Today, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) warned that foreign adversaries, especially Russia, are working “to undermine public confidence in the integrity of U.S.
Thanks Heather for your constant watch on the American experience and what it means to every citizen in the United States and its impact on the world. Just like the chant at the Chicago Convention in 1968 “the whole world is watching!”
Brian Sean McKown -- I'm a Colorado voter (I vote from abroad -- Canada). Boulder County. I'm pretty terrified about what could happen today. And through January 6th. Nothing can be taken for granted.
I’m a Colorado voter sitting in NY right now. We mailed our ballots in to Eagle County last week and they were counted. Hoping a miracle happens in the 4th district and Boebert gets her butt handed to her.🤞🏼
That would be amazing! I’m in Boulder County, so hoping that crazy woman gets her butt kicked. That said she moved to NE Colorado for a reason. Eagle county… maybe it isn’t as conservative as it once was?
It pains me that I couldn’t do my civic duty and travel from CT to PA to work on account of a new case of bronchitis. I am concerned about any dirty tricks that will be in play during the count leading to certification of election. If Trump and his filthy company of destroyers of everything good becomes successful and, even after not getting the majority of electors, and somehow he claims the presidency, I would hope and pray that President Biden emplores the Joint Chiefs of Staff to prevent Trump from taking g office through a suspension of the constitution and a temporary declaration of martial law. I would so easily take my chances with our military than a Trump administration.
Don’t fret, Bill. I came from CA to NC to canvass just to offset your absence in PA. My biggest success was converting my Republican Uber driver to vote for Harris. It was easy after I learned he had 2 teenage daughters.
Congratulations on your conversion. of the Uber driver. My extensive writing efforts have not resulted in anyone acknowledging their conversion publicly
I turned my republican family in Texas, MaryB. Or maybe they saw the light on their own. I'll never know, but I'm proud and happy to say we are three generations that voted early and pure blue.
It is just as easy to imagine winning Bill. It is just as easy to know that the Democratic Party, Federal Agencies and President Biden have things under control. We are infinitely more prepared. And we have a Democratic President in the White House. He Falls under the Immunity ruling too. Oh, and he is Commander in Chief of the Military.
Sounds like you need to take good care of yourself. Worry does no good.
I’m already organizing the Gray Brigade, a quasi outfit of seniors that can March in uniform and on command, being positioned upwind of the enemy of MAGAs, turn around in unison bend over and fart. The effects are devastating on the enemy except The Donald, who would and has taken much pleasure in the aroma.
How did you guess so easily? My friend Vladimir Putin has opened a bank account for me and I’ve invested in North Korean flack jackets and making big ruble.
Those of us who write always promote ourselves. I guess you don’t write so you wouldn’t understand. Heather spent much time on the road promoting her book.
And unfortunately, I do not agree with your military approach of stopping Trump. Then we would just be the country he wants us to be anyway. And as much as it pains me to think about what he might do to this country, I would never support using his same tactics under any circumstances.
It depends. If unlawful forces even try and upend an election, then I most certainly expect President Biden to do something. If unlawful forces try any violence I expect President Biden to do something. If unlawful forces are interfering with people trying to vote then I expect officials of that State to do something.
President Biden has the Insurrection Act and the gift of Immunity from SCOTUS at his disposal. Besides being a super nice guy he is also Commander in Chief of the Unites States of America Military. It is no secret Russia is actively working to interfere in this election. It is a fact that fascism has come to this election.
When do we stop being such purists and do what is necessary to preserve our Democracy? When do sane Americans get protected? Why are we worried about violence today? How did it get to this point? I am sick of being bullied by these crazies. Mean and unlawful people count on decent people to hold back; to hesitate to engage. It is how they get away with so much.
These people really are trying to destroy our Democracy and way of life.
I think Biden is mad enough to act so you are correct. He won’t forget that debate moment when Biden lost his concentration and Trump poked fun at it. Nope, we are in good hands.
Smarten up there won’t be anything good remaining with a government run by autocrats. Even now, we are governed and owned by the corporate community. I’ll take my chances with the US military, thank you.
“Dennis, I’m gonna draw up a petition tonight that calls on the American military through the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to suspend the Constitution until Jan. 20, 2021 when a new president will be sworn into office. The military will immediately escort Trump off the grounds of the White House and place him in home confinement at Mar-a-Lago.
“The military will install a junta; a six person team representing the Marines, Air Force, Army and Navy, Coast Guard and now, the Space Force. Elections will proceed as scheduled but without Trump leading the Republican Party.
Are you ready to sign it, Dennis? Are you ready to take a stand for your family, community, state and nation?”
“You must be reading my mind, Bill. I've been saying this for weeks. I will sign it in a heartbeat. The Thief-in-Chief must go before he kills all of us. He is the biggest mass murderer in American history, bar none, and the toll climbs every day. The murderous slimebags on FOX should also be included in this purge, since they are equally complicit in this.
And, since there are still so many who don't mind dying for Trump, I would also strongly encourage red state Trump toadies to mass gather at churches, bars, whatever, and drool, spit, and ooze bodily fluids on each other, and then wait in line for ventilator treatment that could have been avoided if they had only listened to Dr. Fauci before catching COVID-19.
It looks like we just fixed the country. Now, what about McConnell and those other grinning jackals?”
Nope.. the JCS is a body of individuals who have managed to make their way there. Unfortunately, like a any body, there are a few pricks. We saw one who surfaced quite quickly when #45 took office.., didn't we? And, as we have clearly observed they have a following. Military members operate under the precept of "a lawful order". So, when their particular officer-in-charge says "charge".., 99% of them will respond. Simply, it is not for them to reason why, it's for them to do or die. The 1% are in the brig and whether the "order was lawful or not might get decided upon later. So don't hand me that 'military solution crap'. Leaders come and go. We've had a few. This country is far from a finished piece of artwork; 350 years is but a flash in a 5000 year old bonfire. Err on civility. The other road is not the road you want to be on when your testosterone level wains. How's your memory doing?
My new friend at the time, Professor Dennis Kaplan, who inspired me to write and at the same time told me I couldn’t make Trump funny, passed away just as my book was coming to market so I dedicated it to him. I miss his more offbeat than mine, sense of humor.
"Thief in chief".. yes. Our legal system, in a sincere effort to provide fairness, often appears inept because it enables those with 'lotsa money' (spelled political influence) to appeal/delay/appeal/delay, almost to no end. The lines drawn are often so fine they make no sense to me. But, until we figure out how to write things differently, they are "the line" a civilized society has to deal with. Finding a level playing field, in which to write or create, one free of personal prejudice, is tough. In the end, we've got to remember "we" are the ones electing the EMpty Greene's, the Scary Lakes, the J 'duh' Vances, the DJT's, and some other C*ksukahhs we're familiar with. Getting rid of them takes time. Lert's not shoot ourselves in the foot doing it.
Then buy my book and get a full understanding of what this bag of sheet is about. You will never be more entertained and educated all for 15 bucks. You will thank me. Don’t buy three beers save up and buy my book. Money back guaranteed. It will be the best investment you ever made.
A bit overplayed here, Bill, i'm pretty sure. Have you watched the movie Civil War? The downfall of a right-wing dictatorship, the last scenes an all-out at the White House no less.
Really? Another short story from the collection titled “Welcome to the New Snazzy Nazi States of America” and you had better learn how to do the new dance craze or off to a re-education camp for you. Give me a second.
We won’t need the military because Alzheimer’s is knocking on Trump’s door. I’m not a doctor but I think he is deteriorating rapidly and the stress of losing and facing prison…..well such a traumatic event would accelerate a healthy person’s mental health and we know Donny Boy is not a in good health. Praying for a sea of Blue!! 🙏
Trump is already gone. What I most fear is the movement that he has consolidated with Vance as a new figurehead. Remember when these American extremists only blew up federal buildings? Now they attach the Capital itself. We had better wisen up and although I have not mentioned issues, things like borders weigh heavily to blame on democrats and we had better wisen up.
Dear Bill, please recover asap. Bronchitis is a stinky sob, and sticks around like a car with missing hubcaps. I hope the poll watchers in PA make you proud!
But for me, bad knee et al, just reading HCR today lifted me up, made me smile erasing a lot of my deep concerns that have a bad habit of accumulating daily re the white supremacist fascists. I’m so grateful for Heather’s grasp of the history of political shenanigans that provides deep context for what is happening now.
I was born with bronchitis. When you live with a disease all your life you get used to it. I only catch it once every year or two. It goes away and then returns. My father had acute bronchial asthma so I feel I got off easy.
I hope you heal faster than my respiratory annoyance. Pneumonia since May, they can't figure out how to knock the infection out! I have been coughing and writing postcards forever and hope when the stress from this election ends the coughing will stop!
I’m sorry to hear this. Ya it sucks when it lasts. Sometimes my bronchitis lasts a few days and on rare occasions, it can last several months. My little potpourri of stuff is Vicks vapor rub, eucalyptus tabs I found the strongest ones at Costco, and codine cough medicine. But now I have fights with my doctors because big pharma sold the world on safe narcotics and we know what happened there. Now doctors are forced to limit scripts for this and I have walked out of previous doctor’s offices over this. No cure but combined they can allow a full nights rest. I’m going to yell at my doctor today if she refuses my request.
Today we watch and wonder what the next four years will be like. Our work will not be done. I know we will be looking to you HCR, to stay in the fight, providing us your leadership, understanding, and hope for the future.
I second and request Professor continues after the election. Indeed, I see in Professor's letters a new form of public journalism independent of the ownership. Major medias are marketing, not enlightening instrument of the society anymore.
Yes, the whole world is indeed watching and so many people are afraid. Praying that their fears will be unfounded. “Kamala Landslide” is my visualization and mantra. May it be so!!
“Tonight…we finish as we started: with optimism, with energy, with joy, knowing that we the people have the power to face our future and that we can confront any challenges we face when we do it together.”
It's refreshing that Harris says "We will win", rather than "I will win". A campaign is predictive of how an administration will govern. Harris's campaign has been inclusive, respectful, organized, disciplined, and supportive of the values of the majority of Americans. Her administration will be built on these same values. It will truly be the new page in our national story. She will be the uniter we've been looking for, because it's not about her. For her, it's about us.
I once was dubious about her leadership abilities. No longer. She is smart. She is wise. She is caring. She has spunk. I feel secure with her in office.
Hopefully she will assemble an equally capable cabinet and team of advisors as Joe did. Joe's team was amazing from top to bottom. The infrastructure projects along would have surpassed all of the accomplishments of the Trump administration and yet they did so much more. And they did it with Trump attempting to undermine everything the Trump administration tried to do at every turn.
Never forget that the best rightful place was on Scotus but one wretched Mitch McConnell and his control is the Court coterie deprived him of that. Be angry and determined to dethrone the power of the GOP in the Senate today as we vote and send all GOP who refused to support the election of Biden to the trash heap of their miserable careers.
I've thought of that often. He would have been a wise and careful voice on the Supreme Court. I'm not sure what character or personality flaw made him ill suited to run DoJ, but in normal times he might have been great.
I agree. He hired a Trump supporter to investigate Biden. So dumb to do. I forgot his name but I believe is Chinese American. From the Federalist Society.
I believe Kamala Harris and Tim Walz were made for this moment. Think about their two life “stories” thus far. Could we come up with a better twosome?…I could list here a dozen examples, but our team knows them well. In the same vein, could we have come up with a better contrasting story than DJT’s?…I don’t think so.
I am thankful to the new field of writers like Heather Cox Richardson and the other Substack writers we read. Harris and Walz have given those good writers fresh fodder that continues to nourish this movement. HCR will go down in history as the exemplar historian who met the moment in the transition from print media to digital media as she has brought history back to life for many of us in her herd.
No individual will save us. We are that ever-growing force that has always been simmering to bend the arc toward justice. Hopefully 2024 will go down in history as a year that the temperature was elevated in that direction. Win or lose this grueling election, this growing movement will continue.
I have been delighted to see that she routinely has said she will fight her best to do/get/enact whatever the subject is, rather than say that if she is elected she will promise x, y, or z.
Elizabeth, you said this so well and so optimistically! VP Harris surprised me by being such a competent speaker and campaigner, but she also rather charmed me with her sunny personality and sharp wit combined with dead seriousness about the risks Trump and the rest of the Christian Nationalist Right Wing pose to our country.
And it hasn’t hurt her that Trump’s vision of America as a hateful, dark place with soaring crime, a failing economy and a menacing immigrant population is so false that no one, not even MAGA, believes it. Combine that with Trump’s dementia emerging in the last two weeks and revealed by signs of disinhibition, a condition often seen in demented people, and you have the positive, optimistic political atmosphere you describe in your post.
But, while I agree with your fine post, you might agree, too, that human events can be perverse and Trump still might win. 😕
I think Jane covered that possibility, Alan, and answered with, "Win or lose this grueling election, this growing movement [preserving democracy] will continue."
Inauguration Day speech: Today, we start like we finished. With optimism, energy, joy, and we know that we the people will face this future and we will confront all the challenges that we face. We will do it together. I am humbled to be your leader. Let’s get started. <que the executive order folder>
Dan Rather's advice includes "Ignore Trump when he claims to have won on the first day, and remember that it may be several days before the final result is available".
You’re cooking it lady! Last night and tonight’s letters are remarkable. Thank you for your encouragement on today’s podcast. I have to remind myself to breathe! Stay calm and watch history unfold. We will win!
When the only people advocating for you are a fellow narcissist billionaire, a neo-nazi, and a pretend hillbilly, it is time for Trump to explore life in non-extradition countries.
Hoping that this sparks a major blue wave throughout the entire ballot.
even a late blooming blue at the margins, that will be very telling, a hunk of otherwise "red" America has "woke" no pun intended. And... a cross the board swing of less than 5% can well translate into a huge Congressional and down ballot change. To be honest the Republican Party NEEDS a serious electoral defeat.
Frank Loomer -- Another thing the very-much-missed *real* Republican Party needs is a deeply serious and honest overhaul. Congress should go to secret balloting so we the peeps can tell what's really going on. So many Republicans are still cowed by He Who Shall Not Be Named.
Make them pay for their own security forever is my. wish. Between billions spent on 'marketing' and who knows how much on secret service teams, imagine the good that could have been done with those dollars!
DJT, The "felon".., needs to forfiet all of that which we kindly afford those who obey the law. Whatever his 'sentences' are, he must serve them, and starting very soon. The preponderance of guilt appears to have been established in the overwhelming number of cases. Send that bum to a Federal Pen or facility like Eglin AFB, and assign him a to a lawnmowing crew... or garbage truck.., fer crissakes. Get it over with.
A "criminal" with 34, and counting, felonies should certainly cancel out an "ex pres" in the eyes of the government in deciding to whom It owes Secret Service protection. Behind bars might be enough.
Gregg -I hope so. Since he and his cohorts have acted as Russian Oligarchs -I’d be in favor of an asset freeze and subsequent forfeiture. I mean, it’s not like they will need much for the prison commissary.
This is now feeling more like the close of the 2008 Obama campaign when he and Joe beat McCain and Palin. It has the energy and the "we can make history" vibe about it. We were holding our breath then...Palin was soooo bad. I REALLY want to see history made tonight again and let's elect the first woman to be POTUS....and let's get rid of Donald from the political stage forever. That's my dream and hope. Bless you all for participating in this forum. It's been an education and a place to vent. Heather is the BEST.
I love it. I've never worked one of his events....and hope that after this week there will never be any more. I really do wish that I had been working at one when he started his Fake News , Enemy of the people routine...I'd say fine...turn off the camera and walk away and encourage the others to do the same thing.
I came really close to walking off of a very conservative gig one time, 5-6 years ago, because it was so vile and hateful...the only thing that stopped me was professionalism and my desire to not hurt the rest of the crew. A lot of us work freelance and the younger guys don't want to hurt their careers. We work on events for both sides. Especially in DC. At this point I'd walk out on Trump or Vance just to make a point.
I suspect I am not alone in worrying about jinxing the results. But I also have the same intuitive feelings as you. I want to "Believe" that America will reject hate and bigotry. Reject crazy.
I woke up this morning thinking the two paths that will follow the Harris/Walz victory. THE NUMBER ONE issue for the new administration must be addressing the Climate Catastrophe - reducing carbon release, mitigating the impact of extreme events, creating new energy jobs, subsidizing sustainable sources of energy instead of fossil fuels..taking the science seriously.
And then, implement programs that provide desperately needed assistance for those in the "sandwich" - child care assistance and elder care help to keep seniors in their homes. These are issues that surmount any political leanings and are a universal burden on almost every American family.
NUMBER TWO:
A simultaneous priority should be the further investigation of all those involved with the attempted coup of January 6, 2021. There are members of Congress who should have been charged, tried and punished - who still threaten our democracy and the legitimacy of our democracy.
And speaking of crimes, Jack Smith should find a new venue, a new judge to oversee the treasonous theft of Top Secret Documents by a private citizen. This crime alone should have made it impossible for Trump to seek office. He should have been incarcerated and held without bail - a flight risk. How would any one of us be treated if we removed boxes of Top Secret documents and stored them in a bathroom available to guests in our home? How is it that such a dangerous and flagrant act such as this goes away because of one obviously biased judge in Florida? This case needs to go forward with vigor and new energy.
NUMBER THREE:
A full on, no holds barred response to Russian and Iranian disinformation campaigns in the US that undermine our democracy. Portray Putin as the "Stalinesque murderer " he is. We have the tools to reveal him for the thief he is. Russia needs our assistance in bringing democracy to Moscow. The forces of evil led by Putin will only respect power and strength.
Make it painful for Putin. Ask why he had to import troops from North Korea. Reminds me of the much hated Hessians used by the Redcoats during our Revolution. Another sign of weakness - that they have been using their own young men as cannon fodder.
So, after we reject the crazy and the hateful, so much to get back on track about. Climate, help for the overly burdened working middle class, justice for coup plotters and traitors, and a campaign that shows Russia what American can really do with AI and a comprehensive project to discredit an Oligarch who has stolen billions from his own people. The Truth is Out There. We need to use it.
Bill I'm TOTALLY with you on your agenda. I so wish that Jimmy Carter had gotten 2 terms and that Al Gore would have won. We'd be so far ahead on climate policy and that is THE crisis for all of us and our children. Republicans aren't a collaborating other point of view any more. They just obstruct and act like bullies. Lock him up...but if that gets close, I believe he'll fly away. Orban would take him in.
Bill, excellent recommendations. I like all three. I especially like your previous recommendation. Nominate HCR as our next secretary of education. Maybe then, civics will become part of the curriculum from grade one through high school. The level of ignorance among the people supporting tRump has no low.
Lemme get this straight, one side has two robotic narcissist billionaires who cheated on their wives, a white nationalist fantasizing about a civil war and a supposed hillbilly who is secretly mentored by and funded by another narcissistic billionaire.
The other side has the support of the entire Democratic Party, the Cheney’s, John Kelly, Gen. MacMaster, Gen. Milley, Mike Pence, Arnold Schwartznagger, J.Lo, Bad Bunny, Lin Manuel-Miranda, Taylor Swift and Beyoncé.
No! He's mine! mine! Did you see the Dial of Destiny? It was perfect. I smiled with happiness from beginning to end. The scene where they're trying to contradict each other to Archimedes in Ancient Greek. More seriously, have you seen his excellent youtube pitch for Kamala Harris?
That's what we've gotta be honest enough to remember! USA has been in political gridlock since the fallout from Obama put new wind in the GOP's sails. The Tea Party was a tsunami. We could, perhaps, wonder how the Democratic Party "lost it" after Obama, or maybe the answer was just too much change for many Americas. Besides the ACA, and the broad coalition the Dems have corralled to advance minority causes, and let's not forget its humane, less religious approach to issues - all that has generated a huge reactionary response.
I think you have a real point about esp the Evangelicals et al who are fighting tooth and nail abt RvW issues, RGPTQ plus. This has been preached from the pews for over a generation (or two) and organized into the GOP which has now, under MAGA, destroyed itself. Organized religion in America has been in decline for some time, and I'm sure this latest is not helping its cause. Europe is light years ahead on getting out from under the organized religion umbrella.
May it be so! What a waste of energy and resources. I’m amazed at the waste of resources in the proliferation of churches on every corner, plus the monumental shrines here and there. Pfft.
Sophie, In 2020, over 155 million votes were cast. I have read that over 77 million have already been cast.
My husband is a first time election judge. He was inspired to do so after watching a Youtube clip of Brian Tyler Cohen and Marc Elias. The polls open here at 6:00 am. He texted that the first voter showed up and was waiting at 5:30.
I believe there will be an even larger number of votes cast. I am hoping for the same as you, and that there truly is a BLUE tsunami!!
I certainly hope so! I wish it for my American friends, for my Canadian friends, for the sake of my own continent, Europe, and for the rest of the world.
Love Heather's insight on the orange felon and his sycophant sidekick each campaigning alone.
Such a contrast with all the richly diverse souls happy to appear on stage with Kamala especially.
Ally House (Oregon) wrote here yesterday on this -- the love of others or not -- just after she “read Anthony’s reply regarding ‘creating robots out of our children.’”
This reminded her “that the entire ‘standardized testing’ programs really caught fire after the college protests around the Vietnam War.” She wondered “if there wasn’t an additional motivator from the ‘establishment’ to prevent the ‘free thinkers’ from future activities such as the war protests.”
Spot-on, Ally.
The Powell memo of 1971 – and all the far-right foundations implementing it – aimed first to kill school humanities (all levels).
Anyone reading Diane Ravitch’s "The Language Police" (2003) can see how all the testing that ensued stressed schools voiding all that was individually generous, humanly patient, and nuance-attentive personal. All would instead key to group units, the abstracted categorical, and a repetitive linear. As if life had no persons, no individuals, just units in packages.
Nihilist, neutered elites would rule. They who became the Clarence court. They who would rule what is now the party of MAGA. They who would staff Fox News and set social media algorithms to moneyed fascism.
None of this could have happened had American schools stayed in the hands of teachers – had the human and humanities centered them.
And so we have our sick candidates, as Heather sees, each alone. And we have the human by contrast.
I think there is more going on that just the rejection of humanities and interdisciplinary education, but it is certainly a big part and part and parcel of "dehumanizing" society. And while "lifelong learning" has become a cliche, education is the lifeblood of awareness and wisdom. Schools primarily exists to lay a sound foundation for it, but learning and a thirst to discover what we can of truth can permeate the consciousness of a society or at least percolate though it. At different times, in differing places around the planet, there have been outbursts of discovery, fine, meaningful art, revealing humor, and wider justice; and also episodes of quite the reverse. Where are we heading on this eve of change? What, in the end, matters most?
My poor parents never stopped saying that education was our way to a better life. They had to leave school early, but their eight children learned that lesson. It seems that the current iteration of repubs want to undo everything Franklin and originators founded. Schools, libraries, post office, fire stations, and a free country, for starters. Chump promises to save the country. He has no clue about the promise of the country. His ideological and monied supporters do. They want to replace it with the one man gets all the votes…. A Putin plan on steroids.
Recently a relative wondered why my daughter is studying Literature and Historical Linguistics here in Germany. The exact question is what kind of job could she get with it. While I did not list the possible jobs for a multilingual person who has strong reading, writing and speaking skills, I did say she is studying this because it interests her.
Her current study interests have been narrowed down greatly from about 20 areas she was interested in her senior year in high school, because being good at languages, writing, math, sciences and art, since she has had a well rounded education, including travel has led to this.
My daughter has picked things to study that interest her, because she understands learning as a lifelong pursuit. We were just discussing languages she will be learning in her program such as Latin and Lithuanian. She is excited. She figures she will have more idea about career later on. She does not just look at her studies as a means to a job, but as a part of a lifelong journey of learning. Of course, that fact that she is going to university in a country where there is no tuition and many students live at home and go locally, so expenses are lower, makes it easier to learn for the sake of learning. Here there is a semester fee, and hers was 299€. The US is wealthier, it should be like that in the US too.
Wow, amazing. She can contribute in any way she chooses. And reap rewards.
I spent most of my working life learning also. Continuing Ed, night school, just anything that interested me. Computers gave me more challenges. Still try to keep the mind sharp. Never was good at languages though…
Thanks JD, LInda for that interesting chat! I do get the feeling Phil's beat up on modern education and standardized testing is a bit over the top. After all, Half plus of America are voting Harris , lol
I believe in lifelong learning and it should never be cliche. I am glad that I taught in schools that allowed me to teach as I was trained to follow the path of John Dewey, educator and philosopher who said, that we learn by doing meaningful things in meaningful contexts. That is what this election has been about.
Gary, Though your question was not addressed to me, as a college English teacher I couldn’t resist sharing that I started each semester asking, “Would you rather win an argument and be wrong, or lose the argument and learn something.” While initially most students were partial to the former, by mid-semester virtually all had shifted to the latter.
Talia, Thank you for writing. I simply would add that I sensed students increasingly discovered that through repeated open discussion and dialogue they increasingly understood that intellectual growth occurs when we integrate new and sometimes conflicting ideas into what we already feel and believe.
Life-long learning was my Mother's credo and she instilled it in me - enabling me to have the curiosity to pursue 3 different careers in two different countries - art historian / graphic designer and then, in my 40s - lawyer. When she was in her 80s and used a walker she would still manage to get to the University of Michigan's Saturday Morning Physics classes that were open to the public!
Gary, my personal motto has been "Do a good deed and learn something new every day." When I was working in the medical laboratory, it was very very easy to learn something new daily, and being in the hospital, it was also very easy to do good deeds. Now that I am retired, I have to work at both. HCR offers many lessons, but so do so many who comment here! The comment section often adds additional context and under reported stories. The discussions between readers often make me consider my own viewpoints. Thank you, everyone!
In fairness, in my school system (long, long ago on a planet… oops, wrong quote) we studied the humanities, at least reading “decent” literature. BUT, our educational system took manifest destiny for granted, and slavery as a slightly sad, brief aberration in the American story which has no effect on our present America.
Thanks, Phil, but I think there's more to it... the '80's and Reagan and government by the elite were the biggest factors, I think, in the deterioration of public education...or at least it scotched the rise of progressive education initiatives, which was the real loss. As an educator now, I don't look back fondly on my K-12 education; even without the incessant testing the Every Child Left Behind Act brought, public education in the '50's and '60's was hopelessly mired in 'blank slate' views of children.
You can not have robust public education unless you also have a robust democracy... and, yes, the reverse is also true.
I watched that segment on Nicole's show 4 times in a row...it was so organic - Nicole calling it in real time - the moment JD locked in the "women" vote for Harris!
J L Graham, I like Nicole’s program (Deadline White House on MSNBC) because she has a lot of former Republicans on her program with their unique perspective.
While you are certain to receive many comments of gratitude for keeping so many of us sane through the insanity of the past number of years, just needed to be the one of many to say THANK YOU. You are a blessing and a treasure and I am forever grateful for your wisdom and service to the great experiment that is DEMOCRACY.
I think one of the most joyful things about the HArris campaign is the enormous amount of work that is being done by everyday folks, not politicians or professional campaign workers. Sane Americans, from all political parties, obviously realise how important it is that the MAGA party (NOT the "Republican party"!) is wiped off the face of the earth. I truly hope that when the results come in of Kamala's landslide win, all those postcard senders, phone bankers and door knockers give themselves some time tor relax and "Party on!"
That might explain it. I saw this headline tonight "Embattled Rudy Giuliani ‘not ruling out’ another run for NYC mayor", so the condition might be catching. Either that of it's evil alien mind control rays coming from space. I keep hoping that MAGA madness might one day break, like a fever.
I consider Rudy's consumption of alcoholic beverages to be a part of his erratic behavior. Continuous and heavy drinking will strongly affect the mental and physical health of a much younger person, so it is not difficult for me to understand the assault this habit has on him at his age. It seems possible, if not probable, that with a mind so affected by alcohol consumption to have these flights of fancy, he would stand a chance at becoming NYC mayor again. I find that highly unlikely.
Sunday night seemed like a rally on Substack, many of the writers were pushing out sunny vibes after a year of working hard on the BLUE side, and feeling the fatigue from the GOP side.
We are so educated from Dr HCR, and appreciate the stories as we gathered around Heather’s campfire. 🔥
It will be so wonderful to go forward with a huge victory for truth and democracy, and with Kamala Harris as President and Tim Walz as VP. apparently trump knows he’s lost. why else would he campaign as he has done - clearly he’s unstable and is panicked.
meanwhile, we can expect more of his threats.. while the momentum for Harris carries her into the White House.
all I’ve hoped for all along is for right and decency to triumph over trump, vance, rfk jr, and especially musk.
It weird. He could have been a hero. God knows he needs no more money. Yet he feels the compulsion to treat people like crap, like the election workers he recently employed. He could not be bothered to do it right, or even legally, and he thinks he's so rich and special that it's never going to bite him.
Wow, the vet gave my cat that and she was deaf from then on. And she was one that had WYA on her chart. I said what’s that? Watch Your Ass, the reply. She loved to cause chaos. Seems similar somehow. She didn’t have unlimited power, but Lordy, everybody did WYA. We should too…
Absolutely! Imagine what he COULD do for the greater good of mankind with all that money!
And just a thought that ran through my head last night, when I heard the news that his "lottery" could continue: he is wealthy enough that he could buy the vote of every voter in the US. What is to stop someone like him from doing so? Would those who would enforce election laws turn away money to themselves and all in their family?
When we enter this world - this universe - this form of life…we seek, we look for, we hope that we have guiding light(s). We have no control over the number of, the degree of excellence or not so excellent the form that guiding light and/or lights will be. As we grow, we age, we gain knowledge, we live, we learn…we experience acceptance and rejection. At some point in our lives, we then take on the role of becoming guiding lights.
Well, our country to needs guiding lights…someone [and occasionally some thing or things] that tends to be our guiding light. America’s “founding fathers” were our earlier guiding light and along the country’s historical progression, we have had 46 presidents who have offered their knowledge, their life experiences, their service to help guide our nation - hopefully in the right direction or to keep on the tracks or the path to heading in the right direction. Change is inevitable. As one was known to say on a weekly basis for a while: “progress is our most important product”.
Today, the country nears the end of deciding who will be the 47th person to guide us along our path and on into our journey to the future…to tomorrow and beyond - for the next four or so years. Let’s hope that we - a sizable majority of us – make the right decision. Our country is in need of a superb guiding light at this time…and as individuals, for many of us, that superb guiding light just happened to have been our mothers!
Thanks Heather for your constant watch on the American experience and what it means to every citizen in the United States and its impact on the world. Just like the chant at the Chicago Convention in 1968 “the whole world is watching!”
I second this statement. Thank you Prof. HCR for your 5+ years of dedication to help save democracy & for your wise & valuable insight.
"Seek out information from trusted" sources. That's why I am reading Professor Richardson now.
Still way, way too early but, Colorado officially reports over 2,000,000 Colorado voters have already voted as of this morning.
Over 3 Million in Michigan up to this morning.
Brian Sean McKown -- I'm a Colorado voter (I vote from abroad -- Canada). Boulder County. I'm pretty terrified about what could happen today. And through January 6th. Nothing can be taken for granted.
I’m a Colorado voter sitting in NY right now. We mailed our ballots in to Eagle County last week and they were counted. Hoping a miracle happens in the 4th district and Boebert gets her butt handed to her.🤞🏼
Polls close in Colorado at 9 PM Eastern. 4th District, Go Trisha!
I'm stuck in Parker, and the feeling is so strange. There might actually be Democrats who win in Douglas county. Take heart
That would be amazing! I’m in Boulder County, so hoping that crazy woman gets her butt kicked. That said she moved to NE Colorado for a reason. Eagle county… maybe it isn’t as conservative as it once was?
I think Springsteen's Nebraska album got it right Jen, the determination to go on.
I am taking nothing for granted & making sure a neighbor gets to our CA polling place today.
It pains me that I couldn’t do my civic duty and travel from CT to PA to work on account of a new case of bronchitis. I am concerned about any dirty tricks that will be in play during the count leading to certification of election. If Trump and his filthy company of destroyers of everything good becomes successful and, even after not getting the majority of electors, and somehow he claims the presidency, I would hope and pray that President Biden emplores the Joint Chiefs of Staff to prevent Trump from taking g office through a suspension of the constitution and a temporary declaration of martial law. I would so easily take my chances with our military than a Trump administration.
Don’t fret, Bill. I came from CA to NC to canvass just to offset your absence in PA. My biggest success was converting my Republican Uber driver to vote for Harris. It was easy after I learned he had 2 teenage daughters.
I helped my next door neighbor obtain an absentee ballot for her invalid adult son who would not have voted otherwise.
Congratulations on your conversion. of the Uber driver. My extensive writing efforts have not resulted in anyone acknowledging their conversion publicly
Thank you for your work!
❤❤❤❤❤❤ Thank You!!!
I turned my republican family in Texas, MaryB. Or maybe they saw the light on their own. I'll never know, but I'm proud and happy to say we are three generations that voted early and pure blue.
It is just as easy to imagine winning Bill. It is just as easy to know that the Democratic Party, Federal Agencies and President Biden have things under control. We are infinitely more prepared. And we have a Democratic President in the White House. He Falls under the Immunity ruling too. Oh, and he is Commander in Chief of the Military.
Sounds like you need to take good care of yourself. Worry does no good.
We have done our duty. I second Jon's sentiment.
I’m already organizing the Gray Brigade, a quasi outfit of seniors that can March in uniform and on command, being positioned upwind of the enemy of MAGAs, turn around in unison bend over and fart. The effects are devastating on the enemy except The Donald, who would and has taken much pleasure in the aroma.
I'll come! What song should we play?
“Pop pop fizz fizz
Oh what a relief it is”
Your posts seem only loosely tied to reality. They read like what I imagine those in Putin’s employ might be expected to write.
How did you guess so easily? My friend Vladimir Putin has opened a bank account for me and I’ve invested in North Korean flack jackets and making big ruble.
Ed, you’ll notice a constant refrain of “buy my book”
Those of us who write always promote ourselves. I guess you don’t write so you wouldn’t understand. Heather spent much time on the road promoting her book.
To Bill, to the many gallantly stood this test and gave testament to ways to bring our message of unity to the front page . 👏☮️🫶
If Harris loses by one vote, we will hold you accountable, Bill! :-)
And unfortunately, I do not agree with your military approach of stopping Trump. Then we would just be the country he wants us to be anyway. And as much as it pains me to think about what he might do to this country, I would never support using his same tactics under any circumstances.
It depends. If unlawful forces even try and upend an election, then I most certainly expect President Biden to do something. If unlawful forces try any violence I expect President Biden to do something. If unlawful forces are interfering with people trying to vote then I expect officials of that State to do something.
President Biden has the Insurrection Act and the gift of Immunity from SCOTUS at his disposal. Besides being a super nice guy he is also Commander in Chief of the Unites States of America Military. It is no secret Russia is actively working to interfere in this election. It is a fact that fascism has come to this election.
When do we stop being such purists and do what is necessary to preserve our Democracy? When do sane Americans get protected? Why are we worried about violence today? How did it get to this point? I am sick of being bullied by these crazies. Mean and unlawful people count on decent people to hold back; to hesitate to engage. It is how they get away with so much.
These people really are trying to destroy our Democracy and way of life.
I think Biden is mad enough to act so you are correct. He won’t forget that debate moment when Biden lost his concentration and Trump poked fun at it. Nope, we are in good hands.
I do too. I just saw the announcement from officials in PA about election crap. Their message was. FAFO. That is exactly what they said.
It really is past time we got really mad. I am sick of feeling shoved around and scared.
Smarten up there won’t be anything good remaining with a government run by autocrats. Even now, we are governed and owned by the corporate community. I’ll take my chances with the US military, thank you.
I called for a coup 4 yours ago.
A Coup D’état to Make America Great Again
(My Letter to a Friend and his Return Letter)
“Dennis, I’m gonna draw up a petition tonight that calls on the American military through the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to suspend the Constitution until Jan. 20, 2021 when a new president will be sworn into office. The military will immediately escort Trump off the grounds of the White House and place him in home confinement at Mar-a-Lago.
“The military will install a junta; a six person team representing the Marines, Air Force, Army and Navy, Coast Guard and now, the Space Force. Elections will proceed as scheduled but without Trump leading the Republican Party.
Are you ready to sign it, Dennis? Are you ready to take a stand for your family, community, state and nation?”
“You must be reading my mind, Bill. I've been saying this for weeks. I will sign it in a heartbeat. The Thief-in-Chief must go before he kills all of us. He is the biggest mass murderer in American history, bar none, and the toll climbs every day. The murderous slimebags on FOX should also be included in this purge, since they are equally complicit in this.
And, since there are still so many who don't mind dying for Trump, I would also strongly encourage red state Trump toadies to mass gather at churches, bars, whatever, and drool, spit, and ooze bodily fluids on each other, and then wait in line for ventilator treatment that could have been avoided if they had only listened to Dr. Fauci before catching COVID-19.
It looks like we just fixed the country. Now, what about McConnell and those other grinning jackals?”
Signed: Dennis Kaplan
Nope.. the JCS is a body of individuals who have managed to make their way there. Unfortunately, like a any body, there are a few pricks. We saw one who surfaced quite quickly when #45 took office.., didn't we? And, as we have clearly observed they have a following. Military members operate under the precept of "a lawful order". So, when their particular officer-in-charge says "charge".., 99% of them will respond. Simply, it is not for them to reason why, it's for them to do or die. The 1% are in the brig and whether the "order was lawful or not might get decided upon later. So don't hand me that 'military solution crap'. Leaders come and go. We've had a few. This country is far from a finished piece of artwork; 350 years is but a flash in a 5000 year old bonfire. Err on civility. The other road is not the road you want to be on when your testosterone level wains. How's your memory doing?
My new friend at the time, Professor Dennis Kaplan, who inspired me to write and at the same time told me I couldn’t make Trump funny, passed away just as my book was coming to market so I dedicated it to him. I miss his more offbeat than mine, sense of humor.
"Thief in chief".. yes. Our legal system, in a sincere effort to provide fairness, often appears inept because it enables those with 'lotsa money' (spelled political influence) to appeal/delay/appeal/delay, almost to no end. The lines drawn are often so fine they make no sense to me. But, until we figure out how to write things differently, they are "the line" a civilized society has to deal with. Finding a level playing field, in which to write or create, one free of personal prejudice, is tough. In the end, we've got to remember "we" are the ones electing the EMpty Greene's, the Scary Lakes, the J 'duh' Vances, the DJT's, and some other C*ksukahhs we're familiar with. Getting rid of them takes time. Lert's not shoot ourselves in the foot doing it.
And seriously, please get well... Even as much as a curmudgeon as you are, I think we all mostly like you LOL!
Then buy my book and get a full understanding of what this bag of sheet is about. You will never be more entertained and educated all for 15 bucks. You will thank me. Don’t buy three beers save up and buy my book. Money back guaranteed. It will be the best investment you ever made.
Btw, are you liking yourself?
Book title please? And a link?
“Donald’s Vanity Tantrums” Amazon or me (bkatz321@gmail.com)
Haha, Jon!
A bit overplayed here, Bill, i'm pretty sure. Have you watched the movie Civil War? The downfall of a right-wing dictatorship, the last scenes an all-out at the White House no less.
Really? Another short story from the collection titled “Welcome to the New Snazzy Nazi States of America” and you had better learn how to do the new dance craze or off to a re-education camp for you. Give me a second.
Whatever, Bill. conformity is classic social behaviour, 101.
We won’t need the military because Alzheimer’s is knocking on Trump’s door. I’m not a doctor but I think he is deteriorating rapidly and the stress of losing and facing prison…..well such a traumatic event would accelerate a healthy person’s mental health and we know Donny Boy is not a in good health. Praying for a sea of Blue!! 🙏
Trump is already gone. What I most fear is the movement that he has consolidated with Vance as a new figurehead. Remember when these American extremists only blew up federal buildings? Now they attach the Capital itself. We had better wisen up and although I have not mentioned issues, things like borders weigh heavily to blame on democrats and we had better wisen up.
That door was opened long ago!
Dear Bill, please recover asap. Bronchitis is a stinky sob, and sticks around like a car with missing hubcaps. I hope the poll watchers in PA make you proud!
But for me, bad knee et al, just reading HCR today lifted me up, made me smile erasing a lot of my deep concerns that have a bad habit of accumulating daily re the white supremacist fascists. I’m so grateful for Heather’s grasp of the history of political shenanigans that provides deep context for what is happening now.
I was born with bronchitis. When you live with a disease all your life you get used to it. I only catch it once every year or two. It goes away and then returns. My father had acute bronchial asthma so I feel I got off easy.
I hope you heal faster than my respiratory annoyance. Pneumonia since May, they can't figure out how to knock the infection out! I have been coughing and writing postcards forever and hope when the stress from this election ends the coughing will stop!
I’m sorry to hear this. Ya it sucks when it lasts. Sometimes my bronchitis lasts a few days and on rare occasions, it can last several months. My little potpourri of stuff is Vicks vapor rub, eucalyptus tabs I found the strongest ones at Costco, and codine cough medicine. But now I have fights with my doctors because big pharma sold the world on safe narcotics and we know what happened there. Now doctors are forced to limit scripts for this and I have walked out of previous doctor’s offices over this. No cure but combined they can allow a full nights rest. I’m going to yell at my doctor today if she refuses my request.
Thanks to the Extreme Court, Biden could order Tump and Vance killed and he couldn’t be prosecuted.
Today we watch and wonder what the next four years will be like. Our work will not be done. I know we will be looking to you HCR, to stay in the fight, providing us your leadership, understanding, and hope for the future.
We’ll also be looking to each other in our disparate and supportive Substack family.
Thank you all for your thoughts and advice. I think we have found our answer to the hard right’s AM radio!
I second and request Professor continues after the election. Indeed, I see in Professor's letters a new form of public journalism independent of the ownership. Major medias are marketing, not enlightening instrument of the society anymore.
Remember that those chanting in Chicago had a lot to do with electing Richard Nixon.
Yes, the whole world is indeed watching and so many people are afraid. Praying that their fears will be unfounded. “Kamala Landslide” is my visualization and mantra. May it be so!!
- Pulled Quote -
“Tonight…we finish as we started: with optimism, with energy, with joy, knowing that we the people have the power to face our future and that we can confront any challenges we face when we do it together.”
- Kamala Harris
Amen
It's refreshing that Harris says "We will win", rather than "I will win". A campaign is predictive of how an administration will govern. Harris's campaign has been inclusive, respectful, organized, disciplined, and supportive of the values of the majority of Americans. Her administration will be built on these same values. It will truly be the new page in our national story. She will be the uniter we've been looking for, because it's not about her. For her, it's about us.
I once was dubious about her leadership abilities. No longer. She is smart. She is wise. She is caring. She has spunk. I feel secure with her in office.
Hopefully she will assemble an equally capable cabinet and team of advisors as Joe did. Joe's team was amazing from top to bottom. The infrastructure projects along would have surpassed all of the accomplishments of the Trump administration and yet they did so much more. And they did it with Trump attempting to undermine everything the Trump administration tried to do at every turn.
I’d submit that Merrick Garland was the weak link in Biden’s Administration.
Never forget that the best rightful place was on Scotus but one wretched Mitch McConnell and his control is the Court coterie deprived him of that. Be angry and determined to dethrone the power of the GOP in the Senate today as we vote and send all GOP who refused to support the election of Biden to the trash heap of their miserable careers.
I've thought of that often. He would have been a wise and careful voice on the Supreme Court. I'm not sure what character or personality flaw made him ill suited to run DoJ, but in normal times he might have been great.
These have been anything but normal times.
Yes.
I agree. He hired a Trump supporter to investigate Biden. So dumb to do. I forgot his name but I believe is Chinese American. From the Federalist Society.
You did mean the Biden Administration tried to do.
Every presidency runs with a team indeed.
I believe Kamala Harris and Tim Walz were made for this moment. Think about their two life “stories” thus far. Could we come up with a better twosome?…I could list here a dozen examples, but our team knows them well. In the same vein, could we have come up with a better contrasting story than DJT’s?…I don’t think so.
I am thankful to the new field of writers like Heather Cox Richardson and the other Substack writers we read. Harris and Walz have given those good writers fresh fodder that continues to nourish this movement. HCR will go down in history as the exemplar historian who met the moment in the transition from print media to digital media as she has brought history back to life for many of us in her herd.
No individual will save us. We are that ever-growing force that has always been simmering to bend the arc toward justice. Hopefully 2024 will go down in history as a year that the temperature was elevated in that direction. Win or lose this grueling election, this growing movement will continue.
Thank you again, Heather!
What do you think of this idea? HCR as Secretary of Education.
Bill Alstrom -- I agree that HCR should be in Harris's cabinet, but leave the choice of which position up to the two of them.
I cannot for a moment imagine HCR leaving her paradise in Maine for a stint in DC. Does not seem to be her style.
When the nation calls… it’s only a few short years to serve.
Wonderfully put, Jane.
Well said. Thank you, Jane, for putting the thoughts of so many of us into words!
👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
I have been delighted to see that she routinely has said she will fight her best to do/get/enact whatever the subject is, rather than say that if she is elected she will promise x, y, or z.
What's delighted me has been the calm "we're not enemies, we'll sit down together and work it out" attitude.
Absolutely! That is music to our ears, I'm sure. Now, Ill have to find a video of all those entertainer performances at that latest rally.
"Humility is one of the most important qualities you must have."
- Nelson Mandela
"We." VP Harris is always "we." ‼️
Elizabeth, you said this so well and so optimistically! VP Harris surprised me by being such a competent speaker and campaigner, but she also rather charmed me with her sunny personality and sharp wit combined with dead seriousness about the risks Trump and the rest of the Christian Nationalist Right Wing pose to our country.
And it hasn’t hurt her that Trump’s vision of America as a hateful, dark place with soaring crime, a failing economy and a menacing immigrant population is so false that no one, not even MAGA, believes it. Combine that with Trump’s dementia emerging in the last two weeks and revealed by signs of disinhibition, a condition often seen in demented people, and you have the positive, optimistic political atmosphere you describe in your post.
But, while I agree with your fine post, you might agree, too, that human events can be perverse and Trump still might win. 😕
I think Jane covered that possibility, Alan, and answered with, "Win or lose this grueling election, this growing movement [preserving democracy] will continue."
Viva la Kamala!
Si, se pueda!!
Inauguration Day speech: Today, we start like we finished. With optimism, energy, joy, and we know that we the people will face this future and we will confront all the challenges that we face. We will do it together. I am humbled to be your leader. Let’s get started. <que the executive order folder>
It's gonna be a looong day.
Thanks for getting me through the longest years of my life.
Hopefully, tomorrow will be the start of new and better future.
Dan Rather's advice includes "Ignore Trump when he claims to have won on the first day, and remember that it may be several days before the final result is available".
Ignore Trump. Full stop.
I hope so, too. Good luck, people of America! The world depends on you!
You’re cooking it lady! Last night and tonight’s letters are remarkable. Thank you for your encouragement on today’s podcast. I have to remind myself to breathe! Stay calm and watch history unfold. We will win!
Thank you Professor Richardson.
When the only people advocating for you are a fellow narcissist billionaire, a neo-nazi, and a pretend hillbilly, it is time for Trump to explore life in non-extradition countries.
Hoping that this sparks a major blue wave throughout the entire ballot.
even a late blooming blue at the margins, that will be very telling, a hunk of otherwise "red" America has "woke" no pun intended. And... a cross the board swing of less than 5% can well translate into a huge Congressional and down ballot change. To be honest the Republican Party NEEDS a serious electoral defeat.
Frank Loomer -- Another thing the very-much-missed *real* Republican Party needs is a deeply serious and honest overhaul. Congress should go to secret balloting so we the peeps can tell what's really going on. So many Republicans are still cowed by He Who Shall Not Be Named.
I, for one, would have intended that pun :) Otherwise spot-on Frank!
i kinda went for the pun to be honest
:)
Can we impound their fleet of planes?
Make them pay for their own security forever is my. wish. Between billions spent on 'marketing' and who knows how much on secret service teams, imagine the good that could have been done with those dollars!
DJT, The "felon".., needs to forfiet all of that which we kindly afford those who obey the law. Whatever his 'sentences' are, he must serve them, and starting very soon. The preponderance of guilt appears to have been established in the overwhelming number of cases. Send that bum to a Federal Pen or facility like Eglin AFB, and assign him a to a lawnmowing crew... or garbage truck.., fer crissakes. Get it over with.
A "criminal" with 34, and counting, felonies should certainly cancel out an "ex pres" in the eyes of the government in deciding to whom It owes Secret Service protection. Behind bars might be enough.
Gregg -I hope so. Since he and his cohorts have acted as Russian Oligarchs -I’d be in favor of an asset freeze and subsequent forfeiture. I mean, it’s not like they will need much for the prison commissary.
Perhaps he could return some of his ill gotten gains as Guiliani has been made to do.
lol Gregg!
This is now feeling more like the close of the 2008 Obama campaign when he and Joe beat McCain and Palin. It has the energy and the "we can make history" vibe about it. We were holding our breath then...Palin was soooo bad. I REALLY want to see history made tonight again and let's elect the first woman to be POTUS....and let's get rid of Donald from the political stage forever. That's my dream and hope. Bless you all for participating in this forum. It's been an education and a place to vent. Heather is the BEST.
Mike, when I saw this clip, I thought of you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZT98ajRfxM
I don't know who that cameraperson is, but they are a patriot!!
I love it. I've never worked one of his events....and hope that after this week there will never be any more. I really do wish that I had been working at one when he started his Fake News , Enemy of the people routine...I'd say fine...turn off the camera and walk away and encourage the others to do the same thing.
Mike, it seems that complaining about the tech people at every one of his rallies has been his latest rant.
I always think "I wish those people would just walk OFF the job.".
What is there to lose? They probably aren't going to get paid anyway.
I came really close to walking off of a very conservative gig one time, 5-6 years ago, because it was so vile and hateful...the only thing that stopped me was professionalism and my desire to not hurt the rest of the crew. A lot of us work freelance and the younger guys don't want to hurt their careers. We work on events for both sides. Especially in DC. At this point I'd walk out on Trump or Vance just to make a point.
That cameraman was doing a good job!
Thank you, Mike, and Bless You and these United States of America!
Mike,
I suspect I am not alone in worrying about jinxing the results. But I also have the same intuitive feelings as you. I want to "Believe" that America will reject hate and bigotry. Reject crazy.
I woke up this morning thinking the two paths that will follow the Harris/Walz victory. THE NUMBER ONE issue for the new administration must be addressing the Climate Catastrophe - reducing carbon release, mitigating the impact of extreme events, creating new energy jobs, subsidizing sustainable sources of energy instead of fossil fuels..taking the science seriously.
And then, implement programs that provide desperately needed assistance for those in the "sandwich" - child care assistance and elder care help to keep seniors in their homes. These are issues that surmount any political leanings and are a universal burden on almost every American family.
NUMBER TWO:
A simultaneous priority should be the further investigation of all those involved with the attempted coup of January 6, 2021. There are members of Congress who should have been charged, tried and punished - who still threaten our democracy and the legitimacy of our democracy.
And speaking of crimes, Jack Smith should find a new venue, a new judge to oversee the treasonous theft of Top Secret Documents by a private citizen. This crime alone should have made it impossible for Trump to seek office. He should have been incarcerated and held without bail - a flight risk. How would any one of us be treated if we removed boxes of Top Secret documents and stored them in a bathroom available to guests in our home? How is it that such a dangerous and flagrant act such as this goes away because of one obviously biased judge in Florida? This case needs to go forward with vigor and new energy.
NUMBER THREE:
A full on, no holds barred response to Russian and Iranian disinformation campaigns in the US that undermine our democracy. Portray Putin as the "Stalinesque murderer " he is. We have the tools to reveal him for the thief he is. Russia needs our assistance in bringing democracy to Moscow. The forces of evil led by Putin will only respect power and strength.
Make it painful for Putin. Ask why he had to import troops from North Korea. Reminds me of the much hated Hessians used by the Redcoats during our Revolution. Another sign of weakness - that they have been using their own young men as cannon fodder.
So, after we reject the crazy and the hateful, so much to get back on track about. Climate, help for the overly burdened working middle class, justice for coup plotters and traitors, and a campaign that shows Russia what American can really do with AI and a comprehensive project to discredit an Oligarch who has stolen billions from his own people. The Truth is Out There. We need to use it.
Bill I'm TOTALLY with you on your agenda. I so wish that Jimmy Carter had gotten 2 terms and that Al Gore would have won. We'd be so far ahead on climate policy and that is THE crisis for all of us and our children. Republicans aren't a collaborating other point of view any more. They just obstruct and act like bullies. Lock him up...but if that gets close, I believe he'll fly away. Orban would take him in.
Bill, excellent recommendations. I like all three. I especially like your previous recommendation. Nominate HCR as our next secretary of education. Maybe then, civics will become part of the curriculum from grade one through high school. The level of ignorance among the people supporting tRump has no low.
Lemme get this straight, one side has two robotic narcissist billionaires who cheated on their wives, a white nationalist fantasizing about a civil war and a supposed hillbilly who is secretly mentored by and funded by another narcissistic billionaire.
The other side has the support of the entire Democratic Party, the Cheney’s, John Kelly, Gen. MacMaster, Gen. Milley, Mike Pence, Arnold Schwartznagger, J.Lo, Bad Bunny, Lin Manuel-Miranda, Taylor Swift and Beyoncé.
How is this even close again???
Propaganda works, especially when partnered with money, greed, self-interest.
And Harrison Ford.
Thank you! How can anyone leave Indie off the list! My forever hero!!!! 😊💙
No! He's mine! mine! Did you see the Dial of Destiny? It was perfect. I smiled with happiness from beginning to end. The scene where they're trying to contradict each other to Archimedes in Ancient Greek. More seriously, have you seen his excellent youtube pitch for Kamala Harris?
That's what we've gotta be honest enough to remember! USA has been in political gridlock since the fallout from Obama put new wind in the GOP's sails. The Tea Party was a tsunami. We could, perhaps, wonder how the Democratic Party "lost it" after Obama, or maybe the answer was just too much change for many Americas. Besides the ACA, and the broad coalition the Dems have corralled to advance minority causes, and let's not forget its humane, less religious approach to issues - all that has generated a huge reactionary response.
Dying things have enormous final energy. Organized religion is one of those dangerous cornered animals.
I think you have a real point about esp the Evangelicals et al who are fighting tooth and nail abt RvW issues, RGPTQ plus. This has been preached from the pews for over a generation (or two) and organized into the GOP which has now, under MAGA, destroyed itself. Organized religion in America has been in decline for some time, and I'm sure this latest is not helping its cause. Europe is light years ahead on getting out from under the organized religion umbrella.
May it be so! What a waste of energy and resources. I’m amazed at the waste of resources in the proliferation of churches on every corner, plus the monumental shrines here and there. Pfft.
I'm not so sure it is that close.
Sophie, In 2020, over 155 million votes were cast. I have read that over 77 million have already been cast.
My husband is a first time election judge. He was inspired to do so after watching a Youtube clip of Brian Tyler Cohen and Marc Elias. The polls open here at 6:00 am. He texted that the first voter showed up and was waiting at 5:30.
I believe there will be an even larger number of votes cast. I am hoping for the same as you, and that there truly is a BLUE tsunami!!
I certainly hope so! I wish it for my American friends, for my Canadian friends, for the sake of my own continent, Europe, and for the rest of the world.
I don’t think it is close. Don’t trust the polls trust the cheering crowds at VP Harris’s rallies!
Her huge rallies. And all those smiling faces as they LISTEN.
Love Heather's insight on the orange felon and his sycophant sidekick each campaigning alone.
Such a contrast with all the richly diverse souls happy to appear on stage with Kamala especially.
Ally House (Oregon) wrote here yesterday on this -- the love of others or not -- just after she “read Anthony’s reply regarding ‘creating robots out of our children.’”
This reminded her “that the entire ‘standardized testing’ programs really caught fire after the college protests around the Vietnam War.” She wondered “if there wasn’t an additional motivator from the ‘establishment’ to prevent the ‘free thinkers’ from future activities such as the war protests.”
Spot-on, Ally.
The Powell memo of 1971 – and all the far-right foundations implementing it – aimed first to kill school humanities (all levels).
Anyone reading Diane Ravitch’s "The Language Police" (2003) can see how all the testing that ensued stressed schools voiding all that was individually generous, humanly patient, and nuance-attentive personal. All would instead key to group units, the abstracted categorical, and a repetitive linear. As if life had no persons, no individuals, just units in packages.
Nihilist, neutered elites would rule. They who became the Clarence court. They who would rule what is now the party of MAGA. They who would staff Fox News and set social media algorithms to moneyed fascism.
None of this could have happened had American schools stayed in the hands of teachers – had the human and humanities centered them.
And so we have our sick candidates, as Heather sees, each alone. And we have the human by contrast.
I think there is more going on that just the rejection of humanities and interdisciplinary education, but it is certainly a big part and part and parcel of "dehumanizing" society. And while "lifelong learning" has become a cliche, education is the lifeblood of awareness and wisdom. Schools primarily exists to lay a sound foundation for it, but learning and a thirst to discover what we can of truth can permeate the consciousness of a society or at least percolate though it. At different times, in differing places around the planet, there have been outbursts of discovery, fine, meaningful art, revealing humor, and wider justice; and also episodes of quite the reverse. Where are we heading on this eve of change? What, in the end, matters most?
My poor parents never stopped saying that education was our way to a better life. They had to leave school early, but their eight children learned that lesson. It seems that the current iteration of repubs want to undo everything Franklin and originators founded. Schools, libraries, post office, fire stations, and a free country, for starters. Chump promises to save the country. He has no clue about the promise of the country. His ideological and monied supporters do. They want to replace it with the one man gets all the votes…. A Putin plan on steroids.
Recently a relative wondered why my daughter is studying Literature and Historical Linguistics here in Germany. The exact question is what kind of job could she get with it. While I did not list the possible jobs for a multilingual person who has strong reading, writing and speaking skills, I did say she is studying this because it interests her.
Her current study interests have been narrowed down greatly from about 20 areas she was interested in her senior year in high school, because being good at languages, writing, math, sciences and art, since she has had a well rounded education, including travel has led to this.
My daughter has picked things to study that interest her, because she understands learning as a lifelong pursuit. We were just discussing languages she will be learning in her program such as Latin and Lithuanian. She is excited. She figures she will have more idea about career later on. She does not just look at her studies as a means to a job, but as a part of a lifelong journey of learning. Of course, that fact that she is going to university in a country where there is no tuition and many students live at home and go locally, so expenses are lower, makes it easier to learn for the sake of learning. Here there is a semester fee, and hers was 299€. The US is wealthier, it should be like that in the US too.
Wow, amazing. She can contribute in any way she chooses. And reap rewards.
I spent most of my working life learning also. Continuing Ed, night school, just anything that interested me. Computers gave me more challenges. Still try to keep the mind sharp. Never was good at languages though…
We learn what we can in the ways we can!
Some learn what carnival barkers spew, sad to say. And think that it’s the Gospel.
Thanks JD, LInda for that interesting chat! I do get the feeling Phil's beat up on modern education and standardized testing is a bit over the top. After all, Half plus of America are voting Harris , lol
I believe in lifelong learning and it should never be cliche. I am glad that I taught in schools that allowed me to teach as I was trained to follow the path of John Dewey, educator and philosopher who said, that we learn by doing meaningful things in meaningful contexts. That is what this election has been about.
My high school composition teacher challenged us on day one by asking us if the statement -- "to learn is to change" is true.
What say you?
Gary, Though your question was not addressed to me, as a college English teacher I couldn’t resist sharing that I started each semester asking, “Would you rather win an argument and be wrong, or lose the argument and learn something.” While initially most students were partial to the former, by mid-semester virtually all had shifted to the latter.
I agree entirely. When you exchange ignorance for knowledge, you have changed who you are and what you can, do.
Talia, Thank you for writing. I simply would add that I sensed students increasingly discovered that through repeated open discussion and dialogue they increasingly understood that intellectual growth occurs when we integrate new and sometimes conflicting ideas into what we already feel and believe.
JL - "Lifelong learning" really is the key isn't it? Maria Montessori stressed learning for life. I'm suspect as an educator you did as well.
It seems that most of the people that comment here continue to "be educated." But that's a given just by reading the Professor's Daily Letter. 👍
Life-long learning was my Mother's credo and she instilled it in me - enabling me to have the curiosity to pursue 3 different careers in two different countries - art historian / graphic designer and then, in my 40s - lawyer. When she was in her 80s and used a walker she would still manage to get to the University of Michigan's Saturday Morning Physics classes that were open to the public!
Gary, my personal motto has been "Do a good deed and learn something new every day." When I was working in the medical laboratory, it was very very easy to learn something new daily, and being in the hospital, it was also very easy to do good deeds. Now that I am retired, I have to work at both. HCR offers many lessons, but so do so many who comment here! The comment section often adds additional context and under reported stories. The discussions between readers often make me consider my own viewpoints. Thank you, everyone!
Life, J L. Love of life, in others, with accuracy in seeing them as individuals in community.
Yes.
"Accuracy of observation is the equivalent of accuracy of thinking." Wallace Stevens
Thank You, Phil and Ally, for these insights. Tomorrow our work to bring back Civics, Civil Rights and Civility begins!!
I only just learned about the Powell memo. Boy, what an eye opener! The grand-daddy of Project 2025.
In fairness, in my school system (long, long ago on a planet… oops, wrong quote) we studied the humanities, at least reading “decent” literature. BUT, our educational system took manifest destiny for granted, and slavery as a slightly sad, brief aberration in the American story which has no effect on our present America.
Thanks, Phil, but I think there's more to it... the '80's and Reagan and government by the elite were the biggest factors, I think, in the deterioration of public education...or at least it scotched the rise of progressive education initiatives, which was the real loss. As an educator now, I don't look back fondly on my K-12 education; even without the incessant testing the Every Child Left Behind Act brought, public education in the '50's and '60's was hopelessly mired in 'blank slate' views of children.
You can not have robust public education unless you also have a robust democracy... and, yes, the reverse is also true.
"You just effed up in a way that I’ve never seen in my political life, and I worked with Sarah Palin.”
Ouch!
I watched that segment on Nicole's show 4 times in a row...it was so organic - Nicole calling it in real time - the moment JD locked in the "women" vote for Harris!
J L Graham, I like Nicole’s program (Deadline White House on MSNBC) because she has a lot of former Republicans on her program with their unique perspective.
Dearest Heather,
While you are certain to receive many comments of gratitude for keeping so many of us sane through the insanity of the past number of years, just needed to be the one of many to say THANK YOU. You are a blessing and a treasure and I am forever grateful for your wisdom and service to the great experiment that is DEMOCRACY.
I think one of the most joyful things about the HArris campaign is the enormous amount of work that is being done by everyday folks, not politicians or professional campaign workers. Sane Americans, from all political parties, obviously realise how important it is that the MAGA party (NOT the "Republican party"!) is wiped off the face of the earth. I truly hope that when the results come in of Kamala's landslide win, all those postcard senders, phone bankers and door knockers give themselves some time tor relax and "Party on!"
“Kennedy, a conspiracy theorist and anti-vaccine activist who claims to have suffered from a worm in his brain…”
I believe him.
That might explain it. I saw this headline tonight "Embattled Rudy Giuliani ‘not ruling out’ another run for NYC mayor", so the condition might be catching. Either that of it's evil alien mind control rays coming from space. I keep hoping that MAGA madness might one day break, like a fever.
I consider Rudy's consumption of alcoholic beverages to be a part of his erratic behavior. Continuous and heavy drinking will strongly affect the mental and physical health of a much younger person, so it is not difficult for me to understand the assault this habit has on him at his age. It seems possible, if not probable, that with a mind so affected by alcohol consumption to have these flights of fancy, he would stand a chance at becoming NYC mayor again. I find that highly unlikely.
Rudy is classic. Alcoholism is a progressive disease.
He is guanified also. Bat Schitt crazy
Jeri, there you go again with the best lines ever!
Thanks to Greg Olear.
Thanks, Ralph! I needed that chuckle!!
Hahaha 😳
Likely killed the worm!
I believe the worm is alive and still crawling around looking for the odd morsel.
Ralph, I literally DID just LOL at that!
Thank you! Gonna be a long day.
Did it get stuck in his throat on its way out?
Sunday night seemed like a rally on Substack, many of the writers were pushing out sunny vibes after a year of working hard on the BLUE side, and feeling the fatigue from the GOP side.
We are so educated from Dr HCR, and appreciate the stories as we gathered around Heather’s campfire. 🔥
And friends made along the way!!
It will be so wonderful to go forward with a huge victory for truth and democracy, and with Kamala Harris as President and Tim Walz as VP. apparently trump knows he’s lost. why else would he campaign as he has done - clearly he’s unstable and is panicked.
meanwhile, we can expect more of his threats.. while the momentum for Harris carries her into the White House.
all I’ve hoped for all along is for right and decency to triumph over trump, vance, rfk jr, and especially musk.
"Especially for Musk"
Oh, yes.
I hope Musk hears South Africa calling him (and his mother) home!
I don't think post-Apartheid South Africa wants him back. His father was a supporter of the old Apartheid regime, and profited by it.
I am not surprised. That explains a lot about him and his support for the Orange Menace.
He is a US citizen now. Doesn't need to leave, unfortunately.
It weird. He could have been a hero. God knows he needs no more money. Yet he feels the compulsion to treat people like crap, like the election workers he recently employed. He could not be bothered to do it right, or even legally, and he thinks he's so rich and special that it's never going to bite him.
Yep, that's why I am never buying a Tesla. Sigh...
Narcissist on steroids.
On ketamine, apparently.
Wow, the vet gave my cat that and she was deaf from then on. And she was one that had WYA on her chart. I said what’s that? Watch Your Ass, the reply. She loved to cause chaos. Seems similar somehow. She didn’t have unlimited power, but Lordy, everybody did WYA. We should too…
Absolutely! Imagine what he COULD do for the greater good of mankind with all that money!
And just a thought that ran through my head last night, when I heard the news that his "lottery" could continue: he is wealthy enough that he could buy the vote of every voter in the US. What is to stop someone like him from doing so? Would those who would enforce election laws turn away money to themselves and all in their family?
We should try exiling our traitors since we don’t seem able to hang them.
Yeah, sorry, I don't believe in capital punishment of ANYONE, murderers, rapists, traitors. Exile seems like a sensible idea, though :-).
Nor do I, but would love to see him poor with no rich friends, no make up, no hair and plenty of mirrors
Damn!
Indeed, and unlike Trump, Vance and Musk, Democrats aren't threatening to deport naturalised US citizens that don't fit in their view of the USA.
When we enter this world - this universe - this form of life…we seek, we look for, we hope that we have guiding light(s). We have no control over the number of, the degree of excellence or not so excellent the form that guiding light and/or lights will be. As we grow, we age, we gain knowledge, we live, we learn…we experience acceptance and rejection. At some point in our lives, we then take on the role of becoming guiding lights.
Well, our country to needs guiding lights…someone [and occasionally some thing or things] that tends to be our guiding light. America’s “founding fathers” were our earlier guiding light and along the country’s historical progression, we have had 46 presidents who have offered their knowledge, their life experiences, their service to help guide our nation - hopefully in the right direction or to keep on the tracks or the path to heading in the right direction. Change is inevitable. As one was known to say on a weekly basis for a while: “progress is our most important product”.
Today, the country nears the end of deciding who will be the 47th person to guide us along our path and on into our journey to the future…to tomorrow and beyond - for the next four or so years. Let’s hope that we - a sizable majority of us – make the right decision. Our country is in need of a superb guiding light at this time…and as individuals, for many of us, that superb guiding light just happened to have been our mothers!
Spot on. HCR is. Thank you.