Just weighing in on the mask thing - I wore a mask through the pandemic and was not sick with anything. When I took off the mask and went to a crowded function, I got Covid (yes I was vaccinated and boosted and weathered Covid just fine). My point being, I was my own scientific study….masks work when you wear them!
Same here - I still wear one in supermarket, stores, etc. and avoid crowds, public transportation, etc. - except I haven't caught Covid, ever. Just wrote NYT to chastise Brett's OpEd and request a correction & apology.
Janet, I cancelled mine last year after 20 years of reading because of an article right before the election about the “ coming red wave.” Their analysis could not have been weaker, and the “both siderism” garbage put me over the edge. Don’t miss them at all. Find The Guardian far better overall (still read Wapo and Politico.)
I canceled my sub for the last time after Haberman covered up TFG’s crimes to write a book and the NYTs supported her. I know they won’t miss my $48 a year, but I can sleep at night knowing I’m not supporting a right wing propaganda machine.
I am a Biden fan, thrilled with all he has accomplished, but horrified that the Willow project - drilling in Alaska - may proceed. This is against all that environmentalists are working for.
Please, let's all write the White House expressing our deep concern. Or go to change.org
Hi, Amy. I am going to promote a joint action next week (Led by Bill McKibben's organization). It's called National Day of Action (by Third Act) on March 21, 2023.
Definitely, and thank you! I, myself, am planning to partakie of the Bill McKibben/Third Act (seniors) action on March 21 against the banks for supporting fossil fuels.
For those that haven’t heard of it, Third Act was created specifically to activate Elders - like me. (69 yrs young) Great group and many areas have local chapters. There is a good one in the Twin Cities that has been active for almost two years. Thank you, Robert, for highlighting this!
I have been applauding Biden with unbridled enthusiasm. He has been masterful on so many issues. But if he green lights the Willow project and allows drilling on the largest pristine region of Alaska, he will lose me. And much more importantly, he will lose the vote of younger Americans. We don't really need more oil and gas - unless we think it should be cheaper and used more frequently.
And don't let the current political and military concerns affect this discussion. It will be many years and the loss of much wildlife before we see this at the gas pumps.
Maybe somebody can point out the other side of this...oh, could it be pure politics? Re-election posturing? Color me red with rage that the project got even this far.
The stupid obsession with gas prices that is promoted by the media is responsible for the push to drill. There are at least 20 organizations competing for my funding, and we actually need one powerful voice that shows the price of gas as related to storms fires and the loss of endangered species Newsom won’t fund high-speed rail in California but that is our best hope for getting people out of their cars.
This isn't enough oil to make even a little tiny dent in gas prices. Over the projected 30 years of drilling, this would make enough gasoline to fuel 60 million cars--slightly more than one fifth of the nation's automotive fleet--for a year. I suspect the impetus for the drilling are some compelling political gains that could be made. But in comparison to immigration, the drilling is minor. 20 years' worth of immigration will increase US, and therefore world GH emissions, quite a bit more than this Alaska drilling.
There is no reality to the Willow discussion and the project doesn't even make economic sense. The projected production is 600 million barrels over 30 years which means that every year the field is in production it will yield 1 days' worth of oil at current consumption rates. Why Biden would even entertain this is explained only by the lobbying (bribery) efforts and campaign contributions of the American Petroleum Institute. That the API has been around longer than you and I offers some perspective on the difference in the impact they have compared to most voters.
Oil interests are a powerful force in Alaska, and hafe the ear not only of the legislature but of the federal agencies there, which have a huge pressure on them from both lobbyists and part of the Alaska community. I agree that the Willow project is a boondoggle. I have indigenous relatives in Alaska, and there are differences of opinion from one group to another. The usual: the hope that the project will help fund much needed social projects, jobs, etc. Others who see longer term and have longer memories about spills, or who see the economic analysis as flawed, as it is. Alaska is a different place than the lower 48, and harder to understand, I think.
Biden has a big plate and a lot of stuff on it, so dependent on members of his admin to inform him, especially on things that aren't front and center. Repubicans and other events are making it hard to focus on anything not front and center. Alaska is republican, though softening. I doubt Biden is posturing anything. He may have been led to believe that Alaskans in general support this, and that it will benefit them. I read the Alaskan Beacon, and it is way more complex than that. Or than you think either.
Best thing to do in my opinion is cut through the noise. Get as informed as you can about what Alaskans think and who is influencing them. Build your argument around that, and don't let indignation get in your way when you make your list of talking points to use when you contact Biden's admin, the agencies involved, and whoever else you are trying to convince.
Thanks for this thoughtful comment. It provides good perspectives. And I am sure there is a lot more we could do to help Alaskans.
But here is my real "argument". A lot of money will be invested in Willow to extract fossil fuels which do enormous damage to our planet. That is not an Alaskan decision. It is planetary.
We should be leading the world in changing the direction of energy production. Willow is an example of the old school thinking that got us where we are now. The greatest polluter on Earth. That's where my indignation comes from. And that doesn't consider the on-site environmental destruction on what I believe is public land.
Bill, I don't disagree with you on any of your points. My point is that indignation is not going to change anything. So I offer a perspective from which to start addressing the problem in ways more likely to have some influence. My profession was environmental analysis, and that grew out of an awareness that began in my childhood, learning from my elders. We need to begin by understanding what the people in Alaska think. Especially the indigenous people, who will have a large impact on how this turns out. While this is certainly a global issue, it will only be solved by addressing the specific causes where they are. Otherwise we are simply colonizers, rather than concerned partners.
Indignation, by itself, won't change anything, but indignation can be a powerful motivator to follow through on the suggestions you've made. It is almost axiomatic that comfortable people don't get involved in making changes and indignation is as good at creating discomfort as any other feeling. What we need to be about is channeling the discomfort into effective, positive, change and the current discussion about opening up the largest tract of undisturbed public land for a pointless piece of development in support of an outdated technology (fossil-based fuels) doesn't appear to be that sort of progress.
If the heart of the issue is funding for local infrastructure projects and development in support of the native population, that could be accomplished through previously approved legislation without having a negative impact on the environment.
I think that the PRC has taken over our role as greatest polluter but there's still time for us to catch up if we don't change the direction we're going in including Willow. If we did nothing other than install solar arrays and battery storage on and in all federally owned and financed buildings we'd spare a lot of greenfield development for other uses and cut back substantially on the need for building new megagenerators to support the legacy energy companies. Getting politicians to agree on that, however, is just as likely as getting them to end the farce that is Daylight Saving Time.
I agree with you on the value of Annie's comments but also that this is an increasingly planetary conversation in which we should/must take a leading role.
The article says the drilling would produce the amount of oil that 2 million cars (I'm presuming in the US) would use, over the 30 year drilling period. That's equivalent to what 60 million cars would use in a year. The US currently has 290 million cars, which emit around 15% of the greenhouse gases the US emits. So, the two million cars over 30 years is equivalent to 60 million cars over a year, or a little over 1/5 of the automotive emissions over a year.
Another source of increased US greenhouse emissions is immigration. The average immigrant's greenhouse emissions rise three-fold after arrival in the US. We are going to be admitting nearly 70 million immigrants over the next four decades, equivalent to three and a half New York State population equivalents. That would greatly increase US greenhouse emissions--much more so I suspect than the Alaska drilling. And according to people who study sustainability, the US already has four times what would be a sustainable population. Given that millions are going to be climate refugees within the next several decades, it seems to me absolute folly to be allowing the population to grow at all at a time when the US' carrying capacity is going to be plummeting.
But in any case, the Alaska drilling would produce less greenhouse emissions than the immigration that's projected over even the next decade, or decade and a half.
NOTE: I did not expect to come up with my concluding statement when I started writing this comment. I just went where the math led.
This is really interesting. But while valid, it's a comparison of two entirely different issues. The inevitable redistribution of humans on the planet is happening no matter what we do because they are leaving regions that may not be able to sustain human life.
I will make the case that developed nations have a moral responsibility to absorb them. And...we need the workers! Jobs are unfilled everywhere. Our birth rates tell us we are not replacing ourselves. The tax base to support an aging population will not be there. I suggest we dramatically increase immigration now or the MAGA fools will have more ammunition to cut our retirement and healthcare benefits.
The answer lies in reducing the impact we all have. That CAN be done. Drilling more wells is not the solution. Investing in an electric grid that can convey the new sources of energy should be where our national investment goes. And protecting it with our military will be required.
Jobs are unfilled because they're not paying enough. People don't get counted as unemployed if they haven't looked for jobs in more than six months. The labor participation rate right now is very low. If the companies want to fill the jobs, they need to pay decent wages. https://cis.org/Camarota/Labor-Force-Participation-Remains-Low-All-States
We are more than replacing ourselves, and we will still be more than replacing ourselves 40 years from now, although at that time, if there were no immigration, our population would be growing much more slowly. But we'd be better off if we weren't replacing ourselves. Our country is not even close to environmentally sustainable with the current combination of population and consumption. I've written about ecosystem services, I learned about them from John Holdren (google him), along with climate change, in a class at UC Berkeley in 1975, and I can tell you they aren't what they used to be, which is why we have tick-borne diseases in the United States, something that wasn't on the radar screen when I was a kid in the '50s an '60s.
And climate change is greatly reducing our carrying capacity. In the next several decades, millions of Americans are going to become climate refugees. It's crazy to let our population increase as we face that crisis. If you want to frighten yourself, read this:
You can make the case that developed nations have the responsibility for the redistribution of humans, but will the American people vote for that? The Waxman Markey bill failed early in the Obama Administration.
And are you aware that the Ogallala aquifer that underlies most of the Great Plains is almost out of water? That the Great Salt Lake is almost dry? That towns in Arizona are fighting over water, and that a town in Utah has banned new housing construction because of the lack of water? And read the Propublica article, and you'll see how bad the situation is getting.
And, by the way, I'm not in favor of drilling in Alaska, unless we're going to get something out of it that will be very beneficial politically, and I'm dubious about that. But I am saying that the projected immigration to the US over the next 40 years (or even the next 20) is going to be far more damaging to the planet--because of per capita GH emissions and resource use in this country--than the drilling in Alaska, which is going to provide an amount of oil that's equivalent to that used by 2 million cars over the 30 years of the drilling. That's a drop in the bucket in a country with 290 million cars, and if we add nearly 70 million immigrants, as projected, that will likely add close to 70 million cars.
Are you aware, incidentally, that the weight of the 8 billion humans and domestic animals is far greater than that of wild animals? That's more crazy stuff. The world population needs badly to shrink if civilization is to survive. And the most effective shrinkage of population would be in the US, where we have the greatest per capita greenhouse emissions and consumption generally. Immigrants come here to consume like Americans. That's just going to make things worse
In respect of the funding for social projects, every state that has approved casino gambling and the lottery did so based on the notion that it was going to fund schools and eliminate the need for tax increases. You're quite right about involving the Alaskan people in the decision making process and about it being complicated.
Every Democratic president after JFK has been a major disappointment to me (I never expected much of the GOPers), and I was a mere 7 years old when JFK was elected, except for Biden. I have my differences with Biden--the Willow project, and his immigration policies. The latter policies will have the same general effect on the environment as the Willow project, by adding the equivalent of roughly four New York states to the US population over the next four decades.
The human population of the world has more than doubled since 1970 (during that time the US population has grown by well over 1/3), in which time animal populations have dropped by an average of 69%. The causes include habitat loss, overhunting and fishing, pollution, and climate change, habitat loss being the biggest factor. Moving people from elsewhere to the US is not like moving deck chairs on the Titanic, because we are the major industrialized nation with the greatest per capita greenhouse emissions, and resource use. People come here to consume like Americans.
• This is from a commenter, taken from the native people's website:
"The Willow Project would emit 287 million metric tons of pollution over the next 30 years. That’s equivalent to the annual emissions from 76 coal plants - one-third of all remaining U.S. coal plants. Extracting hundreds of millions of barrels of oil in Alaska would bake in higher temperatures in a region that’s already warming four times faster than the rest of the world, at the exact time when humanity must begin urgently phasing out fossil fuels.
In addition to accelerating irreversible climate change for the Arctic and the rest of the world, this project would also disproportionately affect the community of Nuiqsut, a predominantly Iñupiaq village of about 500 people who are already living through extreme pollution from existing oil projects.
Lastly, this project would threaten the delicate ecosystems and vital animal species native to the western Arctic region. For example, this project would cross the migration path of the Teshekpuk Lake caribou herd, a species that is vital to the western Arctic ecosystems and the herd which Iñupiat families depend upon to feed their families. There have already been reports of sick caribou that show correlation with pollution from oil and gas development.
Let us not simply stand in “solidarity” with the Alaska Natives who are working to protect their lands, waters, and our climate future- be an ally and do anything you can from where you sit.
Please google Sovereign Iñupiat for a Living Arctic, and click on take action."
Signed, and shared to my small coterie of friendly subversives. While I know all politics is compromise, and recognize the pressures on the Biden-Harris Administration, there are times when principle must prevail.
Great to see you promoting Simon Rosenberg, Robert! I too was infected by RWF -- Red Wave Fatalism. It was only a few days before the 2022 election, but Simon, in a Meidas Touch Network interview, cured me of RWF.
Since then I have seen many of his presentations and highly recommend his work!
trump and DeSantass were in IA. DeSantass, Fri. Not sure when trump was there. Even though trump endorsed Kimmie, she was with DeSantass, not trump...hahaa trumps ratings have really fallen in IA. We don't live in IA, but we're close enough to the QC area that we get our local news from them. They didn't carry trump being there, at all. With DeSantass, it wasn't much. He's pretty proud that he, and his state, aren't "woke". I guess he walks through life asleep. Huh. I have a lot of other words to describe him, but I'll be a lady and be nice.
Good research coming out that people think "woke" stands for positive attributes like being against injustice and for kindness. The anti-woke campaign may be DeSantis's undoing.
I am woke and sadly stuck in Florida. One important note, DeSatan did not get 42% of the vote, that being said the destruction that he and his spineless minions are doing will last generations!!
I have read this is his last term. It is my hope that those MAGAt Floridian's wake up out of their stupor and elect a democratic governor and democratic legislators, and everything DeSantass has done is undone. If they don't wake tf up, may every undecided and non-voter decide they too, are very much, woke. Think positively, write postcards, knock on doors, do any and everything! Just please, don't give up, Jennifer! ❤️
Thanks for the heads up on the Hopium Chronicles. I signed up before I finished even reading the rest of your article, because I'm tired of how 🤔 the radical insurrectionists are poisoning America 🇺🇸 .
Hopefully Herr DeSantis will sabotage his campaign with his 1000 year plans for the Sunshine 🌞 Reich states of America; no way no how ever!! Just hope he is able to drag the orange 🍊 behemoth out of contention too, that is if ol Teflon Don hasn't already done himself in. Go Stormy!!
Good 👍 to see President Biden being feisty and firmly on top of what needs to be done for the benefit of all Americans. Can hear him already telling his 2024 opponents "Better luck your senior year! " If you mess with the best, you'll go down like all of the rest! "
My daughter lives in Iowa, and because she lets her husband dictate their religious and political beliefs, it just churns my stomach to know who they vote for and support.
Sorry 😞 to hear that. Unfortunately that's how 🤔 too many people vote, based on fanatical ideology instead of who's going to do the best job for all the people 😕 Hang in there 👍 maybe someday she'll change 🙏 maybe he will too!!
I live with a layer of sorrow wrapped around my heart. I never felt at home in Texas. There was a billboard I would pass regularly. One side was ¨Never Underestimate the Power of Momentum - *** Bank. The other side was a giant picture of Jesus - white and golden haired - with ¨ Jesus Saves¨.
Did you see that No Labels has registered as a new political party in Oregon. One family member from Portland OR summed this up correctly: This so-called middle of the road party with Manchin and Sinema in its ranks (they have been associated with no labels as a movement, not a party, for a while as was Murkowski.).. will ensure that the Republicans win in 2024 because moderate Democrats may be persuaded into their fold. Fool's paradise?
One hopes (though mustn't rely on the idea) enough Republicans who don't like the extremes to which DeSant & tfg are taking their party get on that witless bandwagon to balance out any misguided Democrats who might.
(The truth is that No Labels is a disingenuous mechanism for moving libertarian conservative, essentially Republican, agendas forward.)
League of Women Voter's volunteers were given new forms to register voters a few days ago. No Label is listed on the Colorado voter registration form under political party. Too busy/distracted to inquire about the change at the time. Wow. Not good.
Two comments this morning. First, building on Robert's mention of Simon Rosenberg's Substack, here is the latest Lincoln Project podcast with Simon as a guest. He talks about how we can be even more effective than the Democratic party, mentions all of us who have banded together on Zoom and many other things. Definitely worth a listen. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-hopium-chronicles-with-simon-rosenberg/id1551582052?i=1000603614542
Seems important to emphasize that the MAGA crew, when thinking, are working very thoughtfully to destroy the central government. It seems clear that they intend to so tarnish the Federal Government that it will be so rejected by the voters that they can dismantle it without much resistance. Of course, the reason to do that gets us back to the Civil War. Then they can bypass or ignore any law or community activity from the Feds and set up their own systems in the states that they wish to control. This will be the end of religious, economic, and political freedom in what had been the United States.
Of course, this is done by destroying anything that looks like honor and refusing to experience shame. In doing so, they bypass two (I think this came from Status Quo last week) powerful social forces that have held together the social networks from which Democracy emerges. Without both, socialization becomes
a horror and the only deterrent we have is law, which is purposely slow and cumbersome.
I suggest that we watch them taking pride in their total lack of honor (lying, cheating, and stealing wherever they can get away with it and asking for high fives when done.) or shame. In fact, it appears that they revel in being what is essentially a criminal enterprise and have encouraged the thugs to join them.
They have already begun a terror process (yes, they are terrorists--like Timothy McVeigh) and will eventually kill indiscriminately with pride and malice just as he did. These are not nice people and we will be fools to attempt to treat them as such. They are prideful and arrogant, with a willingness and desire to destroy all that Federalism has built in the last 200 years so they no longer have to "endure" Bobby Kennedy sending in the troupes to Little Rock.
Extremely dangerous, because we will constantly fail to treat them with the severity required in hopes that by being "nice" the world and maybe even they, will like us.
There have been many articles about the cruelty some of their leaders exhibit and it's hard to accept the cruelty as real. But it is. And they revel in it--the idea that there is a single Christian bone among them is self deception. There is absolutely nothing of Christ in any of it.
These are ordinary criminals becoming hardened criminals and jail time for them will be nothing worse than a higher education.
Not really any different from organized crime and must be treated that way.
They will use our weakness born of our desire to forgive and offer care. True love in this instance is tough love borne of compassion. These humans are possessed, more along the lines of serial killers, than the norm amongst us. This is not the time to "turn the other cheek." It will get ripped off.
Not sure I agree we are not treating them with severity they deserve. We are pushing back locally and have made tremendous strides in the courts and in public opinion. There has been no Big Bang effect but slowly and effectively always wins the battle. You are under estimating our voters and what they really think.
Thank you for sharing the 'good news', I signed up for Simons newsletter. Yes! We must not only find the good to celebrate, but become the celebration that might open the eyes, ears, hearts of those who are so shut down and willing to be slaves to the mob on the right. Today on twitter, it was one, falsehood after another from the magas - from President Biden´s budget - calling it 'woke', to McCarthy, Cruz, DeSantis, et al. They don't work. They tweet daily and have photo ops.
I had written that today I would post regarding the creating of a video(s) celebrating WOKE.
First, it's important to know that this is a truly special word for the African American community. Many were not happy when liberals began to use it. Then, the magas took it over, as they did the word 'socialism,' to politically create fear and anger in their followers.
WOKE is now defined as: aware of and actively attentive to important societal facts and issues (especially issues of racial and social justice)
The video - it may be more if many submit - will be comprised of videos and high resolution photos (300dpi) you send me.
Videos can be taken with your phone or with a video camera.
No one has to speak, as there will be title cards with each video or photo with the name of the group or club or organization or family or individual who is involved in creating racial or social justice and the city and state - I hope to have every state represented if possible, so if you have family or friends in other states, please share with them.
If video, and you would like to be creative and have the group or family interacting and laughing or playing or rehearsing (theatre, music, art class) then seeing the camera before waving or inviting the camera to join, that would be great.
Possibly a blended family playing together then seeing the camera then waving and inviting the camera to join.
Everyone in the video or photo will be smiling and waving. If possible, inviting the camera to join them in videos.
The act does not have to be big. It can be anything that shows inclusion - race, lgbtq+, friendships between members of different religions, mixed families, teaching children in mixed neighbor hoods, lgbtq families, church groups with mixed races, working in food banks or soup kitchens, helping people to vote, helping people with down syndrome or disabilities. Celebrating with police. Working with those incarcerated. Teaching art, music, math, science in under privileged communities.
Acts of kindness. Acts of patience. Growing inclusion in communities. Small acts with the vision of creating a true America for all.
It is a celebration of inclusion and all are welcome.
The vision at this moment is that the video will open with a BLACK TITLE CARD with the word WOKE and its definition.
CROSS FADE TO VIDEO
Under the video, 'America the Beautiful' will play. I would like to use this version if possible. https://youtu.be/TRUjr8EVgBg
The final moment with the words, ¨America Is Awakening¨.
If you have a video, email me at gaileegailee@gmail.com with AWAKENING VIDEO READY in the subject line and I will email you a link to upload to my Google Drive.
In the photo or video everyone is waving - in the video the camera can be invited to join. In photos some can be using the heart sign made with hands and fingers. If you don't know what I mean by this, I will send a photo.
Feel free to share with anyone who is AWAKE and has the vision of the American we can become.
The weaponization of the word “ woke” by MAGA is an example of the media not providing a clear and effective definition of what it really means. It would be a great campaign idea to push what woke really means.
Absolutely! Fantastic idea, and hopefully, you will create yet another voice with a different production. It takes many voices spoken in many styles to drive change.
So you know what ~ since the world opened up after the pandemic surge there is a body of people still wearing masks and requiring masks at least in my area and that is Doctors offices and hospitals! That tells me all I need to know ! The clowns that have made a pandemic a political pon have a million + deaths on their hands ! Karmas a B*^%#
Please let’s not continue to celebrate that the Red wave did not materialize. McCarthy is speaker, Jordan, and Greene are in positions of power. Despite no platform and being contrary to what people want on almost every issue, the Red team still won. Yes it could have been worse, but it should have been a rout for the Blue.
Read Walter Shapiro’s analysis in the new republic of how we lost the house and how five key races could and should have turned out differently. We need smarter leader ship in the Democratic Party.
Here is a small piece of Mr. Rosenberg's plan. A huge thanks to Mr. Hubbell for letting us know about Mr. Rosenberg's new Substack. Mr. Hubbell shows a spirit of cooperation instead of competition which is exactly what we need in our fight for Democracy.
From Mr. Rosenberg: " I want this to be a journey guided by hope and optimism, of belief in ourselves, in love of country and a clear understanding of the nature of the conflict we are in. I have become convinced that part of Greater MAGA’s strategy is to intentionally poison our discourse with negative sentiment every day. "
Echoing Mr. Rosenberg's thoughts about negative discourse here. The made-up names, name calling and hating the Republicans and MAGAs are negative discourse. Not only does it sour a comments section, but it pollutes the national discourse. We reduce ourselves to their level. It also reduces our effectiveness. Sometimes comments are so full of made-up angry words I don't understand their point. My personal rule has become I won't read an angry, negative comment full of name calling. It bums me out and serves no purpose for any political work I am doing.
Agreed. This has always bothered me about the opposition to MAGA, which I hold deeply.
Hit back as hard as one can and wants on the odious ideas. Describe the moral failings or the logical fallacies, the untruths. But...
The name-calling is more often than not rooted in sexism, misogyny, look-ism, ageism, classism, able-isms, or other less-than-noble - certtainly unkind - foundations (conspicuous example: references to people who live in house trailers).
It discredits the utterer, including - unfortunately - some otherwise valued contributors here - in point of fact comprising the logical fallacy of ad hominem.
There could be a context for that kind of discourse, but only privately among friends for the purpose of venting (or of course, for discrediting or demoralizing our own).
On 8.26.22 I got shouted down by at least one otherwise valued contributor for posting this:
Although it feels good to call them Facists, while they call us Socialists and Commies, name-calling is more divisive than productive. Calmly demonstrating competence and leadership is Biden's greatest strength; it says a lot more, to a much wider audience, than name-calling, which offers the maggats a distraction to focus on, and lures the media to the low-level fighting rather than the important issues at hand. It's possible, and far more effective, to be tough without being juvenile. We are not trying to flip hard-right voters, just that fairly thin margin in the middle that are the difference between a narrow win or loss.
Thank You for this! I, too, have been shouted, down, name called, mansplained and soundly lectured. Whew! And this is on a well know bloggers comments section!
You make a good point. We are not trying to flip hard core MAGAs.
Although Tom. I would refrain from the term "maggots." : ))
It's a symptom of what we are discussing that I fully expected to come across some strident and negative responses to my comment. And I agree with your assessments of the roots of the name calling. Why is it deemed ok to say misogynist things about MJG etc and then call the Republicans misogynists? I've even been challenged on my patriotism which really concerned me because it indicated a "towing the line" mentality; a dangerous mindset.
Anyway. We can be happy Hubbell and Rosenberg are around with the positive approach. And we can continue the positive approach ourselves.
Within all due respect your forgetting an important point. Many MAGA people who respond to posts etc are echoing the stchick of Donald Trump who has perfected his act and it has done well for him. The name calling etc is part of a false image of a very troubled individual who in real life is nothing like his image.
I'm not talking about trump. I am not talking about MAGA people.
I am talking about people claiming to be liberals emulating his behavior. Why would anyone want to sink to his level? It's not worked for him. He is twice impeached, disgraced, plagued by ever increasing law cases, fomented an insurrection and lost the Presidency. He has sullied the national discourse.
Trump,started it by calling primary opponents names. Remember “ Lying Ted Cruz or “ little Marco Rubio. Interesting no one has given hime a nickname that has stuck.
Because many people want to be just like they think he is which in reality is all a lie. He is the personification of what they think they want to be rich; successful, in charge and a fighter
Mr. Rosenberg has picked up a bunch of subscribers based on your recommendation and the quality of his welcome piece. As we grow the number and reach of publications devoted to honesty, openness, and an optimistic approach to the challenges that we face, our chances of having a strong positive impact on those problems increases dramatically.
The best argument I can think of for the effectiveness of wearing masks is the stunning decrease in flu infections during the pandemic. Oddly enough, this statistic doesn't come up in conversation, perhaps because it doesn't serve the narrative of either the vaccination group or the anti-maskers.
One hopes that the troubles afflicting Mr. DeathSantis and his campaign are indicative of an entropic spiral involving the whole Republican party and that, provided the Democrats and other reasonable people find, encourage, and promote positive, electable candidates, we can have an end to the anti-humanity, anti-liberty nonsense being promoted by the GOP sooner rather than later.
Just weighing in on the mask thing - I wore a mask through the pandemic and was not sick with anything. When I took off the mask and went to a crowded function, I got Covid (yes I was vaccinated and boosted and weathered Covid just fine). My point being, I was my own scientific study….masks work when you wear them!
Should operating room personnel go without masks? Would you want to be operated on by an unmasked physician?
Good point!! Spread that one around!!
That's the question that every mask-denier should be asked.
Same here - I still wear one in supermarket, stores, etc. and avoid crowds, public transportation, etc. - except I haven't caught Covid, ever. Just wrote NYT to chastise Brett's OpEd and request a correction & apology.
Am with you Annie- one of the few wearing them on the plane -but I am convinced they help-
We know they are lying.
They know they are lying.
They know that we know that they are lying.
We know that they know that we know that they know they are lying.
And still . .. they continue to lie.
-ALEKSANDR SOLZHENITSYN
This should be at the beginning of every article about Fox News I think.
And, increasingly and unfortunately, the New York Times, at least as regards their headlines.
Janet, I cancelled mine last year after 20 years of reading because of an article right before the election about the “ coming red wave.” Their analysis could not have been weaker, and the “both siderism” garbage put me over the edge. Don’t miss them at all. Find The Guardian far better overall (still read Wapo and Politico.)
I'm not quite there yet, but it's not far away.
I canceled my sub for the last time after Haberman covered up TFG’s crimes to write a book and the NYTs supported her. I know they won’t miss my $48 a year, but I can sleep at night knowing I’m not supporting a right wing propaganda machine.
I am a Biden fan, thrilled with all he has accomplished, but horrified that the Willow project - drilling in Alaska - may proceed. This is against all that environmentalists are working for.
Please, let's all write the White House expressing our deep concern. Or go to change.org
Hi, Amy. I am going to promote a joint action next week (Led by Bill McKibben's organization). It's called National Day of Action (by Third Act) on March 21, 2023.
Definitely, and thank you! I, myself, am planning to partakie of the Bill McKibben/Third Act (seniors) action on March 21 against the banks for supporting fossil fuels.
For those that haven’t heard of it, Third Act was created specifically to activate Elders - like me. (69 yrs young) Great group and many areas have local chapters. There is a good one in the Twin Cities that has been active for almost two years. Thank you, Robert, for highlighting this!
I have been applauding Biden with unbridled enthusiasm. He has been masterful on so many issues. But if he green lights the Willow project and allows drilling on the largest pristine region of Alaska, he will lose me. And much more importantly, he will lose the vote of younger Americans. We don't really need more oil and gas - unless we think it should be cheaper and used more frequently.
And don't let the current political and military concerns affect this discussion. It will be many years and the loss of much wildlife before we see this at the gas pumps.
Maybe somebody can point out the other side of this...oh, could it be pure politics? Re-election posturing? Color me red with rage that the project got even this far.
The stupid obsession with gas prices that is promoted by the media is responsible for the push to drill. There are at least 20 organizations competing for my funding, and we actually need one powerful voice that shows the price of gas as related to storms fires and the loss of endangered species Newsom won’t fund high-speed rail in California but that is our best hope for getting people out of their cars.
This isn't enough oil to make even a little tiny dent in gas prices. Over the projected 30 years of drilling, this would make enough gasoline to fuel 60 million cars--slightly more than one fifth of the nation's automotive fleet--for a year. I suspect the impetus for the drilling are some compelling political gains that could be made. But in comparison to immigration, the drilling is minor. 20 years' worth of immigration will increase US, and therefore world GH emissions, quite a bit more than this Alaska drilling.
There is no reality to the Willow discussion and the project doesn't even make economic sense. The projected production is 600 million barrels over 30 years which means that every year the field is in production it will yield 1 days' worth of oil at current consumption rates. Why Biden would even entertain this is explained only by the lobbying (bribery) efforts and campaign contributions of the American Petroleum Institute. That the API has been around longer than you and I offers some perspective on the difference in the impact they have compared to most voters.
And also Biden’s desire to show he works ‘across the aisle’ with Republicans (Sen Murkowski).
Oil interests are a powerful force in Alaska, and hafe the ear not only of the legislature but of the federal agencies there, which have a huge pressure on them from both lobbyists and part of the Alaska community. I agree that the Willow project is a boondoggle. I have indigenous relatives in Alaska, and there are differences of opinion from one group to another. The usual: the hope that the project will help fund much needed social projects, jobs, etc. Others who see longer term and have longer memories about spills, or who see the economic analysis as flawed, as it is. Alaska is a different place than the lower 48, and harder to understand, I think.
Biden has a big plate and a lot of stuff on it, so dependent on members of his admin to inform him, especially on things that aren't front and center. Repubicans and other events are making it hard to focus on anything not front and center. Alaska is republican, though softening. I doubt Biden is posturing anything. He may have been led to believe that Alaskans in general support this, and that it will benefit them. I read the Alaskan Beacon, and it is way more complex than that. Or than you think either.
Best thing to do in my opinion is cut through the noise. Get as informed as you can about what Alaskans think and who is influencing them. Build your argument around that, and don't let indignation get in your way when you make your list of talking points to use when you contact Biden's admin, the agencies involved, and whoever else you are trying to convince.
Start with this:
https://alaskapublic.org/2023/03/03/biden-faces-dilemma-in-fight-over-large-alaska-oil-project/
Annie,
Thanks for this thoughtful comment. It provides good perspectives. And I am sure there is a lot more we could do to help Alaskans.
But here is my real "argument". A lot of money will be invested in Willow to extract fossil fuels which do enormous damage to our planet. That is not an Alaskan decision. It is planetary.
We should be leading the world in changing the direction of energy production. Willow is an example of the old school thinking that got us where we are now. The greatest polluter on Earth. That's where my indignation comes from. And that doesn't consider the on-site environmental destruction on what I believe is public land.
Bill, I don't disagree with you on any of your points. My point is that indignation is not going to change anything. So I offer a perspective from which to start addressing the problem in ways more likely to have some influence. My profession was environmental analysis, and that grew out of an awareness that began in my childhood, learning from my elders. We need to begin by understanding what the people in Alaska think. Especially the indigenous people, who will have a large impact on how this turns out. While this is certainly a global issue, it will only be solved by addressing the specific causes where they are. Otherwise we are simply colonizers, rather than concerned partners.
Indignation, by itself, won't change anything, but indignation can be a powerful motivator to follow through on the suggestions you've made. It is almost axiomatic that comfortable people don't get involved in making changes and indignation is as good at creating discomfort as any other feeling. What we need to be about is channeling the discomfort into effective, positive, change and the current discussion about opening up the largest tract of undisturbed public land for a pointless piece of development in support of an outdated technology (fossil-based fuels) doesn't appear to be that sort of progress.
If the heart of the issue is funding for local infrastructure projects and development in support of the native population, that could be accomplished through previously approved legislation without having a negative impact on the environment.
I think that the PRC has taken over our role as greatest polluter but there's still time for us to catch up if we don't change the direction we're going in including Willow. If we did nothing other than install solar arrays and battery storage on and in all federally owned and financed buildings we'd spare a lot of greenfield development for other uses and cut back substantially on the need for building new megagenerators to support the legacy energy companies. Getting politicians to agree on that, however, is just as likely as getting them to end the farce that is Daylight Saving Time.
I agree with you on the value of Annie's comments but also that this is an increasingly planetary conversation in which we should/must take a leading role.
The article says the drilling would produce the amount of oil that 2 million cars (I'm presuming in the US) would use, over the 30 year drilling period. That's equivalent to what 60 million cars would use in a year. The US currently has 290 million cars, which emit around 15% of the greenhouse gases the US emits. So, the two million cars over 30 years is equivalent to 60 million cars over a year, or a little over 1/5 of the automotive emissions over a year.
However, we do have a climate emergency. In the next 2-3 decades, millions of Americans are going to become climate refugees. You can read about that in this frankly quite frightening article https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/09/15/magazine/climate-crisis-migration-america.html
Another source of increased US greenhouse emissions is immigration. The average immigrant's greenhouse emissions rise three-fold after arrival in the US. We are going to be admitting nearly 70 million immigrants over the next four decades, equivalent to three and a half New York State population equivalents. That would greatly increase US greenhouse emissions--much more so I suspect than the Alaska drilling. And according to people who study sustainability, the US already has four times what would be a sustainable population. Given that millions are going to be climate refugees within the next several decades, it seems to me absolute folly to be allowing the population to grow at all at a time when the US' carrying capacity is going to be plummeting.
But in any case, the Alaska drilling would produce less greenhouse emissions than the immigration that's projected over even the next decade, or decade and a half.
NOTE: I did not expect to come up with my concluding statement when I started writing this comment. I just went where the math led.
David,
This is really interesting. But while valid, it's a comparison of two entirely different issues. The inevitable redistribution of humans on the planet is happening no matter what we do because they are leaving regions that may not be able to sustain human life.
I will make the case that developed nations have a moral responsibility to absorb them. And...we need the workers! Jobs are unfilled everywhere. Our birth rates tell us we are not replacing ourselves. The tax base to support an aging population will not be there. I suggest we dramatically increase immigration now or the MAGA fools will have more ammunition to cut our retirement and healthcare benefits.
The answer lies in reducing the impact we all have. That CAN be done. Drilling more wells is not the solution. Investing in an electric grid that can convey the new sources of energy should be where our national investment goes. And protecting it with our military will be required.
Jobs are unfilled because they're not paying enough. People don't get counted as unemployed if they haven't looked for jobs in more than six months. The labor participation rate right now is very low. If the companies want to fill the jobs, they need to pay decent wages. https://cis.org/Camarota/Labor-Force-Participation-Remains-Low-All-States
We are more than replacing ourselves, and we will still be more than replacing ourselves 40 years from now, although at that time, if there were no immigration, our population would be growing much more slowly. But we'd be better off if we weren't replacing ourselves. Our country is not even close to environmentally sustainable with the current combination of population and consumption. I've written about ecosystem services, I learned about them from John Holdren (google him), along with climate change, in a class at UC Berkeley in 1975, and I can tell you they aren't what they used to be, which is why we have tick-borne diseases in the United States, something that wasn't on the radar screen when I was a kid in the '50s an '60s.
And climate change is greatly reducing our carrying capacity. In the next several decades, millions of Americans are going to become climate refugees. It's crazy to let our population increase as we face that crisis. If you want to frighten yourself, read this:
https://www.propublica.org/article/climate-change-will-force-a-new-american-migration
You can make the case that developed nations have the responsibility for the redistribution of humans, but will the American people vote for that? The Waxman Markey bill failed early in the Obama Administration.
And are you aware that the Ogallala aquifer that underlies most of the Great Plains is almost out of water? That the Great Salt Lake is almost dry? That towns in Arizona are fighting over water, and that a town in Utah has banned new housing construction because of the lack of water? And read the Propublica article, and you'll see how bad the situation is getting.
And, by the way, I'm not in favor of drilling in Alaska, unless we're going to get something out of it that will be very beneficial politically, and I'm dubious about that. But I am saying that the projected immigration to the US over the next 40 years (or even the next 20) is going to be far more damaging to the planet--because of per capita GH emissions and resource use in this country--than the drilling in Alaska, which is going to provide an amount of oil that's equivalent to that used by 2 million cars over the 30 years of the drilling. That's a drop in the bucket in a country with 290 million cars, and if we add nearly 70 million immigrants, as projected, that will likely add close to 70 million cars.
Are you aware, incidentally, that the weight of the 8 billion humans and domestic animals is far greater than that of wild animals? That's more crazy stuff. The world population needs badly to shrink if civilization is to survive. And the most effective shrinkage of population would be in the US, where we have the greatest per capita greenhouse emissions and consumption generally. Immigrants come here to consume like Americans. That's just going to make things worse
In respect of the funding for social projects, every state that has approved casino gambling and the lottery did so based on the notion that it was going to fund schools and eliminate the need for tax increases. You're quite right about involving the Alaskan people in the decision making process and about it being complicated.
Every Democratic president after JFK has been a major disappointment to me (I never expected much of the GOPers), and I was a mere 7 years old when JFK was elected, except for Biden. I have my differences with Biden--the Willow project, and his immigration policies. The latter policies will have the same general effect on the environment as the Willow project, by adding the equivalent of roughly four New York states to the US population over the next four decades.
The human population of the world has more than doubled since 1970 (during that time the US population has grown by well over 1/3), in which time animal populations have dropped by an average of 69%. The causes include habitat loss, overhunting and fishing, pollution, and climate change, habitat loss being the biggest factor. Moving people from elsewhere to the US is not like moving deck chairs on the Titanic, because we are the major industrialized nation with the greatest per capita greenhouse emissions, and resource use. People come here to consume like Americans.
Oh, let’s hope he doesn’t lose the young ones. I hope they are screaming about this somewhere—- Biden needs to hear that!
Thanks, Amy. I signed the change.org petition.
• This is from a commenter, taken from the native people's website:
"The Willow Project would emit 287 million metric tons of pollution over the next 30 years. That’s equivalent to the annual emissions from 76 coal plants - one-third of all remaining U.S. coal plants. Extracting hundreds of millions of barrels of oil in Alaska would bake in higher temperatures in a region that’s already warming four times faster than the rest of the world, at the exact time when humanity must begin urgently phasing out fossil fuels.
In addition to accelerating irreversible climate change for the Arctic and the rest of the world, this project would also disproportionately affect the community of Nuiqsut, a predominantly Iñupiaq village of about 500 people who are already living through extreme pollution from existing oil projects.
Lastly, this project would threaten the delicate ecosystems and vital animal species native to the western Arctic region. For example, this project would cross the migration path of the Teshekpuk Lake caribou herd, a species that is vital to the western Arctic ecosystems and the herd which Iñupiat families depend upon to feed their families. There have already been reports of sick caribou that show correlation with pollution from oil and gas development.
Let us not simply stand in “solidarity” with the Alaska Natives who are working to protect their lands, waters, and our climate future- be an ally and do anything you can from where you sit.
Please google Sovereign Iñupiat for a Living Arctic, and click on take action."
This is the link: https://www.silainuat.org/
• Here is yet another petition, from Earthjustice:
https://tinyurl.com/2pcar2s8
Thank you Mim—- what is Biden thinking???
Beats the heck out of me.
Signed, and shared to my small coterie of friendly subversives. While I know all politics is compromise, and recognize the pressures on the Biden-Harris Administration, there are times when principle must prevail.
I am so sorry about the Willow Project and believe Biden mistakenly wants to gain favor with Alaskan Senator Lisa Murkowski.
Thank you—-We are on the same wave length!
Great to see you promoting Simon Rosenberg, Robert! I too was infected by RWF -- Red Wave Fatalism. It was only a few days before the 2022 election, but Simon, in a Meidas Touch Network interview, cured me of RWF.
Since then I have seen many of his presentations and highly recommend his work!
trump and DeSantass were in IA. DeSantass, Fri. Not sure when trump was there. Even though trump endorsed Kimmie, she was with DeSantass, not trump...hahaa trumps ratings have really fallen in IA. We don't live in IA, but we're close enough to the QC area that we get our local news from them. They didn't carry trump being there, at all. With DeSantass, it wasn't much. He's pretty proud that he, and his state, aren't "woke". I guess he walks through life asleep. Huh. I have a lot of other words to describe him, but I'll be a lady and be nice.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Good research coming out that people think "woke" stands for positive attributes like being against injustice and for kindness. The anti-woke campaign may be DeSantis's undoing.
It absolutely does, Robert. It also means we're aware of everything going on in this nation of ours. Our ears and eyes aren't shut, unlike theirs.
I am woke and sadly stuck in Florida. One important note, DeSatan did not get 42% of the vote, that being said the destruction that he and his spineless minions are doing will last generations!!
I have read this is his last term. It is my hope that those MAGAt Floridian's wake up out of their stupor and elect a democratic governor and democratic legislators, and everything DeSantass has done is undone. If they don't wake tf up, may every undecided and non-voter decide they too, are very much, woke. Think positively, write postcards, knock on doors, do any and everything! Just please, don't give up, Jennifer! ❤️
You're damn right I'm woke!
Thanks for the heads up on the Hopium Chronicles. I signed up before I finished even reading the rest of your article, because I'm tired of how 🤔 the radical insurrectionists are poisoning America 🇺🇸 .
Hopefully Herr DeSantis will sabotage his campaign with his 1000 year plans for the Sunshine 🌞 Reich states of America; no way no how ever!! Just hope he is able to drag the orange 🍊 behemoth out of contention too, that is if ol Teflon Don hasn't already done himself in. Go Stormy!!
Good 👍 to see President Biden being feisty and firmly on top of what needs to be done for the benefit of all Americans. Can hear him already telling his 2024 opponents "Better luck your senior year! " If you mess with the best, you'll go down like all of the rest! "
My daughter lives in Iowa, and because she lets her husband dictate their religious and political beliefs, it just churns my stomach to know who they vote for and support.
Sorry 😞 to hear that. Unfortunately that's how 🤔 too many people vote, based on fanatical ideology instead of who's going to do the best job for all the people 😕 Hang in there 👍 maybe someday she'll change 🙏 maybe he will too!!
I live with a layer of sorrow wrapped around my heart. I never felt at home in Texas. There was a billboard I would pass regularly. One side was ¨Never Underestimate the Power of Momentum - *** Bank. The other side was a giant picture of Jesus - white and golden haired - with ¨ Jesus Saves¨.
Sad 😔 but true 👍 😔
People can only truly worship one God or not.
Imagine 🤔 how Sad the good Lord Jesus feels 😪 when we choose money 💰 instead 🙏
Well said 👏 👌 👍
Did you see that No Labels has registered as a new political party in Oregon. One family member from Portland OR summed this up correctly: This so-called middle of the road party with Manchin and Sinema in its ranks (they have been associated with no labels as a movement, not a party, for a while as was Murkowski.).. will ensure that the Republicans win in 2024 because moderate Democrats may be persuaded into their fold. Fool's paradise?
Really?
Proud of having no label?
No label = No stance.
One hopes (though mustn't rely on the idea) enough Republicans who don't like the extremes to which DeSant & tfg are taking their party get on that witless bandwagon to balance out any misguided Democrats who might.
(The truth is that No Labels is a disingenuous mechanism for moving libertarian conservative, essentially Republican, agendas forward.)
I couldn't agree more with your comment. But the fact of third parties is that they are spoilers... think Nader
League of Women Voter's volunteers were given new forms to register voters a few days ago. No Label is listed on the Colorado voter registration form under political party. Too busy/distracted to inquire about the change at the time. Wow. Not good.
Two comments this morning. First, building on Robert's mention of Simon Rosenberg's Substack, here is the latest Lincoln Project podcast with Simon as a guest. He talks about how we can be even more effective than the Democratic party, mentions all of us who have banded together on Zoom and many other things. Definitely worth a listen. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-hopium-chronicles-with-simon-rosenberg/id1551582052?i=1000603614542
Second, is this lovely trolling of Ron DeSantis on his book tour in Iowa. He doesn't even realize the message in the snowflake!!!https://twitter.com/SteveGoffman/status/1634358622774861824
❄️ Loooooove the snowflake! The creativity and patience it took to design and cut 👏👏
😂 ❄️
I love, love, LOVE it!!!! 🤣😏❄❄❄❄❄❄!
Seems important to emphasize that the MAGA crew, when thinking, are working very thoughtfully to destroy the central government. It seems clear that they intend to so tarnish the Federal Government that it will be so rejected by the voters that they can dismantle it without much resistance. Of course, the reason to do that gets us back to the Civil War. Then they can bypass or ignore any law or community activity from the Feds and set up their own systems in the states that they wish to control. This will be the end of religious, economic, and political freedom in what had been the United States.
Of course, this is done by destroying anything that looks like honor and refusing to experience shame. In doing so, they bypass two (I think this came from Status Quo last week) powerful social forces that have held together the social networks from which Democracy emerges. Without both, socialization becomes
a horror and the only deterrent we have is law, which is purposely slow and cumbersome.
I suggest that we watch them taking pride in their total lack of honor (lying, cheating, and stealing wherever they can get away with it and asking for high fives when done.) or shame. In fact, it appears that they revel in being what is essentially a criminal enterprise and have encouraged the thugs to join them.
They have already begun a terror process (yes, they are terrorists--like Timothy McVeigh) and will eventually kill indiscriminately with pride and malice just as he did. These are not nice people and we will be fools to attempt to treat them as such. They are prideful and arrogant, with a willingness and desire to destroy all that Federalism has built in the last 200 years so they no longer have to "endure" Bobby Kennedy sending in the troupes to Little Rock.
Extremely dangerous, because we will constantly fail to treat them with the severity required in hopes that by being "nice" the world and maybe even they, will like us.
There have been many articles about the cruelty some of their leaders exhibit and it's hard to accept the cruelty as real. But it is. And they revel in it--the idea that there is a single Christian bone among them is self deception. There is absolutely nothing of Christ in any of it.
These are ordinary criminals becoming hardened criminals and jail time for them will be nothing worse than a higher education.
Not really any different from organized crime and must be treated that way.
They will use our weakness born of our desire to forgive and offer care. True love in this instance is tough love borne of compassion. These humans are possessed, more along the lines of serial killers, than the norm amongst us. This is not the time to "turn the other cheek." It will get ripped off.
Not sure I agree we are not treating them with severity they deserve. We are pushing back locally and have made tremendous strides in the courts and in public opinion. There has been no Big Bang effect but slowly and effectively always wins the battle. You are under estimating our voters and what they really think.
Thank you for sharing the 'good news', I signed up for Simons newsletter. Yes! We must not only find the good to celebrate, but become the celebration that might open the eyes, ears, hearts of those who are so shut down and willing to be slaves to the mob on the right. Today on twitter, it was one, falsehood after another from the magas - from President Biden´s budget - calling it 'woke', to McCarthy, Cruz, DeSantis, et al. They don't work. They tweet daily and have photo ops.
I had written that today I would post regarding the creating of a video(s) celebrating WOKE.
First, it's important to know that this is a truly special word for the African American community. Many were not happy when liberals began to use it. Then, the magas took it over, as they did the word 'socialism,' to politically create fear and anger in their followers.
WOKE is now defined as: aware of and actively attentive to important societal facts and issues (especially issues of racial and social justice)
The video - it may be more if many submit - will be comprised of videos and high resolution photos (300dpi) you send me.
Videos can be taken with your phone or with a video camera.
No one has to speak, as there will be title cards with each video or photo with the name of the group or club or organization or family or individual who is involved in creating racial or social justice and the city and state - I hope to have every state represented if possible, so if you have family or friends in other states, please share with them.
If video, and you would like to be creative and have the group or family interacting and laughing or playing or rehearsing (theatre, music, art class) then seeing the camera before waving or inviting the camera to join, that would be great.
Possibly a blended family playing together then seeing the camera then waving and inviting the camera to join.
Everyone in the video or photo will be smiling and waving. If possible, inviting the camera to join them in videos.
The act does not have to be big. It can be anything that shows inclusion - race, lgbtq+, friendships between members of different religions, mixed families, teaching children in mixed neighbor hoods, lgbtq families, church groups with mixed races, working in food banks or soup kitchens, helping people to vote, helping people with down syndrome or disabilities. Celebrating with police. Working with those incarcerated. Teaching art, music, math, science in under privileged communities.
Acts of kindness. Acts of patience. Growing inclusion in communities. Small acts with the vision of creating a true America for all.
It is a celebration of inclusion and all are welcome.
The vision at this moment is that the video will open with a BLACK TITLE CARD with the word WOKE and its definition.
CROSS FADE TO VIDEO
Under the video, 'America the Beautiful' will play. I would like to use this version if possible. https://youtu.be/TRUjr8EVgBg
The final moment with the words, ¨America Is Awakening¨.
If you have questions, feel free to email me at gaileegailee@gmail.com.
Photos will be sent to gaileegailee@gmail.com with ¨AWAKENING¨ in the subject line.
If you have a video, email me at gaileegailee@gmail.com with AWAKENING VIDEO READY in the subject line and I will email you a link to upload to my Google Drive.
In the photo or video everyone is waving - in the video the camera can be invited to join. In photos some can be using the heart sign made with hands and fingers. If you don't know what I mean by this, I will send a photo.
Feel free to share with anyone who is AWAKE and has the vision of the American we can become.
Thank you. Yes. We. Can.
Gailee
The weaponization of the word “ woke” by MAGA is an example of the media not providing a clear and effective definition of what it really means. It would be a great campaign idea to push what woke really means.
Absolutely! Fantastic idea, and hopefully, you will create yet another voice with a different production. It takes many voices spoken in many styles to drive change.
"Efforts to protect children from guns rather than books," is a great line that we should all be using whenever possible.
So you know what ~ since the world opened up after the pandemic surge there is a body of people still wearing masks and requiring masks at least in my area and that is Doctors offices and hospitals! That tells me all I need to know ! The clowns that have made a pandemic a political pon have a million + deaths on their hands ! Karmas a B*^%#
Please let’s not continue to celebrate that the Red wave did not materialize. McCarthy is speaker, Jordan, and Greene are in positions of power. Despite no platform and being contrary to what people want on almost every issue, the Red team still won. Yes it could have been worse, but it should have been a rout for the Blue.
Read Walter Shapiro’s analysis in the new republic of how we lost the house and how five key races could and should have turned out differently. We need smarter leader ship in the Democratic Party.
Here is a small piece of Mr. Rosenberg's plan. A huge thanks to Mr. Hubbell for letting us know about Mr. Rosenberg's new Substack. Mr. Hubbell shows a spirit of cooperation instead of competition which is exactly what we need in our fight for Democracy.
From Mr. Rosenberg: " I want this to be a journey guided by hope and optimism, of belief in ourselves, in love of country and a clear understanding of the nature of the conflict we are in. I have become convinced that part of Greater MAGA’s strategy is to intentionally poison our discourse with negative sentiment every day. "
Echoing Mr. Rosenberg's thoughts about negative discourse here. The made-up names, name calling and hating the Republicans and MAGAs are negative discourse. Not only does it sour a comments section, but it pollutes the national discourse. We reduce ourselves to their level. It also reduces our effectiveness. Sometimes comments are so full of made-up angry words I don't understand their point. My personal rule has become I won't read an angry, negative comment full of name calling. It bums me out and serves no purpose for any political work I am doing.
Shanti
Agreed. This has always bothered me about the opposition to MAGA, which I hold deeply.
Hit back as hard as one can and wants on the odious ideas. Describe the moral failings or the logical fallacies, the untruths. But...
The name-calling is more often than not rooted in sexism, misogyny, look-ism, ageism, classism, able-isms, or other less-than-noble - certtainly unkind - foundations (conspicuous example: references to people who live in house trailers).
It discredits the utterer, including - unfortunately - some otherwise valued contributors here - in point of fact comprising the logical fallacy of ad hominem.
There could be a context for that kind of discourse, but only privately among friends for the purpose of venting (or of course, for discrediting or demoralizing our own).
Yes!
On 8.26.22 I got shouted down by at least one otherwise valued contributor for posting this:
Although it feels good to call them Facists, while they call us Socialists and Commies, name-calling is more divisive than productive. Calmly demonstrating competence and leadership is Biden's greatest strength; it says a lot more, to a much wider audience, than name-calling, which offers the maggats a distraction to focus on, and lures the media to the low-level fighting rather than the important issues at hand. It's possible, and far more effective, to be tough without being juvenile. We are not trying to flip hard-right voters, just that fairly thin margin in the middle that are the difference between a narrow win or loss.
Tom: Your point is valid your choice of words and phrasing not so good.
Thank You for this! I, too, have been shouted, down, name called, mansplained and soundly lectured. Whew! And this is on a well know bloggers comments section!
You make a good point. We are not trying to flip hard core MAGAs.
Although Tom. I would refrain from the term "maggots." : ))
You're right - got to walk the walk! Thanks!
It's a symptom of what we are discussing that I fully expected to come across some strident and negative responses to my comment. And I agree with your assessments of the roots of the name calling. Why is it deemed ok to say misogynist things about MJG etc and then call the Republicans misogynists? I've even been challenged on my patriotism which really concerned me because it indicated a "towing the line" mentality; a dangerous mindset.
Anyway. We can be happy Hubbell and Rosenberg are around with the positive approach. And we can continue the positive approach ourselves.
Within all due respect your forgetting an important point. Many MAGA people who respond to posts etc are echoing the stchick of Donald Trump who has perfected his act and it has done well for him. The name calling etc is part of a false image of a very troubled individual who in real life is nothing like his image.
I'm not talking about trump. I am not talking about MAGA people.
I am talking about people claiming to be liberals emulating his behavior. Why would anyone want to sink to his level? It's not worked for him. He is twice impeached, disgraced, plagued by ever increasing law cases, fomented an insurrection and lost the Presidency. He has sullied the national discourse.
Trump,started it by calling primary opponents names. Remember “ Lying Ted Cruz or “ little Marco Rubio. Interesting no one has given hime a nickname that has stuck.
"Trump started it" Why would anyone want to imitate trump's behavior?
Because many people want to be just like they think he is which in reality is all a lie. He is the personification of what they think they want to be rich; successful, in charge and a fighter
Frankly I just don't focus on him or any of the others.
Signed up for Hopium Chronicles immediately. Thanks for the tip!! I'm so excited!!
Mr. Rosenberg has picked up a bunch of subscribers based on your recommendation and the quality of his welcome piece. As we grow the number and reach of publications devoted to honesty, openness, and an optimistic approach to the challenges that we face, our chances of having a strong positive impact on those problems increases dramatically.
The best argument I can think of for the effectiveness of wearing masks is the stunning decrease in flu infections during the pandemic. Oddly enough, this statistic doesn't come up in conversation, perhaps because it doesn't serve the narrative of either the vaccination group or the anti-maskers.
One hopes that the troubles afflicting Mr. DeathSantis and his campaign are indicative of an entropic spiral involving the whole Republican party and that, provided the Democrats and other reasonable people find, encourage, and promote positive, electable candidates, we can have an end to the anti-humanity, anti-liberty nonsense being promoted by the GOP sooner rather than later.