How about some humor in following old trump’s antics? Remember Mad Magazine's parodying of the movie Goldfinger? Maybe call it "Bad Boy Blog". He is predictable, trite. Like the typical schoolroom cut-up. Boring. But a great journalistic opportunity for good humor.
When Trump was the candidate in 2016, I became energized and involved in the election. Ringing doorbells, volunteering to serve as a poll watcher helped to eliminate my fears, gave me hope. Although he won, just soooooo very disturbing, I ramped up my involvement for Biden in 2020. It was a thrill to see Biden take over the presidency. My hope became a reality. Biden, in my humble opinion,, has been an effective, compassionate leader, although I want him to stop the drilling for fossil fuels.
2024 is almost upon us and I do have the confidence that he can win again. Let's buckle up, get our hopes high and get involved. Working for the cause made a tremendous difference for me. I will never give up!
I am (and long have been) SO tired listening to conservatives moan and bitch about how "regulations are stifling business." If there were no bad actors who work to satisfy their greed by disregarding safety, fairness, or good financial practices, there would be no NEED for regulations. But, again, here we are.
Remember: That's an *entirely* self-inflicted wound. The SCOTUS didn't *have* to overturn Roe v. Wade in contravention of all it's previous blather about "precedent". The most recent entrants into the "Angry White Men" bloc of the court didn't *have* to baldly lie to the Senate -- and, by extension, the country -- in order to take their seats at the bench. They *CHOSE* to do those things! 😡
I have not experienced a war that directly affected me although i have learnt many lessons from second world war and Vietnam. As war often claims many lives in the two examples i shared it was not only the lives on the battlefield that were lost it was many who suffered as a result of those in power wishing to control and manipulate what they believed was their right.
I hear many Christians evoke the words from the bible yet their actions seldom if not never, align with their words.
There are many times when i ask ‘have we not learnt anything from these monumental historical accounts? There is too much hate, greed and need for some to have power over others - that is the perfect recipe for society to crumble.
What gives me hope is reading your newsletter and believing there are more people who share a healthier outlook on our future and from this i commit to being more active in reducing doubt. I should also call out those who comment on your newsletter build confidence that we can and will get through this darkness the is trying to take over.
The deregulation of greed and devaluation of ethics began with Reagan and the Nobel Prize awarded to Milton Friedman and the Chicago School of Economics for promulgating the myth of the self-correcting rational free market. Why this ever was accepted when markets are just a bunch of people and there is no empirical evidence that group behavior has been historically rational can only be logically explained by understanding this was a ruse to allow rapacious greed to be released from the cage it was placed in by Glass Steagall, and the equally significant 1956 Bank Holding Company Act which curbed the ability for banks to become mega trojan BHCs.
Thomas Jefferson said: "banks are more dangerous than standing armies." Furthermore, when left to their own devices too many executives and CEOs will arrogantly assume whatever they touch will turn to gold no matter the level of unbridled highly volatile speculative risk. The financial tsunami of 2008 was a combination of sociopathic greed, the idea that risk could be measured by math and that real investment which creates capital formation and jobs had been replace by financial investment which creates net worth.
Add in the fact that taxes had been reduced for the top bracket as well as for corporations; and that big "multi-national" corporations, aware of the macro wage level, moved manufacturing to locations with the lowest wage levels. Meanwhile, funding for public education had been diverted to KKKristian charter schools, and the middle class became the left out class. Of course the lower class, now referred to the underclass, only became more disenchanted and disenfranchised. This created the chasm now referred to the divide, which unleashed the ignorance and hate which fuels prejudice, and the MAGAs came out of their dank dark closets to oppose Obama, as the first black President to sleep in the white KKKristians' White House.
Trump in his inauguration speech called for a "free America" which was the slogan of the KKK, and led to Make America Great Again, which stands for Make America White Again. So a large part of the chasm of divide is due to good ole fashion bigotry. And you can bet MAGAs know their red hats symbolize white supremacy.
I am 80, and know that Dan Rather was the last of the great truly objective journalists left standing until CBS sand bagged him on the way to becoming "non partisan" about the truth. The Free Press, the Fourth Estate's role was to OBJECTIVELY CREATE INFORMED PUBLIC OPINION, as one of the checks on the abuse of power by the government. But this changed from objective to non partisan, translation: to give both sides a public platform, when the truth has only one side, and to allow the side which regurgitates lies allows propaganda against the truth to exist like the election lie. Or allows an un-American like DeSantis to propose banning 1984.
It is difficult to maintain confidence when so many significant supports to preserve the public good have been torn down by the Un American Party, the UAP, nee GOP. And the fourth rail of government, the Free Press now provides a platform for all the liars lies.
In Erich Fromm’ 1941 book “Escape from Freedom” he captures some of the major issues we face today. There is a wave of authoritarianism in many countries around the world, China, Iran, Israel, North Korea, Russia, and many other countries including the United States. As Fromm characterizes, authoritarians not only want to dominate, but have streaks that are both sadistic and masochistic, and they raise fear and anxiety in the general population. The real danger arises when individuals internalize these authoritarian characteristics and surrender their inner freedom to quell their anxiety. The antidote to this surrender is to exercise self expression and spontaneity in the way we behave. By being truly in touch with our humanity, we can realize that we are social beings who need to consider the needs of other individuals in this world we share. Whether we are considering the existential threats of global warming, nuclear war, economic calamities, and other threats to humanity, we need to ask ourselves whether we have surrendered have surrendered our individual freedoms. As a Star Trek aficionado, I ask, are we becoming part of an Earth-bound Borg Collective. We still have many human beings around us that do not agree that “resistance is futile”! Therefore, there is still hope.
Confidence also requires reinforcement, an element that is too often missing due to the overwhelming media focus on what is wrong and broken while ignoring the vast majority of experience which is, on balance, positive.
Thank you Dan and Elliot. Insightful and provocative.
Confidence is precious and can be expensive. It cannot be left to chance or abandoned at the first sign of trouble, even severe trouble. We work to gain confidence and must labor to protect it in the midst of a world threatening to destroy all that is precious to so many of us. 78 years experiencing incredible highs and lows brings me to conclude that confidence is both essential and worth fighting for, even is a world that was never as wonderful as I believed it to be. While there is breath, there is possibility and hope that we may again be surprised by joy.
One foot after the other. We must remember this. It is Spring here in California after a terrible four-year drought and a lash of storms throughout the state that destroyed hundreds of houses in the San Joaquin Valley. Many people have lost their homes and jobs. But we almost lost our country, don’t forget that ever. These diabolical fiends on the right are trying to scare us. Don’t take the bait. One foot after the other. We shall overcome.
How about some humor in following old trump’s antics? Remember Mad Magazine's parodying of the movie Goldfinger? Maybe call it "Bad Boy Blog". He is predictable, trite. Like the typical schoolroom cut-up. Boring. But a great journalistic opportunity for good humor.
When Trump was the candidate in 2016, I became energized and involved in the election. Ringing doorbells, volunteering to serve as a poll watcher helped to eliminate my fears, gave me hope. Although he won, just soooooo very disturbing, I ramped up my involvement for Biden in 2020. It was a thrill to see Biden take over the presidency. My hope became a reality. Biden, in my humble opinion,, has been an effective, compassionate leader, although I want him to stop the drilling for fossil fuels.
2024 is almost upon us and I do have the confidence that he can win again. Let's buckle up, get our hopes high and get involved. Working for the cause made a tremendous difference for me. I will never give up!
The curse of the 24 hour news cycle puts Donald Trump in the spotlight, every day, ever hour. That goes for MSNBC and CNN, even public radio. STOP!
I am (and long have been) SO tired listening to conservatives moan and bitch about how "regulations are stifling business." If there were no bad actors who work to satisfy their greed by disregarding safety, fairness, or good financial practices, there would be no NEED for regulations. But, again, here we are.
Well said, Dan!
"We see plummeting trust in the Supreme Court."
Remember: That's an *entirely* self-inflicted wound. The SCOTUS didn't *have* to overturn Roe v. Wade in contravention of all it's previous blather about "precedent". The most recent entrants into the "Angry White Men" bloc of the court didn't *have* to baldly lie to the Senate -- and, by extension, the country -- in order to take their seats at the bench. They *CHOSE* to do those things! 😡
I have not experienced a war that directly affected me although i have learnt many lessons from second world war and Vietnam. As war often claims many lives in the two examples i shared it was not only the lives on the battlefield that were lost it was many who suffered as a result of those in power wishing to control and manipulate what they believed was their right.
I hear many Christians evoke the words from the bible yet their actions seldom if not never, align with their words.
There are many times when i ask ‘have we not learnt anything from these monumental historical accounts? There is too much hate, greed and need for some to have power over others - that is the perfect recipe for society to crumble.
What gives me hope is reading your newsletter and believing there are more people who share a healthier outlook on our future and from this i commit to being more active in reducing doubt. I should also call out those who comment on your newsletter build confidence that we can and will get through this darkness the is trying to take over.
Thank as always Mr Rather x
The deregulation of greed and devaluation of ethics began with Reagan and the Nobel Prize awarded to Milton Friedman and the Chicago School of Economics for promulgating the myth of the self-correcting rational free market. Why this ever was accepted when markets are just a bunch of people and there is no empirical evidence that group behavior has been historically rational can only be logically explained by understanding this was a ruse to allow rapacious greed to be released from the cage it was placed in by Glass Steagall, and the equally significant 1956 Bank Holding Company Act which curbed the ability for banks to become mega trojan BHCs.
Thomas Jefferson said: "banks are more dangerous than standing armies." Furthermore, when left to their own devices too many executives and CEOs will arrogantly assume whatever they touch will turn to gold no matter the level of unbridled highly volatile speculative risk. The financial tsunami of 2008 was a combination of sociopathic greed, the idea that risk could be measured by math and that real investment which creates capital formation and jobs had been replace by financial investment which creates net worth.
Add in the fact that taxes had been reduced for the top bracket as well as for corporations; and that big "multi-national" corporations, aware of the macro wage level, moved manufacturing to locations with the lowest wage levels. Meanwhile, funding for public education had been diverted to KKKristian charter schools, and the middle class became the left out class. Of course the lower class, now referred to the underclass, only became more disenchanted and disenfranchised. This created the chasm now referred to the divide, which unleashed the ignorance and hate which fuels prejudice, and the MAGAs came out of their dank dark closets to oppose Obama, as the first black President to sleep in the white KKKristians' White House.
Trump in his inauguration speech called for a "free America" which was the slogan of the KKK, and led to Make America Great Again, which stands for Make America White Again. So a large part of the chasm of divide is due to good ole fashion bigotry. And you can bet MAGAs know their red hats symbolize white supremacy.
I am 80, and know that Dan Rather was the last of the great truly objective journalists left standing until CBS sand bagged him on the way to becoming "non partisan" about the truth. The Free Press, the Fourth Estate's role was to OBJECTIVELY CREATE INFORMED PUBLIC OPINION, as one of the checks on the abuse of power by the government. But this changed from objective to non partisan, translation: to give both sides a public platform, when the truth has only one side, and to allow the side which regurgitates lies allows propaganda against the truth to exist like the election lie. Or allows an un-American like DeSantis to propose banning 1984.
It is difficult to maintain confidence when so many significant supports to preserve the public good have been torn down by the Un American Party, the UAP, nee GOP. And the fourth rail of government, the Free Press now provides a platform for all the liars lies.
Thank you, Steady!
“Doubt can only be removed by action. Steady.” Thank you so much for the reminder.
In Erich Fromm’ 1941 book “Escape from Freedom” he captures some of the major issues we face today. There is a wave of authoritarianism in many countries around the world, China, Iran, Israel, North Korea, Russia, and many other countries including the United States. As Fromm characterizes, authoritarians not only want to dominate, but have streaks that are both sadistic and masochistic, and they raise fear and anxiety in the general population. The real danger arises when individuals internalize these authoritarian characteristics and surrender their inner freedom to quell their anxiety. The antidote to this surrender is to exercise self expression and spontaneity in the way we behave. By being truly in touch with our humanity, we can realize that we are social beings who need to consider the needs of other individuals in this world we share. Whether we are considering the existential threats of global warming, nuclear war, economic calamities, and other threats to humanity, we need to ask ourselves whether we have surrendered have surrendered our individual freedoms. As a Star Trek aficionado, I ask, are we becoming part of an Earth-bound Borg Collective. We still have many human beings around us that do not agree that “resistance is futile”! Therefore, there is still hope.
Confidence also requires reinforcement, an element that is too often missing due to the overwhelming media focus on what is wrong and broken while ignoring the vast majority of experience which is, on balance, positive.
Thank you Dan and Elliot. Insightful and provocative.
Confidence is precious and can be expensive. It cannot be left to chance or abandoned at the first sign of trouble, even severe trouble. We work to gain confidence and must labor to protect it in the midst of a world threatening to destroy all that is precious to so many of us. 78 years experiencing incredible highs and lows brings me to conclude that confidence is both essential and worth fighting for, even is a world that was never as wonderful as I believed it to be. While there is breath, there is possibility and hope that we may again be surprised by joy.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.
One foot after the other. We must remember this. It is Spring here in California after a terrible four-year drought and a lash of storms throughout the state that destroyed hundreds of houses in the San Joaquin Valley. Many people have lost their homes and jobs. But we almost lost our country, don’t forget that ever. These diabolical fiends on the right are trying to scare us. Don’t take the bait. One foot after the other. We shall overcome.
GOP = Gang of Pinheads! My confidence is at its wits-end.🙃