Tag Archives: history

Thank You, America!

Posted on by
Reply

Thank you, America, for standing up and voting yesterday, for people who are FOR THE PEOPLE. We have spoken up, and now others are listening. We now have hope that the people who have faithfully supported that terrible person in power will listen to us and consider the people they are supposed to represent, rather than just the man and his party who hold the reins at the moment. We hope that they will start to think for themselves and not be afraid of him and the crazies out there.

Growing up in a time when women and minorities were treated so badly has given me a deep understanding of people like you know who really are inside. They have no empathy for those in need, only for those who will bow down to him and kiss the ring. I am sad that so many of us don’t understand what a true and progressive democracy really entails. I am sad that we don’t see how people are suffering, and even that some of those people don’t believe he is bad for them. My only hope is that we will continue to strive into the next year to vote for people who will get all of government on track. My hope is that we will survive and learn to support each other.

Michelle Obama’s comments on The Late Show last night hit home as to why I am at a loss like her, why we are allowing this bully to continue. Her conversation with Colbert put it succinctly about what is going on with the demolition of the East Wing—our heritage, and I emphasize ‘our’ as in the people’s heritage, not the one living there at the present moment.

She said:
“People have asked me how I felt about the move.” “What I will remind people is that the house is not our house,” Obama said.
“We never viewed it as our house. We were there for a time. We had a job to do,” the former first lady said.
“We always felt it was the people’s house.”
“And yes, every family, every administration, has a right and a duty to maintain the house, make investments and improvements. And there are plenty of things that needed fixing there,” she told Colbert.
“But the thing — it makes me confused. I am confused by what are our norms. What are our standards? What are our traditions?” Obama said.
During President Obama’s time in office from 2009-17, Michelle Obama said, there were “a whole standard of norms and rules that we follow to a T, that we painstakingly tried to uphold, because it was bigger than us.”
The country, she said, must “decide what rules are we following and who is to abide by them, and who isn’t.”
During her “Late Show” interview, when Colbert mentioned the East Wing, Obama quipped, “Remember that?”
Obama described the East Wing, built in 1942 during Franklin D. Roosevelt’s presidency and which provided space for the first lady’s staff as well as other offices, as “where life happened [emphasis mine].”
“The West Wing was work — sometimes it was sadness, it was problems. It was the guts of the White House,” Obama, author of the new book “The Look,” said.
“The East Wing was where you felt light.”

Michelle Obama on East Wing demolition: ‘We always felt it was the people’s house’

Her thoughts about the East wing being a place where you can be light bring back the memories of a woman in office who cares about her children, about others of every color, and a sense of family we all strive to have. As I reflect on what is going on in this administration, I still have hope that idiot in office will forego his ego and think about what he has done to all the people as a nation, especially those who are the caretakers and the caregivers, and don’t have the power that money brings to them—those everyday people like me that cares about the state of the world. I hope that we are finally considering how to persuade both parties to do what is right and take care of the people they represent.

These last two months have been about reflection, writing for the greater good, finishing up my books and preparing for publication (SOON!), and trying to give back in a way that I know how. Taking a break from the daily sadness has made me realize that I still need to have my say; otherwise, it stews in my head, and I can’t move on. Others don’t always like what I have to say, but all I ask of each and every one of you is to work hard to bring back common decency to those who are being affected by someone who doesn’t obey the rules. As a people of these United States, we generally obey the rules, so why can’t we expect those in power to do the same? Why can’t we expect those in power to be held accountable for their actions? Enough said for today.

I love you all, and I’ll always keep fighting the good fight. I hope you do the same!

It Has Been Happening for over 80 Years!

Posted on by
Reply

I have been holed up in my office for the past week wrapping up the final novel of the Caitlin Ferguson series, with only tiny breaks to swim and work outside in the heat of the day to give the old brain a rest!

I also delivered the knitted scarves to all the beautiful folks who I briefly worked with early in the summer. I am grateful for them and all of the work they do. Thank you again City of Louisville’s Finance group for being such hard working people!

All the while life is still limping along outside of my quiet bubble and I hate to turn on the news. So I turn to my reading once again to learn about why the horrific things the government and people do and have been doing these things for over 80 years. I recently started reading an incredible book by Robert Reich called Coming Up Short.

Reich is an American professor, author, lawyer, and political commentator. He worked in the administrations of presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter, and he served as Secretary of Labor in the cabinet of President Bill Clinton. He was also a member of President Barack Obama’s economic transition advisory board. Time magazine named him one of the Ten Best Cabinet Members of the century; in the same year, The Wall Street Journal placed him sixth on its list of Most Influential Business Thinkers. He is board chair emeritus of the watchdog group Common Sense and blogs at Robertreich.org.—Wikipedia

There have been so many moments in history that should have affected change. Currently, with the atmosphere of “we don’t want to hear about it anymore” these moments are long lost. These moments become hard to digest for us sensitive types, but it needs to be said because it has been happening for over 80 years! Here are a few solid and horrible things that are happening. I feel they are important to mention here based on what he had to say:

Rise of Fascism
Rise of the Rich Getting Richer
Blaming the Poor
Blaming those who are not White
Rise of the white supremacists attempting to re-create their version of the “Master Race”
Making the BIPOC citizens, immigrants, the poor into the bogeyman and the enemy

Reich also thought that the majority of people accepted this more and more after decades is that the working class who started making money, becoming the middle class, felt ignored since the sixties. Our generation wanted more for the disadvantaged people and tried to make a difference. But those that felt hurt that we ignored them, started voting for those that they believed would support them. In reality, they didn’t care about them and ultimately the working class got poorer as the richest men got richer.

But there are a few good signs that maybe we can turn the corner. The struggle to prevent bullies attacking and exploiting the weak is happening. Maybe we can get back to a civil society where we stop the brutality and exploitation. Good people are filing lawsuits to stop abuses. Reich states the he has “…come to believe that there is no moral equivalence between bullies and the bullied, between tyranny and democracy, between brutality and decency. No individual can be free in a society devoid of justice. There can be no liberty where brutality reigns. The struggle for social justice is the most basic struggle of all because it defines how far a civilization has developed.” [Reich, Robert B.. Coming Up Short: A Memoir of My America (p. 67). Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.]

Finally, here are the questions posed by Edward Abbey in the 1960s that are still valid today that we need to ponder:
“Suppose we were planning to impose a dictatorial regime upon the American people—the following preparations would be essential:
1. Concentrate the populace in megalopolitan masses so that they can be kept under close surveillance and where, in case of trouble, they can be bombed, burned, gassed or machine-gunned with a minimum of expense and waste.
2. Mechanize agriculture to the highest degree of refinement, thus forcing most of the scattered farm and ranching population into the cities. Such a policy is desirable because farmers, woodsmen, cowboys, Indians, fishermen and other relatively self-sufficient types are difficult to manage unless displaced from their natural environment.
3. Restrict the possession of firearms to the police and the regular military organizations
4. Encourage or at least fail to discourage population growth. Large masses of people are more easily manipulated and dominated than scattered individuals.
5. Continue military conscription. Nothing excels military training for creating in young men an attitude of prompt, cheerful obedience to officially constituted authority.
6. Divert attention from deep conflicts within the society by engaging in foreign wars; make support of these wars a test of loyalty, thereby exposing and isolating potential opposition to the new order.
7. Overlay the nation with a finely reticulated network of communications, airlines and interstate autobahns.
8. Raze the wilderness. Dam the rivers, flood the canyons, drain the swamps, log the forests, strip-mine the hills, bulldoze the mountains, irrigate the deserts and improve the national parks into national parking lots. Idle speculations, feeble and hopeless protest. It was all foreseen nearly half a century ago by the most cold-eyed and clear-eyed of our national poets, on California’s shore, at the end of the open road. ‘Shine, perishing republic.’”—Edward Abbey, Desert Solitaire published in 1968

And here is a poem that has relevance to this conversation:
“While this America settles in the mould of its vulgarity, heavily thickening to empire
And protest, only a bubble in the molten mass, pops and sighs out, and the mass hardens,
I sadly smiling remember that the flower fades to make fruit, the fruit rots to make earth.
Out of the mother; and through the spring exultances, ripeness and decadence; and home to the mother.
You making haste on decay: not blameworthy; life is good, be it stubbornly long or suddenly
A mortal splendor: meteors are not needed than mountains: shine, perishing republic.
But for my children, I would have them keep their distance from the thickening center; corruption
Never has been compulsory, when the cities lie at the monster’s feet there are left the mountains.
And boys, be in nothing so moderate as in love of man, a clever servant, insufferable master.
There is the trap that catches noblest spirits, that caught—they say God, when he walked on earth.”— Robinson Jeffers, Shine, Perishing Republic, 1925

I strive with all my heart to see signs of change. I talk to young people and see that they are reading and asking questions. I see my generation going to town hall meetings, standing up and booing those people who were supposed to represent them when they continue to tow the ridiculous non-factual party line. I see them starting to speak up. My hope is that all ages see the faults in whom they have voted for in the past and realize we can all come together to have a better society if we keep up the good fight. This past year made us realize that by giving up, we put a bully in office. Now is the time to speak up. We can’t give up, or lie down and take it. Keep pushing, keep asking good questions. Keep reading and writing.

So I am asking everyone out there with a conscience:
Don’t give up! Take a minute and sit down and write!
Tell your story to your children and family. Make the impossible possible.
Let’s return to Truth, Trust, Civility, and Compassion.

Put Robert Reich’s book Coming Up Short on your reading immediate list and keep exploring how we truly can accept each other, protect each other, and stop hating those that don’t deserve our hate. We are all fallible and we need to learn to be brave.

I love you all and hope you will continue to read, observe, ask good questions and speak out!

Boundaries of the Self

Posted on by
Reply

On this eve eve of our country’s birth, I am pondering where we are. I am pondering the terms of what our sense of self has become. Have our representatives lost their minds or are they just becoming what they always were, mindless drones to an oligarch who doesn’t care about representing all of the people all of the time? Are they so isolated to the realities of the world because they never explored beyond their sheltered life of luxury? Or do they simply not care anymore now that they’ve gotten their more than fair share of the wealth. Have their lives been so protected that they haven’t seen the suffering they are now causing to others who didn’t grow up in the world of prestige and protection? Where has their dignity and justice gone? Why is money more important than the lives of those less fortunate?

I grew up with poverty always knocking at our door. We didn’t want to admit that, but we struggled as kids. And yet, my family always did the right thing and gave as much as we could to others who were less fortunate than us. We didn’t think of ourselves as poor people. What little we had we shared with others in our same situation and they did the same. We didn’t have luxuries and it was uncomfortable to be around those who had more even though we all tried to fit in, especially when they were mean and horrible to those less fortunate. Our sense of self grew as a result of this idea that we could do better if we all worked together, both rich and poor alike. Our parents taught us to do better and go beyond our humble means. They taught us to reach out and become ambitious doers, people of action, but not necessarily craving to be noticed. But if we were noticed, make sure it was for actions that led to saving the planet, saving a community, saving the people, and saving our relationships with each other.

David Gessner asked of us: “Do any of us ever get beyond the boundaries of the selves we start with? Can we really make ourselves into more than we are? Or do we always bump against the borders of self and snap back to the default settings that we were programmed for in the first place?” [Gessner, David. All The Wild That Remains: Edward Abbey, Wallace Stegner, and the American West (p. 157). W. W. Norton & Company. Kindle Edition.]

Gessner also quoted Wallace Stegner about this subject: “In Crossing to Safety, the Stegnerian narrator writes that ‘When I hear the contemporary disparagement of ambition and the work ethic, I bristle.’ But: ‘Unconsidered, merely indulged, ambition becomes a vice; it can turn a man into a machine that knows nothing but how to run. Considered, it can be something else—pathway to the stars, maybe.’ Ambition can lead to the stars, or at least to that greater broadening, to magnanimity, to largeness. But it still has its more primitive roots in the craving to be noticed, to be known, to have one’s name recognized.” [Gessner, David. All The Wild That Remains: Edward Abbey, Wallace Stegner, and the American West (p. 147). W. W. Norton & Company. Kindle Edition.]

Finally, Gessner stated about this subject: “Neither Stegner nor Abbey were immune from the hunger for renown. Both wanted their work to be remembered. They would not, it seems to me, have frowned at the notion of my writing this book so many years after their deaths. It is oblivion, of course, that we make our names against. Nothingness that spurs us to be something. And what is worse than being ignored? To a proud person, it is as if our existence is not acknowledged. We are nobody.” [Gessner, David. All The Wild That Remains: Edward Abbey, Wallace Stegner, and the American West (p. 152). W. W. Norton & Company. Kindle Edition.]

So as we go into the 250th birthday of our country, let’s agree to do something good during this time of injustice. Let’s agree to get out of our comfortable existence and write people who may have more money than us and can fight these old cronies to make a difference. Let’s agree to donate to good causes and continue to fight the good fight against those who simply don’t care. Let’s bump, and even break out of our barriers of the self, and create something beautiful before we die. This weekend, I am giving to the Emergency Family Assistance Association (EFAA) out of Boulder, Colorado. They are working tirelessly to have local support for nutritious food for families in need. With cutbacks to Medicaid and SNAP, our support helps them make their goals. And The Leffingwell Foundation is matching any amount of your donations to EFAA, up to $100,00.00. How awesome is that? https://www.efaa.org/donate/funds/

Give what you can and help out the folks in our community.

And don’t forget to give to your local PBS and NPR! I just signed up for Rocky Mountain PBS passport and am loving the programs on their app! $60 a year gets great entertainment and you don’t have to pay those bigger companies! I am turning into more of a geek than I am now with learning about the past. I am loving the period detective shows!

So give whatever you can, and love the ones who are around you. I love you all and celebrate the good things about our country this weekend, continue to fight against those strange black clad secret police, and attempt to shut out the violence for a little longer by caring for everyone.

Are You Thinking?

Posted on by
Reply

Or: “We are what we think. All that we are, arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world.”—Buddha

We are short-term compared to the rest of the universe. People generally tend to think the future is a long way away. In reality, we should be thinking about our human impact on this planet long after we are dead. We should constantly be thinking about what we will be leaving for the future inhabitants of this planet. Alas, the passion for the get-rich schemes cloud many a crazy rich person who only want more for themselves. After all, seeking money and buying things are the American way of life, isn’t it? But having this as a priority in our uneducated lives, these ill-gotten gains, makes all those who don’t believe in this system suffer. These temporary gains, the boom or bust environment, especially in the wild, wild west have all been taken at the expense of what we hold dear. We are a dry land that is getting warmer and more populated over the years. Vegetation doesn’t grow back, and if you take the water away, there is nothing to replace it.

When David Gessner was writing All the Wild that Remains he visited Arches in Moab, to track down Edward Abbey’s haunts. He visited Abbey’s friend, Ken Sleight, now eighty-three-years-old. He was a former river rafter and horseman. Sleight was the inspiration for Seldom Seen Smith, the adventurous and laconic “Jack Mormon” who co-starred in Abbey’s best-known novel, The Monkey Wrench Gang. Abbey met him and stayed with him while he was at Arches. Sleight talked about Abbey and how his essays and books influenced so many people.

Sleight talked about the people who visit the wild places especially out in the west. He stated: “‘Are they thinking?’ That’s what he [Abbey] would always say. What he [Abbey] wanted to know is ‘Are they really thinking?’ Regardless of what they think of me, I want them to think.” The best times with Abbey, he added, were by the campfire while on the river. Abbey was an incredible spokesman and people listened to him. [Gessner, David. All The Wild That Remains: Edward Abbey, Wallace Stegner, and the American West (p. 98). W. W. Norton & Company. Kindle Edition].

These wise words rang true to my heart when I visited my old haunts in Utah last year. When I see what has happened to the once beautiful places, I despair that it can only get worse. It’s hard to be in the minority of thinkers who understand that there will always be global consequences for all of our current actions. It’s hard let harsh feelings go for those that who just want to take the money and run and are not given any consequences for their actions, particularly the oil and gas industry. The boom or bust has both made and broke small towns and the wild places are getting fewer and fewer. People in the lush, green east coast towns don’t understand what is happening out here. However, westerners persevere throughout these trying times. Easterners are now dealing with weather as well, but with the abundance of water, not the lack thereof. Environmental catastrophes are happening whether we want to accept it or not. We must look within to save the wild places and the people who live there.

It seems that human suffering is okay to those who are in power and we have to keep trying to change the mind of those in power. Gessner also stated that “Largeness of thought does not come naturally to most of us. It isn’t easy to see the big picture. Many don’t even try.” [Gessner, David. All The Wild That Remains: Edward Abbey, Wallace Stegner, and the American West (p. 122). W. W. Norton & Company. Kindle Edition].

So today I am asking you to read or re-read Desert Solitaire by Edward Abbey and Beyond the Hundredth Meridian, by Wallace Stegner. I am asking all of you to think about what we have done in the past and how we can start to make a change for the future. It’s heady reading but worth it. We can only focus on one thing at a time and the billionaires aren’t going to change their way of doing business, so maybe small towns can really think about what it means to take their money. Maybe they can negotiate contracts that make more sense before these companies take everything out of the land and run away. When all is said and done and the fruits of their labor are carted off to Texas and other places, the towns will go bust if they don’t have a long-term plan. The land will not recover quickly and no one will help clean up their messes in the end. It’s a sad situation but little towns have to think about what they will accomplish in the long run with short-term gains, that only benefit the rich and powerful (and other states!). Just sayin’.

I love you all and hope we live to see another clear day!

Rewriting History-Part II

Posted on by
Reply

“The significance of historical accuracy cannot be overstated, as it plays a crucial role in our ability to discern the truth, make informed decisions, and maintain the integrity of our collective memory.”

In this current administration fact-checking has become a dominant conversation piece for every citizen who is appalled by what is going on in the political scene. Historical events are being distorted and/or outright fabricated at will. This era is rapidly becoming the misinformation age.

We are forgetting about the consequences for spreading outright lies and deleting information that is critical to us. People who believe in what is going on with that guy in office haven’t suffered the consequences yet. They don’t care that we as a country are not preserving the historical truth for ourselves as well as for future generations. They don’t care that the current administration has no understanding of historical events that should be accounted for in the current decision-making process. “Accurate information helps us avoid repeating past mistakes and make informed choices about the future [emphasis mine].”—from https://medium.com/@thehistorychip

And finally, they don’t care that they are not preserving cultural heritage and identity. As a result, there is no critical thinking based on the evaluation of the past.

When misinformation rears its ugly head, the challenges are:
1.         Confirmation bias – people seek and believe information that confirms their pre-existing beliefs. They simply believe the inaccuracies being told to them because of their worldview.
2.         Misleading Narratives – When people in power interpret the past due to their confirmation bias, they skew perceptions of others.
3.         Echo Chambers – “Social media and online communities can reinforce existing beliefs and isolate individuals from diverse perspectives. In such echo chambers, misinformation can thrive unchecked.” [e.g., Fox News]
4.         Digital Manipulation – “Advancements in technology have made it easier to manipulate historical content, including photographs and documents, leading to the creation of convincing but false narratives [emphasis mine].”
Please read this blog for further information. It was an excellent source outlining the problem:
https://medium.com/@thehistorychip/facts-vs-fiction-the-importance-of-historical-accuracy-in-a-misinformation-age-f82c3475a3d9

I want to emphasize how much this bothers me. We are visiting this misinformation age once again 10 years later from the time this article was published: Political Lies: Altering Facts and Rewriting History. On 2/9/15, author Richard A. Barrett reviewed a book by Hannah Arendt, titled Truth and Politics. Arendt stated that “Freedom of opinion is a farce unless factual information is guaranteed and the facts themselves are not in dispute.”

Barrett stated, “In other words, factual truth informs political thought just as rational truth informs philosophical speculation….Such attempts by states to alter history are not the only danger of political lies. Arendt warns that “self-deception is the danger par excellence; the self-deceived deceiver loses all contact with not only his audience, but also the real world, which still will catch up with him, because he can remove his mind from it but not his body” (Lying in Politics).”

Barrett stated that Arendt brought new light to the information given in the Pentagon Papers. He stated that “in her commentary on the Pentagon Papers, Arendt details how little the Administration managed to deceive others about the reality of the Vietnam War but nevertheless managed to deceive itself into believing and basing policy on information it knew was not true. In the end, the free press, which Arendt refers to as the fourth branch of government,” performed its crucial check on government—not by alerting the public to facts hidden from it, most of which were already known but—by forcing the executive to confront those facts, facts it had previously been so successful in deceiving itself about.”

Thus Arendt informs us, “Even if we admit that every generation has the right to write its own history, we admit no more than that it has the right to rearrange the facts in accordance with its own perspective; we don’t admit the right to touch the factual matter itself.”
https://hac.bard.edu/amor-mundi/political-lies-altering-facts-and-rewriting-history-2015-02-09

For further information about our changing facts in history due to the political climate see:
https://www.journalofdemocracy.org/articles/30-years-of-world-politics-what-has-changed/

So, my point in this rather long diatribe is this:
Every day that you are on this planet and in this current realm, combat historical misinformation and uphold historical accuracy. Become a critical thinker and encourage this same thought process in others. Question sources, verify information, and seek many perspectives on any matter. Don’t believe everything. Fact check when you can, but also use your common sense. Ask yourself: “Is this really true?” Why would someone believe this?” “Why should I believe this?”

Educate yourself and others and learn how to look into the media and review the historical data. Share accurate information with others, not just something that people say over and over again. Remember this: “If you say it over and over again, it doesn’t make it true if it’s a lie!” Don’t believe everything you hear. Counteract the spread of ridiculous claims. Believe in humanity once again. We will survive!

I love you all on this windy, weeknight in Colorado! Hang in there!

Rewriting History

Posted on by
Reply

OR: What is Wrong with You People?

Arlington Cemetery website drops links for Black, Hispanic, and women veterans.—Matt White, 3/13/25
“The website for Arlington National Cemetery unpublished links [deleted them] to lists of notable graves, walking tours and educational material pertaining to Black, Hispanic and women veterans, as well as some Medal of Honor recipients.”

“Arlington National Cemetery is the most venerated final resting ground in the nation, overseen by silent soldiers in immaculate uniforms with ramrod-straight discipline. Across its hundreds of acres in Virginia, they watch over 400,000 graves of U.S. service members dating back to the Civil War, including two presidents, and more than 400 Medal of Honor recipients.”

“But in recent weeks, the cemetery’s public website has scrubbed dozens of pages on gravesites and educational materials that include histories of prominent Black, Hispanic and female service members buried in the cemetery, along with educational material on dozens of Medal of Honor recipients [emphasis mine] and maps of prominent gravesites of Marine Corps veterans and other services…. Cemetery officials confirmed to Task & Purpose that the pages were unpublished to meet recent orders by President Donald Trump and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth targeting race and gender-related language and policies in the military [emphasis mine].”

So…..all I gotta say is this: You people just don’t get it. It is a dick move and you know it! For more information see:
https://taskandpurpose.com/news/arlington-cemetery-scrubs-website-dei/#:~:text=What%E2%80%99s%20missing%20from%20Arlington%E2%80%99s%20website

Fact Check if you don’t believe me:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/fact-check-arlington-national-cemetery-220100878.html?fr=yhssrp_catchall

More information tomorrow on that guy in office changing history. I am saddened to think they have gone too far. Time to keep bringing it up in conversation and tell those in power to stop it!

Love to all tonight!

Edward Abbey-One of My Heroes

Posted on by
Reply

“To the intelligent man or woman, life appears infinitely mysterious. But the stupid have an answer for every question.”—Edward Abbey

“Our modern industrial economy takes a mountain covered with trees, lakes, running streams and transforms it into a mountain of junk, garbage, slime pits, and debris.”—Edward Abbey

“The one thing … that is truly ugly is the climate of hate and intimidation, created by a noisy few, which makes the decent majority reluctant to air in public their views on anything controversial. … Where all pretend to be thinking alike, it’s likely that no one is thinking at all.”—Edward Abbey

“Wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit.”—Edward Abbey

“Why is it that the destruction of something created by humans is called vandalism, yet the destruction of something created by God is called development?”—Edward Abbey
https://www.azquotes.com/author/10-Edward_Abbey

Edward Abbey (born January 29, 1927, Indiana, Pennsylvania, U.S.—died March 14, 1989, near Tucson, Arizona) was an American writer whose works, set primarily in the southwestern United States, reflect an uncompromising environmentalist philosophy. Abbey’s novel The Monkey Wrench Gang (1975) recounts the exploits of a band of guerrilla environmentalists; both it and Desert Solitaire became handbooks of the environmental movement. The strain of cynicism that runs through much of Abbey’s writing is leavened by a bracing prose style and mischievous wit. His advice was unorthodox: “This is what you shall do: Love the earth and sun and animals. Stand up for the stupid and crazy. Take your hat off to no man.” And: “Anarchism is not a romantic fable but the hardheaded realization, based on five thousand years of experience, that we cannot entrust the management of our lives to kings, priests, politicians, generals, and county commissioners.” https://www.britannica.com/biography/Edward-Abbey

I encourage you to read his works, particularly The Monkey Wrench Gang and Hayduke Lives! These two books, along with his earlier work, Desert Solitaire inspired me to move out here. I visited and walked many of the paths he took when they weren’t National Parks. And now we have to engage in our own warfare, and create a grassroots effort to save all of these pathways before they are destroyed. Fight to keep Rangers employed. Keep fighting Abbey’s fight and save our backyards from destruction!

I love you all on this night and hope you will keep reading, keep writing, keep having enlightening conversations, and keep asking questions!

Moving On – Take it Easy

Posted on by
1

How many times have I heard these two idioms in my lifetime? When something is so difficult to fathom, how are these helpful statements?

It’s true that individuals must let go of past experiences to move forward. Dealing with emotions that bring us down helps us get a sense of clarity and purpose for our future selves. And yet, so many of us have held onto the grudges from the past. It doesn’t serve us when those in power hold onto these feelings and try to change the perspective of everyone around them. This me-centric personality is not a good fit for the highest office in the land.

But you know that’s not the only thing that I am here to talk about tonight. I was pondering how our future voters are doing in their government/civics and history classes in school? Are they learning what governmental entities should be doing? Are they learning what democracy is all about so when it becomes their time to vote in the next presidential election, we won’t have this fiasco once again?

Reporters in a 2023 article in USA Today, stated that the “2022 National Assessment of Educational Progress (often called “The Nation’s Report Card”) showed that only 22% of eighth graders are proficient in civics and 13% in U.S. history.  These scores have been declining – and we will pay the price if we don’t turn around those scores.”

This article further stated that “There is nothing partisan about being a good citizen. Understanding our history and the fundamental principles of our country and government are as fundamental and learnable as our ABCs − if we follow sound principles, and take history and civics seriously as a nation….That means quality history education for all − anchored in well-researched and verifiable truths about our nation’s unique founding and contributions to the world, our high ideals and core civic principles, the promises we’ve struggled to fulfill, and the diverse voices and experiences that have shaped our history.”

How has this gotten past the fundamental knowledge kids need to know about history and government? Why haven’t we provided teachers the support to create “critical thinking skills” to shape early minds so they don’t turn out like the crazed forces who put this person in office? What happened to teaching students how to “…evaluate evidence, consider different perspectives, and to discuss and debate historical events and controversial topics − respectfully and in a balanced manner. They should be taught the awesome responsibilities of citizenship, and the equally awesome powers of civic engagement and community involvement.”
Kid’s Education in Civics and History

Why did the parents of this last generation lose interest and a priority to teach basic understanding of their government, its history, and how it works to their children and themselves? An article on the Big Think website explained that “When political know-how is low among a populace, misinformation spreads easily, and citizens don’t have the confidence to engage with the system.” Author and professor of Political Science, Lindsey Cormack, asked this question among many others and has authored an amazing book called How to Raise a Citizen which came out in 2024. She stated: “I don’t know anything that gets better by people not being willing to talk about it,” Cormack says.

The article further states that “Civics is often taught as a checklist of must-memorize facts that don’t build into valuable skills. The short time frame is partly to blame, but so is a social climate that makes teachers and districts fearful that going beyond the “most anodyne” of trivia risks a social media firestorm.”

“The result? “It turns kids into spectators of history rather than participants,” Cormack says. For more information on this subject see the website:
Explaining How Government Works

We have to allow teachers to teach these subjects without fear of repercussions. We have to teach our children to delve deeper into topics that are controversial and are now being controlled by social media.

“Democracy dies in silence, and…parents need to do this job because no one else will….Follow her [Cormack’s] advice and maybe inspire them for life. Our national conversation starts with you.”—David Daily from How to Raise a Citizen.

We can’t “take it easy” about fascism and its grip on our society and people. We have to be vigilant and learn what government should be about. We have to get our country back to a state of peaceful cohabitation with the rest of the world. Sure, it’s easy for those in power to tell us to “Move on,” but we can’t move on to a government that shouldn’t be ours. We have to return to what is right and lawful and make our peace with the world leaders who are kind and just. We cannot let oligarchs take over. Their actions are despicable and self-centered and people are hurting everywhere, even those who bought into the whole world of that guy in office. They truly drank the Kool Aid (Look it up!). They are suddenly realizing that all of these events to defeat democracy are affecting them as well as the people they hate.

So, no, I’m not ready to give up the fight and move on. I will continue the fight locally and have my say. I can’t take it easy until lawful and peaceful movements take precedence. It is good to see people attending meetings and asking good questions. But Democrats have to stop being frustrated with the people they elected. They are doing the best they can. They don’t have a majority and so many illegal things are happening right now in our government. Now is the time to keep the conversations going. Now is the time to keep asking questions. Everyone has to reach out to the neighbors (Republicans) and explain to them what they have done. We have to all come together and understand what is going on. We must make the world a better place.

Something to think about and hopefully, react to, in these next few years. Keep reading, keep writing, keep asking good questions.

Reach out to all those in need and help them in any way you can in your little hometowns. I love you all tonight and stay safe out there.

Chances and Democracy

Posted on by
Reply

“Today You’ve been Gifted with Another Chance. And: “Only dreams give birth to change.”—Sarah Ban Breathnach, Simple Abundance

The main idea of this idiom is to be open-minded and optimistic about something. It means to try something new or different, or to be patient and wait for something to improve or change. To allow someone another opportunity to do something or to prove their ability or worth.

I just want to give you the definition one more time in case you forgot:
Democracy: literally, rule by the people. The term is derived from the Greek dēmokratia, which was coined from dēmos (“people”) and kratos (“rule”) in the middle of the 5th century bce to denote the political systems then existing in some Greek city-states, notably, Athens.

In brief, the theory that democracy is the rule of the people and that the people have a right to rule. One study identified 2,234 adjectives used to describe democracy in the English language. Democratic principles are reflected in all eligible citizens being equal before the and having equal access to legislative processes. (No yeah, buts, here….)

The notion of democracy has evolved considerably over time. Throughout history, one can find evidence of direct democracy, in which communities make decisions through popular assembly. Today, the dominant form of democracy is representative democracy, where citizens elect government officials to govern on their behalf such as in a parliamentary or presidential democracy. In the common variant of liberal democracy, the powers of the majority are exercised within the framework of a representative democracy, but a constitution and supreme court limit the majority and protect the minority—usually through securing the enjoyment by all of certain individual rights, such as freedom of speech or freedom of association.—Wikipedia

We have a real chance to use our gifts and create trust in one another again. If we just reach out and dream the dreams of our childhood:

  • “Peace in your mind, peace on earth, peace at work, peace at home, peace in the world.” ~ John Lennon
  • “We cannot have peace on Earth until we learn to speak with one voice. That voice must be the voice of reason, the voice of compassion, the voice of love. It is the voice of divinity within us.” ~ Neale Donald Walsch
  • “Nothing that I can do or say will change the structure of the universe. But maybe, by raising my voice, I can help the greatest of all causes — good will among men and peace on earth.” ~ Albert Einstein
    For more enlightening and inspiring peace quotes go to: https://www.azquotes.com/quotes/topics/peace-on-earth.html

We can all make changes if we tell ourselves we are important enough to say the things we need to say. For example, I supported the workers and didn’t cross the picket lines at King Soopers. And I am writing my congressman and senators to be BRAVE and be the Democrat representatives they are supposed to be. So not all people like what I have to say, but at least I feel that as of this moment many of us are trying to make a stand and be on the right side of justice. There will always be controversy and mistrust if we don’t try to help each other, and ignoring the problem won’t help anyone. Let’s fight for the truth every day.

I love you all and hope you are continuing to learn something new every day. Dispel misinformation and pass on the News of the World like Tom Hanks to those in isolation who need to know what is happening out there. Pass on the news one positive statement at a time.

Lemons and Legacy

Posted on by
Reply

It doesn’t seem like these two things are related, but hear me out. I went to lunch and afterwards went to swim in the pool. I was thinking about my baking and how I was going to send my kiddo some of the chai shortbread. And then I thought, “Ooh, the lemon shortbread is also good and I should bake those, too!” Which of course led me to, “I’ve gotta put that on the grocery list.” So, here I am making that mental list. Then, I sang our choir songs for a while, (I water walk/swim for an hour), and then my thoughts moved on to: “Why do we think lemons are a metaphor for bad things?” (This is my brain exercise and I have been turning into Sheldon from Big Bang Theory for years!)

The word lemon brings thoughts of something being poor, bad, or broken, or giving an unsatisfactory answer. Lemon symbolizes something that looks sweet but is bitter to the taste so that could mean negativity, disappointment, betrayal, or a bad or bitter experience. Finally lemon can be a metaphor for a defective product, for example a car that looks good on the outside but has significant flaws or problems underneath.

Next, I started thinking about the news (Pod Save America hosts were on Colbert last night) and thus my thoughts went a little downhill from there.

Over these last few days, the news has been somewhat abysmal, yet there are some highlights that I have been contemplating about, such as the loss of two great men in my lifetime, one more recent than the other – Martin Luther King and President Jimmy Carter. They left a legacy that will be hard for anyone to follow.

Martin Luther King Jr.’s greatest achievements include leading the civil rights movement, organizing nonviolent protests, and delivering his famous I Have a Dream speech at the march on Washington in 1963. The speech called for an end to segregation and racism in the United States.
-He was a leader of the modern American Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s, organizing and leading marches and boycotts.
-He was a catalyst for the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
-He organized nonviolent protests, advocating for nonviolent methods.
-King led the Montgomery Bus Boycott, a nonviolent protest that lasted over a year.
-He refused to allow violence, prison, or the threat of death to sway his goals. 
-In 1964, King became the youngest person to win the Nobel Peace Prize.

I was young when the civil rights riots took place, but growing up in the south you were exposed to that hatred and fear so it was absorbed into your very bones. I believed in Dr. King’s fight and contemplated how I might make a difference in the future. The injustices that occurred back then cannot be undone, and yet some of us learned that if we kept fighting, one neighborhood at a time, we could help others who didn’t look like us get the justice they deserved. Some of us still have hate in our hearts, but I will continue to strive to overcome that hate in others every day that I am on this earth. I commit small acts of kindness every day and that’s what I can do right now. I believe in Martin Luther King’s legacy. His message and model have reminded us over the years how to combat inequality today. 

Jimmy Carter might not have been the greatest president, but he made great strides. Here are some of the facts about him:
-As president, Carter pardoned all Vietnam draft evaders and negotiated several major foreign policy agreements, including the Camp David Accords, the Panama Canal Treaties, and the second round of Strategic Arms Limitation Talks, and he established diplomatic relations with China. He also confronted stagflation.
-As president, he set out to increase human and social services. He created the Department of Education, bolstered the Social Security system, and appointed record numbers of women, blacks, and Hispanics to Government jobs. In foreign affairs, Carter set his own style.
-After his presidency, President Carter emerged as a champion of human rights and worked for several charitable causes. He and his wife Rosalynn traveled as freelance ambassadors all over the world to help others. In 1982, he established the Carter Center to promote and expand human rights, which earned him a Nobel Peace Prize in 2002. He traveled extensively to conduct peace negotiations, monitor elections and further the eradication of infectious diseases. Their dedication to eradicating Guinea worm disease (dracunculiasis) was exemplary. Under his championship cases dropped from 3.5 million in the mid-1980s to just eleven cases so far in 2024.
-Additionally, Carter worked with Habitat for Humanity International, an organization that works worldwide to provide housing for underprivileged people. Through such projects, Carter has maintained a high profile; he was often seen on television, wielding a hammer, and helping with Habitat home construction or providing his opinions on the issues of the day.

I grew up in Georgia and remembered visiting his hometown when I was young. I never met him, but people loved him. I campaigned and voted for him when I was in college and was so proud people listened to me and also voted for him. His legacy inspired me to give to needy causes such as Habitat for Humanity, and volunteer and work on various local projects over the years.

So when we Lemons need to change our image (and thoughts, and actions…), we need to make lemonade and create our own legacy. Life may give you lemons every day, but you can make your own lemonade (or lemon melt-away shortbread cookies!) and find your way to overcome the challenges presented to you and keep a positive attitude no matter what happens. Do something great every day. Forgive and be happy with the accomplishments you’ve made in your lifetime so far. Achieve your lifelong dream no matter how old you are and forget about the naysayers and crazies for a little while because no one that I know of can predict my future. I love you all and send you warm wishes!