January 7
Well, here we go again. COVID has me living in my own version of Groundhog Day, only it's "1 year is just like the last". Seems my best contact with the outside world is Zoom. Without this service I can't imagine what life would be like. I'm probably being overly cautious but George and I are convinced we had mild cases in early 2020 (February 8 is when I brought it home after working at the Compassion & Choices table at the Farmers Market in Old Town) and it took me 9 months to get over some of my "long haul" issues. Been there, done that, DON'T want to do it again.
This past week brought back memories of last year's January 6th coup attempt. I'll never understand how so many of my fellow citizens fell for such an evil person as Trump. I do not see any redeeming values in him, his actions, or his followers. Now it seems they could reclaim Congress in the mid-terms. My continued political actions seem so inadequate in the face of this relentless hate and divisiveness. What's a political liberal to do who was raised by a pacifist and never thought I'd see a call to "rid" the nation of "enemies of the state" -- meaning me.
Our first of 2 major snow events occured this past week. While we did not experience any negative impacts, many did. Hundreds were trapped in a 24 hour+ traffic jam on I-95 and thousands were without power. I got a little cold standing out on my balcony taking a few short videos and photos. It was a good opportunity to practice using iMovie. I'm definitely at the beginners stage. Here's the result:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8U_XjwoGHJI
You may have to copy and paste into You Tube to watch. Enjoy.
Immediately after posting the above an article on how to save democracy showed up in my inbox:
https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/08/politics/how-to-save-us-democracy-what-matters/index.html
In the article Karl Rove is quoted as saying "I've been a Republican my entire life, and believe in what the Republican party, at its best, has represented for decades. There can be no soft-pedaling what happened and no absolution for those who planned, encouraged and aided the attempt to overthrow our democracy. Love of Counry demands nothing less. That's true patriotism."
As a member of the Ethical Society I was reminded of my duty to value all humans. Former Governor of Ohio,John Kasich, said "Until we all begin to recognize the intrinsic value of all human beings, we are going to continue to erode and have danger in our culture and in the . . . strength of our country".
Ever since Trump was elected President I've struggled with this. Do I hate Trumpites? Yes, sometimes, if I'm really honest with myself, but mostly I'm baffled at how "good people can support a racist, misogynist, (well, I could go on and on) who are willing to take up arms when he calls for violence, but surely you get my point.
I recently came across a quote by Steven Weinberg, a physicist and cosmologist, and deep down I agree: "With or without religion, good people can behave well and bad people can do evil; but for good people to do evil -- that takes religion."
Additioanl thoughts, etc., will be posted throughout the year. Stay tuned.
1/31/2022
For those who think I’m not being rational and I’m exaggerating any threat Trumpites pose for the rest of us, know this: My friend who left Austin to live on the Isle of Wight was visiting family in Austin over the holidays and was verbally assaulted by a gun-totting Trumpite in Costco. He was yelling, threatening her, and calling her all sorts of names, etc. and in front of his wife and 3 young children! No witnesses intervened. Scared her to death and she wishes her sons could leave like Brian, and no she had not said or done anything except stand 6 feet behind the guy in the checkout line WEARING A MASK. Apparently he saw her act as an infringement upon HIS rights. Go figure!
Read the following from The Week:
“JOEL MATHIS
JANUARY 31, 2022
Donald Trump is being Donald Trump again. He held another rally on Saturday night in Texas, the latest event in his probably-running-for-president tour, and as always he used it to dwell on his grievances. He's angry about the multiple inquiries into his personal and presidential activities, and he's eager to unleash his followers on the people investigating him.
"If these radical, vicious, racist prosecutors do anything wrong or illegal, I hope we are going to have in this country the biggest protest we have ever had in Washington D.C., in New York, in Atlanta, and elsewhere because our country and our elections are corrupt," Trump told his enthusiastic fans.
That sounds an awful lot like a redux of the Trump-incited "Stop the Steal" protests that became the violent Jan. 6th insurrection: Trump is plainly, openly weaponizing his base as a threat against any official who might try to hold him accountable for his (alleged) financial and constitutional misdeeds — he even dangled future presidential pardons as a reward for the Jan. 6 defendants, offering an incentive to followers who might be inclined to commit mayhem in the service of his ambitions. He's not much hiding his real aims anymore: On Sunday, Trump put out a statement that (among other things) grumbled that then-Vice President Mike Pence should have “changed the outcome" of the 2020 election. It's not hard to see where all of this is going.”
I have friends in TX who have been generous and caring friends for decades but after years of letting their world shrink by only listening to Rush Limbaugh and Fox News and being members of a non-denominational evangelical church, and more importantly, active members of the NRA, they baffle me. Before COVID they would spend 2 weeks every summer at the NRA training camp in New Mexico. The last 2 years they went, they took classes in urban warfare where they were required to run through a Hollywood kind’a city and cardboard figures would pop up. They had a split second to decide if it was a good guy or an Arab terrorist or other type of bad guy. Now why is the NRA training members in urban warfare and why do members think they need to take the classes?! Did receiving Russian money come with instructions to offer these classes? Would they follow Trump if called to “purge the state of enemies of the people”? As a progressive liberal and secular humanist wouldn’t I be an enemy?
I admit I haven’t discussed anything controversial with them in ages. I only hope they have returned to being the rational individuals I first met. I do know they were quick to get vaccines so that gives me hope.
2/2
To end this essay, I want to include something funny that also addresses the problems we’re having with people not being rational — enjoy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BwaQRTo1Efo
3/31
Speaking of not being rational, Dana Milbank's column this week helped explain how apparently intellegent individuals can spout such nonsense and seem to actually believe it (I don't think for a minute Tucker Carlson's believes a thing he says -- he'll say anything for the ratings).
4/5
How can they? Seems to me that the only thing the Republican Party has left to offer is hate and fear. Everything they accuse the Democrats of doing is just deflection since they are the ones being divisive and hateful. Reading the column below broke my heart. How can neighbors/friends turn in someone for being a parent of a transgender child -- are they proving they are good Republicans? Here in Virginia parents are being incouraged to turn in teachers.
From the column -- " "This is harm fuelded by ignorance and hatred." Makes me think of the Weinberg quote above.
Thoughts on friendship. I only know 1 couple in TX who are Trumpites and I just don't want to have a friendly chat. I've discussed them above.
It's just too upsetting to be in contact, even if we only stick to "safe" topics -- the weather, photography, etc. That nagging question of what do they really think is always front and center in my mind.
I fear I'll find out just how crazy/indoctronated they are. Do they believe Trump was sent from some spiritual entity in the sky to "save" the US. Do they want the Constitution ignored/overthrown so that Trump can be President for life. Maybe crazy/drug addict Donny Jr. will follow his dad into office and we can have a ruling royal family? Is Putin their hero for being a "strong leader" and good Christian because he hates gays? Do they believe in White Supremacy and this should be a Christian nation with only White Christian males in charge? Are they clinging to their guns even if all other freedoms are lost? Would they use those guns against me if called by their Supreme Leader to rid the nation of "enemies of the state"?
Here's what I think is going to happen -- the Republican Party will be in charge of Congress after the November elections. The Jan. 6th Committee will be disbanded and replaced with a Republican empeachment committee going after Biden and his family, all members of the Cabinet, especially Pete Buttigieg. There are many other horrors I fear. So, what can I do? My only "weapon" is my vote and working to make sure fellow Democrats turn out and vote. As for friendships -- it's just late to cling to what was.
7/3
Last week I visited Linda in WV. We invited her good friend who lives across the lake to Tues. night dinner. She's a semi-retired professional classical musician who still plays locally with some chamber groups. She's also an accomplished wood worker -- built her own kayak and is in the process of building her own ultralight. She spent the winter in CA working with an instructor on how to build ultralights. She's had a flying license for many years.
When we met my 1st impression was she was very gentle and rather quiet. She's obviously highly intelligent.
Before dinner I asked Linda if I needed to avoid any discussion of politics. Linda assured me she was a liberal and I could feel free to say anything I wanted. At some point during the evening I was explaining that George has not retired yet and is still working at the Dept. of State. She said she didn't know what that was. I think I said something like it's a federal department and asked if she was sure she had never heard of it. Her reply was "oh well, I'm not political." How is knowing what federal departments are headed by cabinet members political? Isn't it just common knowledge? I wonder if she had ever heard of Thomas Jefferson since he was the 1st Secretary of State.
I was dumbfounded! I've thought about the conversation ever since. I admit to being a political junky and my involvement started when I was in high school (see blog post "My Spiritual Journey", 2/1/21) I really don't know many people who are completely "non-political". Most everyone I know, especially in Alexandria, are involved in various causes. What do I think about someone who ignores what's going on? According to Linda, her friend doesn't have a TV. My assumption is she also doesn't listen to the news or read any news publications but she did know about the SC overthrowing Roe V Wade and asked us what we thought. Linda also said she wasn't very computer savvy, which implied she had a computer but probably just uses it for e-mail and maybe web searches.
I shared the story with George and he was more harsh in his assessment than I think I am. He declared her willfully ignorant. I think I've decided she's selfish. As long as she's OK, she doesn't care what's happening to anyone else.
My 1st activism was for racial justice, not because I was oppressed (at least not racially -- my 2nd involvement was fighting sexism) but because other citizens, deserving of equal treatment under the law, were. I guess I just don't understand how someone can ignore the suffering of others.
Now we have a huge % of the population claiming to be Christian and using politics to bring about inequality under the law -- we're seeing the clock turned back to when women, non-whites, gays, etc., were all oppressed. Public schools and libraries are under attack. Facts are to be ignored and teaching history and civics are to be "white-washed" (excuse the pun) and turned into nothing but propaganda maskerading as academically sound pedagogy. Banned book lists are proliferating and growing longer by the day.
What is it in the human psychosis that is so driven by fear and hate? In the face of all the current assaults aimed at our body-politic how can someone who is intelligent and caring stand on the sideline?
Guess it's a good thing there isn't a basic civic test required to register to vote. I fear the voter roles would really shrink. (Oh dear, maybe that would be a good thing. Just those really interested in what's going on would bother to study in order to take the test.).
Tomorrow at Mt. Vernon 55 new citizens from 45 different countries will be sworn in. They will know more about how our government works than the majority of the citizens born and raised here.
