This morning began with House Democrats filing one article of impeachment against Trump, charging him with “incitement of insurrection.” It makes its case by noting that Trump’s months of lies about the election and his inflammatory speech to the rally on January 6-- including lines like “if you don’t fight like hell you’re not going to have a country anymore”—led directly to “violent, deadly, destructive and seditious acts.”
He will wither and eventually die an angry, broken, delusional man.
And many will try to forget him.
But I will not.
We may escape his tenure in office bruised, but not mortally wounded.
Our environment may begin to recover from the assault he leveled at it that delayed action to slow the creeping warming that is engulfing our earth and threatening our children’s lives.
Communities that were the targets of his hate may entertain some hope for deep and lasting change.
People who fear illness or death from the Coronavirus may live to see those fears relieved.
The world may breathe a sigh of relief that the tyrant who ruled the United States has passed from the scene.
But I will not.
I will not forget him.
I will not breathe easily when he leaves.
He did not act alone.
Those who enabled his worst behavior remain in positions of trust and power.
Thank you. I agree 100%. Neurotically, I have made a list. I have made a promise to myself to keep track of these people the best I can. And, like this past election where I contributed to campaigns running against people like Moscow Mitch, I will do the best I can to oppose them. I was starting to feel vindictive, but I am grateful to see that I am not alone.
This is not a neurotic commitment in any way, Suzanne. Our country is under siege by homegrown terrorists and a LOT of complicit people in our government and, apparently, in our protective agencies. They have planted deep roots of fear and tyranny, particularly against our elected officials and in our citizens of color or various religions and ethnicities. It is time for all of us who are healthy to use all the tools at our disposal for some deep, deep gardening of our soil. We have to be willing to get our hands dirty to root out fanatics. And then we have to plant new seeds.
Actually, let me add, we need to plant new seeds at the same time we are rooting out the dark roots. We have a lot of new energy and diverse people in our government now. I take hear that so many voices are going to be heard and supported. And we need to strongly support them so they know we have their backs.
And we need to have a new kind of justice system for all these traitors to America. One that is not behind bars for years, but that is educational and socially just in what they must give back to our country as part of their consequences. We have to re-think so many things in new ways. And, strangely, for that I thank the Seditionists of the dying patriarchy for waking us up to creating these new pathways for the 21st century. All those fears of the millennial shift have been working slowly, and have now surfaced. We are being asked to change EVERYTHING—at the same time. I think we have a lot of people ready for that. We just have to make sure they are safe and protected. We have to make a choice: complacent/ complicit or Committed to our country and the world/planet?
Yes, I think the work goes much further than financing election campaigns or even flipping seats. When we talk about “deep gardening” I think we are talking about a change in culture, and this is something the right has been talking about and doing for years. I see it in the ultra-right wing in my own family. Thirty to forty years ago they started down an evangelical path, and now they are so deeply steeped into the mythology, it’s impossible to have a conversation with them. Their blind faith in their own actions has worked it’s way into every moment of their day, and there is no middle ground. It’s very unfortunate. Now and then a late teen or an adult can escape from the thinking, similarly to escaping from a cult, but it’s very difficult. So what we are talking about here, is cult that has reached gigantic proportions in this country, and the bigger the cult, the more difficult the challenge, because the more support you have for your delusional ideas, the easier it is not to challenge them.
What a great phrase! I talk a lot about education, planting seeds, as a foundation for necessary culture change, but hadn't encountered "deep gardening" to capture the concept. Quick google search went to literal gardening items. Is this a concept used among evangelicals?
I just made it up as visual concept for how deep the roots of deception via propaganda and fear actually go from the the true "deep state" of dark money and white privilege. I love the concept of deeply digging out these roots that are preventing America from moving forward. I love the idea of all of us going deeply within to see what seeds each of us have to plant, together, to establish a new garden that includes plants of a huge variety and diversity but with the same rights across the entire garden for sun, soil, maintenance and rights to equal nutrients. When one plant or plants grow too big and think they deserve more sun or nutrients than the others, they need to be pruned way back. Sometimes, they need to be transplanted completely. And in our case, there are some very deep roots we have not begun to see their depths, but we certainly have seen the shade they throw at those of us who prefer benevolence over superiority and toxicity . Our challenge is to make compost out of all the excreta being thrown at Americans by those who call themselves republicans.
I can’t say that I have ever heard the term “deep gardening” but I pulled it from Penelope Simpson Adams comment above. I was thinking about A Breitbart’s quote which, paraphrased, says “if you want to change thinking, you have to change culture.”
This is well said. The ongoing question that I haven’t found a good answer to is, how? I know the Fairness Doctrine needs to be restored, but we are talking about cult behavior... how it was created and how is it de-programmed. It’s an enormous subject that involves many factors, none of which I am familiar with. I do know from the little reading that I have done on it that deprogramming cult thinking is a major undertaking and is not always successful. A lot of us here have found that it is impossible to talk to these people, even family and friends. There’s no amount of truth/facts that you can present them with that makes a difference. I don’t know the answer to this pervasive problem here in this country.
As we describe far right groups, they are diverse, including in degree of approaching a cult. Rather than seeking to "de-program" those in it the deepest, it is more effective to start with the domains of public media. Even without a new Fairness Doctrine, we here are "taking up oxygen," as HCR likes to say. We are amplifying her messages that assert and affirm truth and reality, countering alt-right/trumpists/QAnon distortion, "fake news," "alternative facts," propaganda, and outright big lies.
These efforts comprise our newly coined phrase of deep gardening, planting seeds. It's a long term but necessary process and operates at many levels--from one-on-one conversations to public media, from single to ongoing occurrences.
I have intended to make a list (and admit, that with other emergencies going on in my life, I’ve been hoping some news source would do it for me). I do know that none of my elected representatives are on it, although Yvette Herrell, the newly elected Rep from the southern part of New Mexico decided her first speech on the floor should be an objection to Pennsylvania’s votes. 🤬
Suzanne, I would love it if you would post the list you made, so I and others could save it.
Brilliantly crafted post, R Dooley. Let this become our pledge - to the future, to our children and their children, to our nation and democracy: “I will not forget”. We must not forget, nor must we allow others to forget, else we will find ourselves facing these same issues yet again. I will not forget.
I, too, will never forget. It's not about retribution from those who were complicit in this rupture of civil society. No, for me, it is about trying to bring light into the darkness of these souls.
What has happened here, culminated by events of last week, is making the invisible visible. The shadow side of American society is now exposed and shown the light of day. Strangely, this is a good thing. Because we can't heal the wounds until we admit they are there and are real. We cannot recover from the traumas we have hidden until we confront them.
As any person in recovery knows, you can't move upward until you have hit the emotional and psychic bottom. As a country, we are now there. So, what are the traumas we now can talk about, deal with, and find a way to selflessness, compassion, and awakening? Prof. Randy Morris (Emeritus Antioch University spells it out better than I can:
1. Dislocation of original colonists from Europe bringing separation anxiety, which was repressed by a Puritanical theology – read today as misogyny and dominance over nature.
2. Slaughter and destruction of Native American peoples – appropriation of land and resources read today as unbridled greed
3. Slavery and its economic institutionalization – read today as racism and aggression against 'the other.'
4. Nuclear bombing of Japan and the subsequent institutionalization of planetary aggression – read today as the prominence of the military/industrial/police state.
All of this covered under a wrapping of delusion we now see as the messages we get from media and political parties. What's the old saying? "Keep them in the dark and feed them ????"
Sorry for the long rant, but I will not forget. The lights have been turned on, and I will NOT consume delusion any longer.
I so appreciate your articulating this. Millions of us feel this way. Please note that those of us who refuse to forget, those of us who insist on consequences, will likely experience some PTSD. In the absence of consequences we hold these causes in our bodies, never forgiving, never forgetting. We are all likely to need professional help to discern the difference between productive vigilance, the hard work we will do to create consequences — campaign work for example — and the self-harming work of maintaining a state of heightened anxiety.
Absolutely! Yes! Making the consequences ourselves through organizing and campaigning is therapeutic. That's what I do. But I have noticed a lot of people, even the organizers who have an outlet for their political anxiety, have trouble disentangling anxiety and vigilance. Stay well! Peace!
Already experiencing PTSD symptoms after enduring numerous attempts to throw away our votes in Pennsylvania. Each attempt was like a hard slap in the face. Self care is crucial.
74 million voters and probably double that in terms of actual supporters. A third or maybe 2/5 of our society is living in that Kool-Aid fantasy world. My father among them, many truck drivers, and at the very least the 88 million Twitter followers that have now been cut off from their cult leader. The parallels with Hitler are so so glaring.
Specifically, how and when do we undertake a national conversation about "The Big Lie?" I think this is crucial for moving back (?) toward functional politics in our country, as opposed to what we've experienced for the last thirty years. The barrier I see being that the people who bought into the lie fall largely in two camps. Those who were complicit and promoted it, and those who were victims of it. Both of which are sensitive subjects to bring up. The ones being immoral and the others dupes. And you can bet, if we ever get to this reckoning, the immoral ones will throw their hands in the air, and cry "I was fooled!"
I apologize for repeating something I wrote yesterday, but I heartily agree with R Dooley and suggest this as a blueprint for those who seek clear, useful direction going forward:
Let’s remember and praise the neighborhood work of Stacey Abrams and all so many others in Georgia. btw, I learned that Senator Raphael Warnock (!!) was a board member and perhaps president of this GA empowerment movement.
Just when I was trying to visualize and alternate reality in which trump never existed, you come up with a good reason to remember. May we all survive this turmoil.
Thank you for asking and thank you so much for your comment. You are most welcome to share it with your friends, but I’m not eager to post it on Facebook.
When the article in The Atlantic appeared, warning of the dangerous period of the Interregnum, it talked about how he could move from the electoral, to the litigation phase, but that after January 6th, the only option remaining was insurrection.
The visual of a constructed gallows, and vigilante groups, who carried zip cuffs, who new the location of secret congressional offices, tells me this was not simply a flash mob of angry citizens.
No, both from an offensive and defensive standpoint this a planned assault conducted by hate groups. He gave them their marching orders. He removed the leadership of the agencies tasked with guarding the Congress, ensuring that the response would be weak and ineffective. He influenced 147 political leaders to reject their oaths to the Constitution and swear their allegiance to him alone.
Almost seventy years ago, one man stood up to a demagogue saying, “Have you no decency, sir?”
We are at such a moment today, except that what’s at stake is far more than decency. Our country is badly divided, with about one in three citizens in support of the carnage that occurred on January 6, 2021. We face a most formidable adversary.
As Pogo said many years ago, “We have met the enemy... and it is us!”
Seventy five years ago we vanquished Fascism. Using our might, we built the greatest economy the world had seen. We conquered polio. We put a man on another celestial body. And we expanded the rights of the least powerful among us.
In an earlier letter, you described how Lincoln insisted on completing the dome of the Capitol at the same time the Civil War was killing over half a million people. Now we are facing dueling crises, one of our own making.
Conquering Covid does not demand we set aside what happened last week. We can, and should hold our leaders accountable for their false allegiance to a person that cares not one whit for the welfare of anyone but the privileged few.
Let that shining dome remind us of our shared history, our decency, our common purpose; and serve as an inspiration to those who yearn for and love freedom to continue the quest for the “more perfect union”.
But it is not just DJT. This white boy insurrection has been strategically planned and honed for decades. DJT was the final thrust of those who want to maintain total power. Look to our own and foreign oligarchs and how they control many aspects of our lives and thought. Look behind DJT and the money that empowered him and these fringe fanatical groups including the NRA and the promotion of weapons of mass destruction by civilians and fanatics. They are White Isis. financially. DJT was the dancing monkey of distraction whilst they placed their "acting" people into positions of power throughout our government and judicial systems. It was brilliant, it was foreseen and many pieces of the puzzle indicate the real conspiracy. And, whoever "they" are, masked as religious republicans of law and order, they allowed him to golf, rally, tweet and brainwash insane lies along with fanatic media heads and empower their white supremacist hate groups. Meanwhile this horrific pandemic brings us to our knees. None of them did anything to stop or try to reduce this pandemic. They do not appear to care whom it kills or harms. It is a modern holocaust, IMHO, led by American traitors who are terrorizing us and our elected officials. ISIS tactics by using our own people against us. And the death toll is so big now that we cannot comprehend the numbers.
Who was that totalitarian cult leader that said, "The death of one man is a tragedy, but millions are merely statistics? And these cult fanatics attack the heart of our democracy. I do not see any way around all of this except by our military intervening. And my national guard neighbor saluted the Proud Boys parade in front of my house. As someone said they other day, who can we trust now? I think I comprehend the fears of the people in Germany as the cult of Hitler truly began to take power. And I think we might be able to escape this take over, just. I am no military person, but swiftness in our actions is critical right now.
The Air Force particularly but the military in general has been a breeding ground for fanatical Evangelicals. I have a cousin whose daughter, raised as a free-thinking Unitarian, was recruited to the Air Force Academy and, as a serving officer, succumbed to the pressure to "be saved" in order to have a career. Those who do not do the Evangelical thing do not get preference or advancement in the military these days.
I am afraid you are right, it is difficult to see how they can be tamed or intimidated since a percentage of them appear to be ex-vets/trained warriors. Does that not say something about the travesty of war in itself? We train our young to be warriors, and, is it trauma and/or difficulty slipping back into normal civilian life where your fight and kill skills are no longer needed? Do they experience what some of my clients experience who prefer the intensity, wildness, creativity, and aliveness of their bi-polar episodes no matter how much destruction it causes? As opposed to being medicated to prevent hospitalization, jail or death because normal life feels so boring?
Some of the insurrectionists appear to think they are in a cos-play alternated reality than actually at the Capitol of the USA threatening, destroying and attempting graphic murder of the highest officials in our land and the police.
Trump & Hitler both know/knew how to grow mob mentality and keep it at a high level. My hope is that no social media and no rallies will begin to help fade the wolf packs. Still, I go back to the dark money behind the scenes must be rooted out.
A brilliant analysis. There is just not enough space dedicated to writing about the powers behind the dancing money charade. This is where the real dark forces reside. sunlight is the best disinfectant
I agree! Sunlight as disinfectant— love that! And I believe much of those forces will be revealed bit by bit and his followers may be in for a shock by the depths of this manipulation...and the emperor's lack of...well, everything of real value.
Well, that was an unsettling statement “my national guard neighbor saluted the Proud Boys”. And an armed national guard is mobilizing across the country as we speak. Who to trust 🤷🏻♀️
Ironic that your quote of "Have you no decency" was aimed not just at McCarthy but at his chief hatchet man, Roy Cohn, who later became the primary mentor for Trump, Roger Stone, and Paul Manafort. That question and declaration should ring again through the halls of Congress and our society.
Bingo. IF you watch some old Roy Cohn videos, you can easily see who mentored DT in the ways of the demagogue. Lie. Spin. Gaslight. attack. Never concede anything.
I had forgotten McCarthy's nickname, Tailgunner Joe
I am wondering why the 8 days? Can you elaborate on how things will be better, safer, more democratic after the inauguration? I'm not very confident that we will settle after the 20th.
1. Senate is Democratic. Bills and apointments will actually be taken up.
2. Biden is an experienced institutionalist who knows the system as well as a good number of the people, and has chosen wise, dynamic leaders to implement is agenda.
What has disturbed me the most during the past months is not simply 45's continual assault on our democracy, on our moral and ethical standards, on our safety and security as a nation, but his total disregard for a health disaster that has killed (in the most cruel of ways -- the utter depravation of the oxygen needed to breathe in our life source) more than 375,000 of our kin.
As you so eloquently put it, Heather:
"[A]ccording to Maggie Haberman at the New York Times, what is upsetting him most is that the PGA has pulled its 2022 golf championship from Trump’s Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club.
That, not the riots, not the deaths, not impeachment, and certainly not the coronavirus--which has now killed more than 375,000 of us—has “gutted” him."
Just think of it ... this traitor can only be "gutted" by financial loss and the destruction of prestige in a "white" sport that most US citizens cannot afford to play. Not one iota of compassion runs through the veins of this so-called human being, nor through the veins of his family, his administration or his blood-thirsty followers. At a time when thousands are on the brink of death, he has ensured that the spotlight remains on him rather than on the dying, the grieving, the homeless, and the starving.
May the Force be with our country and her citizens.
Add to the list: the essential workers who risk their lives every day, like the janitors who had to clean up after the rioters, police and firefighters who keep us safe, exhausted medial workers, teachers forced into classrooms so parents can work, people who provide food and keep stores and restaurants and factories open, government workers at all levels and many many more, These people are working and dying for almost a YEAR for people who in too many cases don’t even think about them any more, don’t wear masks or take precautions because they believe it’s their right to do whatever they damn please. This is the base that this president in name only and his party panders to. These proud, selfish super spreading bullies believe might makes right, God is on their side and the president has learned his lesson. 45 has truly left a mess for 46 to clean up. He and his carefully chosen administration need our support because otherwise, we are over and out.
I agree, Rowshan. Take all else away and what's left is failed leadership during what should be considered the most horrific of consequences that our country has faced.
Another concern, Marcy, is hearing the absolute relief from people who have received ONE vaccine shot - as if now they can relax - no need to be careful anymore! There needs to be big time education regarding the fact that that is not the cure so they can go back to "normal"! Especially at this point where there is now a push to just vaccinate as many numbers BEFORE there is enough vaccine in place for a 2nd shot.
I wonder if they would listen & comprehend? The whole thought is to go back to normal! Which truly is not going to happen likely in less than another year or two. I dont think most people actually understand that.
Screw bipartisanship, at least with the racist and theocratic terrorists who make up the bulk of the Republican party.
Would the so-called "moderate" Republicans like to rejoin government? Then they should form a new party, maybe call it the "Conservative" party. Denounce Trump. Denounce racism, violence, and the evisceration of our governmental agencies. Declare loyalty to the separation of church and state, the rule of law, and the Constitutional transfer of power. Do that, and after a few months to make sure you mean it, and we can talk about sharing power with the Democratic party. Until then, to hell with the lot of you, for we know you by the company you keep.
Democrats should -- must -- "ram through" as much comprehensive, well-drafted legislation as quickly as they can without any "bipartisan" participation. Don't worry about "inflaming their resistance," because they do that to themselves without any help from anybody else.
In their current incarnation, on a bus driven by racists and religious fanatics, Republicans can only negotiate in bad faith, hoping to delay and impede the functions of government while they mount another insurrection.
It is unbelievable that the ERA hasn’t become law. It is such a simple amendment: “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” That’s it, yet we haven’t been able to make it law, despite 100 years of effort since Alice Paul first proposed the amendment in 1922.
I worked for a year in Washington from 1971-1972 to help get the amendment approved by the Senate. I was in the gallery on March 22, 1972 when the Senate vote was taken and will never forget the joy we felt. Two hours after the Senate vote, when Hawaii ratified it, we felt confident that within a couple of years it would be ratified by the necessary 38 states and become law, but anti-ERA groups stalled ratification. (Does the name Phyllis Schaffly ring a bell?)
Here we are, 50 years later and women still are not formally recognized and protected in the Constitution. The 38th State, Virginia, ratified it it in February, 2020. Once the necessary 38 states had ratified it, both houses of Congress needed to vote to eliminate the original ratification deadline. In February, 2020, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.J. Res. 79 to do just that, but the Senate still hasn’t been able to get a vote on the parallel piece of legislation to make the ERA law (S.J. Res. 6).
Keep this in mind when you have visions of eliminating the Electoral College, which would also require a Constitutional Amendment. And also keep it in mind with regard to the importance of electing progressive candidates to State legislatures.
Once the new Senate is seated, please urge your Senators to bring a vote to the floor to approve S.J. Res. 6.
Mary Anne and Gwen, I could not agree with you more. The fact that the ERA still has not been passed, that it is taking nearly my entire life to become part of the Constitution, to me looks like an epic failure of the American people and the American democratic social experiment. Of course it’s part of the entire problem we are discussing here on this forum, the old social order of whites-first males-first straights-first hanging in there. I just think of my father, the old man born and raised in Nazi Germany, a loving father who dotes on his kids, but who will never truly think otherwise: whites come first, males come first, straights come first. The diehard Republican and diehard Fox watcher and diehard disdainer of non-straights, hippies, liberals and free-thinkers like all his children. All three children, the acorn fell a long way from the tree. Sometimes I have to wonder who is the child and who are the parents.
Duplicate post, because I want to make sure Gwen sees it in the middle of this avalanche and snowstorm of discussion.
Mary Anne and Gwen, I could not agree with you more. The fact that the ERA still has not been passed, that it is taking nearly my entire life to become part of the Constitution, to me looks like an epic failure of the American people and the American democratic social experiment. Of course it’s part of the entire problem we are discussing here on this forum, the old social order of whites-first males-first straights-first hanging in there. I just think of my father, the old man born and raised in Nazi Germany, a loving father who dotes on his kids, but who will never truly think otherwise: whites come first, males come first, straights come first. The diehard Republican and diehard Fox watcher and diehard disdainer of non-straights, hippies, liberals and free-thinkers like all his children. All three children, the acorn fell a long way from the tree. Sometimes I have to wonder who is the child and who are the parents.
Yes! The conservative party should become The Conservative Party. Cleave from trumpists, bring back Eisenhower decency, and how about environmental conservatism as well.
I'm new to this community, so forgive me if I say things that have already been said, or which irritate any followers. I've been following Heather on Facebook for a while now, though I somehow missed until just the other day that there was a newsletter.
I have watched with growing alarm what has gone on in this country since even before Trump took office, though his taking office in 2016 certainly made things a lot worse. I trace a lot of what is going on now to the rise of "conservative talk radio", led by Rush Limbaugh, etc., because when that happened, Republicans and Democrats started getting their actual news and information from different sources. Even into the early 1990s, Republicans and Democrats used to get the same information. They may have interpreted the information differently, but the "base predicate" was the same. However, that all changed once Limbaugh, et als, arrived on the scene, and it was accelerated and exacerbated by the rise of Fox News and its ilk. Now, we have a huge chunk of the population which doesn't even get the same news as the rest of the population. How can that possibly work in the long run?
As well, there are clearly--and horrifyingly--there are a lot of people in this country who would be just fine if we became a fascist autocracy. That is something that I never in my worst nightmares ever imagined.
Sorry to be a "Debbie Downer", but the last few months have just been so disheartening.
Welcome, Ian! You are so right about the talk shows. My dear brother and I were best buddies, both liberal minded, lived a couple miles from each other and raising kids the same ages, we spent a lot of time with each other "solving the world's problems" over coffee and dishes while the kids played. A sweet, sweet time. But he started listening to talk radio, Limbaugh, Dr. Laura, I don't even know who. Around the same time, a local ultra conservative Christian pastor, seeing him working out in the yard with his kids, started stopping by and chatting him up. So within a few years, I lost my pal to Far Wrong as someone here calls it, and for about 15 years now we rarely speak. We still love each other but have almost nothing in common except our family ties. It's really the saddest loss in my life. A tiny consolation is that his kids, as well as mine, are more aligned with liberal values but still able to maintain a loving relationship with their dad.
I have a cousin that I was very close to. We both supported the clown 🤡 in chief, the error of that call became evident to me when he became fixated on the crowd size which was obviously much smaller than Obama’s, that was my wake up call. My cousin never got that call. I have argued ever since via phone calls, emails, and NYT posted comments that we had made a colossal error in judgment and that we needed to do everything in our power to correct it. I was educated by Jesuits, who taught me that any argument had to be grounded in truth otherwise it was like taking a stand in sand. For nearly 4 years I made my arguments always based on facts, I would get 1 word replies. After my father passed, alone in a nursing home of old age, isolated because of the virus 🦠, I let him know that was a deal breaker, it still is. While I have done everything in my power to correct the mistake I made 4 years ago, a good relationship that I had with my cousin has evaporated, that’s a shame, our fathers were best friends. The well-being of the nation I love and have fought for, and will leave to my children and grandchildren is more important than my relationship with my cousin who has chosen a very different path. I was a 40+ year Republican in the vein of John McCain, whom I revered, the Republican Party has become irrelevant and no longer offers ideas and solutions based on reality. I fully support Joe Biden, who does have a grounded sense of reality, and pray that he gets a full 8 years to enact all of the many changes our beloved nation so desperately needs. So I feel your loss, but know that you are not alone.
Dick, good heavens! Thank you for this. I'm so sorry for the loss of your father and how his death was different than it could have been because of the virus restrictions. As a nurse, I've been deeply saddened by the way this has affected our elders especially those in nursing homes where they struggle with outbreaks and staffing issues, residents alone with no visits from loved ones, whether they're healthy or not. Frankly, I've been grateful my own parents are long gone and don't have to suffer through this. The isolation alone would have killed my mother. And I'm sorry for the loss of your relationship with your cousin. I'm very admiring of your attitude, priorities and honesty. Thank you for admitting you were wrong and trying (and succeeding - he lost!) to right that wrong. My husband and his father are both McCain Republicans at heart too and are perplexed and angry at the loss of their party, so I get it to some degree. I even could have considered McCain until he chose Palin; it was over for me then. He made the fatal mistake of caving to party pressure and the desire for a running mate that would cash in on voters he could not otherwise expect to win over.
Thank you Beth, I couldn'y agree with you more about John McCain's poor choice of Palin, as I understand it he wanted to pick Joe Lieberman a very close friend who was a democrat, but was talked out of it, I believe he regreted that for the rest of his life. I would have walked into hell for John McCain but thankfully I won't have to as I believe he's in a better place. I loved that man as much as anyone in my family because of his courage and the dignity he displayed as a POW. The clown in chief is beneath my contempt.
I believe my father in law, a lovely man, feels just as you do about John McCain (and djt as well!), Dick. You must be kindred spirits. I remember now about Lieberman, I believe you are absolutely right in your memory of that. We could use a whole lot of McCains right now, in place of what we've got in the GOP.
Wow, Dick, thank you for sharing all of this. And thank you for the encouragement and for sharing your convictions and hope for a better future. Some things can heal with time. Maybe your relationship with your cousin, as well as others whose relationships have been so badly damaged, can be one of those things. I hope so, for your sake as well as everyone else’s.
It might be my age, having become an old curmudgeon but I don’t miss the ppl I have lost to the cult. To use the term that has gotten me locked out of twitter – They are dead to me. Over my lifetime I have actually had a large number of ppl I was close to that have died so maybe I have been hardened somewhat to loss.
My half-brother in Mississippi was the first and I argued with him online from the time he started posting anti-Obama lies on facebook and finally cut off all communication with him on Nov 9, 2016. Same with a co-worker & “friend” of 15 years. I even discovered an old friend from the Hippie Days in Mississippi who was a sister in our extended family had gone to the Dark Side. Her ex-husband from that time is still with me in rational thot, so not all ppl in MS are so backward but he may be an anomaly.
Rob I really love your posts. I have a question for you. How do you feel about me contacting you by email? I have a new subscriber who must be you, and I have a private question for you, but I don’t want to betray your privacy by using your email without your permission.
Also, anyone else on this forum (Not Repugnants) are welcome, but be warned I often send out BCC e-mails to most of those on my e-male addresses such as events in my life, journal entries & old movie reviews, unless requested otherwise. :)
So true! As everyone here experiences, how can they think that way?!?!?! But especially hard when it's someone you love and who used to think completely differently. They go from caring about the welfare and well-being of all to just being pissed off about their taxes. My brother ranted about socialism, all through the Obama years, while simultaneously his son received the best private HS education possible at one of the top ranked academies in the country because his mother worked there and he could go for free - kind of a socialism concept, but he couldn't see it.
Yes. The saddes thing. I’ve had to detach from all of my family in Idaho and whom I frequently visited and with such fun and dear memories of years gone by. And my own young adult son, who was raised in a liberal and loving and accepting-of-differences home is pretty far right now. Full of anger and rambles of taxes and gun rights that make zero sense. The main influence of this change has been his fiancés family, the men, and the red town / county they live in.
Oh Tricia, I’m sorry to hear about your son’s situation. We try so hard to raise compassionate men, but there are innumerable influences that can, at times, overwhelm that upbringing. I pray that better days lie ahead, with men feeling more secure and less fearful/angry. Hang in there!
There are two things I don't think I could bear, my children or my spouse being far right. You have my deepest sympathies, Tricia. All I can say is my brother, a truly wonderful, gentle, generous man, well loved by all, did a 180 in terms of religion and politics. Maybe your son will do the same someday. May it be so. Til then, keep doing what you're doing.
Not to be a wise-acre but if you are referring to the movie it is "The invasion of the Body Snatchers" and when it came out in 1956 I (as a ten year old) couldn't sleep for a week. Over the years it was used as a creeping metaphor for communism, Rock and Roll, and quite a few more trends but I want to thank you and congratulate you for being astute enough to see the comparison to our time. The really frightening part is that the original in 56 and the remake in 78 really had no ending.
You know, I never saw either movie but the title stuck in my mind and it seemed so appropriate for what is happening. Glad I didn’t see the movie.. I wouldn’t have likely slept for a week either.
I’m so sorry, Beth. Besides all of the obvious and blatant destruction that he has brought upon our country in my opinion one of the saddest of all is how this has torn once living families such as yours apart. I have seen it in others close to me and I am so very sorry that you have lost your brother to this. Hopefully he will change his view as events continue to transpire.
Good morning Beth, I too have a brother who drank the kool aid and still sends me taunting emails. I must admit, however, that now I rather enjoy this back and forth. When he started to bait me, well before the presidential election, he would end each email with NPFAA (nothing personal family above all). We are really trying to cling to this...Now my emails to him, the last being how the left taunted Trump about hiding in his bunker during BLM protests in the summer, I say “and your point?”. But it is so sad to see and breaks my heart...
Maybe some people see “drinking the Kool-Aid“ as extremist, you know, one of those cringe worthy things. Maybe a new reader has a cringeworthy moment when they see me comparing trump to Hitler and Nazi Germany, or when they see me identifying the man as a Putin stooge and paid henchman. I know those comparisons will never get a “like” from HCR without clear historical context and explanation. However, the implicit comparison between DT and Charles Manson as cult leaders is right on target. I’m so pleased that people here see that.
Thank you for the kind words, Beth, and I am truly sorry about your estrangement from your brother. I can't pretend to understand that pain, though I have seen it happen with others, too. It is horrible to observe.
The compassion and love I’m seeing today moves me. This is a beautiful beautiful exchange today on this entire day of discussion. Brings tears to my eyes.
We must bring back the Fairness Doctrine. It’s unconscionable that the Fox Entertainment Network and the likes of Rush Limbaugh are given a license to brainwash citizens by feeding them lies and then can stand behind “free speech” to allow it.
It's a stretching of "free speech," which has always been subject to limitations. People are entitled to free thoughts and to sharing their thoughts but not entitled to huge, adoring audiences.
Welcome! Bringing the Fairness Doctrine back into play will help the media "problem". Heather is a big advocate of this, and often comments on it, so stay tuned!
You are so right. That is why Dr. Richardson's first recommendation for action by the Biden administration is reinstatement of The Fairness Doctrine. The lies must stop.
There is (was?) a wonderful documentary on Amazon called "The Brainwashing of my Dad." Worth watching. Fascinating. No society will survive where facts are irrelevant. We will just descend into madness. It is happening before our eyes. The guy with the horns us sane and we should marvel at him like a Marvel comic book character.
Somehow liberals got branded as liers while the liers kept lying. Very tricky of the Republicans. But they knew they could do it when so many people thought Richard Nixon really did have a plan to end the Vietnam war right there in his jacket breast pocket.
Watching the "death spiral" of the GOP is both exciting and terrifying at the same time. My spirits were buoyed by the commitments from corporate America to NOT fund the 147 Republicans who were not far behind Trump in culpability for the insurrection. Clearly the corporations and the social media companies are late in their condemnations and shock at what has happened, but they ALL should have been way out in front of this quite some time ago. I do realized that they are still concerned for their bottom line, but better late than never. Taking away their money and their social media megaphones will do more to weaken Trumpism as any political speeches or condemnations from Editorial Boards of mainstream media. -- HCR, keep up the good work!
McCarthy voted with the sedition caucus. He and his buddies are in deep Doo Doo, because without money, which is probably the primary Republican motivating force in the world (from their perspective, not mine), they are nothing and they know it. To them, money is everything. Having businesses and big corporate sponsors turn their back on them: deep trouble.
I am ashamed and embarrassed to report that I am in McCarthy’s district right now, taking my 30 minute break. I’m a truck driver on my way from Sacramento to LA. I get to drive through Bakersfield area every week. In fact every week I probably drive through most of the last remaining Republican congressional districts left in California. And I live in one, my Congressman LaMalfa (CA-1) is also one of the 147. Lucky me.
Lay on the horn when I passed McCarthy’s house? I’m always going through Bakersfield at 2 AM! Somebody just give me the address and I will give it a shot.
I feel very grateful to live in a state with two wonderful Dem senators and a Republican Governor who voted for Biden and publicly declared his disgust for the Capitol attack. BUT I am ashamed that busloads of our residents went to the Capitol, including one of our State Troopers. I hope our little State House, and those who do fine work inside it, will survive this coming weekend.
We must not ignore the fact that the Trump malignancy has metastisized to law enforcement personnel throughout the country, like the trooper you mentioned, like the Capitol Police who turned their heads and those involved in the George Floyd murder. Reversing this, de-politicizing of law enforcement, will have to be part of the next Attorney General's role.
For a minute I thought you lived in MD. But Hogan bravely voted for Ronald Reagan, a dead man, rather than Biden. It is hard to believe a smart man could be so ridiculous and obvious.
My state also has the wonderful Representative Jamie Raskin. I am so grateful for him. He has found time in his greatest grief to put his all into removing Trump for all of us.
Mine is nationally known deplorable Marsha Blackburn, and newly elected seditionist Bill Hagerty (who ran on a “trump loves me” platform—seriously) and Tim Burchett, a good ol’ boy who keeps finding new offices to run for rather than get a job.
I share the same awful Senators with Marcy, but my Congressman is seditous Chuck Fleishmann. He tested positive for Covid this week, presumably transmitted from his housemate. He is under quarantine.
I feel your pain, Sally. I’ve got “toxic” Tom Tiffany and Ron Johnson. Pre gerrymandering, the 7th CD was ably and nobly represented by David Obey. Post gerrymandering, the district was “represented” by a reality TV personality, actually, Sean something (apologies—have not been sleeping well since last Wednesday), who was not my favorite.
If you haven’t already, please check out the Fair Maps initiative, which is listening to and sharing information with Wisconsinites about nonpartisan redistricting. They are holding virtual meetings in each Congressional district to get the word out and build support. If Fair Maps appeals to you, I encourage you to amplify their message with your own network. We will be in legislative hell here at both the state and national level until each seat is (or at least most seats are) competitive.
Tom Palzewicz told me about the Fair Maps initiative and I've been following. Maybe if they remove Fitzgerald we could get Tom to run for his seat. I would be proud to have him represent my district. Wisconsin needs to clean house and redistrict.
My rep compared impeachment to lynching in an ultimate tone deaf comment. He is a blue dog, but he did walk back the comment and will vote for impeachment. I have had to vote for him because the alternatives are such persons as Tootie Smith (puke). I did vote for a progressive primary opponent who proceeded to diss HRC once she was the candidate. I will never vote for him for anything again. I would consider an alternative to the blue dog, but the person cannot be be a Bernie type in this district.
I am in a hotel in LA, and that just tickles my funny bone I cannot stop laughing. “Steaming heaps of human excrement that they are.” You’re just killing me.
Wow that’s beautiful Ted and it expresses my feelings exactly. I have no complaints about having a Sedition 💩 Caucus Representative in Congress, or driving through Kevin McCarthy’s California. It’s an honor. GO LIBERTY‼️GO EGALITARIAN NEW SOCIETY‼️🥰
Thanks Roland. I love So Cal and especially Kernville, the desert mountain roads with Sierra Mountain views are something to enjoy, and not everyone has, nor gets too.
If you are near there, that is where you will find a safe harbor. Keep the faith. As bad as it is, there are more good people who only wish for good things to happen. I admit it can be struggle to swim against the current and remain steady. I am finding that I am needing some help from others to remind me of the same, more this week than any other ever.
Hang in there Ted. We love you. You are loved. This week is brutal, you’re doing a great job with it. I love your posts. I copied your “light in the darkness“ quote into my journal, because it exactly captures what I was saying about driving through Red California districts and living in one. I take joy in my work of driving through dark regions and bringing light.
Aah, I see where you are. You are in Kevin McCarthy District! A handful of times I did an organic food delivery route down 395 through the Valley behind Mount Whitney, and that route went right past Lake Isabella before returning to Auburn-Placer County (near Sacramento), so I’ve been in your neighborhood a few times. Yeah it is absolutely gorgeous, the drive is spectacular. I loved it when the driver went on vacation and I could do his route. Quiet, gorgeous, spectacular drive. Ethereal.
I’m new here and in California. My family roots are from Bakersfield, and I still have some family there now. I can say that a woman highly involved the in CA RNC is one of my FB ‘friends’. I have seen even her post how McCarthy is bonkers... Of course he was re-elected but I wouldn’t be surprised to see a new ‘conservative’ rep from that district sooner rather than later.
Hi Leona! I live in Grass Valley. I’m a truck driver, so me and my colleagues drive down I-5 and 99 every week from Sacramento to SoCal and back. So if you’re looking through recent posts, you’ll know that Roland and Ted are neighbors of yours, sort of.
Thank you! And Ted, Kernville is one of my favorite spots in CA. My family settled in Kern County in the early 1900’s and some family retired in Weldon. I still have family there and in Bakersfield, although I was raised on the coast and now live in Oakland.
Agree completely. Trump, McCarthy, the sedition caucus, Graham, the whole vipers nest, no moral compass, no principles, nobody you would ever want near your house or even talking to any of your children.
Stopping corporate funding may be the only way to get my treasonous Representative out. Never thought I'd ever say this but Thank You Corporate America!!
He might resign.
Mike might pardon him.
Congress might impeach or censure him.
Some Republicans will pretend to disavow him.
Prosecutors will indict him.
Citizens will sue him.
Banks will abandon him.
His followers will erect shrines to him.
He will wither and eventually die an angry, broken, delusional man.
And many will try to forget him.
But I will not.
We may escape his tenure in office bruised, but not mortally wounded.
Our environment may begin to recover from the assault he leveled at it that delayed action to slow the creeping warming that is engulfing our earth and threatening our children’s lives.
Communities that were the targets of his hate may entertain some hope for deep and lasting change.
People who fear illness or death from the Coronavirus may live to see those fears relieved.
The world may breathe a sigh of relief that the tyrant who ruled the United States has passed from the scene.
But I will not.
I will not forget him.
I will not breathe easily when he leaves.
He did not act alone.
Those who enabled his worst behavior remain in positions of trust and power.
They must be held to account.
They must be rooted out.
Some may forgive and forget.
But I will not.
Thank you. I agree 100%. Neurotically, I have made a list. I have made a promise to myself to keep track of these people the best I can. And, like this past election where I contributed to campaigns running against people like Moscow Mitch, I will do the best I can to oppose them. I was starting to feel vindictive, but I am grateful to see that I am not alone.
This is not a neurotic commitment in any way, Suzanne. Our country is under siege by homegrown terrorists and a LOT of complicit people in our government and, apparently, in our protective agencies. They have planted deep roots of fear and tyranny, particularly against our elected officials and in our citizens of color or various religions and ethnicities. It is time for all of us who are healthy to use all the tools at our disposal for some deep, deep gardening of our soil. We have to be willing to get our hands dirty to root out fanatics. And then we have to plant new seeds.
Actually, let me add, we need to plant new seeds at the same time we are rooting out the dark roots. We have a lot of new energy and diverse people in our government now. I take hear that so many voices are going to be heard and supported. And we need to strongly support them so they know we have their backs.
And we need to have a new kind of justice system for all these traitors to America. One that is not behind bars for years, but that is educational and socially just in what they must give back to our country as part of their consequences. We have to re-think so many things in new ways. And, strangely, for that I thank the Seditionists of the dying patriarchy for waking us up to creating these new pathways for the 21st century. All those fears of the millennial shift have been working slowly, and have now surfaced. We are being asked to change EVERYTHING—at the same time. I think we have a lot of people ready for that. We just have to make sure they are safe and protected. We have to make a choice: complacent/ complicit or Committed to our country and the world/planet?
Yes, I think the work goes much further than financing election campaigns or even flipping seats. When we talk about “deep gardening” I think we are talking about a change in culture, and this is something the right has been talking about and doing for years. I see it in the ultra-right wing in my own family. Thirty to forty years ago they started down an evangelical path, and now they are so deeply steeped into the mythology, it’s impossible to have a conversation with them. Their blind faith in their own actions has worked it’s way into every moment of their day, and there is no middle ground. It’s very unfortunate. Now and then a late teen or an adult can escape from the thinking, similarly to escaping from a cult, but it’s very difficult. So what we are talking about here, is cult that has reached gigantic proportions in this country, and the bigger the cult, the more difficult the challenge, because the more support you have for your delusional ideas, the easier it is not to challenge them.
Replying to a different post of Penelope Simpson Adams, here is a list to focus our remembering and our actions going forward:
* As Matthew Goulet notes, we have a task of deep gardening with education (critical thinking, anti-racism, civics, conflict resolution, etc.).
* AND we have the task of enforcing the laws we already have against sedition and terrorism.
* And we need a new law that restores the Fairness Doctrine updated to include social media.
* And we need a new law that stops the flow of dark money to super PACs.
* And we need to get rid of the Electoral College.
* And we need to get rid of gerrymandering.
(This list is culled from reading many reader replies to HCR questions over the past 6 months! Did I miss anything?)
Good list! Must destroy Citizens United.
I'd add that we get rid of all PACs, please.
Excellent, Ellie!!
Deep gardening:
What a great phrase! I talk a lot about education, planting seeds, as a foundation for necessary culture change, but hadn't encountered "deep gardening" to capture the concept. Quick google search went to literal gardening items. Is this a concept used among evangelicals?
As an avid gardener, I will tell you that digging out old large roots is extremely difficult and often requires heavy duty equipment.
I just made it up as visual concept for how deep the roots of deception via propaganda and fear actually go from the the true "deep state" of dark money and white privilege. I love the concept of deeply digging out these roots that are preventing America from moving forward. I love the idea of all of us going deeply within to see what seeds each of us have to plant, together, to establish a new garden that includes plants of a huge variety and diversity but with the same rights across the entire garden for sun, soil, maintenance and rights to equal nutrients. When one plant or plants grow too big and think they deserve more sun or nutrients than the others, they need to be pruned way back. Sometimes, they need to be transplanted completely. And in our case, there are some very deep roots we have not begun to see their depths, but we certainly have seen the shade they throw at those of us who prefer benevolence over superiority and toxicity . Our challenge is to make compost out of all the excreta being thrown at Americans by those who call themselves republicans.
I can’t say that I have ever heard the term “deep gardening” but I pulled it from Penelope Simpson Adams comment above. I was thinking about A Breitbart’s quote which, paraphrased, says “if you want to change thinking, you have to change culture.”
This is well said. The ongoing question that I haven’t found a good answer to is, how? I know the Fairness Doctrine needs to be restored, but we are talking about cult behavior... how it was created and how is it de-programmed. It’s an enormous subject that involves many factors, none of which I am familiar with. I do know from the little reading that I have done on it that deprogramming cult thinking is a major undertaking and is not always successful. A lot of us here have found that it is impossible to talk to these people, even family and friends. There’s no amount of truth/facts that you can present them with that makes a difference. I don’t know the answer to this pervasive problem here in this country.
As we describe far right groups, they are diverse, including in degree of approaching a cult. Rather than seeking to "de-program" those in it the deepest, it is more effective to start with the domains of public media. Even without a new Fairness Doctrine, we here are "taking up oxygen," as HCR likes to say. We are amplifying her messages that assert and affirm truth and reality, countering alt-right/trumpists/QAnon distortion, "fake news," "alternative facts," propaganda, and outright big lies.
These efforts comprise our newly coined phrase of deep gardening, planting seeds. It's a long term but necessary process and operates at many levels--from one-on-one conversations to public media, from single to ongoing occurrences.
You are not alone.
Not even close to alone.
I have intended to make a list (and admit, that with other emergencies going on in my life, I’ve been hoping some news source would do it for me). I do know that none of my elected representatives are on it, although Yvette Herrell, the newly elected Rep from the southern part of New Mexico decided her first speech on the floor should be an objection to Pennsylvania’s votes. 🤬
Suzanne, I would love it if you would post the list you made, so I and others could save it.
You are definitely not alone.
No, you are not alone!
Brilliantly crafted post, R Dooley. Let this become our pledge - to the future, to our children and their children, to our nation and democracy: “I will not forget”. We must not forget, nor must we allow others to forget, else we will find ourselves facing these same issues yet again. I will not forget.
I, too, will never forget. It's not about retribution from those who were complicit in this rupture of civil society. No, for me, it is about trying to bring light into the darkness of these souls.
What has happened here, culminated by events of last week, is making the invisible visible. The shadow side of American society is now exposed and shown the light of day. Strangely, this is a good thing. Because we can't heal the wounds until we admit they are there and are real. We cannot recover from the traumas we have hidden until we confront them.
As any person in recovery knows, you can't move upward until you have hit the emotional and psychic bottom. As a country, we are now there. So, what are the traumas we now can talk about, deal with, and find a way to selflessness, compassion, and awakening? Prof. Randy Morris (Emeritus Antioch University spells it out better than I can:
1. Dislocation of original colonists from Europe bringing separation anxiety, which was repressed by a Puritanical theology – read today as misogyny and dominance over nature.
2. Slaughter and destruction of Native American peoples – appropriation of land and resources read today as unbridled greed
3. Slavery and its economic institutionalization – read today as racism and aggression against 'the other.'
4. Nuclear bombing of Japan and the subsequent institutionalization of planetary aggression – read today as the prominence of the military/industrial/police state.
All of this covered under a wrapping of delusion we now see as the messages we get from media and political parties. What's the old saying? "Keep them in the dark and feed them ????"
Sorry for the long rant, but I will not forget. The lights have been turned on, and I will NOT consume delusion any longer.
This is emphatically not a rant, Charlie, your piece is beautifully written
Thanks. I'll keep at it.
Yes the "keep them in the dark" quote is particularly apt.
I so appreciate your articulating this. Millions of us feel this way. Please note that those of us who refuse to forget, those of us who insist on consequences, will likely experience some PTSD. In the absence of consequences we hold these causes in our bodies, never forgiving, never forgetting. We are all likely to need professional help to discern the difference between productive vigilance, the hard work we will do to create consequences — campaign work for example — and the self-harming work of maintaining a state of heightened anxiety.
IMO, the work of Stacey Abrams is an a great example of settling scores in a positive (and therapeutic) way.
Absolutely! Yes! Making the consequences ourselves through organizing and campaigning is therapeutic. That's what I do. But I have noticed a lot of people, even the organizers who have an outlet for their political anxiety, have trouble disentangling anxiety and vigilance. Stay well! Peace!
Already experiencing PTSD symptoms after enduring numerous attempts to throw away our votes in Pennsylvania. Each attempt was like a hard slap in the face. Self care is crucial.
I know what you mean!
Well said
74 million voters and probably double that in terms of actual supporters. A third or maybe 2/5 of our society is living in that Kool-Aid fantasy world. My father among them, many truck drivers, and at the very least the 88 million Twitter followers that have now been cut off from their cult leader. The parallels with Hitler are so so glaring.
How does anyone go about undoing a lie to 74 million people and lift the fog. does history have any parallel?
Therein lies the root question that arises from all this mess.
Specifically, how and when do we undertake a national conversation about "The Big Lie?" I think this is crucial for moving back (?) toward functional politics in our country, as opposed to what we've experienced for the last thirty years. The barrier I see being that the people who bought into the lie fall largely in two camps. Those who were complicit and promoted it, and those who were victims of it. Both of which are sensitive subjects to bring up. The ones being immoral and the others dupes. And you can bet, if we ever get to this reckoning, the immoral ones will throw their hands in the air, and cry "I was fooled!"
I apologize for repeating something I wrote yesterday, but I heartily agree with R Dooley and suggest this as a blueprint for those who seek clear, useful direction going forward:
https://indivisible.org/democracy-guide?akid=70164.55085.rO-UQ6&rd=1&t=8&utm_medium=link2_20210108&utm_source=email
Indivisible has some powerful material to effectuate change - it bears repeating.
Let’s remember and praise the neighborhood work of Stacey Abrams and all so many others in Georgia. btw, I learned that Senator Raphael Warnock (!!) was a board member and perhaps president of this GA empowerment movement.
Oh God, *Senator* Raphael Warnock. That sounds awesome. So much better than Kelly Cardboard-Cutout-Stick-Figure Loeffler.
Thanks for posting this. I tried to but I don’t think it went through.
My feelings exactly. This cannot be forgiven not forgotten.
Just when I was trying to visualize and alternate reality in which trump never existed, you come up with a good reason to remember. May we all survive this turmoil.
To help make our remembering concrete and doable, here are some links to the Republican members of Congress...
Who voted against certified states' Electoral College vote results on 1/6/2021:
https://twitter.com/ellie_kona/status/1349236797398605826?s=20
Senators who voted against overriding trump's veto of the NDAA on 12/28/2020:
https://twitter.com/ColumbiaBugle/status/1345101009966645249?s=20
The 126 House Representatives who signed onto the Texas lawsuit to overturn the election:
https://twitter.com/isawthesethings/status/1337688381061533696?s=20
https://twitter.com/HelenArmstrong5/status/1337275190145818625?s=20
The State Attorneys General who joined the #SCOTUS-rejected Texas lawsuit:
https://twitter.com/postcards4USA/status/1337935728488157184?s=20
This list with links is a start.
Also in the name of making it concrete, I posted elsewhere in this thread a list of issues for us to attend to, including:
* Deep gardening, planting seeds with education (critical thinking, anti-racism, civics, conflict resolution, etc.).
* Enforcing the laws we already have against sedition and terrorism.
* New law that restores the Fairness Doctrine updated to include social media.
* New law that stops the flow of dark money to super PACs.
* Get rid of the Electoral College.
* Get rid of gerrymandering.
Thank you for that!
Exactly right! We. Cannot. Forget.
Thank you R Dooley for so clearly listing the jumbled thoughts in my head. Can you make this shareable? Or can I share this with your name as author?
Thank you, Lynn and yes. The handle I sometimes use in print is R W Dooley.
R W Dooley I love the way you manage your discussion thread. Clearly you are a beautiful and lovely person
Yes, can we share?
Me too.
This... is raw truth. Thank you.
Thank you....
My feelings exactly!
May I post this poem to Facebook? With attribution, of course. Thanks!
Thank you for asking and thank you so much for your comment. You are most welcome to share it with your friends, but I’m not eager to post it on Facebook.
How sweet and considerate of you to ask Kathy
When the article in The Atlantic appeared, warning of the dangerous period of the Interregnum, it talked about how he could move from the electoral, to the litigation phase, but that after January 6th, the only option remaining was insurrection.
The visual of a constructed gallows, and vigilante groups, who carried zip cuffs, who new the location of secret congressional offices, tells me this was not simply a flash mob of angry citizens.
No, both from an offensive and defensive standpoint this a planned assault conducted by hate groups. He gave them their marching orders. He removed the leadership of the agencies tasked with guarding the Congress, ensuring that the response would be weak and ineffective. He influenced 147 political leaders to reject their oaths to the Constitution and swear their allegiance to him alone.
Almost seventy years ago, one man stood up to a demagogue saying, “Have you no decency, sir?”
We are at such a moment today, except that what’s at stake is far more than decency. Our country is badly divided, with about one in three citizens in support of the carnage that occurred on January 6, 2021. We face a most formidable adversary.
As Pogo said many years ago, “We have met the enemy... and it is us!”
Seventy five years ago we vanquished Fascism. Using our might, we built the greatest economy the world had seen. We conquered polio. We put a man on another celestial body. And we expanded the rights of the least powerful among us.
In an earlier letter, you described how Lincoln insisted on completing the dome of the Capitol at the same time the Civil War was killing over half a million people. Now we are facing dueling crises, one of our own making.
Conquering Covid does not demand we set aside what happened last week. We can, and should hold our leaders accountable for their false allegiance to a person that cares not one whit for the welfare of anyone but the privileged few.
Let that shining dome remind us of our shared history, our decency, our common purpose; and serve as an inspiration to those who yearn for and love freedom to continue the quest for the “more perfect union”.
Eight days...
But it is not just DJT. This white boy insurrection has been strategically planned and honed for decades. DJT was the final thrust of those who want to maintain total power. Look to our own and foreign oligarchs and how they control many aspects of our lives and thought. Look behind DJT and the money that empowered him and these fringe fanatical groups including the NRA and the promotion of weapons of mass destruction by civilians and fanatics. They are White Isis. financially. DJT was the dancing monkey of distraction whilst they placed their "acting" people into positions of power throughout our government and judicial systems. It was brilliant, it was foreseen and many pieces of the puzzle indicate the real conspiracy. And, whoever "they" are, masked as religious republicans of law and order, they allowed him to golf, rally, tweet and brainwash insane lies along with fanatic media heads and empower their white supremacist hate groups. Meanwhile this horrific pandemic brings us to our knees. None of them did anything to stop or try to reduce this pandemic. They do not appear to care whom it kills or harms. It is a modern holocaust, IMHO, led by American traitors who are terrorizing us and our elected officials. ISIS tactics by using our own people against us. And the death toll is so big now that we cannot comprehend the numbers.
Who was that totalitarian cult leader that said, "The death of one man is a tragedy, but millions are merely statistics? And these cult fanatics attack the heart of our democracy. I do not see any way around all of this except by our military intervening. And my national guard neighbor saluted the Proud Boys parade in front of my house. As someone said they other day, who can we trust now? I think I comprehend the fears of the people in Germany as the cult of Hitler truly began to take power. And I think we might be able to escape this take over, just. I am no military person, but swiftness in our actions is critical right now.
You are spot on. The extremely frightening thing is the level of infiltration within our police, military and government officials.
The Air Force particularly but the military in general has been a breeding ground for fanatical Evangelicals. I have a cousin whose daughter, raised as a free-thinking Unitarian, was recruited to the Air Force Academy and, as a serving officer, succumbed to the pressure to "be saved" in order to have a career. Those who do not do the Evangelical thing do not get preference or advancement in the military these days.
Holy crap, that is sick and so WRONG!
Whoa! Is that a fact!?
Yikes! No separation 'twen Church and State there.
And at work, and in our families, its pervasive.
"White Isis." Yes, I agree. The only way to stop this will be military intervention. Then decades of deprogramming of trump cultists.
White Isis/white supremacist militia types/evangelicals/QAnon are among our military and law enforcement.
As HCR reader Matthew Goulet replied to R Dooley, we have a task of deep gardening with education.
AND we have the task of enforcing the laws we already have against sedition and terrorism.
And we need a new law that restores the Fairness Doctrine updated to include social media.
And we need a new law that stops the flow of dark money to super PACs.
And we need to get rid of the Electoral College and gerrymandering.
Andcwe need a President, VP and Congress with the will and wherewithall to lead us. 8 days, 31 minutes..
We have a demagogue induced delusion on a national level.
Yesterday, Politico reports:
"The military has a hate group problem. But it doesn't know how bad it's gotten."
https://www.politico.com/
Oh.
"And we need a new law that restores the Fairness Doctrine updated to include social media." YES!!!!!!!
and PACs!
I am afraid you are right, it is difficult to see how they can be tamed or intimidated since a percentage of them appear to be ex-vets/trained warriors. Does that not say something about the travesty of war in itself? We train our young to be warriors, and, is it trauma and/or difficulty slipping back into normal civilian life where your fight and kill skills are no longer needed? Do they experience what some of my clients experience who prefer the intensity, wildness, creativity, and aliveness of their bi-polar episodes no matter how much destruction it causes? As opposed to being medicated to prevent hospitalization, jail or death because normal life feels so boring?
Some of the insurrectionists appear to think they are in a cos-play alternated reality than actually at the Capitol of the USA threatening, destroying and attempting graphic murder of the highest officials in our land and the police.
Trump & Hitler both know/knew how to grow mob mentality and keep it at a high level. My hope is that no social media and no rallies will begin to help fade the wolf packs. Still, I go back to the dark money behind the scenes must be rooted out.
A brilliant analysis. There is just not enough space dedicated to writing about the powers behind the dancing money charade. This is where the real dark forces reside. sunlight is the best disinfectant
I agree! Sunlight as disinfectant— love that! And I believe much of those forces will be revealed bit by bit and his followers may be in for a shock by the depths of this manipulation...and the emperor's lack of...well, everything of real value.
Well, that was an unsettling statement “my national guard neighbor saluted the Proud Boys”. And an armed national guard is mobilizing across the country as we speak. Who to trust 🤷🏻♀️
Your quote is from J Stalin.
Penelope, I read your comment as expounding on Herb's comment where he says: “We have met the enemy... and it is us!”
I still struggle with identifying with that statement. I know I can be my own worst enemy, though!!
Ironic that your quote of "Have you no decency" was aimed not just at McCarthy but at his chief hatchet man, Roy Cohn, who later became the primary mentor for Trump, Roger Stone, and Paul Manafort. That question and declaration should ring again through the halls of Congress and our society.
Bingo. IF you watch some old Roy Cohn videos, you can easily see who mentored DT in the ways of the demagogue. Lie. Spin. Gaslight. attack. Never concede anything.
I had forgotten McCarthy's nickname, Tailgunner Joe
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaP1tkKrCWw
Nowadays, the Trumpian response would be "Have No Decency....of course...so what?"
I am wondering why the 8 days? Can you elaborate on how things will be better, safer, more democratic after the inauguration? I'm not very confident that we will settle after the 20th.
1. Senate is Democratic. Bills and apointments will actually be taken up.
2. Biden is an experienced institutionalist who knows the system as well as a good number of the people, and has chosen wise, dynamic leaders to implement is agenda.
3. Biden has an agenda.
I'm with Herb
Beautifully written Herb!!
What has disturbed me the most during the past months is not simply 45's continual assault on our democracy, on our moral and ethical standards, on our safety and security as a nation, but his total disregard for a health disaster that has killed (in the most cruel of ways -- the utter depravation of the oxygen needed to breathe in our life source) more than 375,000 of our kin.
As you so eloquently put it, Heather:
"[A]ccording to Maggie Haberman at the New York Times, what is upsetting him most is that the PGA has pulled its 2022 golf championship from Trump’s Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club.
That, not the riots, not the deaths, not impeachment, and certainly not the coronavirus--which has now killed more than 375,000 of us—has “gutted” him."
Just think of it ... this traitor can only be "gutted" by financial loss and the destruction of prestige in a "white" sport that most US citizens cannot afford to play. Not one iota of compassion runs through the veins of this so-called human being, nor through the veins of his family, his administration or his blood-thirsty followers. At a time when thousands are on the brink of death, he has ensured that the spotlight remains on him rather than on the dying, the grieving, the homeless, and the starving.
May the Force be with our country and her citizens.
Add to the list: the essential workers who risk their lives every day, like the janitors who had to clean up after the rioters, police and firefighters who keep us safe, exhausted medial workers, teachers forced into classrooms so parents can work, people who provide food and keep stores and restaurants and factories open, government workers at all levels and many many more, These people are working and dying for almost a YEAR for people who in too many cases don’t even think about them any more, don’t wear masks or take precautions because they believe it’s their right to do whatever they damn please. This is the base that this president in name only and his party panders to. These proud, selfish super spreading bullies believe might makes right, God is on their side and the president has learned his lesson. 45 has truly left a mess for 46 to clean up. He and his carefully chosen administration need our support because otherwise, we are over and out.
The Force is always with us but we must keep in mind that Sith have access to the power of the Force as well as Jedi. "This isn't over yet."
Thank you, once again, Rowshan, for expressing what is in many hearts.
I agree, Rowshan. Take all else away and what's left is failed leadership during what should be considered the most horrific of consequences that our country has faced.
I worry that too many people will think once trump is out of office, the crisis is passed. The rot is much deeper.
Absolutely. Too many people think trump is the problem, and don't understand that he's just the current face of the real issue.
Deep gardening really is needed, and it needs to begin now.
Absolutely. Unfortunately.
Another concern, Marcy, is hearing the absolute relief from people who have received ONE vaccine shot - as if now they can relax - no need to be careful anymore! There needs to be big time education regarding the fact that that is not the cure so they can go back to "normal"! Especially at this point where there is now a push to just vaccinate as many numbers BEFORE there is enough vaccine in place for a 2nd shot.
Yes and you still be infectious after receiving the vaccines. Are people being told this??
I wonder if they would listen & comprehend? The whole thought is to go back to normal! Which truly is not going to happen likely in less than another year or two. I dont think most people actually understand that.
I hope an education plan is part of Biden's covid task force rollout.
😔
Screw bipartisanship, at least with the racist and theocratic terrorists who make up the bulk of the Republican party.
Would the so-called "moderate" Republicans like to rejoin government? Then they should form a new party, maybe call it the "Conservative" party. Denounce Trump. Denounce racism, violence, and the evisceration of our governmental agencies. Declare loyalty to the separation of church and state, the rule of law, and the Constitutional transfer of power. Do that, and after a few months to make sure you mean it, and we can talk about sharing power with the Democratic party. Until then, to hell with the lot of you, for we know you by the company you keep.
Democrats should -- must -- "ram through" as much comprehensive, well-drafted legislation as quickly as they can without any "bipartisan" participation. Don't worry about "inflaming their resistance," because they do that to themselves without any help from anybody else.
In their current incarnation, on a bus driven by racists and religious fanatics, Republicans can only negotiate in bad faith, hoping to delay and impede the functions of government while they mount another insurrection.
Watch the Lincoln Project in the coming months. And donate. They are not done.
I agree. They have just begun.
Can't donate to a group that doesn't share my values.
"Don't worry about "inflaming their resistance," because they do that to themselves without any help from anybody else." Solid point!
Add to that list Pass the Equal Rights Amendment.
It is unbelievable that the ERA hasn’t become law. It is such a simple amendment: “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” That’s it, yet we haven’t been able to make it law, despite 100 years of effort since Alice Paul first proposed the amendment in 1922.
I worked for a year in Washington from 1971-1972 to help get the amendment approved by the Senate. I was in the gallery on March 22, 1972 when the Senate vote was taken and will never forget the joy we felt. Two hours after the Senate vote, when Hawaii ratified it, we felt confident that within a couple of years it would be ratified by the necessary 38 states and become law, but anti-ERA groups stalled ratification. (Does the name Phyllis Schaffly ring a bell?)
Here we are, 50 years later and women still are not formally recognized and protected in the Constitution. The 38th State, Virginia, ratified it it in February, 2020. Once the necessary 38 states had ratified it, both houses of Congress needed to vote to eliminate the original ratification deadline. In February, 2020, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.J. Res. 79 to do just that, but the Senate still hasn’t been able to get a vote on the parallel piece of legislation to make the ERA law (S.J. Res. 6).
Keep this in mind when you have visions of eliminating the Electoral College, which would also require a Constitutional Amendment. And also keep it in mind with regard to the importance of electing progressive candidates to State legislatures.
Once the new Senate is seated, please urge your Senators to bring a vote to the floor to approve S.J. Res. 6.
Mary Anne and Gwen, I could not agree with you more. The fact that the ERA still has not been passed, that it is taking nearly my entire life to become part of the Constitution, to me looks like an epic failure of the American people and the American democratic social experiment. Of course it’s part of the entire problem we are discussing here on this forum, the old social order of whites-first males-first straights-first hanging in there. I just think of my father, the old man born and raised in Nazi Germany, a loving father who dotes on his kids, but who will never truly think otherwise: whites come first, males come first, straights come first. The diehard Republican and diehard Fox watcher and diehard disdainer of non-straights, hippies, liberals and free-thinkers like all his children. All three children, the acorn fell a long way from the tree. Sometimes I have to wonder who is the child and who are the parents.
Duplicate post, because I want to make sure Gwen sees it in the middle of this avalanche and snowstorm of discussion.
Mary Anne and Gwen, I could not agree with you more. The fact that the ERA still has not been passed, that it is taking nearly my entire life to become part of the Constitution, to me looks like an epic failure of the American people and the American democratic social experiment. Of course it’s part of the entire problem we are discussing here on this forum, the old social order of whites-first males-first straights-first hanging in there. I just think of my father, the old man born and raised in Nazi Germany, a loving father who dotes on his kids, but who will never truly think otherwise: whites come first, males come first, straights come first. The diehard Republican and diehard Fox watcher and diehard disdainer of non-straights, hippies, liberals and free-thinkers like all his children. All three children, the acorn fell a long way from the tree. Sometimes I have to wonder who is the child and who are the parents.
Yes! The conservative party should become The Conservative Party. Cleave from trumpists, bring back Eisenhower decency, and how about environmental conservatism as well.
I'm new to this community, so forgive me if I say things that have already been said, or which irritate any followers. I've been following Heather on Facebook for a while now, though I somehow missed until just the other day that there was a newsletter.
I have watched with growing alarm what has gone on in this country since even before Trump took office, though his taking office in 2016 certainly made things a lot worse. I trace a lot of what is going on now to the rise of "conservative talk radio", led by Rush Limbaugh, etc., because when that happened, Republicans and Democrats started getting their actual news and information from different sources. Even into the early 1990s, Republicans and Democrats used to get the same information. They may have interpreted the information differently, but the "base predicate" was the same. However, that all changed once Limbaugh, et als, arrived on the scene, and it was accelerated and exacerbated by the rise of Fox News and its ilk. Now, we have a huge chunk of the population which doesn't even get the same news as the rest of the population. How can that possibly work in the long run?
As well, there are clearly--and horrifyingly--there are a lot of people in this country who would be just fine if we became a fascist autocracy. That is something that I never in my worst nightmares ever imagined.
Sorry to be a "Debbie Downer", but the last few months have just been so disheartening.
Welcome, Ian! You are so right about the talk shows. My dear brother and I were best buddies, both liberal minded, lived a couple miles from each other and raising kids the same ages, we spent a lot of time with each other "solving the world's problems" over coffee and dishes while the kids played. A sweet, sweet time. But he started listening to talk radio, Limbaugh, Dr. Laura, I don't even know who. Around the same time, a local ultra conservative Christian pastor, seeing him working out in the yard with his kids, started stopping by and chatting him up. So within a few years, I lost my pal to Far Wrong as someone here calls it, and for about 15 years now we rarely speak. We still love each other but have almost nothing in common except our family ties. It's really the saddest loss in my life. A tiny consolation is that his kids, as well as mine, are more aligned with liberal values but still able to maintain a loving relationship with their dad.
I have a cousin that I was very close to. We both supported the clown 🤡 in chief, the error of that call became evident to me when he became fixated on the crowd size which was obviously much smaller than Obama’s, that was my wake up call. My cousin never got that call. I have argued ever since via phone calls, emails, and NYT posted comments that we had made a colossal error in judgment and that we needed to do everything in our power to correct it. I was educated by Jesuits, who taught me that any argument had to be grounded in truth otherwise it was like taking a stand in sand. For nearly 4 years I made my arguments always based on facts, I would get 1 word replies. After my father passed, alone in a nursing home of old age, isolated because of the virus 🦠, I let him know that was a deal breaker, it still is. While I have done everything in my power to correct the mistake I made 4 years ago, a good relationship that I had with my cousin has evaporated, that’s a shame, our fathers were best friends. The well-being of the nation I love and have fought for, and will leave to my children and grandchildren is more important than my relationship with my cousin who has chosen a very different path. I was a 40+ year Republican in the vein of John McCain, whom I revered, the Republican Party has become irrelevant and no longer offers ideas and solutions based on reality. I fully support Joe Biden, who does have a grounded sense of reality, and pray that he gets a full 8 years to enact all of the many changes our beloved nation so desperately needs. So I feel your loss, but know that you are not alone.
Dick, good heavens! Thank you for this. I'm so sorry for the loss of your father and how his death was different than it could have been because of the virus restrictions. As a nurse, I've been deeply saddened by the way this has affected our elders especially those in nursing homes where they struggle with outbreaks and staffing issues, residents alone with no visits from loved ones, whether they're healthy or not. Frankly, I've been grateful my own parents are long gone and don't have to suffer through this. The isolation alone would have killed my mother. And I'm sorry for the loss of your relationship with your cousin. I'm very admiring of your attitude, priorities and honesty. Thank you for admitting you were wrong and trying (and succeeding - he lost!) to right that wrong. My husband and his father are both McCain Republicans at heart too and are perplexed and angry at the loss of their party, so I get it to some degree. I even could have considered McCain until he chose Palin; it was over for me then. He made the fatal mistake of caving to party pressure and the desire for a running mate that would cash in on voters he could not otherwise expect to win over.
Thank you Beth, I couldn'y agree with you more about John McCain's poor choice of Palin, as I understand it he wanted to pick Joe Lieberman a very close friend who was a democrat, but was talked out of it, I believe he regreted that for the rest of his life. I would have walked into hell for John McCain but thankfully I won't have to as I believe he's in a better place. I loved that man as much as anyone in my family because of his courage and the dignity he displayed as a POW. The clown in chief is beneath my contempt.
I believe my father in law, a lovely man, feels just as you do about John McCain (and djt as well!), Dick. You must be kindred spirits. I remember now about Lieberman, I believe you are absolutely right in your memory of that. We could use a whole lot of McCains right now, in place of what we've got in the GOP.
Wow, Dick, thank you for sharing all of this. And thank you for the encouragement and for sharing your convictions and hope for a better future. Some things can heal with time. Maybe your relationship with your cousin, as well as others whose relationships have been so badly damaged, can be one of those things. I hope so, for your sake as well as everyone else’s.
It might be my age, having become an old curmudgeon but I don’t miss the ppl I have lost to the cult. To use the term that has gotten me locked out of twitter – They are dead to me. Over my lifetime I have actually had a large number of ppl I was close to that have died so maybe I have been hardened somewhat to loss.
My half-brother in Mississippi was the first and I argued with him online from the time he started posting anti-Obama lies on facebook and finally cut off all communication with him on Nov 9, 2016. Same with a co-worker & “friend” of 15 years. I even discovered an old friend from the Hippie Days in Mississippi who was a sister in our extended family had gone to the Dark Side. Her ex-husband from that time is still with me in rational thot, so not all ppl in MS are so backward but he may be an anomaly.
Rob I really love your posts. I have a question for you. How do you feel about me contacting you by email? I have a new subscriber who must be you, and I have a private question for you, but I don’t want to betray your privacy by using your email without your permission.
Sure, I'm pretty accessible by e-mail
roboyte@att.net
Also, anyone else on this forum (Not Repugnants) are welcome, but be warned I often send out BCC e-mails to most of those on my e-male addresses such as events in my life, journal entries & old movie reviews, unless requested otherwise. :)
Your beautiful and painful story moves me
Losing dear friends and family It is one of the saddest outcomes of this brainwashing. It’s like the invasion of the “mind snatchers.”
So true! As everyone here experiences, how can they think that way?!?!?! But especially hard when it's someone you love and who used to think completely differently. They go from caring about the welfare and well-being of all to just being pissed off about their taxes. My brother ranted about socialism, all through the Obama years, while simultaneously his son received the best private HS education possible at one of the top ranked academies in the country because his mother worked there and he could go for free - kind of a socialism concept, but he couldn't see it.
Yes. The saddes thing. I’ve had to detach from all of my family in Idaho and whom I frequently visited and with such fun and dear memories of years gone by. And my own young adult son, who was raised in a liberal and loving and accepting-of-differences home is pretty far right now. Full of anger and rambles of taxes and gun rights that make zero sense. The main influence of this change has been his fiancés family, the men, and the red town / county they live in.
Oh Tricia, I’m sorry to hear about your son’s situation. We try so hard to raise compassionate men, but there are innumerable influences that can, at times, overwhelm that upbringing. I pray that better days lie ahead, with men feeling more secure and less fearful/angry. Hang in there!
Thank you so very much. Your comment means a lot.
There are two things I don't think I could bear, my children or my spouse being far right. You have my deepest sympathies, Tricia. All I can say is my brother, a truly wonderful, gentle, generous man, well loved by all, did a 180 in terms of religion and politics. Maybe your son will do the same someday. May it be so. Til then, keep doing what you're doing.
I’m so hopeful to read of your brother and pray for the same.
Not to be a wise-acre but if you are referring to the movie it is "The invasion of the Body Snatchers" and when it came out in 1956 I (as a ten year old) couldn't sleep for a week. Over the years it was used as a creeping metaphor for communism, Rock and Roll, and quite a few more trends but I want to thank you and congratulate you for being astute enough to see the comparison to our time. The really frightening part is that the original in 56 and the remake in 78 really had no ending.
You know, I never saw either movie but the title stuck in my mind and it seemed so appropriate for what is happening. Glad I didn’t see the movie.. I wouldn’t have likely slept for a week either.
I’m so sorry, Beth. Besides all of the obvious and blatant destruction that he has brought upon our country in my opinion one of the saddest of all is how this has torn once living families such as yours apart. I have seen it in others close to me and I am so very sorry that you have lost your brother to this. Hopefully he will change his view as events continue to transpire.
*loving, not living. My apologies.
Good morning Beth, I too have a brother who drank the kool aid and still sends me taunting emails. I must admit, however, that now I rather enjoy this back and forth. When he started to bait me, well before the presidential election, he would end each email with NPFAA (nothing personal family above all). We are really trying to cling to this...Now my emails to him, the last being how the left taunted Trump about hiding in his bunker during BLM protests in the summer, I say “and your point?”. But it is so sad to see and breaks my heart...
The human suffering this man has wrought is hard to fathom. The separation of children from their parents at the border is something that haunts me.
Maybe some people see “drinking the Kool-Aid“ as extremist, you know, one of those cringe worthy things. Maybe a new reader has a cringeworthy moment when they see me comparing trump to Hitler and Nazi Germany, or when they see me identifying the man as a Putin stooge and paid henchman. I know those comparisons will never get a “like” from HCR without clear historical context and explanation. However, the implicit comparison between DT and Charles Manson as cult leaders is right on target. I’m so pleased that people here see that.
I’m sorry
Thank you for the kind words, Beth, and I am truly sorry about your estrangement from your brother. I can't pretend to understand that pain, though I have seen it happen with others, too. It is horrible to observe.
The compassion and love I’m seeing today moves me. This is a beautiful beautiful exchange today on this entire day of discussion. Brings tears to my eyes.
We must bring back the Fairness Doctrine. It’s unconscionable that the Fox Entertainment Network and the likes of Rush Limbaugh are given a license to brainwash citizens by feeding them lies and then can stand behind “free speech” to allow it.
Agreed completely.
It's a stretching of "free speech," which has always been subject to limitations. People are entitled to free thoughts and to sharing their thoughts but not entitled to huge, adoring audiences.
Welcome! Bringing the Fairness Doctrine back into play will help the media "problem". Heather is a big advocate of this, and often comments on it, so stay tuned!
You are so right. That is why Dr. Richardson's first recommendation for action by the Biden administration is reinstatement of The Fairness Doctrine. The lies must stop.
There is (was?) a wonderful documentary on Amazon called "The Brainwashing of my Dad." Worth watching. Fascinating. No society will survive where facts are irrelevant. We will just descend into madness. It is happening before our eyes. The guy with the horns us sane and we should marvel at him like a Marvel comic book character.
Somehow liberals got branded as liers while the liers kept lying. Very tricky of the Republicans. But they knew they could do it when so many people thought Richard Nixon really did have a plan to end the Vietnam war right there in his jacket breast pocket.
Very good point and you expressed my thoughts and feelings perfectly. Thanks for sharing.
Welcome, Debby!
Watching the "death spiral" of the GOP is both exciting and terrifying at the same time. My spirits were buoyed by the commitments from corporate America to NOT fund the 147 Republicans who were not far behind Trump in culpability for the insurrection. Clearly the corporations and the social media companies are late in their condemnations and shock at what has happened, but they ALL should have been way out in front of this quite some time ago. I do realized that they are still concerned for their bottom line, but better late than never. Taking away their money and their social media megaphones will do more to weaken Trumpism as any political speeches or condemnations from Editorial Boards of mainstream media. -- HCR, keep up the good work!
McCarthy voted with the sedition caucus. He and his buddies are in deep Doo Doo, because without money, which is probably the primary Republican motivating force in the world (from their perspective, not mine), they are nothing and they know it. To them, money is everything. Having businesses and big corporate sponsors turn their back on them: deep trouble.
I am ashamed and embarrassed to report that I am in McCarthy’s district right now, taking my 30 minute break. I’m a truck driver on my way from Sacramento to LA. I get to drive through Bakersfield area every week. In fact every week I probably drive through most of the last remaining Republican congressional districts left in California. And I live in one, my Congressman LaMalfa (CA-1) is also one of the 147. Lucky me.
Can you lay on the horn when you pass his house at 2 am?
Lay on the horn when I passed McCarthy’s house? I’m always going through Bakersfield at 2 AM! Somebody just give me the address and I will give it a shot.
I’m joking of course. Wouldn’t do that to Kevin’s neighbors. 😉
🤣
Take heart, Roland; you got us!
I can sympathize, Roland! I live a mile away from the creepy Billy Graham Training Center😱😱😱
Eek! Training for what, I wonder. The rapture? 😳
🤮
Yeah, what Peri said.
Yucky!
Oy!
Yikes.
Thanks Lynell. I love being in this community.
I feel very grateful to live in a state with two wonderful Dem senators and a Republican Governor who voted for Biden and publicly declared his disgust for the Capitol attack. BUT I am ashamed that busloads of our residents went to the Capitol, including one of our State Troopers. I hope our little State House, and those who do fine work inside it, will survive this coming weekend.
We must not ignore the fact that the Trump malignancy has metastisized to law enforcement personnel throughout the country, like the trooper you mentioned, like the Capitol Police who turned their heads and those involved in the George Floyd murder. Reversing this, de-politicizing of law enforcement, will have to be part of the next Attorney General's role.
For a minute I thought you lived in MD. But Hogan bravely voted for Ronald Reagan, a dead man, rather than Biden. It is hard to believe a smart man could be so ridiculous and obvious.
My state also has the wonderful Representative Jamie Raskin. I am so grateful for him. He has found time in his greatest grief to put his all into removing Trump for all of us.
I simply don’t understand these people. All decency has left them. I suppose I can’t understand since I haven’t joined their cult.
I live in the same state, Sally, and feel most grateful as well!
Our district is saddled with Scott Fitzgerald and Sen. Ron Johnson, steaming heaps of human excrement that they are.
Mine is nationally known deplorable Marsha Blackburn, and newly elected seditionist Bill Hagerty (who ran on a “trump loves me” platform—seriously) and Tim Burchett, a good ol’ boy who keeps finding new offices to run for rather than get a job.
Cream of the crop...curdled cream.
I share the same awful Senators with Marcy, but my Congressman is seditous Chuck Fleishmann. He tested positive for Covid this week, presumably transmitted from his housemate. He is under quarantine.
Googled Blackburn and Hagerty, here’s what came up:
https://amp.tennessean.com/amp/6584448002
I feel your pain, Sally. I’ve got “toxic” Tom Tiffany and Ron Johnson. Pre gerrymandering, the 7th CD was ably and nobly represented by David Obey. Post gerrymandering, the district was “represented” by a reality TV personality, actually, Sean something (apologies—have not been sleeping well since last Wednesday), who was not my favorite.
If you haven’t already, please check out the Fair Maps initiative, which is listening to and sharing information with Wisconsinites about nonpartisan redistricting. They are holding virtual meetings in each Congressional district to get the word out and build support. If Fair Maps appeals to you, I encourage you to amplify their message with your own network. We will be in legislative hell here at both the state and national level until each seat is (or at least most seats are) competitive.
Tom Palzewicz told me about the Fair Maps initiative and I've been following. Maybe if they remove Fitzgerald we could get Tom to run for his seat. I would be proud to have him represent my district. Wisconsin needs to clean house and redistrict.
West coast Wisconsinite here. I definitely will check Fair Maps out.
Thank you!
My rep compared impeachment to lynching in an ultimate tone deaf comment. He is a blue dog, but he did walk back the comment and will vote for impeachment. I have had to vote for him because the alternatives are such persons as Tootie Smith (puke). I did vote for a progressive primary opponent who proceeded to diss HRC once she was the candidate. I will never vote for him for anything again. I would consider an alternative to the blue dog, but the person cannot be be a Bernie type in this district.
My D-VA Senator subscribes to HCR!!
🤣.
I am in a hotel in LA, and that just tickles my funny bone I cannot stop laughing. “Steaming heaps of human excrement that they are.” You’re just killing me.
If we don't laugh, we cry. Gallows humor is my go-to coping mechanism. And copious cursing.
Argh.... my sympathies
Yes, take heart. I live in a state where four out of our 7 representatives voted with the sedition caucus. And my representative is one of those four.
Oh Lordy I’ll take California over your state anytime. 4 out of 7 House members with the 💩 caucus? No thank you😳
Ugh
Lights shine brightest in the deepness of the darkness.
Wow that’s beautiful Ted and it expresses my feelings exactly. I have no complaints about having a Sedition 💩 Caucus Representative in Congress, or driving through Kevin McCarthy’s California. It’s an honor. GO LIBERTY‼️GO EGALITARIAN NEW SOCIETY‼️🥰
Thanks Roland. I love So Cal and especially Kernville, the desert mountain roads with Sierra Mountain views are something to enjoy, and not everyone has, nor gets too.
If you are near there, that is where you will find a safe harbor. Keep the faith. As bad as it is, there are more good people who only wish for good things to happen. I admit it can be struggle to swim against the current and remain steady. I am finding that I am needing some help from others to remind me of the same, more this week than any other ever.
Hang in there Ted. We love you. You are loved. This week is brutal, you’re doing a great job with it. I love your posts. I copied your “light in the darkness“ quote into my journal, because it exactly captures what I was saying about driving through Red California districts and living in one. I take joy in my work of driving through dark regions and bringing light.
Aah, I see where you are. You are in Kevin McCarthy District! A handful of times I did an organic food delivery route down 395 through the Valley behind Mount Whitney, and that route went right past Lake Isabella before returning to Auburn-Placer County (near Sacramento), so I’ve been in your neighborhood a few times. Yeah it is absolutely gorgeous, the drive is spectacular. I loved it when the driver went on vacation and I could do his route. Quiet, gorgeous, spectacular drive. Ethereal.
Perfectly put!
“Lights shine brightest in the deepest of the darkness.” Double and triple “likes” for this one ❤️❤️❤️
My sympathies.... thanks for keeping your head on! Be safe....
There is certainly nothing to be ashamed and embarrassed about, Roland. You are working to make a positive contribution.
The “ashamed and embarrassed“ was a little sarcastic and humorous, there was a twinkle in my eye.
Oh, that makes more sense. I missed the humor. I was thinking, he’s just driving through...
I’m new here and in California. My family roots are from Bakersfield, and I still have some family there now. I can say that a woman highly involved the in CA RNC is one of my FB ‘friends’. I have seen even her post how McCarthy is bonkers... Of course he was re-elected but I wouldn’t be surprised to see a new ‘conservative’ rep from that district sooner rather than later.
Hi Leona! I live in Grass Valley. I’m a truck driver, so me and my colleagues drive down I-5 and 99 every week from Sacramento to SoCal and back. So if you’re looking through recent posts, you’ll know that Roland and Ted are neighbors of yours, sort of.
We are definitely neighbors!
I have family in Bakersfield so venture into the valley often. It’s often under appreciated.
Welcome Leona!
Thank you! And Ted, Kernville is one of my favorite spots in CA. My family settled in Kern County in the early 1900’s and some family retired in Weldon. I still have family there and in Bakersfield, although I was raised on the coast and now live in Oakland.
True, true, true (and that bears repeating)
Hope so.
And my wife adds: "They (the 147 especially) have no moral compass" -- so true!
Agree completely. Trump, McCarthy, the sedition caucus, Graham, the whole vipers nest, no moral compass, no principles, nobody you would ever want near your house or even talking to any of your children.
Stopping corporate funding may be the only way to get my treasonous Representative out. Never thought I'd ever say this but Thank You Corporate America!!
Let’s hope they stick to it and that it’s not a passing fancy!