Jul 4, 2023·edited Jul 4, 2023Liked by Robert B. Hubbell
47 years ago, I was an exchange in France. I spent July 4 1976 in Paris with another exchange student from my hometown. Though we missed out on so many of the celebrations happening in the US, being an American in Paris on this day was extraordinary. My friend and I were treated to beers (how fun for 18 year olds who couldn’t otherwise drink legally!), wishes of Bonne Anniversaire, and genuine affection by the Parisiennes. We attended the worship service, quite by chance, at the American Cathedral and heard Olivia DeHaviland read the preamble to the Declaration of Independence. I was honored to be a representative of my county that day in a country that did so much to aid in our independence.
I hold that day in Paris as one of my best, most meaningful, and most memorable days. Vive les Etats Unis! Happy 4th of July, everyone!
On July 4, 1970, my first wife and I were in Paris, staying in an undistinguished hotel with one great saving feature: We had a full-on view of l’Arc de Triomphe a block away. That day, instead of the tricoleur, a huge American flag was hanging from the arch. In the afternoon, a formation in uniform (soldiers, not police, I think) and a band marched up the Champs Elysees to the arch. There was a speech or two that we could not hear, and then the band played the Star Spangled Banner. This was only 25 years after the end of WWII, remember.
Jul 4, 2023·edited Jul 4, 2023Liked by Robert B. Hubbell
These words made my day: As painful as the reactionary victories have been over the last few weeks, those victories contain the seeds of MAGA extremism’s defeat.
Thank you, as always, Robert Hubbell, for lifting my chins from dragging on the ground.
Well said, Pollyanna Picton.
Biden Administration many achievements -- including those accomplishments listed by Jessica Craven -- as the seeds of destruction of MAGA bring the Light at the end of the proverbial tunnel.
I sincerely suggest reading Rebecca Solnit’s latest piece in the Guardian. It calms the emotional spin in the face of recent events while forcefully inspiring.
"...history shows us that when we come together with ferocious commitment to a shared goal we can be more powerful than institutions and governments. The right would like us to feel defeated and powerless. We can feel devastated and still feel powerful or find our power. This is not a time to quit. It’s a time to fight."
Damn straight! Do not, for even a minute, let the Repubs think we have received a 'coup de grâce'. The R's have no mercy--when they see weakness they become more cruel.
Thank you for this link - a must-read! A few thoughts jumped out: "...we can win these things back. It will not be easy, but difficult is not impossible." "“mourn, but also organize”" "The supreme court can dismantle the legislation but they cannot touch the beliefs and values. We still believe in these rights. We still recognize the harm and the destruction they were meant to prevent." "The problem isn’t the people. It’s the power..."
You are a shining beacon, Robert, only one of the many reasons your many readers gather every day to lap up your experience, strength, and hope, as we Twelve Steppers say. I appreciate your astronomical/astrological nod as nearly sixty years ago, as a week-end hippy, I was casting natal charts. Now “Mercury in retrograde” is just another way of asking is the glass half empty or full? Nothing is wasted in the economy of living, not even these hard lessons in rising to the moment.
Well, I declare, Team Hubbell; if this isn't the best Independence Day letter I've ever read, I don't know what is! Hope you enjoyed James Taylor's concert. He's been a favorite of mine for years.
Enjoy the day today, everyone, to the fullest possible!
Thank you for your uplifting words, Robert, on Independence Day. Love, "those victories contain the seeds of MAGA extremism’s defeat." Let us remember Newton's third law about equal and opposite reactions. And was it Napoleon that said something like when your opponent is busy destroying himself, stay out of the way? Fear not, my friends.
I love “ sweet baby James “ and the best concert I ever attended was with James Taylor and Carol King together singing in the round. I think on this day the Fourth of July the following comments by Heather Cox Richardson a historian are appropriate. “ The men who signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, pledged their “Lives, [their] Fortunes and [their] sacred Honor” to defend the idea of human equality. Ever since then, Americans have sacrificed their own fortunes, honor, and even their lives, for that principle. Lincoln reminded Civil War Americans of those sacrifices when he urged the people of his era to “take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”
I am “verklempt” as we say in Yiddish. What an inspiring, exquisitely written edition of the newsletter. Your solar system analogy was simultaneously educational and poetic. Glad you ran out of time to write more: ending there and with the photo of James Taylor left me feeling hopeful and resolute to carry on the fight toward a more perfect Union. Happy Fourth!
Damn. I would have liked to go see Ol' Lovin' Man JT at Tanglewood. Fergit about the GOP for a while. Bring a couple of friends. Didn't know he was there.
I'll wait to read the links in the AM. It's time I got to bed.
Happy Independence Day, everyone! And, as I love to say every July 4th--the only permissible day to say such a thing about our beloved Mother Country: Down with the British!
Happy ID to you as well, David! Years ago there was an ad running to get people to visit Great Britain. It began with "Come back, America; all is forgiven!"
Jul 4, 2023·edited Jul 4, 2023Liked by Robert B. Hubbell
There exists clear evidence of an historical trend toward Liberalism. This is understandable. As the human community achieves increased levels of education, knowledge, worldly sophistication and personal insight there are greater opportunities for sharing of ideas and finding commonalities amongst diverse populations. This tendency may not appear obvious at any particular moment in time. There is always resistance to change. Chiefly, push back to liberalism, to no one's surprise, is most significant among the monied classes that describes adherence to an old economic paradigm, "Fear is the most effective motivator. The two greatest fears are 1. the fear of not getting what you want, and, 2. the fear of losing what you already have. And, by far the worst fear is losing what you already have. This contributes greatly to what we know as status quo. Sometimes the status quo seems intractable. Resistance is high. The tools to maintain these advantages should be obvious now to us all. The desperation of the Republican Party is a demonstration of the extremes individuals, groups and sectors will go to justify the worst of human behavior and to hold on to what they have and be damned with the rest of the population. Of late, the Sackler family is as close to an example of the horrendous narcissism and atrocious compulsivity that goes along with a willingness to standby as innocent spectators as millions of people died from their lethal toxin.
That need to keep what you have, that sense of right of ownership is a struggle within us all. We need to be taught how to resist the temptation of entitlement. My wife and I travel a good deal. I remember our taking a walk along a lake in Germany. From our vantage point, we overlooked houses with significant setbacks and great lawns leading down to the water. Along the shore people were walking. Individuals who were clearly not the owners of the property. Later in the day we inquired about what we saw. We learned that in Germany (as well as many Northern European and Nordic countries) "right to roam" laws exist that protect 'public access'. This allows people to walk along waterways (as an example) within (I believe, if memory serves me) a thirty meters zone from the body of water. This would be exceptional in the U.S.
Thank you for taking the time to write such an informative comment David. In the current times, I find myself wondering if I'm a member of an isolated and dying tribe--living in a make-believe world of "goody goodies" while the rest of the world has moved on to a more "realistic" view of society. Your observations have given me sustenance. Thanks
David, This was a good post which needs to offer readers and the broader public more. Perhaps there is more coverage of the discussion between the two participants and the moderator. If so, I’d really like to read and learn more.
Why? Because the notion of changing the conversation in regard to liberalism, to move beyond discourse that is negative about it, to get away from the labeling to casts people as “liberal” as though it is something to be ashamed of. This and the nonsense of “your a socialist” are what we need to erase as something to fear, especially when we see unregulated capitalism creating billionaires who dominate the conversations.
Thank you for the quite eloquent defense of democracy and the Founders’ boldness and bravery - and the beautiful, celebratory picture too. The Declaration signers pledged to each other, and thus effectively to us, the generations then unborn, not only their lives and their fortunes, but also “our sacred honor.” They were aware that their lives would end sooner or later, and their fortunes were subject to multiple risks and dissipation beyond their control, but “sacred honor” was an identity marker, and it was their fundamental identity as responsible human beings that they were putting at risk, for our benefit, not merely (or perhaps not at all, their own) by signing the Declaration of Independence. I am grateful for being among the beneficiaries of their boldness!
This Fourth of July we need to think long and hard about FOX News Corp. And we must take action to stop a man who has moved from Australia to Britain and on to the U.S. with only one goal make money, gain power and feel free to abuse that power.
This man & his son Lachlan are a danger to our country. He is about money & power, truth is irrelevant. Excerpt: “Rupert Murdoch has had absolute power at both Fox and News Corp for far too long. That’s dangerous under any circumstances, but it’s especially troubling at a national news organization, such as Fox, where disinformation and lies, apparently, are the coin of the realm. And there doesn’t seem to be any way that will change if the Murdochs maintain their absolute power and absolute control. That fact alone further imperils what has become America’s fragile democracy.”
Rupert Murdoch has had absolute power at both Fox and News Corp for far too long. That’s dangerous under any circumstances, but it’s especially troubling at a national news organization, such as Fox, where disinformation and lies, apparently, are the coin of the realm. And there doesn’t seem to be any way that will change if the Murdochs maintain their absolute power and absolute control. That fact alone further imperils what has become America’s fragile democracy.
47 years ago, I was an exchange in France. I spent July 4 1976 in Paris with another exchange student from my hometown. Though we missed out on so many of the celebrations happening in the US, being an American in Paris on this day was extraordinary. My friend and I were treated to beers (how fun for 18 year olds who couldn’t otherwise drink legally!), wishes of Bonne Anniversaire, and genuine affection by the Parisiennes. We attended the worship service, quite by chance, at the American Cathedral and heard Olivia DeHaviland read the preamble to the Declaration of Independence. I was honored to be a representative of my county that day in a country that did so much to aid in our independence.
I hold that day in Paris as one of my best, most meaningful, and most memorable days. Vive les Etats Unis! Happy 4th of July, everyone!
On July 4, 1970, my first wife and I were in Paris, staying in an undistinguished hotel with one great saving feature: We had a full-on view of l’Arc de Triomphe a block away. That day, instead of the tricoleur, a huge American flag was hanging from the arch. In the afternoon, a formation in uniform (soldiers, not police, I think) and a band marched up the Champs Elysees to the arch. There was a speech or two that we could not hear, and then the band played the Star Spangled Banner. This was only 25 years after the end of WWII, remember.
What a moving memory to hold for so long.
It was a beautiful, sunny day, too, as I recall.
What a great memory you have, Marg. Thanks for sharing it with us. Happy 4th to you and yours!
These words made my day: As painful as the reactionary victories have been over the last few weeks, those victories contain the seeds of MAGA extremism’s defeat.
Thank you!
Thank you, as always, Robert Hubbell, for lifting my chins from dragging on the ground.
Well said, Pollyanna Picton.
Biden Administration many achievements -- including those accomplishments listed by Jessica Craven -- as the seeds of destruction of MAGA bring the Light at the end of the proverbial tunnel.
Hope!
Happy Independence Day to this community.
I picked out those words too. Let’s all hope that the next few weeks or months bear them out.
I sincerely suggest reading Rebecca Solnit’s latest piece in the Guardian. It calms the emotional spin in the face of recent events while forcefully inspiring.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/jul/02/us-supreme-court-civil-rights-voting-fight?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
Rebecca Solnit:
"...history shows us that when we come together with ferocious commitment to a shared goal we can be more powerful than institutions and governments. The right would like us to feel defeated and powerless. We can feel devastated and still feel powerful or find our power. This is not a time to quit. It’s a time to fight."
Damn straight! Do not, for even a minute, let the Repubs think we have received a 'coup de grâce'. The R's have no mercy--when they see weakness they become more cruel.
A good time to fight over the very meaning of patriotism. I've been sharing Robert Reich's video today: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lD2hZEDQUIM
Deb his blog really resonated for me too.
https://open.substack.com/pub/robertreich/p/what-is-the-true-meaning-of-patriotism?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=3lzb6
Thank you for this link - a must-read! A few thoughts jumped out: "...we can win these things back. It will not be easy, but difficult is not impossible." "“mourn, but also organize”" "The supreme court can dismantle the legislation but they cannot touch the beliefs and values. We still believe in these rights. We still recognize the harm and the destruction they were meant to prevent." "The problem isn’t the people. It’s the power..."
Thanks for the link! Everyone should read this!
Agreed!
Great post, Carolyn. Truly, a must read.
You are a shining beacon, Robert, only one of the many reasons your many readers gather every day to lap up your experience, strength, and hope, as we Twelve Steppers say. I appreciate your astronomical/astrological nod as nearly sixty years ago, as a week-end hippy, I was casting natal charts. Now “Mercury in retrograde” is just another way of asking is the glass half empty or full? Nothing is wasted in the economy of living, not even these hard lessons in rising to the moment.
Well, I declare, Team Hubbell; if this isn't the best Independence Day letter I've ever read, I don't know what is! Hope you enjoyed James Taylor's concert. He's been a favorite of mine for years.
Enjoy the day today, everyone, to the fullest possible!
Thank you for your uplifting words, Robert, on Independence Day. Love, "those victories contain the seeds of MAGA extremism’s defeat." Let us remember Newton's third law about equal and opposite reactions. And was it Napoleon that said something like when your opponent is busy destroying himself, stay out of the way? Fear not, my friends.
I love “ sweet baby James “ and the best concert I ever attended was with James Taylor and Carol King together singing in the round. I think on this day the Fourth of July the following comments by Heather Cox Richardson a historian are appropriate. “ The men who signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, pledged their “Lives, [their] Fortunes and [their] sacred Honor” to defend the idea of human equality. Ever since then, Americans have sacrificed their own fortunes, honor, and even their lives, for that principle. Lincoln reminded Civil War Americans of those sacrifices when he urged the people of his era to “take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”
Words to live by in 2023.
I am “verklempt” as we say in Yiddish. What an inspiring, exquisitely written edition of the newsletter. Your solar system analogy was simultaneously educational and poetic. Glad you ran out of time to write more: ending there and with the photo of James Taylor left me feeling hopeful and resolute to carry on the fight toward a more perfect Union. Happy Fourth!
Wow! As usual, the Managing Editor, showed the way to an enjoyable 4th. You are a lucky guy.
Damn. I would have liked to go see Ol' Lovin' Man JT at Tanglewood. Fergit about the GOP for a while. Bring a couple of friends. Didn't know he was there.
I'll wait to read the links in the AM. It's time I got to bed.
Happy Independence Day, everyone! And, as I love to say every July 4th--the only permissible day to say such a thing about our beloved Mother Country: Down with the British!
Happy ID to you as well, David! Years ago there was an ad running to get people to visit Great Britain. It began with "Come back, America; all is forgiven!"
HA!
I love it!
There exists clear evidence of an historical trend toward Liberalism. This is understandable. As the human community achieves increased levels of education, knowledge, worldly sophistication and personal insight there are greater opportunities for sharing of ideas and finding commonalities amongst diverse populations. This tendency may not appear obvious at any particular moment in time. There is always resistance to change. Chiefly, push back to liberalism, to no one's surprise, is most significant among the monied classes that describes adherence to an old economic paradigm, "Fear is the most effective motivator. The two greatest fears are 1. the fear of not getting what you want, and, 2. the fear of losing what you already have. And, by far the worst fear is losing what you already have. This contributes greatly to what we know as status quo. Sometimes the status quo seems intractable. Resistance is high. The tools to maintain these advantages should be obvious now to us all. The desperation of the Republican Party is a demonstration of the extremes individuals, groups and sectors will go to justify the worst of human behavior and to hold on to what they have and be damned with the rest of the population. Of late, the Sackler family is as close to an example of the horrendous narcissism and atrocious compulsivity that goes along with a willingness to standby as innocent spectators as millions of people died from their lethal toxin.
That need to keep what you have, that sense of right of ownership is a struggle within us all. We need to be taught how to resist the temptation of entitlement. My wife and I travel a good deal. I remember our taking a walk along a lake in Germany. From our vantage point, we overlooked houses with significant setbacks and great lawns leading down to the water. Along the shore people were walking. Individuals who were clearly not the owners of the property. Later in the day we inquired about what we saw. We learned that in Germany (as well as many Northern European and Nordic countries) "right to roam" laws exist that protect 'public access'. This allows people to walk along waterways (as an example) within (I believe, if memory serves me) a thirty meters zone from the body of water. This would be exceptional in the U.S.
Nonetheless, and despite setbacks, liberalism persists. A well written article describing The Past and Future of Liberalism, written in 2012 and is just as relevant today, is authored by Eric Alterman. https://www.americanprogress.org/article/the-past-and-future-of-liberalism/
https://www.americanprogress.org/article/the-past-and-future-of-liberalism/
Thank you for taking the time to write such an informative comment David. In the current times, I find myself wondering if I'm a member of an isolated and dying tribe--living in a make-believe world of "goody goodies" while the rest of the world has moved on to a more "realistic" view of society. Your observations have given me sustenance. Thanks
John Spock
David, This was a good post which needs to offer readers and the broader public more. Perhaps there is more coverage of the discussion between the two participants and the moderator. If so, I’d really like to read and learn more.
Why? Because the notion of changing the conversation in regard to liberalism, to move beyond discourse that is negative about it, to get away from the labeling to casts people as “liberal” as though it is something to be ashamed of. This and the nonsense of “your a socialist” are what we need to erase as something to fear, especially when we see unregulated capitalism creating billionaires who dominate the conversations.
I sincerely suggest reading Rebecca Solnit’s latest piece in the Guardian to gather oneself in the face of the current situation.
It calms the emotional spin while forcefully inspiring.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/jul/02/us-supreme-court-civil-rights-voting-fight?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
Thank you for your much-needed uplifting words! It is too easy to get lost in the trees and forget what the whole forest landscape looks like.
There are few things that feed the soul more than seeing Sweet Baby James live, and especially at Tanglewood.
I had no idea James Taylor was still around till I read this post. Then I looked him up and found he is a year younger than I am. There’s hope yet!
Thank you for the quite eloquent defense of democracy and the Founders’ boldness and bravery - and the beautiful, celebratory picture too. The Declaration signers pledged to each other, and thus effectively to us, the generations then unborn, not only their lives and their fortunes, but also “our sacred honor.” They were aware that their lives would end sooner or later, and their fortunes were subject to multiple risks and dissipation beyond their control, but “sacred honor” was an identity marker, and it was their fundamental identity as responsible human beings that they were putting at risk, for our benefit, not merely (or perhaps not at all, their own) by signing the Declaration of Independence. I am grateful for being among the beneficiaries of their boldness!
This Fourth of July we need to think long and hard about FOX News Corp. And we must take action to stop a man who has moved from Australia to Britain and on to the U.S. with only one goal make money, gain power and feel free to abuse that power.
This man & his son Lachlan are a danger to our country. He is about money & power, truth is irrelevant. Excerpt: “Rupert Murdoch has had absolute power at both Fox and News Corp for far too long. That’s dangerous under any circumstances, but it’s especially troubling at a national news organization, such as Fox, where disinformation and lies, apparently, are the coin of the realm. And there doesn’t seem to be any way that will change if the Murdochs maintain their absolute power and absolute control. That fact alone further imperils what has become America’s fragile democracy.”
Rupert Murdoch has had absolute power at both Fox and News Corp for far too long. That’s dangerous under any circumstances, but it’s especially troubling at a national news organization, such as Fox, where disinformation and lies, apparently, are the coin of the realm. And there doesn’t seem to be any way that will change if the Murdochs maintain their absolute power and absolute control. That fact alone further imperils what has become America’s fragile democracy.
Sorry, I’m not going to waste a freebie on Murdoch but here’s the link: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/04/opinion/rupert-murdoch-fox-news-dual-class-corporate-governance.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare