War in Israel. War in Ukraine. The federal government shutting down in 35 days. These are uncertain times. What makes these times far worse than other times of crisis is that the American people - and thus the American government - are unprepared to recognize this crisis exists and deal with it at a moral, political and emotional level.
I Liked this, Tom, but I hate it. You've encapsulated how a treasured democracy is perilously close to turning into a fascist state. That there seems to be no way to penetrate the anti-truth bubble of the MAGAts is depressing. Many of them are educated people. What value do they see in losing our freedom? What will they gain? I used to be so proud of the gains we made from the '60s to the '80s, and then began the road to where we are now, with the liberals blissfully unaware of or unable to confront the steady and continuing onslaught by the far right. The only hope I see for the Untied [not a typo] States is to get out the blue vote in overwhelming and incontrovertible numbers and stop the Repugnants from taking over. There are many people and organizations working to do that. We must support them.
And we must stay informed by reading Heather Cox Richardson, Robert Hubbell, Jay Kuo, Joyce Vance, Dan Rather and many others. We must subscribe to "Chop Wood, Carry Water" and follow the valuable suggestions of Jessica Craven to let our legislators know our views.
It is alarming that so many around the world choose peonage over liberty. No one wants to grow up any more and carry out duty, responsibility, honor and integrity. Let the loudest mouths with the smallest brains and the biggest platoon of door-to-door enforcers lead us into the abyss where we'll clamor over one another trying to escape. Can hardly wait for the enforced feudalism. The rosy view is that mankind did survive the Dark Ages, the Civil, World, and Cold Wars, and think we can again if we put our collective shoulders to the wheel and push this mutha out of the muck we're mired in. Save elections first by signing up to work on them and by voting. Recruit and promote sane candidates, all of whom seem to be Blue, by phone banking and canvassing and contributing a few bucks. And be sure to blame the money lenders created by Citizens Unchained and demand they be driven out of the temple of democracy.
Once Dems have a majority in the House, Senate, and White House make elections taxpayer funded with each candidate getting the same amount of funding and only six months to campaign because it will expose the best managers of time and money and keep the Mercers, Kochs, Thiels, etc. from doing the recruiting and financing. Evidence of dark money kills a candidacy. Demand other reforms, including eliminating the Electoral College, a relic of our agrarian past. And on and on.
I'm four-score and likely won't see any of this happen, but when I was young I never expected to see happen the many things I have. I'm clinging to hope. But only by a four-pound test line.
Nor did I, just tell my grands that if we don’t change course, and soon, the world will reverse and the things people take for granted will be (and are being) snatched away. You don’t know what you had until it’s gone. Surely Dobbs taught us that.
Right now, as you so well describe it, the world and life in general DOES feel grim and dark. I keep hoping that this saying is true, whoever penned it, that "it is darkest before dawn." I hope that there is a dawn to follow.
I was scrolling through Facebook memories, where a decade ago, John Boehner was refusing to make a deal, and now he's reasonable. No sense of history. None.
And he won in his standoff with Mr Obama (temporary tax cut for wealthy stayed in place). So began the too big to fail and we can't default on our debt and standing tough with either threat gets a win for conservatives and a happy wealthy class satisfied and progressives wringing their hands and ready to be fleeced next time.
Too right. Way too right. “Fascist-curious” got a laugh, although the accuracy stings. And that doom-y feeling is a bad thing? I read “OK Doomer” by Jessica Wildfire, and the utter, transparent reality she slings, (while I do salt it the tiniest bit) reinforces my sanity, as the world dances and burns. I keep myself from feeling doomed, but it does help me picture being more prepared, to whatever degree I can. A mom goes down fighting, so I watch my own 6, and herd & educate my little family, and on we go. I very much appreciate your binoculars on everything, too TC. Thanks for that.
I kept going yep, yep, yep while reading your post. So distressingly well put. Gagh! I spend most of the year in a small town in the UK, Wales and things are pretty quiet there. Although just this last year there have been a few smells like there is something going bad out there in the political woodshed. I like to think of these world crises as wounds. Like the earth is on a celestial hike and gets a blister on it’s heel that needs to be lanced and healed. But this time, whoa Nelly, the blisters are everywhere, her feet, hands, head, bellybutton...and the trail is filled with fog and bog and strange creatures who’s eyes glow in the night and lash out just when she takes a seat on log just to put on another band aide. I’ve been back in the US, Seattle, for a month and have been surprised at the lack of interest in currents events that seems to prevail. Folks are getting way more het up about the homeless camp on their street than the other world catastrophes lurking in the foreseeable future. In a way I can’t blame them, I feel overwhelmed a lot of the time and compensate by buying large vintage rhinestone necklaces and sitting in tubs of hot water with Himalayan sea salts until I look like a little pink prune. So, if this the big one, its going to get very messy, time to batten down a few hatches and then, well, just go on, doing what needs doing one day at a time, cultivating a little hope when possible. Sometimes a little flicker of optimism flares up and I think, with all this shit there must be a pony somewhere.
When I was a child, growing up in the 50’s into 60’s, I remember thinking and wondering how and why I had been so lucky to have been born here. In the United States, a free country where we had rights, that what I was learning other countries didn’t have. We had a democracy and we had a say in our government. We could pick our leaders. And I was learning there were countries where the citizens did not have a say and could not pick their leaders. They could not travel freely or even speak freely. It sounded so frightening and I worried about the children and again wondered why I was so lucky. Well it wasn’t luck that we had our freedom. It had been fought for and maintained with hard work, diligence and blood.
with you 100%; a sadperfect compendium of where we have come to. The thought that Israel will follow us down the post-9/11 folly-road is scarier; even scarier is that they will think "gee, one thing will save more lives than prolonging the war" and follow us down the 1945 road.
I've been brooding over the "why now" question. It's not as if Iran suddenly got extra generous and upped its funding. Think. The US may not be a moral leader, but it still has a lot of power. What greater opportunity than when that power is paralyzed by a bunch of incompetent posturers, too tied up with "2020 was stolen" and the power of the filibuster to do squat about anything. We can't even get our own budget passed.
I’ve read that Hamas had spent 2 years preparing for this attack. Looking back, two years ago we were still dealing with the 2020steal, and it was obvious it was going to continue. Plus it was prominent in the 2020 and 2022 campaigns. So it makes sense that Hamas recognized our ongoing nonsense as opportune timing.
yep. And once the plans were ready, they could choose the moment. Whether by accident or design, we handed them the moment that our pants were down and the shriveled nature of our equipment showing to all the world.
Don’t leave out Newt and the spoilers (Delay, Hastert, and more than I can name). who opposed every single thing Dems wanted to do. Then came Rupert and Ailes with the means to take Rush’s hate machine national at 90 decibels.
Being a space junkie, I watch plenty of astronomers, astrophysicists and that ilk. Order is not the natural state in the universe. Chaos rules. The jungle will kick our collective arses.
Love the “Trump industrial/media complex.” Ike would approve and double your warning.
Yes TC I agree this period is the most challenging that I’ve ever witnessed in my lifetime and turning 74 in early November. We have to vote in reliable leadership not looking to be authoritarian
All of that said, I’m sure it felt much different here for African Americans during that time. Their freedoms were limited and conditional. I just hope enough of us keep working to hold on to our democracy and continue to fight for the freedom and equality of all.
"In a political context, the phrase means to generate public approval, not by excellence in public service or public policy, but by diversion, distraction, or by satisfying the most immediate or base requirements of a populace, by offering a palliative: for example food (bread) or entertainment (circuses). Juvenal originally used it to decry the "selfishness" of common people and their neglect of wider concerns. The phrase implies a population's erosion or ignorance of civic duty as a priority - Wikipedia"
The timing of everything is my question: why NOW?
MBS with the carrot of peace while Jared Kushner pocketed 2 Billions, while a most sophisticated tactical attack by Hamas that eluded the Intelligences of Israel & USA.
Our court system sold out to the highest bidder, Leonard Leo and the Federalist Society, to wind back the clock to Medieval time.
The Republican Party of law and order, completely slayed by Kompromat.
While Fox News ( Russia surrogate) bites at the hand that feeds it, the Epoch Times (China surrogate) X social media, feed disinformation, propaganda to steal the soul of democracy - circus.
Ukraine, the front line for democracy - while Russia is using diversions tactics, aligning w/ North Korea, Iran - sabotage undersea gas line in Finland while Winter is coming to punish NATO who Biden has aligned to stand by Ukraine... so we are back to Putin and Ukraine. Putin has been plotting and grooming not only Trump but the entire Republican Party.
Meanwhile, Fox News et al and MAGA in the House provide the entertainment (circus) and MBS took front seat sport washing w buying the PGA and soccer teams (circus) and paying peanuts 2Billions to Jared Kushner to forget he is Jewish. Trump and Ivanka collected millions from business deals with the Chinese so they would forget they are Americans.
Our enemies discovered our Achilles heel: money to corrupt, circus to numb our minds.
The world is on fire and it needs America.... Vote Blue, whatever you do, help the Blue team.
Unfortunately too many frogs have been weakened and dulled, unable and unwilling to jump out of their increasingly hot social media baths. Without a resounding defeat of the clown caucus next November, I fear we will continue to stumble along to a dark despotic future on the way to a climate catastrophe.
If James Hansen, the former director of climate science for NASA, is HALF right, the climate catastrophe is coming, pretty much unhindered by anything we do.....18 deg. F increase by the time it's all over.....
I Liked this, Tom, but I hate it. You've encapsulated how a treasured democracy is perilously close to turning into a fascist state. That there seems to be no way to penetrate the anti-truth bubble of the MAGAts is depressing. Many of them are educated people. What value do they see in losing our freedom? What will they gain? I used to be so proud of the gains we made from the '60s to the '80s, and then began the road to where we are now, with the liberals blissfully unaware of or unable to confront the steady and continuing onslaught by the far right. The only hope I see for the Untied [not a typo] States is to get out the blue vote in overwhelming and incontrovertible numbers and stop the Repugnants from taking over. There are many people and organizations working to do that. We must support them.
And we must stay informed by reading Heather Cox Richardson, Robert Hubbell, Jay Kuo, Joyce Vance, Dan Rather and many others. We must subscribe to "Chop Wood, Carry Water" and follow the valuable suggestions of Jessica Craven to let our legislators know our views.
You nailed it - that's our only choice.
Thank you, Tom.
It is alarming that so many around the world choose peonage over liberty. No one wants to grow up any more and carry out duty, responsibility, honor and integrity. Let the loudest mouths with the smallest brains and the biggest platoon of door-to-door enforcers lead us into the abyss where we'll clamor over one another trying to escape. Can hardly wait for the enforced feudalism. The rosy view is that mankind did survive the Dark Ages, the Civil, World, and Cold Wars, and think we can again if we put our collective shoulders to the wheel and push this mutha out of the muck we're mired in. Save elections first by signing up to work on them and by voting. Recruit and promote sane candidates, all of whom seem to be Blue, by phone banking and canvassing and contributing a few bucks. And be sure to blame the money lenders created by Citizens Unchained and demand they be driven out of the temple of democracy.
Once Dems have a majority in the House, Senate, and White House make elections taxpayer funded with each candidate getting the same amount of funding and only six months to campaign because it will expose the best managers of time and money and keep the Mercers, Kochs, Thiels, etc. from doing the recruiting and financing. Evidence of dark money kills a candidacy. Demand other reforms, including eliminating the Electoral College, a relic of our agrarian past. And on and on.
I'm four-score and likely won't see any of this happen, but when I was young I never expected to see happen the many things I have. I'm clinging to hope. But only by a four-pound test line.
Well said, Judith. Who thought back in the '60s that we'd have to re-fight the battles 60 years later?
I sure as hell didn't.
Nor did I, just tell my grands that if we don’t change course, and soon, the world will reverse and the things people take for granted will be (and are being) snatched away. You don’t know what you had until it’s gone. Surely Dobbs taught us that.
Right now, as you so well describe it, the world and life in general DOES feel grim and dark. I keep hoping that this saying is true, whoever penned it, that "it is darkest before dawn." I hope that there is a dawn to follow.
Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?
I was scrolling through Facebook memories, where a decade ago, John Boehner was refusing to make a deal, and now he's reasonable. No sense of history. None.
Too true.
And he won in his standoff with Mr Obama (temporary tax cut for wealthy stayed in place). So began the too big to fail and we can't default on our debt and standing tough with either threat gets a win for conservatives and a happy wealthy class satisfied and progressives wringing their hands and ready to be fleeced next time.
Too right. Way too right. “Fascist-curious” got a laugh, although the accuracy stings. And that doom-y feeling is a bad thing? I read “OK Doomer” by Jessica Wildfire, and the utter, transparent reality she slings, (while I do salt it the tiniest bit) reinforces my sanity, as the world dances and burns. I keep myself from feeling doomed, but it does help me picture being more prepared, to whatever degree I can. A mom goes down fighting, so I watch my own 6, and herd & educate my little family, and on we go. I very much appreciate your binoculars on everything, too TC. Thanks for that.
I kept going yep, yep, yep while reading your post. So distressingly well put. Gagh! I spend most of the year in a small town in the UK, Wales and things are pretty quiet there. Although just this last year there have been a few smells like there is something going bad out there in the political woodshed. I like to think of these world crises as wounds. Like the earth is on a celestial hike and gets a blister on it’s heel that needs to be lanced and healed. But this time, whoa Nelly, the blisters are everywhere, her feet, hands, head, bellybutton...and the trail is filled with fog and bog and strange creatures who’s eyes glow in the night and lash out just when she takes a seat on log just to put on another band aide. I’ve been back in the US, Seattle, for a month and have been surprised at the lack of interest in currents events that seems to prevail. Folks are getting way more het up about the homeless camp on their street than the other world catastrophes lurking in the foreseeable future. In a way I can’t blame them, I feel overwhelmed a lot of the time and compensate by buying large vintage rhinestone necklaces and sitting in tubs of hot water with Himalayan sea salts until I look like a little pink prune. So, if this the big one, its going to get very messy, time to batten down a few hatches and then, well, just go on, doing what needs doing one day at a time, cultivating a little hope when possible. Sometimes a little flicker of optimism flares up and I think, with all this shit there must be a pony somewhere.
“lack of interest in current events.” Indeed, everywhere I turn in Texas. Maybe people are numb if they are not MAGAts. Times a wasting
Robin I just may head to a tub myself, sans rhinestones! Maybe some pink bubbly wine.
When I was a child, growing up in the 50’s into 60’s, I remember thinking and wondering how and why I had been so lucky to have been born here. In the United States, a free country where we had rights, that what I was learning other countries didn’t have. We had a democracy and we had a say in our government. We could pick our leaders. And I was learning there were countries where the citizens did not have a say and could not pick their leaders. They could not travel freely or even speak freely. It sounded so frightening and I worried about the children and again wondered why I was so lucky. Well it wasn’t luck that we had our freedom. It had been fought for and maintained with hard work, diligence and blood.
with you 100%; a sadperfect compendium of where we have come to. The thought that Israel will follow us down the post-9/11 folly-road is scarier; even scarier is that they will think "gee, one thing will save more lives than prolonging the war" and follow us down the 1945 road.
I've been brooding over the "why now" question. It's not as if Iran suddenly got extra generous and upped its funding. Think. The US may not be a moral leader, but it still has a lot of power. What greater opportunity than when that power is paralyzed by a bunch of incompetent posturers, too tied up with "2020 was stolen" and the power of the filibuster to do squat about anything. We can't even get our own budget passed.
I’ve read that Hamas had spent 2 years preparing for this attack. Looking back, two years ago we were still dealing with the 2020steal, and it was obvious it was going to continue. Plus it was prominent in the 2020 and 2022 campaigns. So it makes sense that Hamas recognized our ongoing nonsense as opportune timing.
yep. And once the plans were ready, they could choose the moment. Whether by accident or design, we handed them the moment that our pants were down and the shriveled nature of our equipment showing to all the world.
Don’t leave out Newt and the spoilers (Delay, Hastert, and more than I can name). who opposed every single thing Dems wanted to do. Then came Rupert and Ailes with the means to take Rush’s hate machine national at 90 decibels.
Being a space junkie, I watch plenty of astronomers, astrophysicists and that ilk. Order is not the natural state in the universe. Chaos rules. The jungle will kick our collective arses.
Love the “Trump industrial/media complex.” Ike would approve and double your warning.
Yes TC I agree this period is the most challenging that I’ve ever witnessed in my lifetime and turning 74 in early November. We have to vote in reliable leadership not looking to be authoritarian
Please God.
All of that said, I’m sure it felt much different here for African Americans during that time. Their freedoms were limited and conditional. I just hope enough of us keep working to hold on to our democracy and continue to fight for the freedom and equality of all.
"Bread and circuses". Juvenal, 2nd century Rome
"In a political context, the phrase means to generate public approval, not by excellence in public service or public policy, but by diversion, distraction, or by satisfying the most immediate or base requirements of a populace, by offering a palliative: for example food (bread) or entertainment (circuses). Juvenal originally used it to decry the "selfishness" of common people and their neglect of wider concerns. The phrase implies a population's erosion or ignorance of civic duty as a priority - Wikipedia"
The timing of everything is my question: why NOW?
MBS with the carrot of peace while Jared Kushner pocketed 2 Billions, while a most sophisticated tactical attack by Hamas that eluded the Intelligences of Israel & USA.
Our court system sold out to the highest bidder, Leonard Leo and the Federalist Society, to wind back the clock to Medieval time.
The Republican Party of law and order, completely slayed by Kompromat.
While Fox News ( Russia surrogate) bites at the hand that feeds it, the Epoch Times (China surrogate) X social media, feed disinformation, propaganda to steal the soul of democracy - circus.
Ukraine, the front line for democracy - while Russia is using diversions tactics, aligning w/ North Korea, Iran - sabotage undersea gas line in Finland while Winter is coming to punish NATO who Biden has aligned to stand by Ukraine... so we are back to Putin and Ukraine. Putin has been plotting and grooming not only Trump but the entire Republican Party.
Meanwhile, Fox News et al and MAGA in the House provide the entertainment (circus) and MBS took front seat sport washing w buying the PGA and soccer teams (circus) and paying peanuts 2Billions to Jared Kushner to forget he is Jewish. Trump and Ivanka collected millions from business deals with the Chinese so they would forget they are Americans.
Our enemies discovered our Achilles heel: money to corrupt, circus to numb our minds.
The world is on fire and it needs America.... Vote Blue, whatever you do, help the Blue team.
Exactly right.
Unfortunately too many frogs have been weakened and dulled, unable and unwilling to jump out of their increasingly hot social media baths. Without a resounding defeat of the clown caucus next November, I fear we will continue to stumble along to a dark despotic future on the way to a climate catastrophe.
If James Hansen, the former director of climate science for NASA, is HALF right, the climate catastrophe is coming, pretty much unhindered by anything we do.....18 deg. F increase by the time it's all over.....
You nailed it Tom. We could see the end of a liberal American democracy in my short lifetime.
"Bread and circuses"
Juvenal, 2nd century Rome
Vote "Blue", please vote "Blue"
YUP. I’m thinking I’m thinking..