A quick note before you get to the most recent post 

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We live in dark times, and it’s feeling stranger and stranger to write this blog without acknowledging that. As someone other than me has already said, whatever you think the German people should’ve done in the 1930s, this is the time to do it. We can’t all be heroes but we can be honorable people. Sometimes that alone is heroic. Do what whatever is in your power, my friends. We can’t know how long the chance will last.

29 thoughts on “A quick note before you get to the most recent post ”

  3. I’m not sure what the German people could have done in 1930’s . Those who were evil intentioned had the whip hand . Just like a fever it will have to run its course . Heroics just provide fuel to the fire . Dumb insolence is possibly the only positive thing that can be done .

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    • The problem with dumb insolence is that, tempting as it is, it doesn’t have much of a political impact. I don’t have a blueprint–I’m in as far over my head as everyone else is–but I’m in favor of trying pretty much everything–demonstrating, letters and phone calls to politicians, talking with friends and family, donating money to organizations fighting the good fight. Staying informed and helping others stay informed. It all feels like too little but I’ve been around long enough to know that we can’t predict the impact of what actions, small or large, in situations that feel overwhelming. The one thing that I know doesn’t work is doing nothing.

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      • Political activity can be stamped on and turnaround as being unpatriotic . Letters etc can be ignored or burned. I still go for bovine indifference and a plague on both your houses .

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        • Interesting argument. It makes me want to list all the things that can be turned on or turned into their opposite: food can become vomit; good humor can show up at the wrong time and place and make someone feel terrible. And so forth. The belief that politics is toxic, that both sides (or all sides if we have more than two) and the same, and that nothing helps–it’s one of many reasons that we are where we are. Political activity can indeed be called unpatriotic, but that doesn’t make it so. In dangerous times, it’s all the more important to do what we believe is right, regardless of who’s calling names.

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        • Hi Mary. Good to hear from you. This is a very weird time to be living outside the US, following what’s going on mostly via the news and the occasional email from friends. I feel the oddest mix of relief that I’m not there and guilt that I’m not there.

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  4. I couldn’t agree more. We Americans are known for being lazy in our politics, only responding if it directly impacts us. Like Pastor Martin Niemöller’s poem. We are getting very close to the end: “Then they came for me. And there was no one left To speak out for me. We are risking our own humanity if we don’t fight back.

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    • We are. And it’s amazing how quickly the attacks shifted from illegal immigrants who commit terrible crimes to legal immigrants who have brown skin–along with a random few citizens who just happen to be available when arrests are going down.

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  5. So true, Ellen. Just this last week, I realized that our media seem to be preparing us for war. Example: We need to prepare, because when Putin will expand the war to the West…

    My history lessons kicked in, and I wonder, will I look back to this moment as the one where I acknowledged where this could go…

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    • They say generals are always fighting the last war, and I’m no general but I find myself doing the same thing. Do we look to WWII–hold the line in Eastern Europe, no appeasement, peace won’t bring peace, etc–or would that be the kickoff to a nuclearized WWIII? I don’t know. I just don’t know.

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    • History–I have to remind myself–never repeats exactly, but my point of reference is still Nazi Germany. We watched a movie about the Brazilian dictatorship–I think it’s called We’re Still Here–and I wonder if that isn’t a better parallel. Arrests, disappearances, murders, but without the totality of Nazism. It’s a thought-provoking look at how good people did get through–some but not all of them.

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  8. Perfectly expressed and I could not agree more. It is exhausting to have to relentlessly pushback but apathy is not an option. Lessons from history help motivate me to keep going. It also helps to be part of a collective because then it is possible to take a brief break while others pick it up. Strength in numbers.

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    • That’s a grim thought. You’d think people who are open to being Trumpified would look at the mess he’s making and think, Y’know, maybe not. But then, I’m assuming we’re living in some kind of consensual reality. Silly me.

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  10. Use yer liberty while you still have it.
    It is astounding to watch how fast large parts of the published opinion, of “critical” media, of public voices caved in. The best soil for fascism is silence, conformity, fear to stand out. Fascism works with violence, either open or threatened – and sadly what is called a federal “police force” in Trumpistan is an army of masked thugs, ready to threaten anybody. And do not forget : The system of camps is running for years now.
    Trump and his suckers lie, lie, and lie again. The “opposition” is oh so polite still hoping for decorum, civility, and humanistic values – all that garbage the POOH (PresOfOurHearts) shits on every day. It is about time to be loud, to speak clearly, and carry a big stick. It is still possible to get rid of the fascist movement that is legally elected a second time, but it gets more & more difficult with any given day : The fascist lying machine is in overdrive, facts (real and fake) are created, injustice is done.
    The thing is : “They” have a plan, the slowly forming opposition has only vague ideas.
    There are various elections in the years coming. The Movement must loose every single one. They can not be allowed to have the tiniest chance to stay in power (pseudo-)legally, what is their clear aim.
    This is only achievable with an aggressive campaign, so that the last brain-dead maga zombie realises that the game is over – nobody wants that shit. Trumpistan is a laughing stock, the economy tanks, and nobody will forget the way they were treated by the Trumpistani Herrenmenschen.
    Use yer liberty while you still have it.

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  11. My head of department was keen on telling kids “For evil to suceed, good men must do nothing”. I feel like there’s a lot of that about at the minute. A nasty/evil minority has been amplified and embolded by the online platforms.

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  12. This is such a refreshing reminder of why personal storytelling still matters in a world overflowing with content. Your honesty about the writing process — especially the joy and chaos of revisiting drafts — makes the blog feel alive and wonderfully human.

    I love that you give us a glimpse “behind the curtain” before diving into your latest piece; it sets the tone and makes readers feel like they’re part of the journey rather than just consuming the final product.

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  13. Well said. I don’t know what we can do, but recognising what’s on the horizon (actually already here) we should consider planning – and at least do our part. Reject this. Outright. And feel courageous enough to speak out.

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