My reaction to the 2016 election (once I got out of the fetal position the morning after) was to look around and see what I could do to make things better.
I felt so powerless to do anything to change what was happening, which led to despair. My remedy was to take long walks. Very long walks. I was newly retired and had the time to ramble for as long as I wanted to through my walkable neighborhood and surrounding communities. And it turned out the act of walking brought me to what has become the passion that led to my "second act."
I became an advocate for safer streets in my neighborhood. That led to contacting city officials, asking for improvements and finding people all over the country focused on the same kinds of issues (as well as other topics related to building sustainable communities). I was very pleased that in 2021, the local focus on safer streets led my city to elect a council that shares these concerns.
I think we feel helpless when the enormity of a problem makes it impossible to know what we can do to make a difference. We all live in communities somewhere, though, and it's so much more possible to start there. Or as the Strong Towns people say:
1. Humbly observe where people in the community suffer
2. Ask: What is the next smallest thing we can do RIGHT NOW to address that struggle?
3. Do that thing. Do it right now.
4. Repeat.
The world is too big for an individual to fix. So is this country. But we can all make small differences that add up where we spend the most time -- our own communities.
I sometimes wonder how much of the hatred and anger we see all around us would diminish if more of us tried to find small ways to be better citizens, right in our own backyards.
Will - Once again, thank you for your honesty and your insights. I am not a "hard right voter - I tend to be a little left of center. However, I 100% agree with you regarding the failure of our people to sacrifice for anything.
Not only did the Bush Administration tell us to "go shopping" they CUT income taxes as we entered wars in Afghanistan and later Iraq. The only people who sacrificed for those two wars were the men and women who fought in them and their families. I often ask people if they know what the marginal tax rate was in 1945 as the US finished WWII. That tax rate was 95%! If you didn't go to war at least you had to pay for it. We didn't even pay for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq - all on the "credit card" and more national debt.
I pray that you are wrong about the Orange Moron winning the election this fall. It will be a tragedy and we should gird ourselves for devastating results.
Will, I definitely will read the whole article about Trump's interviews. I just need to brace myself first. Charlie S. said all along that he wanted to get coffee cups made that said, "We told you so" or "You were warned" or something like that.
Yes, there are many people in this country who fit the characterization you made and that includes what passes as the Republican party. But Trump in the past two elections lost the popular vote, so I think that there are more sane, caring, patriotic individuals than not. The electoral college messes things up. And boy do the hate-mongers and MTGs of the world have huge megaphones.
We continue to have a lot of work to do, especially when the majority of SCOTUS is determined to usher in an authoritarian and Congressional Republicans have surrendered their souls to an unhinged and dangerous megalomaniac. They are foolishly optimistic if they think that will help them keep their jobs.
So please do not give up or give in. I know you hate Biden and, I assume, Trump for setting up the terms, and Biden's advisors who organized the disastrous withdrawal. I cannot even begin to imagine your pain and sense of betrayal. But I take heart in the countless individuals, like one of my brothers, who help get families out of Afghanistan and into the U.S. and work with them for as long as it takes to get them housing, jobs, stability, and a network of support. I don't want their stories to get lost. I want a bigger megaphone.
Yes, Biden has aged. Years and 4 of them in the White House will do that to anyone. But I do not believe that he is senile. He inherited a mess and a country alienated from its allies and uncomfortably close to authoritarian regimes. Yes, he has not been perfect, but boy has he gotten many good things done and is continuing to work. If you want Biden to win and not Trump, is it really the best way to accomplish that by trashing Biden just a tad less than trashing Trump? You might inadvertently convince some voters to stay home, voters who might have voted for Biden "while holding their noses".
Please take heart. There are many of us who do not understand how the folks who look back on Trump's years as good years can continue to delude themselves and ignore all the harm that he caused to individuals, to families, to the environment, to the reputation of science. And who gloss over Jan. 6. We have numbers, we have 7 months, and we have just begun to fight. And will continue to fight for our Constitution no matter who is president.
Thank you, as always, for your honesty and passion. Please know that I care about you as do countless others.
Quick question: It's not that the all-volunteer military is not competent, it's because not enough people have skin in the game, correct? Sort of like when the Roman Empire started using foreigners, primarily, in their Legions, while the Romans themselves practiced a high-level of debauchery?
I'm not going to get into a big political discussion as many of my thoughts have been echoed in these comments. I believe Donald Trump is a despicable, evil human being who cares about no one but himself and obtaining power again at any cost. He is a clear and present danger not only to us but to the entire world.
However, I do agree that the rot in our Democracy goes back further than many have said even here. From my research backed up in part by reading Thom Hartmann's Books, the roots goes all the way back to the John Birch Society, the Koch Brothers and their Nazi relatives and some believe even further back than that.
One of the biggest lessons I've learned through this Trump nightmare is that Democracies have to be nourished and protected. Many of us have been asleep at the wheel, including myself. Soldiers like you Will and all of our Vets have paid the horrific price. If we manage to survive and stop him from getting back in again MUCH reform is needed. We all know this. I just pray we can all come together to make it happen. I was a Conservative prior to 2008 but the Party was shifting too far right for me. So I switched Parties, got involved and have never looked back.
God help us all if we don't stop him. We may never see another free and fair election if we dont. 🙏🏻❤️🇺🇸💙
While I find "hard right" conservatism to be generally out of touch with reality, it is those such as you, Will, that are going to be the difference-makers. Again. Having the courage and intellectual fortitude to actively vote against Trump are true marks of honorable patriotism, as if we didn't already know that about you. I may disagree with you on many things, but I respect you and your motives. I am actually quite confident that the *popular* vote, at least, is going to be a massive blowout and a Biden win. Whether that translates to an Electoral College victory or not depends on folks like you in a few key states. For lack of better phrase, I salute you, sir.
I mostly agree but I disagree with one thing. Will, I do not believe you are on the far right. I find the country in need of a wake-up moment that does not include electing an autocratic maniac. We need leadership for this to work, somehow. It could be someone acting as a Great Explainer, or someone with legitimate solid ideas and solutions. Yes, scores of Americans are spoiled, take their rights for granted, perhaps do not know their rights, and in my view worse seem to not comprehend our history.
I think there have always been people like this, but the population has grown larger. And we get to watch and read about it on our phones all day. So we are more aware of these people, and sometimes it is downright obnoxious. The quieter people are not on your phone all day. Folks like me who did not serve but somehow understand what people like you are saying, and I do not believe this is a liberal/conservative issue. People who are ready to defend our rights, if necessary.
Let it go. These people deserve scorn now, but people can and do change. It's just louder now. And I still trust the majority to make the right decision.
Thanks Will - we have no sense of history. I truly cannot believe most Americans will ever fathom storming the beaches of Normandy today if there is a repeat of what happened in WWII. The rot is everywhere and I don’t like our chances either. My only hope is we catch a few lucky bounces and things turn around enough in the right direction. Some very terrible conflicts are more likely than not to happen but I hope the core of this nation has not rotten to a point of no return.
I agree with many of Will's comments about Americans. As an aside, I have long thought that a period of required national service after high school - including but not limited to military service - might go some way towards helping. But my main point is this: JVL has said, and Will seems to be saying here, that if we elect Trump we will deserve what we get. I must push back. If he does squeak out a win I'll bet it is in the EC and not the popular vote; that means a majority of us did not choose him. I would argue strongly that the terrific folks at The Bulwark, and Judge Luttig, and Liz Cheney, and my senator Lisa Murkowski, and you and me and Will and his daughter and millions of others who despise him do not deserve a Trump presidency. Not to mention the Ukrainians and perhaps a whole raft of our allies; none of them gets to vote but they will suffer the consequences along with, though differently from us. All I can say at this point is that each of us must do whatever we can, however small it might be. Don't give up.
When the youth understand the how's and why's if how many of our wars began, continued', and ended they understand history too well. I fear. Nixon's shit during Nam should be repeated daily in schools. Bush's bestie should have served life in prison. Yet, you're correct, We Peasants want our ever increasing homes filled with more and more cheap crap, so send those jobs to wherever du jour. Tellers? Fack em. ATM..no more fees. LMAO Checkers? Nope, self check. Bye bye 92,000 Walmart employees. But hey, I got a great deal on my 72" boob tube. Too bad Jerry Springer isn't around anymore. Teach The Children Well. Hatred is now the new cool. Stay safe buddy. I don't see a way outta this one.
Every single country throughout history and presently, had/has the exact type of kings and Queens that The Peasants deserve to have. Tis' simple really, men have been in charge of everything for hundreds of thousands of years, yet still cannot locate peace. I say allow the ladies a go at it. Helps make up for not allowing their voices inr Constitution. Hell even god must have forgotten to allow their voices in those reems of papers the Catholic Men edited to produce a book of rules and punishments.
It’s absolutely true that if we want to have a better government, we need to be better citizens. Will, I suspect you and I disagree on 75% or more of the political issues, but we probably agree on the most important ones.
Thank you for providing your voice and your perspective. It teaches us and reminds us of things we prefer to forget.
My reaction to the 2016 election (once I got out of the fetal position the morning after) was to look around and see what I could do to make things better.
I felt so powerless to do anything to change what was happening, which led to despair. My remedy was to take long walks. Very long walks. I was newly retired and had the time to ramble for as long as I wanted to through my walkable neighborhood and surrounding communities. And it turned out the act of walking brought me to what has become the passion that led to my "second act."
I became an advocate for safer streets in my neighborhood. That led to contacting city officials, asking for improvements and finding people all over the country focused on the same kinds of issues (as well as other topics related to building sustainable communities). I was very pleased that in 2021, the local focus on safer streets led my city to elect a council that shares these concerns.
I think we feel helpless when the enormity of a problem makes it impossible to know what we can do to make a difference. We all live in communities somewhere, though, and it's so much more possible to start there. Or as the Strong Towns people say:
1. Humbly observe where people in the community suffer
2. Ask: What is the next smallest thing we can do RIGHT NOW to address that struggle?
3. Do that thing. Do it right now.
4. Repeat.
The world is too big for an individual to fix. So is this country. But we can all make small differences that add up where we spend the most time -- our own communities.
I sometimes wonder how much of the hatred and anger we see all around us would diminish if more of us tried to find small ways to be better citizens, right in our own backyards.
Perfectly written. Solidly correct on all points here. I’ve echoed many of them in the past/present.
Will - Once again, thank you for your honesty and your insights. I am not a "hard right voter - I tend to be a little left of center. However, I 100% agree with you regarding the failure of our people to sacrifice for anything.
Not only did the Bush Administration tell us to "go shopping" they CUT income taxes as we entered wars in Afghanistan and later Iraq. The only people who sacrificed for those two wars were the men and women who fought in them and their families. I often ask people if they know what the marginal tax rate was in 1945 as the US finished WWII. That tax rate was 95%! If you didn't go to war at least you had to pay for it. We didn't even pay for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq - all on the "credit card" and more national debt.
I pray that you are wrong about the Orange Moron winning the election this fall. It will be a tragedy and we should gird ourselves for devastating results.
Will, I definitely will read the whole article about Trump's interviews. I just need to brace myself first. Charlie S. said all along that he wanted to get coffee cups made that said, "We told you so" or "You were warned" or something like that.
Yes, there are many people in this country who fit the characterization you made and that includes what passes as the Republican party. But Trump in the past two elections lost the popular vote, so I think that there are more sane, caring, patriotic individuals than not. The electoral college messes things up. And boy do the hate-mongers and MTGs of the world have huge megaphones.
We continue to have a lot of work to do, especially when the majority of SCOTUS is determined to usher in an authoritarian and Congressional Republicans have surrendered their souls to an unhinged and dangerous megalomaniac. They are foolishly optimistic if they think that will help them keep their jobs.
So please do not give up or give in. I know you hate Biden and, I assume, Trump for setting up the terms, and Biden's advisors who organized the disastrous withdrawal. I cannot even begin to imagine your pain and sense of betrayal. But I take heart in the countless individuals, like one of my brothers, who help get families out of Afghanistan and into the U.S. and work with them for as long as it takes to get them housing, jobs, stability, and a network of support. I don't want their stories to get lost. I want a bigger megaphone.
Yes, Biden has aged. Years and 4 of them in the White House will do that to anyone. But I do not believe that he is senile. He inherited a mess and a country alienated from its allies and uncomfortably close to authoritarian regimes. Yes, he has not been perfect, but boy has he gotten many good things done and is continuing to work. If you want Biden to win and not Trump, is it really the best way to accomplish that by trashing Biden just a tad less than trashing Trump? You might inadvertently convince some voters to stay home, voters who might have voted for Biden "while holding their noses".
Please take heart. There are many of us who do not understand how the folks who look back on Trump's years as good years can continue to delude themselves and ignore all the harm that he caused to individuals, to families, to the environment, to the reputation of science. And who gloss over Jan. 6. We have numbers, we have 7 months, and we have just begun to fight. And will continue to fight for our Constitution no matter who is president.
Thank you, as always, for your honesty and passion. Please know that I care about you as do countless others.
Very well said. I totally agree with you and will fight with everything I have to stop Trump.
Quick question: It's not that the all-volunteer military is not competent, it's because not enough people have skin in the game, correct? Sort of like when the Roman Empire started using foreigners, primarily, in their Legions, while the Romans themselves practiced a high-level of debauchery?
Yes, that's what he's referring to. The general public has abdicated any responsibility for protecting the country, other than its economy.
I'm not going to get into a big political discussion as many of my thoughts have been echoed in these comments. I believe Donald Trump is a despicable, evil human being who cares about no one but himself and obtaining power again at any cost. He is a clear and present danger not only to us but to the entire world.
However, I do agree that the rot in our Democracy goes back further than many have said even here. From my research backed up in part by reading Thom Hartmann's Books, the roots goes all the way back to the John Birch Society, the Koch Brothers and their Nazi relatives and some believe even further back than that.
One of the biggest lessons I've learned through this Trump nightmare is that Democracies have to be nourished and protected. Many of us have been asleep at the wheel, including myself. Soldiers like you Will and all of our Vets have paid the horrific price. If we manage to survive and stop him from getting back in again MUCH reform is needed. We all know this. I just pray we can all come together to make it happen. I was a Conservative prior to 2008 but the Party was shifting too far right for me. So I switched Parties, got involved and have never looked back.
God help us all if we don't stop him. We may never see another free and fair election if we dont. 🙏🏻❤️🇺🇸💙
While I find "hard right" conservatism to be generally out of touch with reality, it is those such as you, Will, that are going to be the difference-makers. Again. Having the courage and intellectual fortitude to actively vote against Trump are true marks of honorable patriotism, as if we didn't already know that about you. I may disagree with you on many things, but I respect you and your motives. I am actually quite confident that the *popular* vote, at least, is going to be a massive blowout and a Biden win. Whether that translates to an Electoral College victory or not depends on folks like you in a few key states. For lack of better phrase, I salute you, sir.
I mostly agree but I disagree with one thing. Will, I do not believe you are on the far right. I find the country in need of a wake-up moment that does not include electing an autocratic maniac. We need leadership for this to work, somehow. It could be someone acting as a Great Explainer, or someone with legitimate solid ideas and solutions. Yes, scores of Americans are spoiled, take their rights for granted, perhaps do not know their rights, and in my view worse seem to not comprehend our history.
I think there have always been people like this, but the population has grown larger. And we get to watch and read about it on our phones all day. So we are more aware of these people, and sometimes it is downright obnoxious. The quieter people are not on your phone all day. Folks like me who did not serve but somehow understand what people like you are saying, and I do not believe this is a liberal/conservative issue. People who are ready to defend our rights, if necessary.
Let it go. These people deserve scorn now, but people can and do change. It's just louder now. And I still trust the majority to make the right decision.
Thanks Will - we have no sense of history. I truly cannot believe most Americans will ever fathom storming the beaches of Normandy today if there is a repeat of what happened in WWII. The rot is everywhere and I don’t like our chances either. My only hope is we catch a few lucky bounces and things turn around enough in the right direction. Some very terrible conflicts are more likely than not to happen but I hope the core of this nation has not rotten to a point of no return.
Why do we all have to ‘work really hard’ to save the country from horrible person, why are so many for him?
Sad to say, I agree with you
I agree with many of Will's comments about Americans. As an aside, I have long thought that a period of required national service after high school - including but not limited to military service - might go some way towards helping. But my main point is this: JVL has said, and Will seems to be saying here, that if we elect Trump we will deserve what we get. I must push back. If he does squeak out a win I'll bet it is in the EC and not the popular vote; that means a majority of us did not choose him. I would argue strongly that the terrific folks at The Bulwark, and Judge Luttig, and Liz Cheney, and my senator Lisa Murkowski, and you and me and Will and his daughter and millions of others who despise him do not deserve a Trump presidency. Not to mention the Ukrainians and perhaps a whole raft of our allies; none of them gets to vote but they will suffer the consequences along with, though differently from us. All I can say at this point is that each of us must do whatever we can, however small it might be. Don't give up.
When the youth understand the how's and why's if how many of our wars began, continued', and ended they understand history too well. I fear. Nixon's shit during Nam should be repeated daily in schools. Bush's bestie should have served life in prison. Yet, you're correct, We Peasants want our ever increasing homes filled with more and more cheap crap, so send those jobs to wherever du jour. Tellers? Fack em. ATM..no more fees. LMAO Checkers? Nope, self check. Bye bye 92,000 Walmart employees. But hey, I got a great deal on my 72" boob tube. Too bad Jerry Springer isn't around anymore. Teach The Children Well. Hatred is now the new cool. Stay safe buddy. I don't see a way outta this one.
Every single country throughout history and presently, had/has the exact type of kings and Queens that The Peasants deserve to have. Tis' simple really, men have been in charge of everything for hundreds of thousands of years, yet still cannot locate peace. I say allow the ladies a go at it. Helps make up for not allowing their voices inr Constitution. Hell even god must have forgotten to allow their voices in those reems of papers the Catholic Men edited to produce a book of rules and punishments.
It’s absolutely true that if we want to have a better government, we need to be better citizens. Will, I suspect you and I disagree on 75% or more of the political issues, but we probably agree on the most important ones.
Thank you for providing your voice and your perspective. It teaches us and reminds us of things we prefer to forget.
Wow! I think you nailed it.