“Some things are in our control, while others are not. We control our opinion, choice, desire, aversion, and, in a word, everything of our own doing. We don’t control our body, property, reputation, position, and, in a word, everything not of our own doing . Even more, the things in our control are by nature free, unhindered, and unobstructed, while those not in our control are weak, slavish, can be hindered, and are not our own.”  EPICTETUS, ENCHIRIDION, 1.1-2

Holiday, Ryan; Hanselman, Stephen (2016-10-18). The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living (p. 17). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle  Edition.

The quotation above seems very relevant to today’s situation. We are in fact relatively powerless to affect the actions of the current Administration/Congress, at least in the short term. Rather than giving in to panic or resignation, we should note the events and concentrate on resisting despair and thinking about how we got to this point and how we can recover the attributes that make our country special. I recommend the article linked to below for additional ideas and concepts to move this country forward.

What is to be done

 

There is a massive multi-member conspiracy in effect at the highest levels of our nation.

Clear evidence is beginning to emerge that the Trump campaign was in ongoing touch with Russian intelligence. Other sources suggest that the media was aware of this, was aware too of an FBI investigation into Russian election interference but regardless, chose not to release any of this information prior to the November elections.

Now, post-election, the Republicans in Congress are slow-walking any investigation into these apparent attacks on the integrity of our democracy. They are resistant to a bipartisan committee. All they care about is keeping their tool in the White House to pass on their regressive Republican agenda. Their dedication to power is shameful and unpatriotic (and near criminal IMHO).

We the people must press our representatives for information about these multiple conspiracies and further for punishment to be levied where appropriate. Otherwise the White House will have to change its name to the Scarlet house (or whatever color indicates a total absence of morality and validity). And the Capitol will be even less worthy of our respect than it is today.

Based on the tragedies occurring in the world today, it seems like we need some new words to give them a solid basis in our reality. I propose two: ecocaust to describe the ongoing decimation of species and habitats across the globe; climatastrophe to describe the increasing violence and frequency of devastating storms, droughts, heat waves and flooding we are seeing here in California and around the world.

The current administration’s denial does not mean these words will go out of style. We need to reduce our CO2 emissions and cease our resource destruction or we will soon all be homeless on our only home planet.

What the slogan “Make America great again” left out was “for whom”?

It looks like the the answer is: The topmost .1% only. The Republican Congress hates the poor and they are wasting no time showing it. From cutting the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau off at the knees to killing a California plan for non-Wall street dominated retirement accounts, the “punish the poor, reward the rich” mantra is ringing loudly through the Capitol.

Let’s hope we can change that tune after the next set of elections.

In the meantime keep contacting your representatives to see if they can help stanch the bleeding.

I fear for the future of our nation. A key feature that differentiates democracy from dictatorship is the ability for multiple viewpoints to be heard. This tends to reduce catastrophic miscalculations that can destroy nations.

The current administration’s claim that it is “unreviewable” on national security decisions coupled with its stubborn refusal to listen to either scientific or national intelligence agencies bodes ill for our future as a world leader. It even raises the question of whether our nation can survive with a “blind driver” at the wheel.

Baby boomers, having busted
found that leaders can’t be trusted
joined by others down on their luck
Trump’ed up charges got them unstuck
votes were counted and they say
Trump is in and night is day
Pundits quail and nations tremble
as his nasty troops assemble
We are going God knows where
Led by a fool with orange hair

During the recent presidential campaign, Mr. Trump was blasted by his opponents for having “New York values”.

As a person who grew up in New York (Brooklyn and Manhattan) I’m here to tell you that Mr. Trump does not represent any real New York values.

New York was the port of entry for the vast majority of immigrants to our country. As a regular rider of the IRT (subway) I stood beside people from every continent and island on the planet. The contributions of these diverse masses to our country’s cuisine and culture were present on every corner. And many of those immigrants and refugees moved out from the barrios and ghettos to form our great and (once) growing middle class.

If Mr. Trump really had New York values he would put his anti-immigrant edicts back in the trash where they belong.

During the Vietnam War an officer was quoted as saying “We had to destroy the village in order to save it”.

The same scorched earth mindset is alive and well on the regressive Republican right.

So the next time you hear “We need to save Social Security!” or “We need to save Medicare!” remember that these programs are not in any immediate danger and do not need any risky Republican radical surgery. These surgeons aim to kill the patient, not cure it.

Do not let the current chaos (a vicious Psyops tactic being used to disrupt any rational opposition to their radical policies) blind you to the upcoming real danger: total destruction of the last eighty years of social and economic progress.

The term juggernaut refers to an ancient Hindu ritual where a giant wagon was allowed to roll down a hill, where once it gained enough speed it would crush to death any in its path.

Today we have the grim prospect of a Trump administration headed by avowed destructionist Bannon starting to careen down a hill towards our most cherished liberties.

We must put “chocks” under the wheels of this dangerous phenomenon. Two specific chocks: 1. Contact your senators and congresspeople and urge them to resist (they’re on my speed dial). 2. Sign up at justice democrats to replace the spineless corporate democrats of today with progressive democrats who will represent “just us” and not their corporate donors.

For an overview of the justice democrats goals click here and watch the Cenk Uygur video

Florence was a center of the Renaissance. It was a haven for humanist thought and was blessed to have wealthy patrons who subsidized the arts and gave us treasures of art and architecture that have lasted to this day.

Eventually, the freedom and beauty were attacked and destroyed by radical fundamentalists like Savonarola who insisted that things return to the earlier benighted ideologies. They burned the books and artworks that reflected the enlightened thinking of this citadel of culture.

We are in the midst of a burning bonfire. Unless we resist, the forces of darkness will be shutting down the advances that free men and women have struggled to achieve for the last two centuries. Don’t let it happen here. Fight back against the new Savonarola.