Aaron, sadly, you are absolutely correct about how close we are to losing our democracy. I don't know how or who can turn things around, which is frightening. I'm a senior citizen and all I can do is continue to support democratic leaders & causes. I donate daily, but I see little if any pushback against tRump & his minions. I pray that Representatives & Senators of BOTH parties move to Impeach & remove him & his V.P. from office before it is too late. I agree with Greg about defunding ICE.
It is going to be critical that Democrats do somethingb they have never done, vote down an expansion of the military budget. I think they will be too ch=icken. They also needx to defund ICE.
People are demonstrating more than I've ever seen before, so many are immediately and bravely standing up to power as did the woman murdered in Minneapolis. But nothing stops them. Resounding silence from MAGA and not much more from Congress in general, including so many of the Democrats. I saw the movie "Nuremberg" recently, of course we know the history, but with the immediacy of it on the big screen, connections to then and now were frighteningly clear. For example, the relatively untrained almost grass-roots nature of the Nazi SS blew my mind with comparisons to current use of ICE and National Guard troops. I will try to do all I can to stop what is happening, I won't use my age (79) to opt out of actions, but I honestly do not know what to do at this point & where it seems to be going is a very scary place.
Thanks so much for the work you put into these missives, sharing clarity and truth in a time of horrible lies that are backed by impossible wealth. We all need to be taking action in our words ands deeds to throw light on this spreading darkness.
Agree on all points. A convincing argument, thank you! Yes, the game board is loaded. This might not be the right place, but I submitted a reader's comment on a Renee Good piece in the NY Times, and used "Gestapo" and "de-Nazi-fying" (re: ICE agents post-Trump), and for only the second time in over ten years, my comment was not approved. The NY Times does not ever say why a comment is not approved. What do you think? I'm going to try "Gestapo" by itself, but I suspect a widening net of censorship. What next.
Evil begins to take hold in many small, seemingly innocuous ways. By 1933 the Nazi's were into book burning. My family photographs up until 1950, after they had arrived in New York, were mostly taken outside in fields, inside candlelit rooms, or posing next to the rubble of stone structures as many homes in Europe were built of stone or brick.
Much of what I now know did not come from their stories, because they did not speak of the unspeakable things. They spared their children the horrors of that time. In researching how the events are unfolding now I found the details here (https://www.ushmm.org/) that laid down the playbook for today, except the current regime is playing in plain view. I believe it it the denial of most people to reject the uncomfortable truth of what is happening now. Until they can't.
We need much more engagement in the civic and political discussion from folks who tend to look the other way or don’t vote, regardless of what party they affiliate with. Likewise, this new year of 2026 is ever so vital in setting up leadership to support a strong, progressive democrat in 2028. Abdul el-Sayed in Michigan, Graham Platner in Maine, Kat Abughazaleh in Illinois, Cameron Kasky in New York…these are only a few, but represent the ilk of leadership we need in congress!
But what specifically are we citizens to do? We have to act now but do what? I go to marches, I talk to idiots on the left who claim that both parties are the same (I’m sure I’ve convinced no one); what can I do?
yes Leo, we are up against left-wing false equivalence, and also a widespread attitude that all politicians are crooks. I can't convinced people otherwise either, but maybe Aaron is better at it!
Keep acting locally, support our local Congressmen when they do something you agree with and tell them when you don't agree, give them feedback, keep talking to everyone!
Aaron, sadly, you are absolutely correct about how close we are to losing our democracy. I don't know how or who can turn things around, which is frightening. I'm a senior citizen and all I can do is continue to support democratic leaders & causes. I donate daily, but I see little if any pushback against tRump & his minions. I pray that Representatives & Senators of BOTH parties move to Impeach & remove him & his V.P. from office before it is too late. I agree with Greg about defunding ICE.
It is going to be critical that Democrats do somethingb they have never done, vote down an expansion of the military budget. I think they will be too ch=icken. They also needx to defund ICE.
People are demonstrating more than I've ever seen before, so many are immediately and bravely standing up to power as did the woman murdered in Minneapolis. But nothing stops them. Resounding silence from MAGA and not much more from Congress in general, including so many of the Democrats. I saw the movie "Nuremberg" recently, of course we know the history, but with the immediacy of it on the big screen, connections to then and now were frighteningly clear. For example, the relatively untrained almost grass-roots nature of the Nazi SS blew my mind with comparisons to current use of ICE and National Guard troops. I will try to do all I can to stop what is happening, I won't use my age (79) to opt out of actions, but I honestly do not know what to do at this point & where it seems to be going is a very scary place.
You summed where we are perfectly! We who value our Democracy must act now to save it! We may not have an FDR, but we have each other.
Thanks so much for the work you put into these missives, sharing clarity and truth in a time of horrible lies that are backed by impossible wealth. We all need to be taking action in our words ands deeds to throw light on this spreading darkness.
Agree on all points. A convincing argument, thank you! Yes, the game board is loaded. This might not be the right place, but I submitted a reader's comment on a Renee Good piece in the NY Times, and used "Gestapo" and "de-Nazi-fying" (re: ICE agents post-Trump), and for only the second time in over ten years, my comment was not approved. The NY Times does not ever say why a comment is not approved. What do you think? I'm going to try "Gestapo" by itself, but I suspect a widening net of censorship. What next.
Evil begins to take hold in many small, seemingly innocuous ways. By 1933 the Nazi's were into book burning. My family photographs up until 1950, after they had arrived in New York, were mostly taken outside in fields, inside candlelit rooms, or posing next to the rubble of stone structures as many homes in Europe were built of stone or brick.
Much of what I now know did not come from their stories, because they did not speak of the unspeakable things. They spared their children the horrors of that time. In researching how the events are unfolding now I found the details here (https://www.ushmm.org/) that laid down the playbook for today, except the current regime is playing in plain view. I believe it it the denial of most people to reject the uncomfortable truth of what is happening now. Until they can't.
We need much more engagement in the civic and political discussion from folks who tend to look the other way or don’t vote, regardless of what party they affiliate with. Likewise, this new year of 2026 is ever so vital in setting up leadership to support a strong, progressive democrat in 2028. Abdul el-Sayed in Michigan, Graham Platner in Maine, Kat Abughazaleh in Illinois, Cameron Kasky in New York…these are only a few, but represent the ilk of leadership we need in congress!
If we want to stop fascism, here's something we all can start doing right away...
https://reclaimingthewe.substack.com/p/dont-stop-resisting-but-dont-forget
But what specifically are we citizens to do? We have to act now but do what? I go to marches, I talk to idiots on the left who claim that both parties are the same (I’m sure I’ve convinced no one); what can I do?
yes Leo, we are up against left-wing false equivalence, and also a widespread attitude that all politicians are crooks. I can't convinced people otherwise either, but maybe Aaron is better at it!
Keep acting locally, support our local Congressmen when they do something you agree with and tell them when you don't agree, give them feedback, keep talking to everyone!