The stock market, which has been strong thanks to the good news about coronavirus vaccines, jumped to a record high today on news that President-Elect Joe Biden is planning to nominate Janet Yellen to head the Treasury Department.
With Neiman Marcus prices, more -- $100 for a button with his face on it, $150 if it has his signature as well. Sale price? $148.99. Profits to a charity (the 1% not covering campaign expenses, hotel renovations and golf course development).
The childish, petty, and incredibly/increasingly destructive and intentional actions of this regime in a seeming effort to burn it all down on their way out the door is truly stunning. No outright attack by a foreign power could have harmed our nation as deeply and in so many ways as these people have managed to do from within, having been elected to office by the workings of a manipulated and outmoded electoral college system. Mnuchin’s recent actions are especially destructive and cannot be interpreted as anything other that meant to be so.
Yellin’s nomination is good news, as is the announcement by GM and the stock market’s record high. However, (and I hate to be a doomsayer when we all need hope so desperately), we would be wise to remember that republicans ALWAYS play the long game. ALWAYS. It is my opinion that they are doing the same with their destructive actions in the waning weeks of the current regime. Yes, they are trying to make Biden and Harris’s job as difficult as possible, if not impossible. But, why? Beyond sheer spite, that is? If you remember that they always play the long game then it begins to become more clear. They are setting the stage for 2024. The more they can do to ensure the failure of the Biden/Harris administration the more likely their return to power in 2024. The party has shifted dramatically over the past few decades but especially so in the past 4 years. We all seem to agree that it is no more “the party of Lincoln” and is now, unequivocally, “the party of trump” (still can’t bring myself to capitalize his name!). While there have already been some potential candidates voice their interest in running in ‘24 I believe that there will be one that we have not seen yet who will embody all of the worst of trumpism in a much more sophisticated, effective, and incredibly dangerous package than anything we have yet seen. And the perceived ‘failure’ of the Biden/Harris administration to repair the enormous damage that they have done and are doing so thoroughly in the present moment will be their argument for a return to power in the next election. They will be relentless in beating that drum from now until then and, as I mentioned in a previous post here, there will be continued destructive efforts from within, especially if McConnell remains in his current position as majority leader.
Folks, we are in the fight of our lives and it is just beginning. Yes, take a moment to breathe. Or exhale, as some have said. But we cannot assume that all will be well simply because it finally looks like Biden and Harris will transition into power. The trumists will never stop their relentless efforts and neither must we if we truly want a government as described in the Declaration, the Constitution, and the Gettysburg address. Onwards, together.
You make an excellent point. If the Republicans now in power cannot remain in power, they are determined to make the next four years as difficult as possible for the Biden-Harris team. Trump’s 2016 “I alone can fix it” speech will be the 2024 Republican rallying cry, whether Trump is involved or not. Everyone is worn out from the last four years, which is exactly why we need to continue pressing for those two Georgia seats to swing blue; four more years of Republican-sponsored inaction and stonewalling in the Senate may create the perfect conditions for a Republican return to the White House in 2024.
Yes, Karen. So our job starting January 20, 2021 soon after 12:00 p.m. is to launch a counter- campaign to remind the American people that the cause of any shortfalls/failures was because of the deliberate destruction committed by the 2020 lame duck presidency as well as the deliberate obstruction by the Republican Senate to hamstring the BidenHarris administration, and we should continue this campaign on up to the next election cycle if need be.
And another job we could pick up is: creating music and other art (films?) to convince the Trump base that Trump was never on their side, only his own. That we are so much stronger together. I’ve been listening to Alicia Keys new album, which is amazing. I think “the perfect way to die” is about Trayvon Martin and for sure about Sandra Bland. “Good job” the last song on the album makes me cry every time I listen to it. Music is so powerful.
Do you think the mega donors are willing to destroy the economy now in hope of reclaiming power in 4 years? What about the business leaders? Many of them can't see beyond 6 months.
I find it interesting that the Chamber of Commerce made a public statement about the GOP undermining the recovery. It would be a good long term strategy for the Democrats to find wedge opportunities to break up the apparent near hegemony the GOP occupies within the business community. Well, outside Silicon Valley at any rate. This seems like a good place to start because it’s so obvious. Biden should make as much hay as he can with it in any event. Paul Krugman gave a very good explanation in his latest column as to why simply having available the money Mnuchin just pulled back is necessary to soothe the market, even if it’s never actually used.
In the Hall of Shame w Trump, Barr, McConnell, Graham, Jordan, both White House press secretaries under Trump, Sara Sanders and K MacAnaney (sp?), Pence (if he invokes “the American People” one more time, I might vomit), and all the rest of the Republican senators save perhaps Romney and Sasse.
The GA Dems need to hand McConnell a reality sandwich by electing Ossoff and Warnock. At least, then he will have to be a tiny bit more "caring" about this country, because he won't have the power to do nothing. Such an evil, nasty excuse for a human being, rating right beside tRump. Someday they both will meet their maker and it won't be pretty.
On the other hand, I hope you, Heather, can take moments to enjoy this Thanksgiving, and I wish all here will be safe and thankful that we're looking at a new day.
I wish I could say the Dems here are going to succeed. It's hard to be optimistic after decades of Republican victories here in runoffs. Things are going every-which-way as the GOP candidates have made it more than obvious how they're going to campaign: the ads are atrocious. There is no attempt now to disguise the inherent racism in the anti-Warnock ads, and they stoke lie after lie after lie, even after they have been proven to be false. Both candidates have basically thrown in their lot with Trump and the people believing that the election was stolen and with the conspiracy theorists. It remains to be seen if the GOP candidates maintain this position or change it before Jan. 5th (the election day), and it remains to be seen if this helps or hurts their campaigns...let's hope it HURTS!
Bruce, I'm a bit more optimistic than you in this regard. While runoffs usually favor incumbents, Stacy Abrams has helped change the narrative, and I believe our chances are better in this election. Yes, the ads are horrible and filled with lies and conspiracy theories, sprinkled with "communist" and "socialist" references, and the undisguised racism has extended to Ossoff, as well as Warnock. My hope is that these dog whistles will inspire only those already drinking the Kool Aid, but not the rest of us. I'm hoping that by turning the tide blue in the presidential election, all voters will be energized, especially in view of what we've seen happen these last four years in the obstructionist Senate.
Back in the 1952 presidential campaign, Adlai Stevenson observed during a speech in Columbus, Ohio: “The strange alchemy of time has somehow converted the Democrats into the truly conservative party of this country — the party dedicated to conserving all that is best, and building solidly and safely on these foundations.”
"The party dedicated to conserving all that is best" is a '50's view of the Democratic Party. I was around then. Clearly, the Democratic Party today in the hands of the Old Guard/Corporate Democrats has for the past 30 years demonstrated their ever rightward swing with their almost complete abdication of responsibility for the well being of the poor, workers, education, the commons, the wealth abyss between the 1% and the 99%, financial support of students, the environment/climate catastrophe and support of courageous whistle blowers who want us to know the truth. It we continue to hold an idealized view of what the Democrats stand for - today - , then we ignore the degree to which they have actively contributed to each of the major crises we experience today. If we perseverate on the difference between a Biden administration and Agent Chaos's by fixating on our "relief" - then you and I and all of us will have colluded with the worst of what the Democratic Party has been standing for. To wit: pre-Agent Chaos "status quo." Let's be clear. We see evidence everywhere of the degree to which corporations and their mentality have eaten us and our democracy, both. Everywhere is evidence for Wolin's assignation that we now live under an "inverted totalitarianism." Not a democracy. If we accept incremental change instead of systemic changes, if our mindsets remain identified with those of the past, then, too, we are colluding in the demise of ourselves, democracy, and the earth herself. You cannot solve problems with the mentality that created them.
One thing I have come to understand as an historian, looking at the long view of recorded human history, is that "Not that bad" is about the best humans are capable of, at least in large groups. As a species, we're mostly an evolutionary failure.
I am ashamed of us, the white race. Our history shows that for thousands of years we have pilfered, raped, grabbed lands and wealth, enslaved, murdered, and kidnapped. We have used POC as subservients and not as our equals. And there those of us who cannot “see” what the problem is! Really, it is time that we take a step back. The millennial group is filled with bright young folks who want to serve our country. I personally, look forward to their contributions of ideas to jumpstart jobs, economy, real affordable healthcare, and just plain decency. With this new diverse administration coming in, I want to be hopeful that this group is a part of that.
“Marlene”...sounds like you’re a female. Why would you be ashamed of being a white woman? White women did not rape and murder POC; that was the work of white men. White men rape(d) and murder(ed) white women with the same impunity as they rape and murder blacks. I suspect many white women supporting Trumpism have a white man holding a metaphorical gun to their head. If you listen to them on TV, they certainly appear and sound scared senseless.
Thanks for this upbeat account of Biden's first cabinet appointments, "balanced" in a way by the awful news that T and his minions are working to leave scorched earth behind. I have only one question: WHY has Biden yet to appoint an appreciable number of younger people to high positions? The special climate policy post would have been an excellent opportunity for a strong symbolic reachout to younger voters. Nothing against John Kerry, for whom I voted back in the day, but he hasn't run a policy shop in a number of years, and at 76 simply doesn't exude the same symbolic force as a younger name might have done. Biden MUST move to bring in younger people at high levels of his administration, if he wants progressives even to imagine going along with his mainly centrist agenda.
I agree. But, as a member of World War Zero I’ve seen Kerry lead a global effort off to the side of a government that withdrew from the Paris climate agreement. He’s a person of international stature who will bring young American leaders into government. That’s not a bad start. ❤️🤍💙
Yes I thought the same as well. I do understand the need for experienced institutionalists in a time like this, but one or two well-placed, well-known progressives would certainly help to bolster his earlier talk about "hearing" us. Really trying to stay positive over here, and also getting ready to write a lot of letters to elected officials and such.
Me, too. I’m waiting with hope. (Biden owes Bernie for his incredible support after South Carolina.) Although, honestly, it’s up to all of us citizens across the country to help get more progressives elected. So, I thank you for what you are planning to do. 👍🏻❤️🤍💙
Considering that Biden & "co." have a large number of people to put in place yet - something like 4,000? I'm thinking & hoping that the deputies/assistants etc will consist of many younger voices - progressives included.
Kerry was an interesting choice. He has wise old guy gravitas, but he’s also a lightning rod for right wing Vets. Maybe Biden thinks we’ve moved beyond swiftboating. The foreign policy and national security picks, as has been pointed out, were essentially younger deputies in the Obama admin, So Biden has seemed to pick people with both experience and newer ideas that they didn’t have the power to enact fully last time around. I can’t say I’m disappointed so far. We’ll have a better idea what Joe has in mind for progressives when he gets to the domestic departments.
I agree = I doubt there will be anyone he picks that wont get some pushback, right? I remember all that crap about the swiftboating - no different than now - just something to set off the believers!
He's not finished yet. I'd love to see a position for Pete Buttegieg, as well as young progressives. My guess is that Biden will do just that. Your plan for letter writing is a good one.
Same thought here. He certainly brings gravitas to the issue, but I was rather hoping someone from another generation would be appointed - Jay Inslee is no spring chicken but he was on my list, so was Naomi Klein (but she's Canadian).
Kerry's cousin here in France was once head of the French Ecologist Party...every little helps but i doubt the "contagion" is genetic. I should think he was named more with international institutions and agreements in mind.
Yes. Kerry is impressive on international stage where he is well known and speaks fluent French. Perhaps Pete B. can work with him in his additional 8 languages! :)
Because the special climate post needs a "person of substance" to do the international negotiations that would be necessary, and the guy who created the Paris Agreement has more "believability" with the people he'll be negotiating with (like China) than some millenial tree hugger.
As an addendum, the younger people will be brought in, and then they will gain the experience they will need in the future. As I have grown older, I have come to see how stupid it is to send people without experience to do anything.
"Millenial tree hugger" sounds more than a little contempuous. Could it be that there are "people of substance" who have actually studied the climate science, and who might be in a position to persist in such a role beyond Biden's term? Kerry can go sign the paper rejoining the Paris accords and get yet another fine photo op, but the hard work begins AFTER that.
Not that I believe it, personally. I am pointing out that in the circles this envoy will have to move it, many people who might be considered under the standard the first poster posited would be considered thus by those they would have to deal with. Which is why the position requires a person of stature, who will surround themselves with a staff of the people of that standard. I should have put the term in quotes.
First, your chat last night was a balm for the soul - thank you for that.
The Trump administration’s actions to leave the economy in disarray, to ignore the rising case numbers and deaths resulting from their horrid handling of the pandemic and to generally salt the early in the wake of their retreat is a problem with staggering implications.
Biden is doing everything in his power to get it right – he is nominating solid citizens to fill key posts, actively moving forward to implement strategies to control the virus and expeditiously distribute the vaccine, and he has already succeeded in winning the confidence of the business community. That said, the Republicans seem ready and eager to obstruct the incoming Administration at every turn in what appears to be the closing act of this edition of Trump’s death wish theatre production.
Trump has been campaigning for reelection since the day he took office and a major theme of his campaign is that only he can make America great again. He has vilified Democrats, spread unhinged conspiracy theories and claimed that the election system was corrupt. Nothing has changed and he will continue to tell the big lie as he is dragged kicking and screaming (via Twitter) from the WH.
Bret Stephens, in his opinion piece in the New York Times, “Trump Contrives His Stab-in-the-Back Myth” compares the Dolchstosslegende myth used by the Nazis to topple the Weimar Republic, to the actions and words coming from Trump and his followers.
“What I am saying is that this modern-day Dolchstosslegende, like surf pounding against a bluff, abets future demagogues by eroding public confidence in democratic institutions, until, unprotected, they collapse., like surf pounding against a bluff, abets future demagogues by eroding public confidence in democratic institutions, until, unprotected, they collapse.” (https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/23/opinion/trump-biden-conspiracy-theory.html)
This is the challenge we face - to refute the lies, right the wrongs wrought by this Administration, and push forward with an agenda that addresses the root causes of grief and doubt that brought receptive ears to Trumpism in the first place.
Dolchstosslegende did the trick for Hitler and enabled him to unite much of the people behind a particularly nasty version of history that he had rewritten for the occasion. As in all such "nostalgic" foundation myths there was, nonetheless, certainly an essential grain of truth in the impact of theTreaty of Versailles. The key to its success was its designation of culprits for the economic, political and social collapse of the country and the losses of livelihood, status and wellbeing of the people. Trump followed a similar pattern but could only designate an internal enemy and "suffered" the handicap of a vibrant economy generated by his predecessor (Biden was responsible and thus needed to be destroyed).
The basic concept of a need for renewal of the founding myth of the People and the Nation is good...but not when it is based on fallacies, lies and sectorial advantage. To exist as a Nation, rather than as a collection of individuals, the vision of what is America and what it means to be American must be universal and not partial. The criteria for judging right and wrong must be unquestioned and eternal...and not ephemeral elements open to interpretation and caveat in any particular season. If the Democratic Party can achieve this then it could in all truth call itself the "Conserative Party" of America for conserving and building upon all that is good in the land.
Stuart, I appreciate your post. I feel you write of the need for Democrats and progressives to ‘frame’ ideas and values, in a context relevant to people’s daily lives. You write of “the vision of what is America and what it means to be American.” But we on the left or center-left do NOT have a clear and concise view of a progressive America. How do we articulate an American society which provides basic elements of human decency?
Perhaps we’ve fallen into a mode of thinking that is reduced to protest.
Joseph Campbell remarked, if you want to change the course of history, then change the metaphors. The only lasting metaphor of my lifetime, from a Democratic politician, was from JFK, “a rising tide lifts all boats.”
Perhaps, we can think about our American family in which leave no one is left behind.
We need to consider the media for the messages—particularly how the far right has used talk radio, cable TV, and social media to brainwash an army of unthinking supporters. As Heather said in her Tuesday talk (11/24/20), it’s imperative to reinstate the Fairness Doctrine, but updated to include all forms of media.
Trump positioned himself as an outsider, which was precisely where those who supported him felt they were stranded in our increasingly progressive socio-economic environment. Outside. So he gave them red hats. Post World War One Germany provided a similar environment.
To my mind, constructing a Biden administration uniquely to rebuild the government as it was would be more than an error, it would hamstring America in the "new world stucture that will evolve in the coming months and years. The Biden Team must indeed, as he himself has laid down, attract and contain people who have a double expertise generated both by their experience of the past and their capacity to think about new ways of doing it; visionaries, pragmatics and flexible, reasoned leaders who can both perceive the future in its infancy and shape it as it emerges.
Agreed. I very much understand the need to rebuild our institutions, but I also very much hope that we don't rebuild them precisely in their earlier image. Clearly things have not been working for ordinary Americans for quite some time, or Trump and his extremist enablers would never have had enough angst to harness and fan into anger. I hear in the media a strong subtext: a desire to go back to a comforting "business as usual," including language that puts down the progressive wing of the Democratic Party, and I find that disturbing indeed. (A few weeks ago on a Sunday morning, Lulu Garcia-Navarro called progressives "radicalized" and equated them with the far-right. I wrote a big ol' email to NPR.) It just seems so obvious to me that "business as usual" got us where we are to begin with.
Good for you Helga for that big ol'email to NPR. You've spotted a symptom of the deeper political change of tune of the outlet over the past 2 or 3 decades. They've received more emails and phone calls from me than I have fingers and toes because of their distinct bias toward the corporatized "news" bias. I've long been struck that their penchant for sins of omission (e.g.not disclosing interviewees ties to Heritage Foundation and other conservative think tanks but posing them as objective "truth tellers") exceed such in your face Garcia-Navarro propagandistic versions. I've been grateful for BBC, Al Jazeera, Warren Olney's To the Point, and KBCS 91.3 news that accompanies the Thom Hartmann talk show. All of which offer "objective" factual reporting and/or discussions with substantive clear eyed guests. Hartmann is clearly a progressive. Very intelligent with a strong historical bent, he's written a number of books most recent of which are on monopolies, voter suppression, the Supreme Court, etc.
Thanks Selena, I'll look up those sources. But I think it's also important to keep pushing our centrist sources. If no one holds them accountable then we have fresh problems, don't we?
When the US Chamber of Commerce complains that a rightwing administration is screwing with them you know things are bad. It's clear that this s***hole administration has decided that people dying by the tens of thousands, massive homelessness and unemployment, and the destruction of the middle class are all fine by them if it f***s up the incoming admin. While only nefariousness is to be expected from this bunch of criminals, thugs, and Uriah Heeps, the stunner is that the Gutless Omnibigoted Poo-boys in the Senate and House are perfectly willing to see their own constituents harmed irreparably in order to soothe their snowflake feelings of ill-usage that a large majority (despite the horrific numbers of neofascists out there) of America rejected them. The culture wars fomented by this collection of criminal co-conspirators will undoubtedly continue but at least the financial markets seem to feel that it is time to put an end to them. Not that that matters at all to the normal people whose lives are lived at $11 an hour.
One would hope that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce may see the error in their tRumpian ways, and instead invest heavily in the 2 Georgia Senate Candidates?
We are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Thomas Friedman's NYT editorial, Happy Thanksgiving to All Those Who Told the Truth in This Election, recommends we think of the West Point Cadet's oath which " calls upon each of these future military leaders to always choose “the harder right instead of the easier wrong” and to know “no fear when truth and right are in jeopardy.” He then goes on to praise the many civil servants, elected officials and judges who have worked to see this election to its conclusion, which meant choosing "the harder right instead of the easier wrong." He then enumerates the many who have chosen the opposite path and gone along with the Trump narrative and their part in trying to derail the election to further their own or their party's goals. He says, "Shame on all those people...And “shame” is the right word for these people, because a sense of shame was lost these past four years and it needs to be re-established. Otherwise, what Trump and all his sycophants did gets normalized and permanently erodes confidence in our elections. That is how democracies die."
Shame is an old-fashioned idea, but as I read over HCR's litany of their previous and ongoing attempts to derail democracy, prevent the orderly transfer of power and prevent the use of government to help all Americans, not just the wealthy and powerful, I think shame is appropriate. Trying to figure out how best to deliver that message-perhaps letters to the elected officials, the appointed officials and civil servants who have opted for the easy wrongs. Shame can be a powerful force for enforcing societal norms.
First establish a universally accepted idea of who and what are the people of a Nation and a common view of values, including what is right and wrong, then you will have the authority to "shame" someone who contravenes the code. Until then that person laughs in your face or more politely thanks you for your "interesting opinion".
"First establish a universally accepted idea of who and what are the people of a Nation and a common view of values, including what is right and wrong"
The last civil war quite evidently didn't solve the problem. It requires a massive catastrophy affecting everone in order to draw people back together...or back to their senses...AND/OR the appearance on the scene of a very special leader who in his/her personality, words and deeds encapsulates and represents that common cause and common vision and who can project it in such a way as to encourage the people to adopt it. The caveat is of course that the "special leader" only have in mind the wellbeing of all the people and not personal or sectorial ambitions.
This quite evidently does't happen often! Without that common vision countries cease to be nations and can fall apart for lack of something holding them together.
We are fortunate in having HCR, an expert on late 19th Century American History, to help guide us through the problem of clarifying our nation's identity and values. The failure of Reconstruction and the three cornered struggle between the Democrats, the Republicans and the Radical Republicans after the Civil War are part of a scenario in which we remain today. Only the players' names have changed.
Force is the opposite of authority. Non-democratic systems are by their nature temporary as they neither have a secure succession process nor do they unite the people. It depends very much on whether each and everyone of us is prepared to listen to and discuss with the other, accept that discipline and responsibility as such are liberating, strive to ascertain the facts before declaring the "truth" and agrees that we can't go on as we are, fighting over every scrap and trying to impose constraints on the other. It helps if we have a leader who will incite people to behave thus as adults and who is not just there for the priviledges inherent in the role.
"It depends very much on whether each and everyone of us is prepared to listen to and discuss with the other, accept that discipline and responsibility as such are liberating, strive to ascertain the facts before declaring the "truth" and agrees that we can't go on as we are, fighting over every scrap and trying to impose constraints on the other."
Yesterday was the first day since 2016 that I heard a number of people exclaim or write this phrase, “...finally able to exhale.” I feel the same relief. We need to take these good days and save them for the difficult road ahead.
This is the start, our work has just begun...but it’s time to take a breath and recharge. This is the time for the country to come together and gratefully give Thanks. 🇺🇸😊❤️
Thank you Kari! I’m all for being realistic but I now need to enjoy the fact that we’ll have new leadership, to relax in that knowledge for a few days, alone, and be grateful.
Thank you, HCR! Staying put. Staying safe. Staying alert. Grateful to be alive. Grateful to my online communities. Grateful to all essential personnel who make my safe life possible. Grateful to every single American citizen who voted Trump out of office. Grateful to BidenHarris and their team. Grateful to activists everywhere, and especially in Georgia who made the runoff election possible. Grateful to every single voice-like HCR-that has worked this year to change life for the better for everyone in this country. Grateful to people everywhere who are helping to feed our hungry this Thanksgiving. Staying angry and hopeful and committed to social and economic justice on Thanksgiving Day 2020. Love you all. ❤️🤍💙
Yes, I'm grateful, too, and more hopeful than just a few weeks ago, Deborah! Here in Georgia, we're hoping that we can flip the Senate, even if the Repugs are outspending us.
Thank you, Heather, for today’s talk on the history of Thanksgiving. It was a wonderful way to send us off to our own various ways of giving thanks this year like no other. As things calm down, I hope you and Buddy enjoy a day to yourselves, without combing the news for us. Breathe free, take in the season, rest your mind. Happy Thanksgiving!
“[W]e approach this moment with the confidence of experience. We know the American people know what to do.” - Mike Pence.
And so, when an American person, Sherrod Brown, asked someone to put on a mask, another American person, Ted Cruz, said Brown's request was idiotic” and “an ostentatious sign of fake virtue.” To illustrate just how out of touch both Pence & Cruz are, yesterday Texas declared that it had 19,970* new cases of Coronavirus. By contrast, Ohio declared 8,604*, which is still a staggering number. The two sets of numbers reflect he attitudes of the leadership and the citizens of each state; Ohio's leaders and lawmakers are making an effort to tamp down the virus while those in Texas clearly are not.
One of the striking characteristics of the current administration, and the politicians who prop him up, is their excess neglect of the US American people. All the promises of better healthcare, more and better jobs, improved infrastructure never happened. When crisis struck in the form of pandemic the president and his administration decided to turn its back on the expert advice of hardworking, dedicated doctors and researchers in favor of the ridiculous notion that people will know what to do. How? By osmosis? Telepathy? A priori knowledge?
People have asked in these letters what would it take for the country to pull together and work for a common good as happened during WWII. Within a month of Pearl Harbor Roosevelt told Congress and the nation "Powerful enemies must be out fought and out produced". Roosevelt conveyed a deep sense of urgency and stressed unity as the only way to win the war. All people were compelled to contribute to the war effort. And it worked. An entire nation, young and old, successfully mobilized toward a common goal for a common good. But it was a very different time. All news about the war had to be approved by the Office of War Information. There were extremely tight controls about what could and could not be released to the public. Roosevelt was of a mind to communicate one message to all of the people all of the time; he was a very different kind of leader than the one we have now; Trump chose chaos and nonchalance, Roosevelt did not.
Since WWII the importance of the Individual has replaced the importance of We the People. We are suffering the consequences of that shift now. The reassuring thing about the incoming Biden-Harris administration is that they understand the principles of leadership and guidance. They know that sending a unified message, especially during a time of crisis, is the only way to get people to buy into collaborative action. One of their biggest challenges from here on out will be to convey the sense of urgency required so that all people will be compelled to act in the best interests of the country. There will be a lot of resentment as private citizens, some law enforcement and government leaders continue to push back against actions which may curtail personal freedom. But we are not being asked to pick up a gun or a hand grenade and kill another human being, we are being asked to wear a mask, socially distance, not attend social gatherings and events. It's lonely for many of us who are unable to see our children, other family members and friends. But the sooner people take up the cause the sooner we'll win.
So well stated, Daria; and you echo my thoughts. I was so completely disheartened when Pence stated “We know that the American people know what to do”. Obviously, if the majority of people could be trusted to “know” what to do, we would not be in this mess. If the individualists cared enough about the collective, we could get this virus under control. The “essential workers” who are “out in the trenches” every day so they can put food on the table, and pay the rent, are being exposed to this virus and killed by the smug “no one can tell me what to do” people who have been mislead by this administrations response (more like lack of response) to this “common enemy”.
Pence’s statement more clearly stated “I don’t give a d*** about you”. 🤬🤬
Cathy, when Pence made his statement I didn't know whether to be angry or sad. Collaboration is a dirty word. The common good or greater good are concepts that have been bastardized to mean communist. It is heart breaking that a good chunk of the country couldn't care less about the folks next door or the checker at the grocery or the healthcare workers care for the dying who proclaim covid 19 is a hoax even as they gasp their last breath. Sigh. It's going to be a very tough row to hoe for Biden and his administration; there are so many who will do anything so see them fail.
I would have been surprised if Pence has said anything other than what he did. It is not realistic to believe that he will say anything that doesn't fit the narrative of this poisonous "administration."
In his Thanksgiving address a little while ago, Biden spoke of opposing sides coming together, of caring for and about each other in order to keep the virus better under control until the vaccine(s) can be distributed, just as he had throughout his campaign. He truly believes his oft-stated, "We are the UNITED States of America," and he fully expects there to be a turnaround in the discourse. I'm not so sure about that, and unless Ossoff and Warnock get into the Senate, I'm afraid the obstruction and gridlock will continue. But we can hope.
“Observers expect [Yellen] to back government spending to address the devastating effects of the coronavirus on the economy, while her background in monetary policy will help her craft a coordinated response between the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department.”
Little of Janet Yellen’s considerable knowledge and understanding will be effective if Biden can’t peal away enough Senate Republicans from under McConnell’s thumb . Even if the Democrats manage to take the two Georgia senate seats, if McConnell decides to treat Biden the way he treated Obama, it’s going to be a slug fest to get even half-measures done.
Forewarned is forearmed....hopefully! Obama really didn't understand either what was happening or who he was dealing with. There is nothing "nice" in the current game! Nothing is guarranteed...the real fight is only just starting and world economic recession will hit everybody hard in the new year as governments all run down their horrendously expensive economic and social support measures at the same time.
Agreed, but I don't think anyone is prepared for the way the world looks from behind the desk in the Oval Office. Biden is probably as prepared as anyone could be for what he's going to be facing starting Jan. 20. He's also probabaly the one most able to do some kind of business with McConnell, who doesn't have to think about re-election for a while.
Well said, Stuart. You bring up a good point by mentioning ‘world economic recession’. Combined with the pandemic and a rise in the number of nationalist governments around the world, worldwide recession puts us (the world) in a precarious position not unlike circumstances leading up to each of the previous two world wars. Very concerning.
Thank you! I for one am relieved by Biden’s cabinet picks. Get people in the positions who know what needs to be done and can mentor younger people in how it is done. Unfortunately I think there will be a lot of cleanup to accomplish as Trump tries to destroy the country on his way out the door.
Dr. Richardson I hope that you and your family have a restful Thanksgiving.
Trump won't have a Presidential Library...he'll have a gift shop.
“Grift” shop, please. ❤️🤍💙
Yes! LOL
😂
He won't have time for that. If he sticks around, which is not necessarily a given, he'll be busy making license plates for the state of New York.
Filled with comic books
With Neiman Marcus prices, more -- $100 for a button with his face on it, $150 if it has his signature as well. Sale price? $148.99. Profits to a charity (the 1% not covering campaign expenses, hotel renovations and golf course development).
The childish, petty, and incredibly/increasingly destructive and intentional actions of this regime in a seeming effort to burn it all down on their way out the door is truly stunning. No outright attack by a foreign power could have harmed our nation as deeply and in so many ways as these people have managed to do from within, having been elected to office by the workings of a manipulated and outmoded electoral college system. Mnuchin’s recent actions are especially destructive and cannot be interpreted as anything other that meant to be so.
Yellin’s nomination is good news, as is the announcement by GM and the stock market’s record high. However, (and I hate to be a doomsayer when we all need hope so desperately), we would be wise to remember that republicans ALWAYS play the long game. ALWAYS. It is my opinion that they are doing the same with their destructive actions in the waning weeks of the current regime. Yes, they are trying to make Biden and Harris’s job as difficult as possible, if not impossible. But, why? Beyond sheer spite, that is? If you remember that they always play the long game then it begins to become more clear. They are setting the stage for 2024. The more they can do to ensure the failure of the Biden/Harris administration the more likely their return to power in 2024. The party has shifted dramatically over the past few decades but especially so in the past 4 years. We all seem to agree that it is no more “the party of Lincoln” and is now, unequivocally, “the party of trump” (still can’t bring myself to capitalize his name!). While there have already been some potential candidates voice their interest in running in ‘24 I believe that there will be one that we have not seen yet who will embody all of the worst of trumpism in a much more sophisticated, effective, and incredibly dangerous package than anything we have yet seen. And the perceived ‘failure’ of the Biden/Harris administration to repair the enormous damage that they have done and are doing so thoroughly in the present moment will be their argument for a return to power in the next election. They will be relentless in beating that drum from now until then and, as I mentioned in a previous post here, there will be continued destructive efforts from within, especially if McConnell remains in his current position as majority leader.
Folks, we are in the fight of our lives and it is just beginning. Yes, take a moment to breathe. Or exhale, as some have said. But we cannot assume that all will be well simply because it finally looks like Biden and Harris will transition into power. The trumists will never stop their relentless efforts and neither must we if we truly want a government as described in the Declaration, the Constitution, and the Gettysburg address. Onwards, together.
You make an excellent point. If the Republicans now in power cannot remain in power, they are determined to make the next four years as difficult as possible for the Biden-Harris team. Trump’s 2016 “I alone can fix it” speech will be the 2024 Republican rallying cry, whether Trump is involved or not. Everyone is worn out from the last four years, which is exactly why we need to continue pressing for those two Georgia seats to swing blue; four more years of Republican-sponsored inaction and stonewalling in the Senate may create the perfect conditions for a Republican return to the White House in 2024.
Already that slime ball, Marco Rubio, is tweeting some serious shade about the cabinet pick. He is not going to help at all, then wants
us to consider him for President. Not gonna happen! https://twitter.com/marcorubio/status/1331238258509045761
Yes, Karen. So our job starting January 20, 2021 soon after 12:00 p.m. is to launch a counter- campaign to remind the American people that the cause of any shortfalls/failures was because of the deliberate destruction committed by the 2020 lame duck presidency as well as the deliberate obstruction by the Republican Senate to hamstring the BidenHarris administration, and we should continue this campaign on up to the next election cycle if need be.
Actually, we need to be on this now for Georgia in January
And another job we could pick up is: creating music and other art (films?) to convince the Trump base that Trump was never on their side, only his own. That we are so much stronger together. I’ve been listening to Alicia Keys new album, which is amazing. I think “the perfect way to die” is about Trayvon Martin and for sure about Sandra Bland. “Good job” the last song on the album makes me cry every time I listen to it. Music is so powerful.
https://youtu.be/bwL5AOFCqiw
Thanks, Jeanne. What a powerful and much needed sentiment delivered through song.
Do you think the mega donors are willing to destroy the economy now in hope of reclaiming power in 4 years? What about the business leaders? Many of them can't see beyond 6 months.
I find it interesting that the Chamber of Commerce made a public statement about the GOP undermining the recovery. It would be a good long term strategy for the Democrats to find wedge opportunities to break up the apparent near hegemony the GOP occupies within the business community. Well, outside Silicon Valley at any rate. This seems like a good place to start because it’s so obvious. Biden should make as much hay as he can with it in any event. Paul Krugman gave a very good explanation in his latest column as to why simply having available the money Mnuchin just pulled back is necessary to soothe the market, even if it’s never actually used.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/23/opinion/trump-mnuchin-federal-reserve.html
What another vile and despicable human being Mnuchin is!!
In the Hall of Shame w Trump, Barr, McConnell, Graham, Jordan, both White House press secretaries under Trump, Sara Sanders and K MacAnaney (sp?), Pence (if he invokes “the American People” one more time, I might vomit), and all the rest of the Republican senators save perhaps Romney and Sasse.
Yeah, too many to count! Let’s not forget Erik Prince and his sister, Cruella DeVos.
The GA Dems need to hand McConnell a reality sandwich by electing Ossoff and Warnock. At least, then he will have to be a tiny bit more "caring" about this country, because he won't have the power to do nothing. Such an evil, nasty excuse for a human being, rating right beside tRump. Someday they both will meet their maker and it won't be pretty.
On the other hand, I hope you, Heather, can take moments to enjoy this Thanksgiving, and I wish all here will be safe and thankful that we're looking at a new day.
I wish I could say the Dems here are going to succeed. It's hard to be optimistic after decades of Republican victories here in runoffs. Things are going every-which-way as the GOP candidates have made it more than obvious how they're going to campaign: the ads are atrocious. There is no attempt now to disguise the inherent racism in the anti-Warnock ads, and they stoke lie after lie after lie, even after they have been proven to be false. Both candidates have basically thrown in their lot with Trump and the people believing that the election was stolen and with the conspiracy theorists. It remains to be seen if the GOP candidates maintain this position or change it before Jan. 5th (the election day), and it remains to be seen if this helps or hurts their campaigns...let's hope it HURTS!
Bruce, I'm a bit more optimistic than you in this regard. While runoffs usually favor incumbents, Stacy Abrams has helped change the narrative, and I believe our chances are better in this election. Yes, the ads are horrible and filled with lies and conspiracy theories, sprinkled with "communist" and "socialist" references, and the undisguised racism has extended to Ossoff, as well as Warnock. My hope is that these dog whistles will inspire only those already drinking the Kool Aid, but not the rest of us. I'm hoping that by turning the tide blue in the presidential election, all voters will be energized, especially in view of what we've seen happen these last four years in the obstructionist Senate.
Back in the 1952 presidential campaign, Adlai Stevenson observed during a speech in Columbus, Ohio: “The strange alchemy of time has somehow converted the Democrats into the truly conservative party of this country — the party dedicated to conserving all that is best, and building solidly and safely on these foundations.”
Ever more true 68 years later.
"The party dedicated to conserving all that is best" is a '50's view of the Democratic Party. I was around then. Clearly, the Democratic Party today in the hands of the Old Guard/Corporate Democrats has for the past 30 years demonstrated their ever rightward swing with their almost complete abdication of responsibility for the well being of the poor, workers, education, the commons, the wealth abyss between the 1% and the 99%, financial support of students, the environment/climate catastrophe and support of courageous whistle blowers who want us to know the truth. It we continue to hold an idealized view of what the Democrats stand for - today - , then we ignore the degree to which they have actively contributed to each of the major crises we experience today. If we perseverate on the difference between a Biden administration and Agent Chaos's by fixating on our "relief" - then you and I and all of us will have colluded with the worst of what the Democratic Party has been standing for. To wit: pre-Agent Chaos "status quo." Let's be clear. We see evidence everywhere of the degree to which corporations and their mentality have eaten us and our democracy, both. Everywhere is evidence for Wolin's assignation that we now live under an "inverted totalitarianism." Not a democracy. If we accept incremental change instead of systemic changes, if our mindsets remain identified with those of the past, then, too, we are colluding in the demise of ourselves, democracy, and the earth herself. You cannot solve problems with the mentality that created them.
One thing I have come to understand as an historian, looking at the long view of recorded human history, is that "Not that bad" is about the best humans are capable of, at least in large groups. As a species, we're mostly an evolutionary failure.
I am ashamed of us, the white race. Our history shows that for thousands of years we have pilfered, raped, grabbed lands and wealth, enslaved, murdered, and kidnapped. We have used POC as subservients and not as our equals. And there those of us who cannot “see” what the problem is! Really, it is time that we take a step back. The millennial group is filled with bright young folks who want to serve our country. I personally, look forward to their contributions of ideas to jumpstart jobs, economy, real affordable healthcare, and just plain decency. With this new diverse administration coming in, I want to be hopeful that this group is a part of that.
“Marlene”...sounds like you’re a female. Why would you be ashamed of being a white woman? White women did not rape and murder POC; that was the work of white men. White men rape(d) and murder(ed) white women with the same impunity as they rape and murder blacks. I suspect many white women supporting Trumpism have a white man holding a metaphorical gun to their head. If you listen to them on TV, they certainly appear and sound scared senseless.
Alas....alas....
Thanks for this upbeat account of Biden's first cabinet appointments, "balanced" in a way by the awful news that T and his minions are working to leave scorched earth behind. I have only one question: WHY has Biden yet to appoint an appreciable number of younger people to high positions? The special climate policy post would have been an excellent opportunity for a strong symbolic reachout to younger voters. Nothing against John Kerry, for whom I voted back in the day, but he hasn't run a policy shop in a number of years, and at 76 simply doesn't exude the same symbolic force as a younger name might have done. Biden MUST move to bring in younger people at high levels of his administration, if he wants progressives even to imagine going along with his mainly centrist agenda.
I agree. But, as a member of World War Zero I’ve seen Kerry lead a global effort off to the side of a government that withdrew from the Paris climate agreement. He’s a person of international stature who will bring young American leaders into government. That’s not a bad start. ❤️🤍💙
Yes I thought the same as well. I do understand the need for experienced institutionalists in a time like this, but one or two well-placed, well-known progressives would certainly help to bolster his earlier talk about "hearing" us. Really trying to stay positive over here, and also getting ready to write a lot of letters to elected officials and such.
Me, too. I’m waiting with hope. (Biden owes Bernie for his incredible support after South Carolina.) Although, honestly, it’s up to all of us citizens across the country to help get more progressives elected. So, I thank you for what you are planning to do. 👍🏻❤️🤍💙
Considering that Biden & "co." have a large number of people to put in place yet - something like 4,000? I'm thinking & hoping that the deputies/assistants etc will consist of many younger voices - progressives included.
Yes. That was my thinking and hoping, too. Older experienced as face; younger energetic for ideas and influence.
Kerry was an interesting choice. He has wise old guy gravitas, but he’s also a lightning rod for right wing Vets. Maybe Biden thinks we’ve moved beyond swiftboating. The foreign policy and national security picks, as has been pointed out, were essentially younger deputies in the Obama admin, So Biden has seemed to pick people with both experience and newer ideas that they didn’t have the power to enact fully last time around. I can’t say I’m disappointed so far. We’ll have a better idea what Joe has in mind for progressives when he gets to the domestic departments.
I agree = I doubt there will be anyone he picks that wont get some pushback, right? I remember all that crap about the swiftboating - no different than now - just something to set off the believers!
He's not finished yet. I'd love to see a position for Pete Buttegieg, as well as young progressives. My guess is that Biden will do just that. Your plan for letter writing is a good one.
Same thought here. He certainly brings gravitas to the issue, but I was rather hoping someone from another generation would be appointed - Jay Inslee is no spring chicken but he was on my list, so was Naomi Klein (but she's Canadian).
Kerry's cousin here in France was once head of the French Ecologist Party...every little helps but i doubt the "contagion" is genetic. I should think he was named more with international institutions and agreements in mind.
Yes. Kerry is impressive on international stage where he is well known and speaks fluent French. Perhaps Pete B. can work with him in his additional 8 languages! :)
I've just heard him, and the other new appointees, speak. Kerry sounds ready and eager to get on with the huge task that awaits him. I wish him well.
Inslee would have been an excellent choice. Was he asked and declined? I doubt it somehow.
Sorry -- we need Inslee here in Washington!
Because the special climate post needs a "person of substance" to do the international negotiations that would be necessary, and the guy who created the Paris Agreement has more "believability" with the people he'll be negotiating with (like China) than some millenial tree hugger.
As an addendum, the younger people will be brought in, and then they will gain the experience they will need in the future. As I have grown older, I have come to see how stupid it is to send people without experience to do anything.
I agree, but I wasn't advocating that. I wrote "younger", not "beginner".
"Millenial tree hugger" sounds more than a little contempuous. Could it be that there are "people of substance" who have actually studied the climate science, and who might be in a position to persist in such a role beyond Biden's term? Kerry can go sign the paper rejoining the Paris accords and get yet another fine photo op, but the hard work begins AFTER that.
Not that I believe it, personally. I am pointing out that in the circles this envoy will have to move it, many people who might be considered under the standard the first poster posited would be considered thus by those they would have to deal with. Which is why the position requires a person of stature, who will surround themselves with a staff of the people of that standard. I should have put the term in quotes.
First, your chat last night was a balm for the soul - thank you for that.
The Trump administration’s actions to leave the economy in disarray, to ignore the rising case numbers and deaths resulting from their horrid handling of the pandemic and to generally salt the early in the wake of their retreat is a problem with staggering implications.
Biden is doing everything in his power to get it right – he is nominating solid citizens to fill key posts, actively moving forward to implement strategies to control the virus and expeditiously distribute the vaccine, and he has already succeeded in winning the confidence of the business community. That said, the Republicans seem ready and eager to obstruct the incoming Administration at every turn in what appears to be the closing act of this edition of Trump’s death wish theatre production.
Trump has been campaigning for reelection since the day he took office and a major theme of his campaign is that only he can make America great again. He has vilified Democrats, spread unhinged conspiracy theories and claimed that the election system was corrupt. Nothing has changed and he will continue to tell the big lie as he is dragged kicking and screaming (via Twitter) from the WH.
Bret Stephens, in his opinion piece in the New York Times, “Trump Contrives His Stab-in-the-Back Myth” compares the Dolchstosslegende myth used by the Nazis to topple the Weimar Republic, to the actions and words coming from Trump and his followers.
“What I am saying is that this modern-day Dolchstosslegende, like surf pounding against a bluff, abets future demagogues by eroding public confidence in democratic institutions, until, unprotected, they collapse., like surf pounding against a bluff, abets future demagogues by eroding public confidence in democratic institutions, until, unprotected, they collapse.” (https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/23/opinion/trump-biden-conspiracy-theory.html)
This is the challenge we face - to refute the lies, right the wrongs wrought by this Administration, and push forward with an agenda that addresses the root causes of grief and doubt that brought receptive ears to Trumpism in the first place.
Dolchstosslegende did the trick for Hitler and enabled him to unite much of the people behind a particularly nasty version of history that he had rewritten for the occasion. As in all such "nostalgic" foundation myths there was, nonetheless, certainly an essential grain of truth in the impact of theTreaty of Versailles. The key to its success was its designation of culprits for the economic, political and social collapse of the country and the losses of livelihood, status and wellbeing of the people. Trump followed a similar pattern but could only designate an internal enemy and "suffered" the handicap of a vibrant economy generated by his predecessor (Biden was responsible and thus needed to be destroyed).
The basic concept of a need for renewal of the founding myth of the People and the Nation is good...but not when it is based on fallacies, lies and sectorial advantage. To exist as a Nation, rather than as a collection of individuals, the vision of what is America and what it means to be American must be universal and not partial. The criteria for judging right and wrong must be unquestioned and eternal...and not ephemeral elements open to interpretation and caveat in any particular season. If the Democratic Party can achieve this then it could in all truth call itself the "Conserative Party" of America for conserving and building upon all that is good in the land.
Stuart, I appreciate your post. I feel you write of the need for Democrats and progressives to ‘frame’ ideas and values, in a context relevant to people’s daily lives. You write of “the vision of what is America and what it means to be American.” But we on the left or center-left do NOT have a clear and concise view of a progressive America. How do we articulate an American society which provides basic elements of human decency?
Perhaps we’ve fallen into a mode of thinking that is reduced to protest.
Joseph Campbell remarked, if you want to change the course of history, then change the metaphors. The only lasting metaphor of my lifetime, from a Democratic politician, was from JFK, “a rising tide lifts all boats.”
Perhaps, we can think about our American family in which leave no one is left behind.
We need to consider the media for the messages—particularly how the far right has used talk radio, cable TV, and social media to brainwash an army of unthinking supporters. As Heather said in her Tuesday talk (11/24/20), it’s imperative to reinstate the Fairness Doctrine, but updated to include all forms of media.
Trump positioned himself as an outsider, which was precisely where those who supported him felt they were stranded in our increasingly progressive socio-economic environment. Outside. So he gave them red hats. Post World War One Germany provided a similar environment.
To my mind, constructing a Biden administration uniquely to rebuild the government as it was would be more than an error, it would hamstring America in the "new world stucture that will evolve in the coming months and years. The Biden Team must indeed, as he himself has laid down, attract and contain people who have a double expertise generated both by their experience of the past and their capacity to think about new ways of doing it; visionaries, pragmatics and flexible, reasoned leaders who can both perceive the future in its infancy and shape it as it emerges.
Agreed. I very much understand the need to rebuild our institutions, but I also very much hope that we don't rebuild them precisely in their earlier image. Clearly things have not been working for ordinary Americans for quite some time, or Trump and his extremist enablers would never have had enough angst to harness and fan into anger. I hear in the media a strong subtext: a desire to go back to a comforting "business as usual," including language that puts down the progressive wing of the Democratic Party, and I find that disturbing indeed. (A few weeks ago on a Sunday morning, Lulu Garcia-Navarro called progressives "radicalized" and equated them with the far-right. I wrote a big ol' email to NPR.) It just seems so obvious to me that "business as usual" got us where we are to begin with.
Good for you Helga for that big ol'email to NPR. You've spotted a symptom of the deeper political change of tune of the outlet over the past 2 or 3 decades. They've received more emails and phone calls from me than I have fingers and toes because of their distinct bias toward the corporatized "news" bias. I've long been struck that their penchant for sins of omission (e.g.not disclosing interviewees ties to Heritage Foundation and other conservative think tanks but posing them as objective "truth tellers") exceed such in your face Garcia-Navarro propagandistic versions. I've been grateful for BBC, Al Jazeera, Warren Olney's To the Point, and KBCS 91.3 news that accompanies the Thom Hartmann talk show. All of which offer "objective" factual reporting and/or discussions with substantive clear eyed guests. Hartmann is clearly a progressive. Very intelligent with a strong historical bent, he's written a number of books most recent of which are on monopolies, voter suppression, the Supreme Court, etc.
Thanks Selena, I'll look up those sources. But I think it's also important to keep pushing our centrist sources. If no one holds them accountable then we have fresh problems, don't we?
Absolutemente! I'm with you! We gotta keep our eye on what we want and keep at them.
When the US Chamber of Commerce complains that a rightwing administration is screwing with them you know things are bad. It's clear that this s***hole administration has decided that people dying by the tens of thousands, massive homelessness and unemployment, and the destruction of the middle class are all fine by them if it f***s up the incoming admin. While only nefariousness is to be expected from this bunch of criminals, thugs, and Uriah Heeps, the stunner is that the Gutless Omnibigoted Poo-boys in the Senate and House are perfectly willing to see their own constituents harmed irreparably in order to soothe their snowflake feelings of ill-usage that a large majority (despite the horrific numbers of neofascists out there) of America rejected them. The culture wars fomented by this collection of criminal co-conspirators will undoubtedly continue but at least the financial markets seem to feel that it is time to put an end to them. Not that that matters at all to the normal people whose lives are lived at $11 an hour.
One would hope that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce may see the error in their tRumpian ways, and instead invest heavily in the 2 Georgia Senate Candidates?
They're investing in the two Trumpers as a "check and balance" on Biden.
Darn. Not smart for business.
We are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Thomas Friedman's NYT editorial, Happy Thanksgiving to All Those Who Told the Truth in This Election, recommends we think of the West Point Cadet's oath which " calls upon each of these future military leaders to always choose “the harder right instead of the easier wrong” and to know “no fear when truth and right are in jeopardy.” He then goes on to praise the many civil servants, elected officials and judges who have worked to see this election to its conclusion, which meant choosing "the harder right instead of the easier wrong." He then enumerates the many who have chosen the opposite path and gone along with the Trump narrative and their part in trying to derail the election to further their own or their party's goals. He says, "Shame on all those people...And “shame” is the right word for these people, because a sense of shame was lost these past four years and it needs to be re-established. Otherwise, what Trump and all his sycophants did gets normalized and permanently erodes confidence in our elections. That is how democracies die."
Shame is an old-fashioned idea, but as I read over HCR's litany of their previous and ongoing attempts to derail democracy, prevent the orderly transfer of power and prevent the use of government to help all Americans, not just the wealthy and powerful, I think shame is appropriate. Trying to figure out how best to deliver that message-perhaps letters to the elected officials, the appointed officials and civil servants who have opted for the easy wrongs. Shame can be a powerful force for enforcing societal norms.
First establish a universally accepted idea of who and what are the people of a Nation and a common view of values, including what is right and wrong, then you will have the authority to "shame" someone who contravenes the code. Until then that person laughs in your face or more politely thanks you for your "interesting opinion".
"First establish a universally accepted idea of who and what are the people of a Nation and a common view of values, including what is right and wrong"
Can this be done short of civil war?
The last civil war quite evidently didn't solve the problem. It requires a massive catastrophy affecting everone in order to draw people back together...or back to their senses...AND/OR the appearance on the scene of a very special leader who in his/her personality, words and deeds encapsulates and represents that common cause and common vision and who can project it in such a way as to encourage the people to adopt it. The caveat is of course that the "special leader" only have in mind the wellbeing of all the people and not personal or sectorial ambitions.
This quite evidently does't happen often! Without that common vision countries cease to be nations and can fall apart for lack of something holding them together.
We are fortunate in having HCR, an expert on late 19th Century American History, to help guide us through the problem of clarifying our nation's identity and values. The failure of Reconstruction and the three cornered struggle between the Democrats, the Republicans and the Radical Republicans after the Civil War are part of a scenario in which we remain today. Only the players' names have changed.
Yes, we are verging on that catastrophe. The special leader won't be in the context of democracy. We'll move on.
Force is the opposite of authority. Non-democratic systems are by their nature temporary as they neither have a secure succession process nor do they unite the people. It depends very much on whether each and everyone of us is prepared to listen to and discuss with the other, accept that discipline and responsibility as such are liberating, strive to ascertain the facts before declaring the "truth" and agrees that we can't go on as we are, fighting over every scrap and trying to impose constraints on the other. It helps if we have a leader who will incite people to behave thus as adults and who is not just there for the priviledges inherent in the role.
"It depends very much on whether each and everyone of us is prepared to listen to and discuss with the other, accept that discipline and responsibility as such are liberating, strive to ascertain the facts before declaring the "truth" and agrees that we can't go on as we are, fighting over every scrap and trying to impose constraints on the other."
Await the pro-Trump insurgency and the outcomes.
Yesterday was the first day since 2016 that I heard a number of people exclaim or write this phrase, “...finally able to exhale.” I feel the same relief. We need to take these good days and save them for the difficult road ahead.
This is the start, our work has just begun...but it’s time to take a breath and recharge. This is the time for the country to come together and gratefully give Thanks. 🇺🇸😊❤️
Thank you Kari! I’m all for being realistic but I now need to enjoy the fact that we’ll have new leadership, to relax in that knowledge for a few days, alone, and be grateful.
Thank you, HCR! Staying put. Staying safe. Staying alert. Grateful to be alive. Grateful to my online communities. Grateful to all essential personnel who make my safe life possible. Grateful to every single American citizen who voted Trump out of office. Grateful to BidenHarris and their team. Grateful to activists everywhere, and especially in Georgia who made the runoff election possible. Grateful to every single voice-like HCR-that has worked this year to change life for the better for everyone in this country. Grateful to people everywhere who are helping to feed our hungry this Thanksgiving. Staying angry and hopeful and committed to social and economic justice on Thanksgiving Day 2020. Love you all. ❤️🤍💙
Love you back, Deborah! Thankful for all we have, and will achieve by our "anger," as you say, and activism👏👍
Brava! Well said.
Yes, I'm grateful, too, and more hopeful than just a few weeks ago, Deborah! Here in Georgia, we're hoping that we can flip the Senate, even if the Repugs are outspending us.
Thank you, Heather, for today’s talk on the history of Thanksgiving. It was a wonderful way to send us off to our own various ways of giving thanks this year like no other. As things calm down, I hope you and Buddy enjoy a day to yourselves, without combing the news for us. Breathe free, take in the season, rest your mind. Happy Thanksgiving!
🍁
“[W]e approach this moment with the confidence of experience. We know the American people know what to do.” - Mike Pence.
And so, when an American person, Sherrod Brown, asked someone to put on a mask, another American person, Ted Cruz, said Brown's request was idiotic” and “an ostentatious sign of fake virtue.” To illustrate just how out of touch both Pence & Cruz are, yesterday Texas declared that it had 19,970* new cases of Coronavirus. By contrast, Ohio declared 8,604*, which is still a staggering number. The two sets of numbers reflect he attitudes of the leadership and the citizens of each state; Ohio's leaders and lawmakers are making an effort to tamp down the virus while those in Texas clearly are not.
One of the striking characteristics of the current administration, and the politicians who prop him up, is their excess neglect of the US American people. All the promises of better healthcare, more and better jobs, improved infrastructure never happened. When crisis struck in the form of pandemic the president and his administration decided to turn its back on the expert advice of hardworking, dedicated doctors and researchers in favor of the ridiculous notion that people will know what to do. How? By osmosis? Telepathy? A priori knowledge?
People have asked in these letters what would it take for the country to pull together and work for a common good as happened during WWII. Within a month of Pearl Harbor Roosevelt told Congress and the nation "Powerful enemies must be out fought and out produced". Roosevelt conveyed a deep sense of urgency and stressed unity as the only way to win the war. All people were compelled to contribute to the war effort. And it worked. An entire nation, young and old, successfully mobilized toward a common goal for a common good. But it was a very different time. All news about the war had to be approved by the Office of War Information. There were extremely tight controls about what could and could not be released to the public. Roosevelt was of a mind to communicate one message to all of the people all of the time; he was a very different kind of leader than the one we have now; Trump chose chaos and nonchalance, Roosevelt did not.
Since WWII the importance of the Individual has replaced the importance of We the People. We are suffering the consequences of that shift now. The reassuring thing about the incoming Biden-Harris administration is that they understand the principles of leadership and guidance. They know that sending a unified message, especially during a time of crisis, is the only way to get people to buy into collaborative action. One of their biggest challenges from here on out will be to convey the sense of urgency required so that all people will be compelled to act in the best interests of the country. There will be a lot of resentment as private citizens, some law enforcement and government leaders continue to push back against actions which may curtail personal freedom. But we are not being asked to pick up a gun or a hand grenade and kill another human being, we are being asked to wear a mask, socially distance, not attend social gatherings and events. It's lonely for many of us who are unable to see our children, other family members and friends. But the sooner people take up the cause the sooner we'll win.
*Worldometer Coronavirus Update, 24 November
So well stated, Daria; and you echo my thoughts. I was so completely disheartened when Pence stated “We know that the American people know what to do”. Obviously, if the majority of people could be trusted to “know” what to do, we would not be in this mess. If the individualists cared enough about the collective, we could get this virus under control. The “essential workers” who are “out in the trenches” every day so they can put food on the table, and pay the rent, are being exposed to this virus and killed by the smug “no one can tell me what to do” people who have been mislead by this administrations response (more like lack of response) to this “common enemy”.
Pence’s statement more clearly stated “I don’t give a d*** about you”. 🤬🤬
PS, I am so grateful there is an open forum such as this one HCR has created, where concerns and ideas can be exchanged with thoughtful folk.
Me, too!!! I look forward to the comments every day as much as I look forward to the Letters. I feel like many of you here have become my friends 😁.
It is quite a wonderful community that has blossomed under Heather's guidance and tutelage. It is another thing to be thankful for.
Cathy, when Pence made his statement I didn't know whether to be angry or sad. Collaboration is a dirty word. The common good or greater good are concepts that have been bastardized to mean communist. It is heart breaking that a good chunk of the country couldn't care less about the folks next door or the checker at the grocery or the healthcare workers care for the dying who proclaim covid 19 is a hoax even as they gasp their last breath. Sigh. It's going to be a very tough row to hoe for Biden and his administration; there are so many who will do anything so see them fail.
I would have been surprised if Pence has said anything other than what he did. It is not realistic to believe that he will say anything that doesn't fit the narrative of this poisonous "administration."
In his Thanksgiving address a little while ago, Biden spoke of opposing sides coming together, of caring for and about each other in order to keep the virus better under control until the vaccine(s) can be distributed, just as he had throughout his campaign. He truly believes his oft-stated, "We are the UNITED States of America," and he fully expects there to be a turnaround in the discourse. I'm not so sure about that, and unless Ossoff and Warnock get into the Senate, I'm afraid the obstruction and gridlock will continue. But we can hope.
It was a really warm and humane address. I hope his message of unity reaches some who have been reluctant to acknowledge his election.
We mustn't give up hope.
“Observers expect [Yellen] to back government spending to address the devastating effects of the coronavirus on the economy, while her background in monetary policy will help her craft a coordinated response between the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department.”
Little of Janet Yellen’s considerable knowledge and understanding will be effective if Biden can’t peal away enough Senate Republicans from under McConnell’s thumb . Even if the Democrats manage to take the two Georgia senate seats, if McConnell decides to treat Biden the way he treated Obama, it’s going to be a slug fest to get even half-measures done.
Forewarned is forearmed....hopefully! Obama really didn't understand either what was happening or who he was dealing with. There is nothing "nice" in the current game! Nothing is guarranteed...the real fight is only just starting and world economic recession will hit everybody hard in the new year as governments all run down their horrendously expensive economic and social support measures at the same time.
"Obama really didn't understand..."
Agreed, but I don't think anyone is prepared for the way the world looks from behind the desk in the Oval Office. Biden is probably as prepared as anyone could be for what he's going to be facing starting Jan. 20. He's also probabaly the one most able to do some kind of business with McConnell, who doesn't have to think about re-election for a while.
Thank you for responding to my post.
Well said, Stuart. You bring up a good point by mentioning ‘world economic recession’. Combined with the pandemic and a rise in the number of nationalist governments around the world, worldwide recession puts us (the world) in a precarious position not unlike circumstances leading up to each of the previous two world wars. Very concerning.
Thank you Heather. I felt relief today that the Trump sh**show will finally come to an end. It's been a very stressful couple of months.
Years, for me
Same here.
Same here too.
Thank you! I for one am relieved by Biden’s cabinet picks. Get people in the positions who know what needs to be done and can mentor younger people in how it is done. Unfortunately I think there will be a lot of cleanup to accomplish as Trump tries to destroy the country on his way out the door.
Dr. Richardson I hope that you and your family have a restful Thanksgiving.