Anand, you hit the nail squarely on the head — bullseye! I couldn’t have put it so eloquently but I’ve had the same thoughts. Your point is further echoed in the climate movement, where there is not nearly enough sense of urgency in the majority of people.
Yes, they are worried. What I was getting to is that not nearly enough people treat it as a serious threat, a pending catastrophe. If they did, there would be a mass mobilization, I think.
Anand, the way I keep from sinking into despair and hopelessness is by focusing on ACTION. I think you could do a great service by including, every day, some specific ACTIONS we can take, instead of just ideas Thank you
Check out Jess Craven’s Substack “Chop Wood Carry Water” she has daily lists of things to do and on Sundays details positive things that have happened (sometimes) because of our actions.
Well in my neck of the woods, every time I go out I wear one of various t-shirts that say, "No Kings in America", "We The People Means Everyone", etc., and with the exception of one time that I can recall, I am the only one doing that. I live in Asheville, which is a blue area in the middle of a sea of red around it, so this is something many more people could be doing on their travels. Why aren't they? Too afraid? In denial? Several folks have made it a point to tell me they like my t-shirt. That's great, but what are you waiting for? I am reminded of one of my favorite lines from JAWS, "I think you're going to ignore this problem until it swims up and bites you in the ass"!! In their case, perhaps they are waiting for ICE to take away someone they know personally, or maybe they are waiting for someone they know to be a "good" person to be fired from their job for speaking out on something they believe to be wrong. Guess what, it's too late when you see your loved one whisked off to Alligator Alcatraz or God knows where.
People do things when they see other people doing things. Print up some shirts and give them away. I do this with hats. I am a senior on a budget but this is something I can do.
I agree. I do not need to read or watch the news for hours a day to understand how bad things are. I much prefer to do something. I am very involved with my local Indivisible group and highly recommend those who want to active sign up with your local Indivisible or start one if you don't have one close by. We readers can also share what we are doing in the comments section.
We need action. A multi pronged strategy with multiple strands that people can pull on depending on their situation (time, energy, risk profile etc). More than just writing my MOC or showing up at town halls; or at protests.
This is just a bit harsh. I'm an Indivisible group leader, and I participate in all the actions as well as working to inspire and inform others. I've been organizing in a purple state for nearly 9 years, and my mental health is fragile. I draw major boundaries around news consumption--or maybe I should say news SOURCE consumption. The NYT enrages me daily with its "both sides" coverage, but I still subscribe and open it every few days as if it's a hand grenade with the pin removed. In order to keep going and stay hopeful, I absolutely have to avoid all TV news and most major outlets, but I read lots of newsletters (always The.Ink!) and a few independent sources.
I focus on issues that I can do something about. Outrage with no outlet or action is wasted energy, and when I feel my anxiety level spiking I have to turn away. I may not be as broadly informed as some, but guarding my sanity and determination to keep going requires avoiding the level of news consumption I used to maintain.
Yes Cathy. I do the exact same thing and honestly out off my this newsletter. Heather Cox Richardson is an important person who arrives in my email each day and the Bulwark as well as Ink.
Thank you for this comment. I limit news intake to keep a foot in the world I can participate in. Today's news can sap energy and leave me unmotivated. I need to keep relevant doing those things that make a difference in my world, locally, knowing that all things work together for the good, if we have goodness in mind.
Okay, I get it, but WHAT CAN I DO? I do all the things you and your guests talk about. I discuss socially, I protest. My protest signs hang visibly on my front door. All the people I trust are saying don’t you get it? Yes, I fucking get it, but I can’t stop the horrid inertia. I am frustrated by the “aren’t you paying attention messages”. Someone craft a plan that is creative and powerful. The pleas and opinions are just words.
Hi, Nina. Please read this with the tone of compassion and care; that's what it's sent with. The beauty of this horrid moment is that we each to get to create our own plan. No one is going to do it for you. One suggestion is to find the organizations in your community that work directly to support poor, marginalized people. Ask to meet with someone in their offices who you can talk to about how you could help. Then choose one that speaks to you, or with whom you connect. They will have plenty for you to DO. And if that doesn't ring your bell, just pick an organization that does and talk to them about how you can help. And then when they tell you - DO IT.
Yes, Anand, you are right. For people whose lives are centered only on their own well-being, it' can be comfortable to live in an authoritarian state. But if your values, your compassion, your humanity extends to others, especially to "the least of these," it's impossible to be okay.
The challenge is to balance joy and sorrow.
My husband and I are looking forward to resuming our weekly protest in Fort Myers outside our retirement community.
There’s no doubt in any of us that we’d do whatever it took to save our children. In my parenthood, I often went outside my comfort zone. I want to do that now.
I never knew how much I — not just love- but depend on, the rule of law. I believe all of us have to give up something now. What if we had a General Strike? Like a union. He’s treating the country like a business- and we the people make that business run.
The more wealthy among us should now be stepping up and saying, I’ll pay for someone’s food if they get fired, etc.
What is the point of “keeping “ everything we all have - time, money, position- if the world they’re making will smash it anyway?
I don't read or watch the news, to maintain my sanity. But I see enough to know that authoritarianism is here and that we must fight and do everything we can to resist and dismantle it.
I used to wonder how, in the 1930s/40s, the average German people could tolerate what was going knowing there were concentration camps in nearby towns.
Lately, in my reading about Fascism, I learned that "people learn to tolerate evil" because authoritarian leaders set up TWO systems that operate in the same communities: the system of repression/cruelty/punishment AND the system of normalcy.
Everyone who opts for normalcy without looking at and objecting to the evil system gives tacit approval to the charade.
We are starting to live that now. If we become passive, we are complicit.
I worry that people are way to focused on what makes “me” feel better and not enough about what makes our country better. Too much focus on the me of it all and not nearly enough focus on the greater good. Not healthy. 🥹💔🇺🇸
This is our time. If this authoritarian power grab is going to be stopped, we the people will have to do it. We need more; we need more now. In the last day Obama, JD Pritzker, Chris Murphy have all said, the people need to push back. Rob Bonta, the CA AG has called for "crowds and courage". My close friends are out protesting, calling, canvassing, and registering voters, but I know way more people who are heading out on vacation and acting as if nothing has changed. Civil society is cracking. It's hard to believe the media is not standing up for free speech, but they are collapsing--mergers are more important than their mission. We need a sense of urgency. Free speech affects both the right and the left. Tarrifs affect both the right and the left. Rather than fighting one another we need to band together to fight the authoritarian overthrow of our government. I've been reading "From Dictatorship to Democracy" by Gene Sharp. It was first published in 1993 in Bangkok, but it's relevant today. Let's go.
When people hold politics that best suit their specific social standing and are fine with anything as long as that standing is preserved, then those people are not going to regard Trumpocracy as a threat to them if it genuinely is not. In other words, the essay is great but it needs to use words like "class" and "power" to really stick the argument.
Dear Anand, travel to Dubai? Shanghai? People with money aren't going to feel the disastrous change! I lived under survival and frugality all my life. Single parent, did my best, now on social security, physical issues. Take away what is sustaining me will put me in a tent. Love ya anyway Anand and all your commentators, y'all are trying on substack. What's here and coming is scary as hell!
I think what these people need to be made to understand is what they and we are losing and why it matters. Until that happens they will not wake up. We need to get that message across: what are the autocrats gaining and what are we losing?
Thank you, Anand. If anything I fear you’ve UNDERESTIMATED the dire personal impact of living under authoritarianism. Dare I say, it sounds a bit privileged (a place I too unabashedly come from). Even without the moral quandary of what’s happening to our less privileged neighbors(!), what about the systematic demise of our public health, emergency response, criminal justice, educational, cultural and other institutions? That directly impacts us all, however content or prosperous our personal lives. And it doesn’t even include the insidious threats to exercising our first amendment rights. It’s not just Jimmy Kimmel but other less glamorous folks who’ve lost their jobs or suffered negative consequences for not “grieving” properly.
Perhaps The Ink could host a chat about the various ways we’re each taking action, fighting back, serving others, staying sane(ish). Apologies if this has already been offered and I missed it. Thanks, again.
Anand, you hit the nail squarely on the head — bullseye! I couldn’t have put it so eloquently but I’ve had the same thoughts. Your point is further echoed in the climate movement, where there is not nearly enough sense of urgency in the majority of people.
Check out what people think from this research source
https://climatecommunication.yale.edu
Yes, they are worried. What I was getting to is that not nearly enough people treat it as a serious threat, a pending catastrophe. If they did, there would be a mass mobilization, I think.
So agree about the climate movement.
https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/top-public-worries-in-the-u-s/?utm_source=Yale+Program+on+Climate+Change+Communication&utm_campaign=736f1581fd-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2025_09_10_05_57&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-736f1581fd-711482501
Thank you for this!!!
Anand, the way I keep from sinking into despair and hopelessness is by focusing on ACTION. I think you could do a great service by including, every day, some specific ACTIONS we can take, instead of just ideas Thank you
The time to act is now. Find and join a nearby chapter of a group such as Indivisible https://indivisible.org/ and become a pro-democracy activist. Work toward bringing the 3.5% rule within our reach: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190513-it-only-takes-35-of-people-to-change-the-world . It may be our best/last hope of setting things right.
Check out Jess Craven’s Substack “Chop Wood Carry Water” she has daily lists of things to do and on Sundays details positive things that have happened (sometimes) because of our actions.
Follow her religiously and act on her recommendations for action.
Well in my neck of the woods, every time I go out I wear one of various t-shirts that say, "No Kings in America", "We The People Means Everyone", etc., and with the exception of one time that I can recall, I am the only one doing that. I live in Asheville, which is a blue area in the middle of a sea of red around it, so this is something many more people could be doing on their travels. Why aren't they? Too afraid? In denial? Several folks have made it a point to tell me they like my t-shirt. That's great, but what are you waiting for? I am reminded of one of my favorite lines from JAWS, "I think you're going to ignore this problem until it swims up and bites you in the ass"!! In their case, perhaps they are waiting for ICE to take away someone they know personally, or maybe they are waiting for someone they know to be a "good" person to be fired from their job for speaking out on something they believe to be wrong. Guess what, it's too late when you see your loved one whisked off to Alligator Alcatraz or God knows where.
People do things when they see other people doing things. Print up some shirts and give them away. I do this with hats. I am a senior on a budget but this is something I can do.
I agree. I do not need to read or watch the news for hours a day to understand how bad things are. I much prefer to do something. I am very involved with my local Indivisible group and highly recommend those who want to active sign up with your local Indivisible or start one if you don't have one close by. We readers can also share what we are doing in the comments section.
So so agree. I am extremely aware what is going on. So happy we just agreed to cancel our Disney plus account.
I do agree. And Arand you are preaching to the choir. What can you do outside this bubble of ours?
We need action. A multi pronged strategy with multiple strands that people can pull on depending on their situation (time, energy, risk profile etc). More than just writing my MOC or showing up at town halls; or at protests.
I’ve started following this person smd they have many practical actionable ideas. Hope they team up with Jess Craven. https://cmarmitage.substack.com/p/how-democratic-governors-could-stop
This is just a bit harsh. I'm an Indivisible group leader, and I participate in all the actions as well as working to inspire and inform others. I've been organizing in a purple state for nearly 9 years, and my mental health is fragile. I draw major boundaries around news consumption--or maybe I should say news SOURCE consumption. The NYT enrages me daily with its "both sides" coverage, but I still subscribe and open it every few days as if it's a hand grenade with the pin removed. In order to keep going and stay hopeful, I absolutely have to avoid all TV news and most major outlets, but I read lots of newsletters (always The.Ink!) and a few independent sources.
I focus on issues that I can do something about. Outrage with no outlet or action is wasted energy, and when I feel my anxiety level spiking I have to turn away. I may not be as broadly informed as some, but guarding my sanity and determination to keep going requires avoiding the level of news consumption I used to maintain.
I don't think he had you in mind when he wrote this, Cathy. 😆❤️
Yes Cathy. I do the exact same thing and honestly out off my this newsletter. Heather Cox Richardson is an important person who arrives in my email each day and the Bulwark as well as Ink.
Thank you for this comment. I limit news intake to keep a foot in the world I can participate in. Today's news can sap energy and leave me unmotivated. I need to keep relevant doing those things that make a difference in my world, locally, knowing that all things work together for the good, if we have goodness in mind.
doing anything
democracy docket is where to give and help, among others
Democracy Docket and Earthjustice. Both over worked lawyers working for us. I give monthly to both.
Okay, I get it, but WHAT CAN I DO? I do all the things you and your guests talk about. I discuss socially, I protest. My protest signs hang visibly on my front door. All the people I trust are saying don’t you get it? Yes, I fucking get it, but I can’t stop the horrid inertia. I am frustrated by the “aren’t you paying attention messages”. Someone craft a plan that is creative and powerful. The pleas and opinions are just words.
Hi, Nina. Please read this with the tone of compassion and care; that's what it's sent with. The beauty of this horrid moment is that we each to get to create our own plan. No one is going to do it for you. One suggestion is to find the organizations in your community that work directly to support poor, marginalized people. Ask to meet with someone in their offices who you can talk to about how you could help. Then choose one that speaks to you, or with whom you connect. They will have plenty for you to DO. And if that doesn't ring your bell, just pick an organization that does and talk to them about how you can help. And then when they tell you - DO IT.
Yes, Anand, you are right. For people whose lives are centered only on their own well-being, it' can be comfortable to live in an authoritarian state. But if your values, your compassion, your humanity extends to others, especially to "the least of these," it's impossible to be okay.
The challenge is to balance joy and sorrow.
My husband and I are looking forward to resuming our weekly protest in Fort Myers outside our retirement community.
There’s no doubt in any of us that we’d do whatever it took to save our children. In my parenthood, I often went outside my comfort zone. I want to do that now.
I never knew how much I — not just love- but depend on, the rule of law. I believe all of us have to give up something now. What if we had a General Strike? Like a union. He’s treating the country like a business- and we the people make that business run.
The more wealthy among us should now be stepping up and saying, I’ll pay for someone’s food if they get fired, etc.
What is the point of “keeping “ everything we all have - time, money, position- if the world they’re making will smash it anyway?
I agree, we need to participate in our civil liberties to protect our freedoms 🇺🇸
TWENTY LESSONS ON TYRANNY read by John Lithgow.
https://open.substack.com/pub/snyder/p/twenty-lessons-read-by-john-lithgow?r=kxzps&utm_medium=ios
The time to act is now. Find and join a nearby chapter of a group such as Indivisible https://indivisible.org/ and become a pro-democracy activist. Work toward bringing the 3.5% rule within our reach: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190513-it-only-takes-35-of-people-to-change-the-world . It may be our best/last hope of setting things right.
I don't read or watch the news, to maintain my sanity. But I see enough to know that authoritarianism is here and that we must fight and do everything we can to resist and dismantle it.
The time to act is now. Find and join a nearby chapter of a group such as Indivisible https://indivisible.org/ and become a pro-democracy activist. Work toward bringing the 3.5% rule within our reach: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190513-it-only-takes-35-of-people-to-change-the-world . It may be our best/last hope of setting things right.
I used to wonder how, in the 1930s/40s, the average German people could tolerate what was going knowing there were concentration camps in nearby towns.
Lately, in my reading about Fascism, I learned that "people learn to tolerate evil" because authoritarian leaders set up TWO systems that operate in the same communities: the system of repression/cruelty/punishment AND the system of normalcy.
Everyone who opts for normalcy without looking at and objecting to the evil system gives tacit approval to the charade.
We are starting to live that now. If we become passive, we are complicit.
I worry that people are way to focused on what makes “me” feel better and not enough about what makes our country better. Too much focus on the me of it all and not nearly enough focus on the greater good. Not healthy. 🥹💔🇺🇸
This is our time. If this authoritarian power grab is going to be stopped, we the people will have to do it. We need more; we need more now. In the last day Obama, JD Pritzker, Chris Murphy have all said, the people need to push back. Rob Bonta, the CA AG has called for "crowds and courage". My close friends are out protesting, calling, canvassing, and registering voters, but I know way more people who are heading out on vacation and acting as if nothing has changed. Civil society is cracking. It's hard to believe the media is not standing up for free speech, but they are collapsing--mergers are more important than their mission. We need a sense of urgency. Free speech affects both the right and the left. Tarrifs affect both the right and the left. Rather than fighting one another we need to band together to fight the authoritarian overthrow of our government. I've been reading "From Dictatorship to Democracy" by Gene Sharp. It was first published in 1993 in Bangkok, but it's relevant today. Let's go.
When people hold politics that best suit their specific social standing and are fine with anything as long as that standing is preserved, then those people are not going to regard Trumpocracy as a threat to them if it genuinely is not. In other words, the essay is great but it needs to use words like "class" and "power" to really stick the argument.
Agreed Janine!
Dear Anand, travel to Dubai? Shanghai? People with money aren't going to feel the disastrous change! I lived under survival and frugality all my life. Single parent, did my best, now on social security, physical issues. Take away what is sustaining me will put me in a tent. Love ya anyway Anand and all your commentators, y'all are trying on substack. What's here and coming is scary as hell!
I think what these people need to be made to understand is what they and we are losing and why it matters. Until that happens they will not wake up. We need to get that message across: what are the autocrats gaining and what are we losing?
Thank you, Anand. If anything I fear you’ve UNDERESTIMATED the dire personal impact of living under authoritarianism. Dare I say, it sounds a bit privileged (a place I too unabashedly come from). Even without the moral quandary of what’s happening to our less privileged neighbors(!), what about the systematic demise of our public health, emergency response, criminal justice, educational, cultural and other institutions? That directly impacts us all, however content or prosperous our personal lives. And it doesn’t even include the insidious threats to exercising our first amendment rights. It’s not just Jimmy Kimmel but other less glamorous folks who’ve lost their jobs or suffered negative consequences for not “grieving” properly.
Perhaps The Ink could host a chat about the various ways we’re each taking action, fighting back, serving others, staying sane(ish). Apologies if this has already been offered and I missed it. Thanks, again.