183 Comments
Sep 3, 2022Liked by Robert B. Hubbell

The gravity and probable harm to others by today's revelation of missing documents is shocking. I have no compassion left for anyone who adheres to Trump. I am done trying to understand him or them. Let them clatter on, even on their news shouts. The lines are drawn. Thank heaven for this newsletter and others or else I would think the entire world has gone mad.

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Much of it has, so grateful for the dose of sanity

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Amen!!!

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I often wish I could just do something. But what can I do about Climate, Gun Control, Trump, etc? This woman has charted out meaningful things we can actually do. She is very inspirational too. I highly recommend her newsletter. Watch one of her videos and you will not sleep. She is amazing, and shows how we can actually make a difference. Like encouraging high school seniors to register. https://chopwoodcarrywaterdailyactions.substack.com/p/chop-wood-carry-water-830-f2d?r=7pgmf&s=r&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email

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I am busy every single day fighting to win elections. I say: do what you can do. I’m a math and computer science major so I can do voter data analysis. Our candidates are grateful for the insight.

I am just techie enough to run groups on social media so I do that to create a community for our activists. It provides a place for us all to hear about events all over the county and join each other.

I offer candidates to hold meet n greets. I canvass for them. I join activities of PACs that do similar things to what you mentioned and even more.

But each person can do what they do well. One guy I know does sound equipment set ups for the events. Same guy makes super giant signs and we take them up on the freeway overpass.

Robert Hubble writes a daily motivating newsletter.

Whatever you do is valuable. We need it all.

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❤️

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I’m glad you mentioned this newsletter. Jessica Craven does such a good job with her Chop Wood Carry Water newsletter. I’m so glad I found it as it gives me guidance everyday it’s published to do something purposeful! Thank you Jessica for all you do to organize us!

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I second your comment. I’ve been following the “Chop Wood Carry Water” substack for awhile. Very practical and helpful. Thanks.

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I agree 100%. May have even heard of her substack through Robert Hubbell. 🤔 found texting through Nextgen, Activate America postcarding, Red, Wine and Blue, etc through them.

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This is another really meaningful thing you can do:

https://statesproject.org/

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Thank you! She is amazing - and there's so much to choose from to DO!

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Sep 3, 2022Liked by Robert B. Hubbell

Robert, I forwarded a PDF to you earlier today about Trump's stolen defense secrets.

I referenced Nicolle Wallace's interview with Sue Gordon (CIA). Here is the link:

https://youtu.be/-slPUvVF5Es

Gordon tried to be tactful but there is no mistaking she believes that Trump is a serious threat to our national security.

For example, if Top Secret SCI documents he stole include those about about a new, never before revealed, nuclear weapons program he bragged about in Woodward's book, with an eye toward monetizing them to his advantage, we are in Julius and Ethel Rosenberg territory! That's how serious that breach would be.

Having a been involved with our nuclear strike plans that possibility keeps me awake nights.

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Robert - I agree completely.

TS/SCI documents about nuclear capabilities, strike plans, etc would be invaluable to those who would do us harm.

And it's more than just keeping our secrets secret. It's also knowing when the enemy has stolen our secrets. I worked in aerospace in the early days of computer security. As we were designing security, I remember one of the senior military people saying "The only thing worse than the enemy stealing plans that say 'attack at dawn' is not knowing that the enemy stole them. Because, if the enemy knows the plans and we don't know that they know them, then we're walking into a massacre."

I fear that we have to assume the worst - that our intelligence people have to assume that every classified document at Mar-A-Lago has been compromised. Otherwise we could be walking into a massacre. The damage this man has done is incalculable.

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Except that they wouldn't have stolen them IF a willing ex-president gave them for favor or dollars. That the crime in all this. How does one find out?? But, I understand the disaster waiting to happen if we don't know the enemy has the info.

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Sorry, the Sue Gordon link above was Part 1.

Here's Part 2, even more troubling.

https://youtu.be/e6OEjL24Rw0

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This interview should be seen by all. Sue Gordon gives us the clearest, most understandable explanation of the problems we now face due to Trump's criminal mishandling of sensitive national documents. There is no excuse for his monstrous actions. Our country...and perhaps others...have been put in danger. Trump needs to be removed from the political arena , tried and punished.

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We watched parts 1 and 2, and yes, frightening and troubling! We only have antenna TV so we miss anything cable related. I will say we have given up on TV news, but do watch PBS Newshour occasionally. I feel I get enough news between Robert, HCR, Jay Kuo, Chop Wood, Carry Water, and Dan Rather. We were also extremely disappointed to not see Biden's speech anywhere on TV, but streamed it live on YouTube. Had the grandkids over for part of it, and then got so distracted by them that when they went home we watched it again. I wanted to make sure my 7 year old grandson knew who Biden was!

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45 belongs in Guantanamo or Leavenworth, along with quite a few other folks in his inner circle - like Flynn, Kushner, and Pompeo. I consider them all to be traitors. The citizens who continue to get grifted/conned for the sole purpose of maintaining 45's lifestyle are lost causes. It's like Jim Jones and Kool-Aid on a much larger scale. Those folks will NEVER admit they were conned.

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Sue Gordon was very careful in her conversations about Trump as one would expect from a person formally in her position. The key take away was for me the fact that Trump had no appreciation of the nuisance and importance of the data he was receiving and cared less. It was only important if he could use it for personal or political gain. I attended a lecture at Duke a few years ago with the person who use to provide the daily briefing to Trump. He provided these briefings for many Presidents and they were usually provided in written condensed form but Trump never read the reports and had to be briefed orally for 30 minutes or less. This has become more relevant now.

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Totally agree! Drump has the capacity to learn new things. He doesn't have any desires or willingness to acquire new knowledge.

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Please delete previous — apologies!

Read instead this version:

Thank you, Professor Hubbell!

November 8, 2022 election is about turnout, turnout, turnout, to save our democracy. Everyone must take action one is comfortable with. My grassroots is Vote Forward www.votefwd.org for which this household is writing hundreds of letters, with free postage stamps from a VF Stamp Grant. I invite everyone and anyone who would like to participate, to join to help achieve and maybe even exceed the VF goal of 10,000,000 GOTV - Get Out the Vote — letters for 2022. (The only cost is paper and printing the form letters to handwrite personal messages, or also stamps if affordable, but people also donate the printed letters.)

A wonderful civic activist volunteer service.

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Nancy, I have 60 ready to go...I really like the format and the way they keep track of pending, mailed, etc.

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Terrific, Carol. Today our household completed the VF Stamp Grant for 400 Social letters. I also like the way they format and track everything.

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I signed up w/Vote Forward for 140 letters by Oct 27th. I've completed mine for ME and am working on GA, CT, and WI.

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I wanted to comment on the right wing backlash to Biden’s speech.

What’s funny is I never felt an inkling of desire from MAGA Republicans to unify. Then Biden grants a divorce and now they’re angry we’re not trying to unify. It’s like a mother using reverse psychology on a toddler.

But, no. I’m at peace with the divorce. I canvass and phone bank a lot and had learned to just move on. But this is more complete than that. I only have one MAGA family member, a brother who got sucked into Q anon. I’m glad to just avoid every single one of them.

It also wakes me up to the gravity of the problem. It isn’t just a government problem. We have unreconcilable differences with our neighbors. Since I canvass my neighborhood, I know their voter parties. It’s almost too big a burden. I guess I can wave kindly to them but I don’t want to walk down to the Christmas parade with them.

The divorce is final. Now we have to write history as to how to move forward.

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I wouldn’t expect someone to be open to unifying or coming to a common solution if your entire political worldview is based off of a sense of grievance. In that case, you always need a group of people to be your enemy, instead of advocating for systemic change. I know it’s hard for a lot of us to understand, but being a MAGA Republican gives a lot of people a sense of identity and purpose. I mean there are people that attend multiple Trump rallies like they are Deadheads from the 70’s. It’s as much a lifestyle brand as it is a political ideology.

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However, you and others need to *understand* that many MAGA people actually *believe* the stuff propagated by right-wing organs.

People of centrist and leftist persuasions need to recognize that many real people, not all of them monsters, believe that monstrous stuff.

Don’t look down on such people (or surely, you’ll lose them). Accept their existence as empirical fact and deal with it as best you can.

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I’m reading Tim Miller’s book “Why We Did It”. It’s quite an insight into how politics has become a game like sports, where you choose a team and stick with it. I’m horrified to read about the flyers that were sent out after the 2020 election to elderly old-fashioned Republicans like my 98 yo mother. A most interesting read.

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They are deliberately ignorant, sorry, no respect from me. Rupert’s propaganda is for those who choose not to think. I know them well.

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founding

You are right. I continue to be terribly concerned about how social media and FAUX News has shaped the world view of a large portion of the population with misinformation, gaslighting and flat out lies and conspiracies.

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Exactly, no mystery

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Thank you.

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Sep 3, 2022·edited Sep 3, 2022

I agree. I have always felt an instantaneous oppositional response from MAGA Republicans. No matter what is said from a Democrat, MAGA GOP is ready to unify to shoot down, vilify, and destroy the idea or truth. Jim Jordan is the loudest example. He has never actually listened to the messages sent from other congresspersons. He just screams, name-calls, and denigrates. It's like all MAGA have learned this trait at varying degrees. Also, their unity to complete block any ideas, some of which are great, to anything Democratic.

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Goes way back, Rove ruined Texas with such in 1994, then the whole of the country

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Deborah, we have lived in a 55+ active community for the past 8 years (AZ) and I know all the trumpers ...but I also know them separate from that identity...pickleball, dog walking, crafts, (and yes, the Christmas parade!) etc. I speak up when they say something crazy but we all kind of stay away from those topics. I was surprised and heartened by the # of Biden/Harris yard signs that went up in 2020, will be interesting how many of any kind go up for the general...the state and local contests are SO important.

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Sep 3, 2022Liked by Robert B. Hubbell

I remember being terrified as a kid after watching the matinee “‘Body Snatchers” with my family. I remember looking around, wondering if our neighbors had been “snatched”. If you don’t remember the film, I suggest you try to find it, as it depicts perfectly what is happening to the Republican Party, and as a result, the sanctity of our democracy.

Of course, the antidote is action, and as Joseph suggested, Chop Wood is a terrific venue to get started. It’s my daily discipline to follow at least one of her suggestions. That, and reading Robert and Heather’s letters and many of the comments has opened my heart and mind to resist getting “snatched” and to help others do the same.

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I’m glad you liked my comment. I’m sure lots of us remember that film, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, 1956. If you look it up online it tells the plot. Ironically, Kevin McCarthy, the actor, plays the alarmed local doctor! But those who try to resist losing their minds and hearts and souls have to stay awake…woke! And get this. In the last scene, the alerted authorities get on the phone and dial…..the FBI!! Priceless.

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Great analogy, the red caps help identify those proud of their cult affiliation. Some are more stealthy

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founding
Sep 3, 2022Liked by Robert B. Hubbell

Robert - Please take a break and enjoy a good long weekend with the family. You remain my beacon. We have finally, I think, found the perfect match - between the League of Woman Voters and our local youth eligible to vote. We are with you on targeting eligible youth eg HS seniors and leveraging their VOICE - helped greatly by a group of very aware and active students who are our future leaders. This is due in large part to your continuing message to get youth to the polls. A model is forming for spreading, and you deserver MUCH credit for keeping us on track. And the strength of the supporting organizations plus your continued spotlight gives me strong confidence in the fact that our Democracy will be just fine as we learn and do more. High 5 for the good 1

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Since 2020 the LWV Orange County FL recognized the need for grassroots local relationships. What began with actively supporting the 2020 Census effort during COVID has expanded to partnering with and supporting the efforts of diverse groups led by trusted leaders within specific communities. Our county and organizations have all benefited!

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Sep 3, 2022Liked by Robert B. Hubbell

Speaking of Biden’s speech Thursday, what is with the media? The President of the United States makes a major address and not one major network carries it, not even PBS! Are they so addicted to Trumpian antics that they can’t pay attention to a president who is actually doing his job? Disgraceful!!!

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The bully pulpit was ignored by our “free press,” which has been bought by the big bucks of news for profit.

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Oddly I had my local news channel on, as my TV always reverts to that and there it was. Biden's speech. And I’m in central Florida, which is heavily red and remember who our governor is too. So I had no idea the major networks did not carry it. Only heard this the next day. What was their excuse? I never heard that either. Very disrespectful.

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We were astounded that the majors didn't carry it! SMDH

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Sep 3, 2022Liked by Robert B. Hubbell

The organization that is most important to me is not within the usual scope of this community, but that's exactly why it's important to mention. It is the American Himalayan Foundation, first founded in the 70s (?) by a mountain climber named Richard Blum (Dianne Feinstein's husband who died earlier this year). Because of our understandable focus on U.S. politics, the climate and the Ukraine right now, organizations like this risk being forgotten.

The American Himalayan Foundation has many projects: helping disabled children, a model to Stop Girl Trafficking from Nepal to other countries by educating them and making them more valuable to their parents, caring for Tibetan exiles, helping with Covid, restoring art in the province of Mustang, to name a few. They have a high rating on Charity Navigator for efficiency, work with not on the Nepalese people, and have the motto; DO GOOD, BE KIND, HAVE FUN. They do. Look at their website and you'll see what they've done and why this stunning impoverished corner of the world needs us.

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Thank you so much for posting this...YES, so important these projects. I knew nothing about them, I will look them up.

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Sep 3, 2022Liked by Robert B. Hubbell

Robert, I remember when you and Jill used to drive to a nearby fast food (?) restaurant to get a soda (?) and go home, just to have an outing at the beginning of the pandemic. You've certainly come a long way since then! I hope you both get a chance for a good, long rest in your air-conditioning Saturday to recover from the freeway fiasco. Please take it easy so you keep up your strength and immunity. Take care and thank you for your great work.

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Robert B. Hubbell, newsletter, opened his Comments section for readers to add their grassroots today!

How’s something like this, to cast out for more GOTV letter writers, if you see in time please edit freely.

Here goes:

November 8, 2022 election is about turnout, turnout, turnout, to save our democracy. Everyone must take action one is comfortable with. My grassroots is Vote Forward www.votefwd.org for which this household is writing hundreds of letters, with free postage stamps from a VF Stamp Grant. I invite everyone and anyone who would like to participate, to join to help achieve and maybe even exceed the VF goal of 10,000,000 GOTV - Get Out the Vote — letters for 2022. (The only cost is paper and printing the form letters to handwrite personal messages, or also stamps if affordable, but people also donate the printed letters.)

A wonderful civic activist volunteer service.

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In case you missed President Biden’s important democracy speech from Philadelphia, here’s the full replay on C-SPAN. (25 minutes).

https://youtu.be/JemWkV2Vcic

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author

Thanks for the link!

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founding

I’d like to suggest Biden’s speech in Wilkes-Barre as even better than the Philly talk because he spoke directly to the important issue of policing and what he believes we need to do - support their efforts with training and funding, hold those who are bad actors accountable and promote community policing. He should continue to offer specific like that and concurrently call out the MAGA Republicans. Here is a link to the Tuesday speech. https://www.c-span.org/video/?522544-1/president-biden-outlines-plan-curb-gun-violence-pushes-assault-weapons-ban#

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It was also on MSNBC. I caught the announcement of the coverage and programmed my TIVO in advance.

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As always, thank you Robert for opening the comment section on the weekend.

My 16 year old daughter got her learners permit yesterday in Suffolk County on Long Island in NY.

She registered to vote in 2024 and she registered as a Democrat. It was gratifying as her mom to know that she's already committed to the future of democracy.

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Sep 3, 2022Liked by Robert B. Hubbell

In reference to my comment, since before Trump entered the WH, I have addressed the issues we are seeing explode before us. Often I faced criticism stating that I was too political and that religion has no place in politics. But we are seeing before our eyes how politicians are fashioning morals and ethics through legalities, rather than fashioning laws through ethics and morals. To suggest we refrain from doing the right thing out of fear of reprisal is not a good enough reason. It is always the right time to do what is right

Rev Mr William Orazio Gallerizzo

Ordained Catholic Deacon, Catholic Bioethicist

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Religion is being used as a club. It’s only the beginning. Pharisees want to rule and they dress up like Jesus, but what phonies they are.

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(Of course there's 2 ways to look @ the word club-both fit.)

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Agreed. You might look into a book called Counterfeit Christs by Trent Horn. He goes into the various ways that people hijack Christ for their purposes. The attempt by so many is to fashion God in the image they want, rather than trying to form themselves in Christ's image. The second is of course, the ideal to be achieved.

Dcn William Orazio Gallerizzo

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"So. Much. Winning!" was the title of the latest email I received from Virginia Democrats. I wondered who it was that was winning, so I opened the email to find that the campaign to elect Democrats organized a silent auction for citizens to bid on various items the community has donated. It's been a delight to scroll through all the selections...breakfasts, lunches or dinners with state reps, an equestrian trail ride with a state delegate, cooking lessons, artwork, home tours, golf experience, garden basket, pottery, and much more! I can't decide what I'm going to bid on, but it'll come to me soon!

Sorry to hear that you both got caught up in that traffic/fire mess. Hope you are now relaxing as we embark on the Labor Day weekend.

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I didn’t get that email. Wish I had so I could bid on those experiences as well.

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I would like to raise up an organization that I am proud to be a part of. Force Multiplier fundraisers for the most competitive House and Senate candidates as well as carefully vetted voter empowerment groups in key states. We have great Zoom events with candidates. Check us out at www.forcemultiplierus.org. Mr Hubbell we would love to talk to you

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Force Multiplier makes donating where your money will do the most good -- flipping a seat or holding on to an incumbent -- easy. FM does the research. The candidate events are terrific. Next up --- Mandela Barnes on September 8th.

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Have attended some of the http://www.forcemultiplierus.org/ events and their work is impressive. We often refer to them when we are donating to make sure the money we are sending will have impact.

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