth, etc. going beyond the fairness doctrine. Those two groups have a lot of issues on their plates, but I wonder about just "truth in broadcasting"
Is there any way for us to share our contact info without broadcasting it to the whole world? Actually, not sure I care if the world has my contact info... If I post my email, would folks be interested in talking about this more?
Did you know (quoting snopes): "The Fairness Doctrine applied only to broadcast licensees, and as a cable television channel, Fox News would in all likelihood never have been constrained by the doctrine's requirement to present a range of viewpoints on every issue." Just a note that the doctrine in its original form is not enough.
I would like to get a subset of this group involved. However, I am not ready to broadcast my contact info to the whole world, especially since we know there are "trolls" on this site. If anyone has any ideas on how to do that, please let us know.
Bruce, thank you so much for these posts. As with Heather's Letters, your insights are invaluable. For those of us who had hoped that Trump would eventually fade into oblivion, I now see that this is just history repeating itself. The most chilling aspect of all of this is the question of who is pulling the strings. I remain convinced that Donald Trump is not intelligent enough to have authored this destruction. He is being manipulated by someone or some group - American or foreign, and that is even more frightening than what he has shown us thus far. For the record, I am not a conspiracy theorist - usually.
I have no question that Miller is involved, but Kushner's involvement is probably connected to feeding his ego, fancying that he's a mover and shaker, and Middle East broker. I'm more inclined to think that Breitbart and Bannon, among others, are hoping to dismantle our government.
I think there are a lot more players and this has been set in motion a very long time ago to put people in strategic places for this coup. The big moneyed people there are about six major families like the Mercers and Kochs that should be looked at and driven wedges into their power and fortunes. Boycotting, in numbers too big to ignore, could thwart their conspiratorial drive to maintain the rich/poor caste system which autocracies thrive upon.
My senators, Blackburn and to-be Hagerty, are Trump sycophants. Our retiring Repub, Alexander, refuses to speak the truth though it would not hurt his future election prospects. Our governor, Bill Lee, thinks masks are a “good idea” but mandates just don’t work. Our county mayor, ex-WWE wrestler (yes, it’s true) is a
“Libertarian” who thinks everyone is responsible for his or her own health. So you can see the our TN “leaders” really don’t give a sh&$.
I can relate! But I have still been calling to register my opinion, the tally of calls is recorded and might have some effect somehow someday.... Making it harder for politicians by letting them know how many people disagree is valuable even if it alone doesn't cause a shift, it can be a contributing factor to whatever else might sway them. I agree that it alone might not always be enough, though.
My Senators Thune and Rounds are exactly the same. Citizens are responsible for themselves. Inconsiderate a$$holes. Yet, I continue to write and use my voice. Our governor is # covidkristi and is a minitrump from the word go. She has fired all local staffers and has hired the likes of Corey Lewandowski to help her. SD is all but lost.
Same here, Pam. But I’ve been donating to the GA dems and trying to amplify their message on social media. Other suggestions would also be welcome if anyone has other ideas.
I'm writing for PostcardstoVoters.org also -- to get out the vote for Ossof and Warnock. One thing I like about working with this group is that you can request a specific number of addresses (in increments of 10) each time you're ready for a new batch. So on a day when you have a lot going on, you can ask for just ten addresses, and on a day when there's nothing else on the schedule, you can ask for more. Doing this is holding the despair at bay.
Seems to me that support for the Lincoln project by Ds who want to see Trumpism and with it nascent authoritarianism flushed out of right of center politics is the most efficient and likely effective way to return America to a general acceptance of democracy and rule of law. Then we can return to the contest of small government conservatism with those who want progress toward a more economically and socially "just" society.
I shot one off the the Baltimore Sun today. Don't know whether it has to be published to be effective or whether it's saved if it isn't published, just for information about and from the readership. I referenced the nbcnews.com article about the contact info the feds have bogarted for the past three years (and just released this past week, presumably because of the imminent installation of the incoming administration) to facilitate reuniting the children taken from their immigrant parents at the border with Mexico. I am incensed that this administration stole three precious years from those children and their families.
The way to get your letters to newspapers published is to start them off with a reference to something which appeared in that newspaper. ex: "Your recent article describing the Trump rally ...."
I saw an interview with your losing dem.rep/senator? on PBS, I think. Too bad - he sounds like a decent man who wanted to do the right thing - cant remember his name.
Senator Warner (Dem) won. Kaine (Dem) not up for reelection til 2022 or '24. My 10th District Rep, Jennifer Wexton (Dem) also just won. Our Dem Governor Northam's term is up the end of 2021. I have not paid attention to anybody else, so not sure who you saw on PBS, Maggie, but not my district.
Yeah, probably from another district - of course I didnt pick up on that any more than his name! He just seemed to want to be there to do the right thing which you have to admit is a bit unusual at this point in time - either dem or repub.
Thanks so much for asking this. I have been having the same dilemma. Don't want to be complacent just because my life is ok for the time being! Never been an activist, never wanted to be but now it seems imperative to be one, as Masha Gessen would agree. Donating money to Fair Fight is a good start as is contacting public officials, but just doesn't seem enough. Helping people out of work and needing food is also important, but doesn't strike at the root cause. Love to hear what else folks have been doing (see my recent post also). What is your form of activism what activism can you imagine that could be truly effective?
Seek out local Indivisibles groups (https://indivisible.org/) and get involved. You will be able to connect with other activists and effectively advocate for responsible democratic government. They are among the most effective activist organizations. Form a local Social Justice Advocacy group aligned with other local Social, Racial, Economic, and Climate Justice organizations. Volunteer with local non-profit organizations doing good and effective work in your community. This is a great way to meet others committed to doing good work in your neighborhood and community and concerned enough about social causes to do something about them.
Lynell, I have a friend who told me a year ago to stop signing online petitions as all they want is your address and $ to keep sending them to you. She has worked for politicians so she knows the game. I love these organizations so I have sent some $ to them all.
‘Twilight of Democracy, The Seductive Lure of Authoritarianism’
by Anne Applebaum.
I learned of this book, and the author, from listening to a podcast in late summer from The Lincoln Project (lincolnproject.us) who interviewed her. Informative, educational, compelling, focused, and sometimes funny podcasts (which helps to laugh now and then during these times of stress).
As one considers Trump’s request of GA Governor Kemp to conduct an audit of ballot envelope signatures, it is essential to understand what he seeks to accomplish. Once the ballot envelope signatures are judged by election officials representing both parties as matching signature records, the actual ballots are separated from the envelopes. To preserve secrecy of the ballot, the actual ballot carries no individual identification. This ensures there is no way to identify which candidate an individual voted for. Trump is not seeking to cast out some number of votes, but rather to delegitimize the entire electoral process and simply declare his victory by proclamation. This is the very essence of autocracy attacking the core of democracy, free and fair elections.
Only days after the 2016 election, Masha Gessen’s prescient column published in the New York Review titled, ”Auocracy: Rules for Survival," warned about this outcome. This column later served as the basis for her book, ”Surviving Autocracy.”
Democracy and Rule of Law are not inevitable. Norms thought to protect democracy are not enshrined in law, they depend on the virtue and morality of those in power. When political leaders lack that virtue norms are ineffective. Citizens can allow democracy to vanish as they are distracted by day to day events or grievances. This is how autocrats raise to power, not through conquest but by apathy and false grievance.
We have been warned and seen all this before in history. Professor Richardson now and earlier Professors Masha Gessen and Timothy Snyder in their writings have foretold the slide into autocracy. Resistance is an imperative if democracy and the American Experiment is to survive. A good outcome is not assured. Do not be complacent. Do not believe it will all work out or that it is merely Trump being Trump. The crisis is very real and depends on citizens demanding upholding the Rule of Law and free and fair elections be protected and actual election outcomes be upheld.
Victory does not come by proclamation it must reflect the will of the majority of those governed.
Excellent comment, Bruce. I ask how do we as citizens prevent this autocracy from occurring. I have been signing petitions from Common Cause and Change.org. Is there more we can do?
On November 10, 2016, Masha Gessen published an article in the New Yorker entitled, Autocracy: Rules for Survival. Here is a link to that article:
https://www.nybooks.com/daily/2016/11/10/trump-election-autocracy-rules-for-survival/
In the article, Gessen warns us, that Trump is not a regular politician and the 2016 election was not a regular election. She says, "Trump will be only the fourth candidate in history and the second in more than a century to win the presidency after losing the popular vote. He is also probably the first candidate in history to win the presidency despite having been shown repeatedly by the national media to be a chronic liar, sexual predator, serial tax-avoider, and race-baiter who has attracted the likes of the Ku Klux Klan. Most important, Trump is the first candidate in memory who ran not for president but for autocrat - and won."
Gessen offers in the article 6 Rules for Surviving Autocracy. She knows of what she speaks, having lived under autocracies most of her life and studied and written extensively on Vladimir Putin. I urge you to read her article cited above.
Briefly, the rules she offers are:
1. Believe the autocrat. He means what he says.
2. Do not be taken in by small signs of normality.
3. Institutions will not save you.
4. Be outraged.
5. Don't make compromises.
6. Remember the future.
Gessen offers great insight in her article on each of these. What to watch for, examples from the history of other rising autocracies, why each of these rules is important, and what to do to follow each of these rules. She foretells exactly what we have seen under Donald Trump ... exactly. Unfortunately for us all, we have failed to heed her warnings or follow her rules.
You will also find her recent book, "Surviving Autocracy," a significant elaboration of her initial New Yorker piece well worth reading. She also was recently interviewed by The Guardian. In the interview, she opines that Trump is both worse than she anticipated in her 2016 article and in fact, worse also than Vladimir Putin. She continues to fear for America. I do as well. We all should.
When I read her New Yorker article in 2016 almost immediately after the Trump election victory I was concerned but could not have imagined then how right and prescient she would be.
The most important things are:
Be aware and pay attention. Apathy and complacency are the enemy. Be an educated and informed citizen and voter. Know the issues and candidates positions on them and the candidates histories.
Be engaged, be active. Activism is your ally. Activism connects you to others who will work together. A single person or small group is opposition but thousands are the resistance. Plan, strategize, organize, activate, and execute together. There is strength in numbers and support each other.
Communicate collectively and individually the group’s message to others. Letters, post cards, phone calls to legislators and officials. Write to local news sources, letters to the editor and guest columns. Be polite, be succinct, identify problems and solutions, suggest actions and investigations. Get the message out and heard.
Be persistent. The challenge will not go away. The battle is not a new one, nor will victory be easy. The challenge persists, so must we persist as well.
Prepare the next generation of activists and citizens. Prepare, not indoctrinate. Support News Literacy and responsible use of social media. See the News Literacy Project and their Checkology tips and tools (https://newslit.org/). Support and advocate for the teaching of civics in public schools.
And above all vote. A vote is the most powerful way we have to express our viewss.
Okay...wow. Thanks, Bruce. Will not be complacent.
Shutdown DC is targeting hotels hosting ralliers in the Dec 12 white supremacy/MAGA rally - seems this has already forced ralliers to change hotels, and this action might force them to change again. Let's not make it easy to get people sick and threaten violence in the name of white supremacy! Voting is not always enough in these times. Here is text copied from an email I received - I emailed these hotels with a respectful note along the lines of the call script - if you decide to contact the hotels, please be civil and respectful, of course!:
...one of the main Trumpist groups coming to DC on December 12 has told their members to avoid downtown hotels and stay at these hotels instead:
That means we need your help calling and emailing these new hotels! Can you contact these hotels today? You can use the same script as below.
JW Marriott DC
Front Desk: 202-393-2000
Sales Team: 202-626-1457
Manager: Tushaar.Agrawal@marriott.com
Grand Hyatt Washington
Front Desk: 202-582-1234
Manager: Majed.Farah@hyatt.com
Crowne Plaza Crystal City
Front Desk: 703-416-1600
Sales: sales@cpcrystalcity.com
Manager: Elena Cowan
Holiday Inn National Airport
Front Desk: 703-684-7200
Manager: Osman.Cuadros@bfsaul.com
Sales: sales@hinationalairport.com
Call script:
Hi, my name is [NAME]. I'm calling because I am concerned that your hotel may be hosting organizations coming from outside DC to spread hate and COVID-19. The rate of new Coronavirus cases has risen nearly 30% in DC since November 14th, when conspiracy theorists, white supremacists, Proud Boys, and MAGA supporters marched on our streets while refusing to wear masks. They put Black lives in danger, ripped down memorials, and committed violence against DC residents including the stabbing of 3 people. Will your hotel commit to preventing the spread of violence and disease by:
1. Publicly denouncing white supremacy via social media in a published statement before December 12th? Specifically denouncing the white supremacist groups the Proud Boys and Patriot Front.
2. Refusing services to anyone who refuses to wear a mask?
3. Adhering to DC travel quarantine guidelines by ensuring that guests from high risk areas provide negative COVID-19 testing verification upon check in and placing them on isolated floors of the hotel?
This is what organizing and activism looks like. Yes, do it by the thousands, the tens of thousands.
Thank you for this list! I plan on emailing or calling each of them.
Thank you, Bruce. And thank you for posting the link to Gessen’s article. I read the article previously and have also posted it here in the past and purchased her book when it became available. I agree with you on your assessment of her work. I have also read much of Snyder’s work. Thank you for the summation of Gessen’s action points. We would all be wise to heed and follow them.
Seek out a local Indivisible group (https://indivisible.org/) and get involved. You will be able to connect with other activists and effectively advocate for responsible democratic government. They are among the most effective activist organizations. Form a local Social Justice Advocacy group aligned with other local Social, Racial, Economic, and Climate Justice organizations. Volunteer with local non-profit organizations doing good and effective work in your community. This is a great way to meet others committed to doing good work in your neighborhood and community and concerned enough about social causes to do something about them.
Appreciate the News Literacy link, an important project!
Thank you for the resources and the To-do list. Very helpful.
I want to become involved in reviving The Fairness Doctrine. Do you have any ideas about how to go about that? Is there a national group I can join forces with? Thank you for your insight. I've just ordered 'Surviving Autocracy'!
I do too! I don't know of any organizations now, but would love to connect with one or join forces to start one. I'm in rural TN and am angered how badly people are being used to unknowingly endanger their and others' lives.
One of the best organizations promoting News Literacy, responsible use of social media, and sifting truth from misinformation is the News Literacy Project I have already mentioned. I encourage all to visit their website, review and use their education tools and tips, and support them. The work they do is invaluable today and in the future. You can find them at https://newslit.org.
You can get involved with MoveOn and Indivisible right from your own home.
I wonder if there's a group specifically targeting the issue of having to provide proof, tell the truth, etc. going beyond the fairness doctrine. Those two groups have a lot of issues on their plates, but I wonder about just "truth in broadcasting"
Is there any way for us to share our contact info without broadcasting it to the whole world? Actually, not sure I care if the world has my contact info... If I post my email, would folks be interested in talking about this more?
Did you know (quoting snopes): "The Fairness Doctrine applied only to broadcast licensees, and as a cable television channel, Fox News would in all likelihood never have been constrained by the doctrine's requirement to present a range of viewpoints on every issue." Just a note that the doctrine in its original form is not enough.
I would like to get a subset of this group involved. However, I am not ready to broadcast my contact info to the whole world, especially since we know there are "trolls" on this site. If anyone has any ideas on how to do that, please let us know.
Me too! I think the elimination of it has greatly contributed to the two world views Americans hold.
Bruce, thank you so much for these posts. As with Heather's Letters, your insights are invaluable. For those of us who had hoped that Trump would eventually fade into oblivion, I now see that this is just history repeating itself. The most chilling aspect of all of this is the question of who is pulling the strings. I remain convinced that Donald Trump is not intelligent enough to have authored this destruction. He is being manipulated by someone or some group - American or foreign, and that is even more frightening than what he has shown us thus far. For the record, I am not a conspiracy theorist - usually.
Yes and that manipulation is being done by Kushner and Miller.
I have no question that Miller is involved, but Kushner's involvement is probably connected to feeding his ego, fancying that he's a mover and shaker, and Middle East broker. I'm more inclined to think that Breitbart and Bannon, among others, are hoping to dismantle our government.
I think Karl Rove and Cheney are also.
I think there are a lot more players and this has been set in motion a very long time ago to put people in strategic places for this coup. The big moneyed people there are about six major families like the Mercers and Kochs that should be looked at and driven wedges into their power and fortunes. Boycotting, in numbers too big to ignore, could thwart their conspiratorial drive to maintain the rich/poor caste system which autocracies thrive upon.
Support FairFIght and the Ossoff-Warnock campaigns in the Georgia Senate run-offs. Donate money, write letters, send postcards, text- or phone-bank.
Yes, Joan, that I've been doing!
Contact your senators, Congress Critters, write letters to the editor of your area newspaper.
My senators, Blackburn and to-be Hagerty, are Trump sycophants. Our retiring Repub, Alexander, refuses to speak the truth though it would not hurt his future election prospects. Our governor, Bill Lee, thinks masks are a “good idea” but mandates just don’t work. Our county mayor, ex-WWE wrestler (yes, it’s true) is a
“Libertarian” who thinks everyone is responsible for his or her own health. So you can see the our TN “leaders” really don’t give a sh&$.
I can relate! But I have still been calling to register my opinion, the tally of calls is recorded and might have some effect somehow someday.... Making it harder for politicians by letting them know how many people disagree is valuable even if it alone doesn't cause a shift, it can be a contributing factor to whatever else might sway them. I agree that it alone might not always be enough, though.
This is what I read to change my mind about calling (it answers the opposite dilemma, why call if my member of congress already agrees, but applies in this case as well): https://indivisibleventura.org/why-do-i-need-to-call-my-representatives-are-all-democrats/
I continue to call and write for the reasons you and others enumerate. Why let them off the hook?
Excellent! Personally, it took me a while to catch on....
My Senators Thune and Rounds are exactly the same. Citizens are responsible for themselves. Inconsiderate a$$holes. Yet, I continue to write and use my voice. Our governor is # covidkristi and is a minitrump from the word go. She has fired all local staffers and has hired the likes of Corey Lewandowski to help her. SD is all but lost.
Alexander never accomplished anything in his 30 years of office. Mind-boggling!
Ugh!!
I live in the bluest state, MA, with a solid dem base. I'm not sure my postcards to other members of congress would get much traction.
Same here, Pam. But I’ve been donating to the GA dems and trying to amplify their message on social media. Other suggestions would also be welcome if anyone has other ideas.
I've donated as well and write for PostcardstoVoters.org
I'm writing for PostcardstoVoters.org also -- to get out the vote for Ossof and Warnock. One thing I like about working with this group is that you can request a specific number of addresses (in increments of 10) each time you're ready for a new batch. So on a day when you have a lot going on, you can ask for just ten addresses, and on a day when there's nothing else on the schedule, you can ask for more. Doing this is holding the despair at bay.
Seems to me that support for the Lincoln project by Ds who want to see Trumpism and with it nascent authoritarianism flushed out of right of center politics is the most efficient and likely effective way to return America to a general acceptance of democracy and rule of law. Then we can return to the contest of small government conservatism with those who want progress toward a more economically and socially "just" society.
I shot one off the the Baltimore Sun today. Don't know whether it has to be published to be effective or whether it's saved if it isn't published, just for information about and from the readership. I referenced the nbcnews.com article about the contact info the feds have bogarted for the past three years (and just released this past week, presumably because of the imminent installation of the incoming administration) to facilitate reuniting the children taken from their immigrant parents at the border with Mexico. I am incensed that this administration stole three precious years from those children and their families.
I feel the same. Cruel and criminal.
Thanks, Sandra. I'm in VA with Dem Senators and Rep. Will write letter to area newspaper too.
The way to get your letters to newspapers published is to start them off with a reference to something which appeared in that newspaper. ex: "Your recent article describing the Trump rally ...."
I did exactly that and my letter was published in today’s paper.
Congrats - what paper?
Thanks, Jacob. This is helpful!
I saw an interview with your losing dem.rep/senator? on PBS, I think. Too bad - he sounds like a decent man who wanted to do the right thing - cant remember his name.
Senator Warner (Dem) won. Kaine (Dem) not up for reelection til 2022 or '24. My 10th District Rep, Jennifer Wexton (Dem) also just won. Our Dem Governor Northam's term is up the end of 2021. I have not paid attention to anybody else, so not sure who you saw on PBS, Maggie, but not my district.
Yeah, probably from another district - of course I didnt pick up on that any more than his name! He just seemed to want to be there to do the right thing which you have to admit is a bit unusual at this point in time - either dem or repub.
👍
Thanks so much for asking this. I have been having the same dilemma. Don't want to be complacent just because my life is ok for the time being! Never been an activist, never wanted to be but now it seems imperative to be one, as Masha Gessen would agree. Donating money to Fair Fight is a good start as is contacting public officials, but just doesn't seem enough. Helping people out of work and needing food is also important, but doesn't strike at the root cause. Love to hear what else folks have been doing (see my recent post also). What is your form of activism what activism can you imagine that could be truly effective?
Seek out local Indivisibles groups (https://indivisible.org/) and get involved. You will be able to connect with other activists and effectively advocate for responsible democratic government. They are among the most effective activist organizations. Form a local Social Justice Advocacy group aligned with other local Social, Racial, Economic, and Climate Justice organizations. Volunteer with local non-profit organizations doing good and effective work in your community. This is a great way to meet others committed to doing good work in your neighborhood and community and concerned enough about social causes to do something about them.
Lynell, I have a friend who told me a year ago to stop signing online petitions as all they want is your address and $ to keep sending them to you. She has worked for politicians so she knows the game. I love these organizations so I have sent some $ to them all.
Thanks, Marlene. I did suspect as much and have not signed too many. But I will take your advice for the future. Thanks, again, for letting me know.
‘Twilight of Democracy, The Seductive Lure of Authoritarianism’
by Anne Applebaum.
I learned of this book, and the author, from listening to a podcast in late summer from The Lincoln Project (lincolnproject.us) who interviewed her. Informative, educational, compelling, focused, and sometimes funny podcasts (which helps to laugh now and then during these times of stress).
Many thanks for the book suggestion. I particularly appreciate Timothy Snyder's recommendation. It's now on my list for the new year.
Thank you Bruce, for this excellent information.