Very good, very scary. More on what we can do. I appreciated Ruth’s last comments that sustained protests important. I run a weekly Tesla Takedown among other things. It doesn’t feel enough.
People seem to be more interested in themselves and their limited interests that they can't imagine their interconnectedness. Look at the last 30 years of "gun rights" being more important that school kids mowed down by fun stuff. I find myself thinking if I'm the only person in America who is actually really upset about stray people being picked up off the streets by masked SS guys and imprisoned in a concentration camp. Or that the Supreme Court handed Trump alone the eternal get out of jail gold card so that he could completely ignore our founding. Help me out.
Of course - Trump. But, I definitely have come to place the bulk of my blame and anger onto the GOP (including the Supreme Court MAGAs) who enable him. He's just one guy. It takes all of them to prop him up. It is truly their choice and their shame.
My own for sure- head spinning but this conversation was deep and enlightening - helped to see the “levels” of freedom and how much sense that makes- allows for a broader conversation w others who are not aligned
W my understanding of freedom and a sharing of others understanding - out standing
Anand I love that you explore these questions at the level that you do. But I am not sure I agree that people don’t care. The stress people feel is real, very real. They just don’t know how to make a difference. Should we all be holding back our work and resisting every minute of every day? I think so, but these thoughts aren’t mainstream yet. But it doesn’t mean people don’t care.
I agree, almost everyone I know is very concerned. I agree, they just don't know how to fight back. Many of us are writing letters and making calls to elected officials. We are protesting now, almost weekly. Some are writing letters to editors of local newpapers. We are now hearing regularly that it's up to us, that we need to collectively fight back. But, we're not sure what that means. Many of us believe something needs to happen that's bigger than us. Civil disobedience, strikes, boycotts (many of us are already boycotting large companies (Amazon, Tesla, as examples). We're hearing that a national strike could be years away. It'll be too late. So what do we do in the meantime that will have a significant impact. Somehow we have to stop the flow of money to them somehow. But how, what, when, where?
Your point about controlling the flow of our money is really important. Small things can add up. I've decided that all gifts I give for the foreseeable future either have to be in support of nonprofits/charitable causes or small, preferably-local businesses. I was pleased that my Mom enjoyed receiving for Mother's Day a gift card to a small, local, independent bookstore that she's never been to, though one of her friends loves it and it's been open for several years in our town. I've been frustrated, though, that she's unwilling to alter her shopping behavior even an iota, continuing to shop at Amazon and to buy nearly all of her food at Whole Foods. I am shopping for my food 1 block away at a regional supermarket chain and have only needed to buy 1 item at Whole Foods in many months. She's simply unwilling to understand that her children and grandchildren really need her to "vote with her dollars," and she doesn't understand that she's voting against her own values by continuing to shop where and how she is. I know that a disproportionate percentage of protestors are our senior citizens right now, but there are also some seniors who refuse to recognize that their voices are needed and that their unmodified behavior contributes to the problems that their grandkids and their children will face. I don't know how to get through to her, but I started by simply giving her a gift that was different from what I normally would have chosen. She will LOVE this bookstore and, I hope, may go there to buy gifts in the future. That's my hope anyway. Meanwhile, the store owners really appreciated what I said about my decision to support small businesses. I mentioned that I'll be training a new therapy dog for the R.E.A.D. program and that I'll treat myself to a new dog-themed children's book when I get closer to being ready to return to my volunteer work. One owner immediately said: when you're ready, we'd love to have you do an event here. So, maybe my intentional entering of a store that I wouldn't normally have visited will lead to further public service on my part. Baby steps...and a long timeline. We must have faith that they'll add up.
I have done all I can - but most of us in the collective are working hand to mouth to survive. I have never worked harder to maintain a living. If you are lucky enough to report on this and make a living doing so, you need to remember most of us out here are struggling to stay afloat and for myself keep my small business alive, along with writing, raising my son, providing food and shelter and also marching, calling, resisting. You will see the gathering you are hoping for when we have nothing left. This feels like a wealthy question to the poor.
This is no surprise. One only need to look at the last 78 years of Trump's life, and the lives of his sycophants and supporters to see how the proof was in the pudding. Trump was born with a silver spoon in his life from Fred Trump's corrupt empire...prior empire from grandparents during Klondike boom with prostitution and bar/brother...and Elon's mean, neonatalist father with ties to emerald mines...there are no Mother Teresa's in this bunch. Just a lot of greedy, emotionally compromised, fearful, controlling, individuals.
It's not that people don't care...but there are many factors. Social media disinformation/misinformation. 2012, the landscape of information changed. 47% of Americans make $15 and under, so listening to this show and others is probably not a priority when you're in survival mode. Some are just like the above, more concerned with money and consuming, that they can justify or rationalize the rest. And some are just bad people of character driving this machine...then there are the rest of us with a moral compass...doing what we can, but our time is divided with kids, jobs, etc.
Yes, nothing I do feels like enough. Probably it’s because nothing any one person does will be enough. I hate what my country is becoming now, I am angry and horrified and still not sure what else we can do besides protest, call representatives, and hope for better luck at the next midterms. I am depressed every day, and only opposing in action and being part of the prodemocracy substack world keeps me from utter despair! Thanks for being there but yes, someone can you tell us what to do, someone with power? It seems like there are lots of people who know what is happening but no one knows how to stop it or what to do.
Very good, very scary. More on what we can do. I appreciated Ruth’s last comments that sustained protests important. I run a weekly Tesla Takedown among other things. It doesn’t feel enough.
It's enough, it did the job and beyond.
This was an incredibly useful conversation! Thank you all.
People seem to be more interested in themselves and their limited interests that they can't imagine their interconnectedness. Look at the last 30 years of "gun rights" being more important that school kids mowed down by fun stuff. I find myself thinking if I'm the only person in America who is actually really upset about stray people being picked up off the streets by masked SS guys and imprisoned in a concentration camp. Or that the Supreme Court handed Trump alone the eternal get out of jail gold card so that he could completely ignore our founding. Help me out.
Of course - Trump. But, I definitely have come to place the bulk of my blame and anger onto the GOP (including the Supreme Court MAGAs) who enable him. He's just one guy. It takes all of them to prop him up. It is truly their choice and their shame.
Most of all appreciate the question that’s been simmering without a clear answer. For the present it seems that ..,
- bad behavior & corruption is moving fast
- impact isn’t quite felt by most
- years of disinformation targeting’Trump’s Enemies’..
✨truthful media (VOA, PBS, NPR))
✨truthful experts (CDC, NIH, WHO, USAID)
✨truthful Judiciary (too many to count)
✨truthful (GOP, DEM, Independent )
✨truthful agencies (HHS, State, FBI, AGs everywhere, Pentagon, Military, OSHA, Environmental, Parks, USPS, IRS, FEMA, Consumer Protection, Disaster relief/ surveillance..etc), Immigration, Economic safeguards
-Now (defund, delete, destroy, fire, blame… profiteering & privatization
-Sadly, impacts aren’t sufficient to prompt majority outcry
For me…
✨share information,
✨continue to contact my Representatives
✨ask questions.. listen
✨speak up
Cognitive dissonance
My own for sure- head spinning but this conversation was deep and enlightening - helped to see the “levels” of freedom and how much sense that makes- allows for a broader conversation w others who are not aligned
W my understanding of freedom and a sharing of others understanding - out standing
Anand I love that you explore these questions at the level that you do. But I am not sure I agree that people don’t care. The stress people feel is real, very real. They just don’t know how to make a difference. Should we all be holding back our work and resisting every minute of every day? I think so, but these thoughts aren’t mainstream yet. But it doesn’t mean people don’t care.
I agree, almost everyone I know is very concerned. I agree, they just don't know how to fight back. Many of us are writing letters and making calls to elected officials. We are protesting now, almost weekly. Some are writing letters to editors of local newpapers. We are now hearing regularly that it's up to us, that we need to collectively fight back. But, we're not sure what that means. Many of us believe something needs to happen that's bigger than us. Civil disobedience, strikes, boycotts (many of us are already boycotting large companies (Amazon, Tesla, as examples). We're hearing that a national strike could be years away. It'll be too late. So what do we do in the meantime that will have a significant impact. Somehow we have to stop the flow of money to them somehow. But how, what, when, where?
Your point about controlling the flow of our money is really important. Small things can add up. I've decided that all gifts I give for the foreseeable future either have to be in support of nonprofits/charitable causes or small, preferably-local businesses. I was pleased that my Mom enjoyed receiving for Mother's Day a gift card to a small, local, independent bookstore that she's never been to, though one of her friends loves it and it's been open for several years in our town. I've been frustrated, though, that she's unwilling to alter her shopping behavior even an iota, continuing to shop at Amazon and to buy nearly all of her food at Whole Foods. I am shopping for my food 1 block away at a regional supermarket chain and have only needed to buy 1 item at Whole Foods in many months. She's simply unwilling to understand that her children and grandchildren really need her to "vote with her dollars," and she doesn't understand that she's voting against her own values by continuing to shop where and how she is. I know that a disproportionate percentage of protestors are our senior citizens right now, but there are also some seniors who refuse to recognize that their voices are needed and that their unmodified behavior contributes to the problems that their grandkids and their children will face. I don't know how to get through to her, but I started by simply giving her a gift that was different from what I normally would have chosen. She will LOVE this bookstore and, I hope, may go there to buy gifts in the future. That's my hope anyway. Meanwhile, the store owners really appreciated what I said about my decision to support small businesses. I mentioned that I'll be training a new therapy dog for the R.E.A.D. program and that I'll treat myself to a new dog-themed children's book when I get closer to being ready to return to my volunteer work. One owner immediately said: when you're ready, we'd love to have you do an event here. So, maybe my intentional entering of a store that I wouldn't normally have visited will lead to further public service on my part. Baby steps...and a long timeline. We must have faith that they'll add up.
When do we storm the castle?
YES! The tone of your question points to the fairy tale aspect of this strange new reality.
I have done all I can - but most of us in the collective are working hand to mouth to survive. I have never worked harder to maintain a living. If you are lucky enough to report on this and make a living doing so, you need to remember most of us out here are struggling to stay afloat and for myself keep my small business alive, along with writing, raising my son, providing food and shelter and also marching, calling, resisting. You will see the gathering you are hoping for when we have nothing left. This feels like a wealthy question to the poor.
I'm overwhelmed and have no idea what useful thing I can do.
Very fine conversation. Thank you. All congress people should listen to this on policing.
We're here listening to you because we care, Anand.
I hear that a General Strike requires preparation. How can I help?
This is no surprise. One only need to look at the last 78 years of Trump's life, and the lives of his sycophants and supporters to see how the proof was in the pudding. Trump was born with a silver spoon in his life from Fred Trump's corrupt empire...prior empire from grandparents during Klondike boom with prostitution and bar/brother...and Elon's mean, neonatalist father with ties to emerald mines...there are no Mother Teresa's in this bunch. Just a lot of greedy, emotionally compromised, fearful, controlling, individuals.
It's not that people don't care...but there are many factors. Social media disinformation/misinformation. 2012, the landscape of information changed. 47% of Americans make $15 and under, so listening to this show and others is probably not a priority when you're in survival mode. Some are just like the above, more concerned with money and consuming, that they can justify or rationalize the rest. And some are just bad people of character driving this machine...then there are the rest of us with a moral compass...doing what we can, but our time is divided with kids, jobs, etc.
Mar-a-Lago on Mars. Nice ring, don't you think?
Yes, I was visiting my daughter in DC and they were so blase about things that horrified me.
Yikes.
I almost feel as though I'm hypnotizing myself.
Yes, nothing I do feels like enough. Probably it’s because nothing any one person does will be enough. I hate what my country is becoming now, I am angry and horrified and still not sure what else we can do besides protest, call representatives, and hope for better luck at the next midterms. I am depressed every day, and only opposing in action and being part of the prodemocracy substack world keeps me from utter despair! Thanks for being there but yes, someone can you tell us what to do, someone with power? It seems like there are lots of people who know what is happening but no one knows how to stop it or what to do.