"We are engaged in a long-term fight for the soul of democracy -- as is every generation". That every generation must fight for democracy is truly important.
I have one suggestion about another part of today's piece: 'The likelihood of passing election reform in 2022 is remote. If it happens, we should celebrate in the streets. If it doesn’t, we should redouble our efforts by taking to the streets to encourage historic levels of voter registration and turnout.' If election reform is passed in 2022, after we celebrate, we still must redouble our efforts to encourage voter registration and turnout. That is part of our generation's fight for democracy.
Hi, Ellie. Thanks. The prior photo was from a time before the newsletter, so it just kind of hung around. Although I am not on Twitter or Facebook, I have had dormant accounts on both. At the suggestion of my daughter, I have begun posting the newsletter on both platforms, so I updated my profile picture when I saw that my facebook profile was of a telescope.
Twitter can be a useful tool for amplifying your messages. And there are many good progressive people and organizations to follow on Twitter, including HCR and voting rights organizations. You raised a wise daughter!
Thank You for much more than a "glimmer" of hope, as well as clarity on the Republican accusation that the Build Back Better bill uniquely spurs inflation. Defense spending surely has a better PR department.
I forgot to mention that the U.S. defense budget is larger than the COMBINED budgets of the next eleven largest militaries in the world. While we should all be grateful to those who serve in uniform, the U.S. military budget is 10 times that of Russia, and 3 times that of China. Surely there is enough room in the budget to pay for childcare, dental care for seniors, and renewable sources of energy (which will become a national security issue soon).
Repudiation of despair: excellent philosophy. I grew up in the shadow of Lockheed Aircraft. I knew that if a bomb fell, hiding under a desk wasn’t going to help me survive. Our defense priorities are obscene and the main reason we don’t have universal health coverage. I grew up under segregation, and impossible as that seemed, we ended it. So reasoned optimism is not only possible, but advisable; staying away from the iPhone, plus Twitter & Company news is not only advisable, but necessary. Thanks as always, Robert!
Jim, my family lived under the landing path for Lockheed Airport in Burbank. My dad worked there as a machinist. I used to sell papers outside one of the factory doors when the afternoon shift got off work--3:30 PM. I sold the afternoon edition of the LA Times and the Herald Examiner! That was when newspapers had morning, afternoon, and (sometimes) evening editions of newspapers.
And, yes, we need to have confidence that things will work out over the long term, rather than obsessing over the latest news alert on our phones.
Your column is my anti-depressant for the day. Thank goodness I can read your thoughts before I get out of bed! My other source of mood buffering is working diligently on deep canvassing, and supporting voter registration groups in key states that are working year round, year in, year out. That is super helpful as well! If anyone wants to join our efforts, please go to 31stStreet.org
Yes yes yes. The action of doing something about the threats we feel, first, addresses the issues and, second, the action gives us relief from passively watching.
Thanks for the facts and political perspective. And for that idea of a longer view of the horizon. The world will not be remade in 2022. It could get worse before it gets better. We may suffer the pain caused by corrupt redistricting. But that may be reversed - the reports of the Freedom to Vote and John Lewis Acts being on life support are hope inspiring.
The discussion about inflation and government spending is just more political football. Prices are affected by supply and demand. Today there is a shortage of goods and a shortage of workers. The economy is experiencing a roaring comeback after the suppression of the pandemic. Demand is off the charts.
The solution to the goods shortage is in fixing infrastructure, a recognition that "just in time" inventory strategies are fraught with fragility and ultimately the normal flattening of demand as that pent up hunger for goods is satisfied. Tamping down the trade wars would be helpful, too.
The solution to the labor shortage is so obvious it boggles the brain. We need immigrants. Of all kinds to do all kinds of jobs. We are in short supply of almost every type of employee. Doctors, nurses, landscapers, scientists, farm workers, construction workers, tech experts - you name it. As climate change and the intertwined political dramas force people from their countries, we could be welcoming them with jobs. It would strengthen us. It would help humanity.
Agree, agree, agree. Inflation is not caused by fiscal policy in Congress, but by macroeconomic trends that can be controlled, if at all, by central banks. And you are 100% correct about immigration. Large swaths of the central and southern United States would be suffering from depopulation but for foreign immigration. in absolute numbers, the white population in many states is declining (not just as a percentage). In those states, people have grown up in an era believing that each generation did better than the prior generation by birthright. In a globalized economy, that is no longer true. Hence, the politics of grievance that is misdirected at immigrants--who are the answer to the problems faced by U.S., not the cause of them.
There is much to comment on but I will address Tester voting with Republicans and say it was smart. In votes that make no difference in the end, in red states, Dems need to be political. I often wonder if we would have 51 Dems in the Senate today, McCaskill over Hawley, had she held her nose and voted for Kavanaugh. I hope Tester discussed his vote with Schumer in advance and had his blessing. AOC is considering challenging Schumer, and even giving up the majority leadership, I would, today, look seriously at her candidacy. I am underwhelmed by his leadership and wondering who would take his position, hopefully as majority leader, were he to lose his seat. Durbin? To those who question if AOC is ready, certainly not to be Senate majority leader, but a Senator? How much experience did Obama have when he became President?
Schumer represents a brand of politics and style of leadership that is entrenched in safe Democratic strongholds where people "wait in line" to run for particular spots and then never leave when the achieve them. Schumer's leadership has been uninspiring. If he cared about the future of the Democratic Party, he would have been grooming a successor who does not look and sound exactly like him. But he will hang on by his fingernails until it is too late.
Rep. Ocasio-Cortez gets a bad rap, but life isn't fair and she has A LOT of negative baggage (real or imagined). There is something to be said for gaining experience in one house before seeking to leap to the next. Obama makes the point. He had little experience when he ran for president and defeated the most-qualified Democratic candidate to ever seek that office (Hillary). While we will never know, I often wonder what would have happened if Hillary had won in 2008 and was succeeded by Obama in 2016. We might be in the second Obama term now, rather than a Biden tenure that is threatened by a failed coup plotter.
I, too, am appreciative of your optimism in an environment of “downers”. You are frequently the only “light at the end of the tunnel” I read in a day. THANK YOU!!!
In the meantime, a totally random question for you: do your prefer “Robert” or “Bob” or just “hey you!”???
Hi, Theresa. Long story short, my family and some friends call me Rob, while others call me Robert. I introduce myself as Robert so people don't call me "Rod" or "Ron." Only people who don't know me call me "Bob." So feel free to call me Rob.
At the risk of offending the politically correct, I would cite what Gen. George Patton told his tankers in Sicily, in 1943: “Go forward. Always go forward. Go until the last shot is fired and the last drop of gasoline is gone. Then go forward on foot.” In our (I hope) non-violent struggle for democracy, we need that kind of determination.
Once again thank you, Robert, for your cool, clear balanced approach - to which I say AMEN. Repeating hysterical “news” just makes things worse. On another note, I subscribed to Dan Rather’s post a week ago. I think it is very good. I encourage other readers to check it out.
As I read the last two paragraphs of today’s newsletter, I thought about a couple of things: 1) what does the defense budget spend $768 billion on? (No smarminess intended here). 2) As the greatest generation passes into history, we, as a society, have fewer people who know what it means to “make do”. My parents, born in the early 1920’s, lived through the Depression and the rationing and fighting of WWII. They had to wait for their dreams to come true as they worked and scrimped and saved. My boomer generation and subsequent have not faced those kinds of challenges. More of us are accustomed to instant gratification. Now we face our own struggles for democracy, and sadly, they come from within.
Good points. Whatever we spend on in the defense budget, surely there is room for reduction, not increase. See my response to Mary Pat Sercu, above. And yes, we have been conditioned to believe that the next election is the end of history. It is not, and we must be willing and able to suffer defeat and endure.
Thanks Rob-- Happy holidays to you and your better half. Hopefully the family is all good. My suggestion for businesses is not to mandate vaccines for employees but allow Workers Comp claims and other lawsuits to be filed for business that dont maintain a safe environment. If Insurance Co raise WC rates and lawsuits are filed, the business owners will address the issue of maintaining a safe workplace environment
Thanks, Rob, as always, for your newsletter. I hardly ever watch the news anymore and your writing is an antidote to any of the loud noise on network news. I always appreciate your uplifting endings trying to get people motivated and calm us all. Between you, Heather Cox Richardson, and my activist work with Indivisible and Field Team 6, I have hope. Let's get young people registered and empathetic Dems out there to vote and make their voices heard!!
"We are engaged in a long-term fight for the soul of democracy -- as is every generation". That every generation must fight for democracy is truly important.
I have one suggestion about another part of today's piece: 'The likelihood of passing election reform in 2022 is remote. If it happens, we should celebrate in the streets. If it doesn’t, we should redouble our efforts by taking to the streets to encourage historic levels of voter registration and turnout.' If election reform is passed in 2022, after we celebrate, we still must redouble our efforts to encourage voter registration and turnout. That is part of our generation's fight for democracy.
You are right, Len. I struggled over that sentence and didn't quite get it right. We need to redouble our efforts no matter what happens.
Aside from the usual appreciation for your optimism grounded in good sense, nice new profile photo. Seeing a person’s eyes is a good thing.
Hi, Ellie. Thanks. The prior photo was from a time before the newsletter, so it just kind of hung around. Although I am not on Twitter or Facebook, I have had dormant accounts on both. At the suggestion of my daughter, I have begun posting the newsletter on both platforms, so I updated my profile picture when I saw that my facebook profile was of a telescope.
Twitter can be a useful tool for amplifying your messages. And there are many good progressive people and organizations to follow on Twitter, including HCR and voting rights organizations. You raised a wise daughter!
Thank You for much more than a "glimmer" of hope, as well as clarity on the Republican accusation that the Build Back Better bill uniquely spurs inflation. Defense spending surely has a better PR department.
I forgot to mention that the U.S. defense budget is larger than the COMBINED budgets of the next eleven largest militaries in the world. While we should all be grateful to those who serve in uniform, the U.S. military budget is 10 times that of Russia, and 3 times that of China. Surely there is enough room in the budget to pay for childcare, dental care for seniors, and renewable sources of energy (which will become a national security issue soon).
Repudiation of despair: excellent philosophy. I grew up in the shadow of Lockheed Aircraft. I knew that if a bomb fell, hiding under a desk wasn’t going to help me survive. Our defense priorities are obscene and the main reason we don’t have universal health coverage. I grew up under segregation, and impossible as that seemed, we ended it. So reasoned optimism is not only possible, but advisable; staying away from the iPhone, plus Twitter & Company news is not only advisable, but necessary. Thanks as always, Robert!
Jim, my family lived under the landing path for Lockheed Airport in Burbank. My dad worked there as a machinist. I used to sell papers outside one of the factory doors when the afternoon shift got off work--3:30 PM. I sold the afternoon edition of the LA Times and the Herald Examiner! That was when newspapers had morning, afternoon, and (sometimes) evening editions of newspapers.
And, yes, we need to have confidence that things will work out over the long term, rather than obsessing over the latest news alert on our phones.
Your column is my anti-depressant for the day. Thank goodness I can read your thoughts before I get out of bed! My other source of mood buffering is working diligently on deep canvassing, and supporting voter registration groups in key states that are working year round, year in, year out. That is super helpful as well! If anyone wants to join our efforts, please go to 31stStreet.org
Hi, Lisa. 31st Street Swing Left is a great organization. I have promoted several times and will continue to do so! Thanks for doing your part!
Yes yes yes. The action of doing something about the threats we feel, first, addresses the issues and, second, the action gives us relief from passively watching.
Thanks for the facts and political perspective. And for that idea of a longer view of the horizon. The world will not be remade in 2022. It could get worse before it gets better. We may suffer the pain caused by corrupt redistricting. But that may be reversed - the reports of the Freedom to Vote and John Lewis Acts being on life support are hope inspiring.
The discussion about inflation and government spending is just more political football. Prices are affected by supply and demand. Today there is a shortage of goods and a shortage of workers. The economy is experiencing a roaring comeback after the suppression of the pandemic. Demand is off the charts.
The solution to the goods shortage is in fixing infrastructure, a recognition that "just in time" inventory strategies are fraught with fragility and ultimately the normal flattening of demand as that pent up hunger for goods is satisfied. Tamping down the trade wars would be helpful, too.
The solution to the labor shortage is so obvious it boggles the brain. We need immigrants. Of all kinds to do all kinds of jobs. We are in short supply of almost every type of employee. Doctors, nurses, landscapers, scientists, farm workers, construction workers, tech experts - you name it. As climate change and the intertwined political dramas force people from their countries, we could be welcoming them with jobs. It would strengthen us. It would help humanity.
Agree, agree, agree. Inflation is not caused by fiscal policy in Congress, but by macroeconomic trends that can be controlled, if at all, by central banks. And you are 100% correct about immigration. Large swaths of the central and southern United States would be suffering from depopulation but for foreign immigration. in absolute numbers, the white population in many states is declining (not just as a percentage). In those states, people have grown up in an era believing that each generation did better than the prior generation by birthright. In a globalized economy, that is no longer true. Hence, the politics of grievance that is misdirected at immigrants--who are the answer to the problems faced by U.S., not the cause of them.
Non-violence is the purest form of rebellion.
There is much to comment on but I will address Tester voting with Republicans and say it was smart. In votes that make no difference in the end, in red states, Dems need to be political. I often wonder if we would have 51 Dems in the Senate today, McCaskill over Hawley, had she held her nose and voted for Kavanaugh. I hope Tester discussed his vote with Schumer in advance and had his blessing. AOC is considering challenging Schumer, and even giving up the majority leadership, I would, today, look seriously at her candidacy. I am underwhelmed by his leadership and wondering who would take his position, hopefully as majority leader, were he to lose his seat. Durbin? To those who question if AOC is ready, certainly not to be Senate majority leader, but a Senator? How much experience did Obama have when he became President?
Schumer represents a brand of politics and style of leadership that is entrenched in safe Democratic strongholds where people "wait in line" to run for particular spots and then never leave when the achieve them. Schumer's leadership has been uninspiring. If he cared about the future of the Democratic Party, he would have been grooming a successor who does not look and sound exactly like him. But he will hang on by his fingernails until it is too late.
Rep. Ocasio-Cortez gets a bad rap, but life isn't fair and she has A LOT of negative baggage (real or imagined). There is something to be said for gaining experience in one house before seeking to leap to the next. Obama makes the point. He had little experience when he ran for president and defeated the most-qualified Democratic candidate to ever seek that office (Hillary). While we will never know, I often wonder what would have happened if Hillary had won in 2008 and was succeeded by Obama in 2016. We might be in the second Obama term now, rather than a Biden tenure that is threatened by a failed coup plotter.
I, too, am appreciative of your optimism in an environment of “downers”. You are frequently the only “light at the end of the tunnel” I read in a day. THANK YOU!!!
In the meantime, a totally random question for you: do your prefer “Robert” or “Bob” or just “hey you!”???
Hi, Theresa. Long story short, my family and some friends call me Rob, while others call me Robert. I introduce myself as Robert so people don't call me "Rod" or "Ron." Only people who don't know me call me "Bob." So feel free to call me Rob.
At the risk of offending the politically correct, I would cite what Gen. George Patton told his tankers in Sicily, in 1943: “Go forward. Always go forward. Go until the last shot is fired and the last drop of gasoline is gone. Then go forward on foot.” In our (I hope) non-violent struggle for democracy, we need that kind of determination.
Well said!
Once again thank you, Robert, for your cool, clear balanced approach - to which I say AMEN. Repeating hysterical “news” just makes things worse. On another note, I subscribed to Dan Rather’s post a week ago. I think it is very good. I encourage other readers to check it out.
I subscribe to Rather's blog. It is consistently excellent.
As I read the last two paragraphs of today’s newsletter, I thought about a couple of things: 1) what does the defense budget spend $768 billion on? (No smarminess intended here). 2) As the greatest generation passes into history, we, as a society, have fewer people who know what it means to “make do”. My parents, born in the early 1920’s, lived through the Depression and the rationing and fighting of WWII. They had to wait for their dreams to come true as they worked and scrimped and saved. My boomer generation and subsequent have not faced those kinds of challenges. More of us are accustomed to instant gratification. Now we face our own struggles for democracy, and sadly, they come from within.
Good points. Whatever we spend on in the defense budget, surely there is room for reduction, not increase. See my response to Mary Pat Sercu, above. And yes, we have been conditioned to believe that the next election is the end of history. It is not, and we must be willing and able to suffer defeat and endure.
Thanks Rob-- Happy holidays to you and your better half. Hopefully the family is all good. My suggestion for businesses is not to mandate vaccines for employees but allow Workers Comp claims and other lawsuits to be filed for business that dont maintain a safe environment. If Insurance Co raise WC rates and lawsuits are filed, the business owners will address the issue of maintaining a safe workplace environment
Thanks, Rob, as always, for your newsletter. I hardly ever watch the news anymore and your writing is an antidote to any of the loud noise on network news. I always appreciate your uplifting endings trying to get people motivated and calm us all. Between you, Heather Cox Richardson, and my activist work with Indivisible and Field Team 6, I have hope. Let's get young people registered and empathetic Dems out there to vote and make their voices heard!!