News and thoughts for the week ahead

TAT readers,

Well, I haven’t written since the middle of last week and this week, I’m mostly playing with my son, his delightful wife and their six and newly eight-year old children. What a joy. I fall asleep nightly with the biggest of smiles on my face and an even larger one in my heart. My offerings this week, will be brief at best, if at all. In short, I’m spoiling myself with children and grandchildren.

Still, as they are in bed fairly early in order to be up early, along with their parents, I will spend a few minutes tonight offering a thought or two on the global dumpster-fire, most of us global citizens are currently experiencing. The acute tragedy is that so much of our dangerously volatile, global is preventable. The past couple of decades of a world-wide wave of far-right fascists, dictators, autocrats and despots, has laid painfully bare a lack of realization and willingness in the masses, to confront evil when it presents itself. Henry David Thoreau said it best in his iconic quote, “men lead lives of quiet desperation.” The “quiet desperation” of these men, endangers us all.

Now, a little discussion on a couple of topics running around in my head.

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A couple of paragraphs on the ongoing GOP coup and the quiet apathy of voters in the middle.

Not to understate the depth of depravity and threat to our future, these thugs wield against our fellow citizens, global and national, we have our backs to the wall regarding whether or not, global democracy remains on hospice. Here at home in the US, the right and the silent, apathetic “middle,” are the proverbial “cement overshoes” on the body of our democracy. The fire in those resisting the ongoing Trump/ Republican coup, so far has not ignited in that apathetic, afraid to speak out and disinterested middle of America. In many ways, they are murdering our republic.

Roughly speaking, the three primary groups of voters are divided into thirds. They are 1. the left + former Republicans, moderates and a variety of other lesser groups which I will simply call resisters, 2. the right (now exclusively the far-right) and last but not least, 3. that middle group described above. Without cooperation and a unified platform between the middle and resisters, the far-right will continue to dismantle our constitutional republic. To be brutally blunt, anyone making this effort about being a democrat or left, will drag down the entire effort. Please, tell the progressive wing of the Democratic Party, this cold, hard truth! The stakes couldn’t be any higher.

We’re in a knife fight for our republic and normal political thinking is now irrelevant. If I were running our side of this knife fight, I’d first focus as much attention on congressional district offices. All Republican congressmen and even senators are under intense pressure, and there are any number of cracks now appearing in their solidarity. They are terrified of the Midterms, if we get that far. Even here in insanely far-right Texas, people are furious with the cowardice and subservience of the GOP to their king. Here in TX, we just call them “bootlickers.”

I would also recommend someone digitally manage, linking the thousands of private groups and movements around the country in a manner in which real planning, events, news, (not propaganda) could be disseminated to them. A team of course would be required to vet reporting first. Statements from resistance leaders could also be vetted and disseminated. This is a grassroots effort to fill the vacuum left by a DNC, that seems to have gone missing. At least this way, there would be access to solid information. Truth is enough this election. The entire right, dines daily on propaganda so they will pay no attention anyway. Besides, telling the truth in narrative form, ensures that we don’t run the risk, of losing the trust of our resisters. Trust matters. Just look at what happened to the GOP when they significantly their base’s trust, due to their Epstein files circus act.

Last but quite far from least, we must reach out to the middle and make them understand that we are quite literally looking at the end of American democracy, and the pain will be real for all of us. They must get off the couch, out from behind their shyness and pitch in. We are far past the point of not taking sides or remaining indifferent. There is also no more to be gained by talking with the opposition. If they are still voting GOP now, they are the rough equivalent of a fully radicalized extremist. In other words, they are too far gone.

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The Charlie Kirk circus continues

The following words are very personal for me. They also may ring true to you as well, and you’re welcome to them or any form of them. Our friends and family, are selling us out by supporting the Republican Party, which fully supports the administration, that is imposing immense suffering and financial injury to millions of Americans.

I’m saturated with disgust for my fellow Americans pathetically weeping, wailing and their gnashing of teeth over Charlie Kirk. Kirk, was a man that spewed hatred, racism, antisemitism, misogyny and insurrection. How anyone claims to be a good citizen or Christian by following Kirk, is far beyond my comprehension. I’m not spitting on his grave, so-to-speak, I’m simply telling the cold, hard truth, easily acquired, via simple Google searches.

Do I wish him dead… no. Do I condone any political violence… no. Do I respect any of Kirk’s followers, not one damn bit. That it cost US taxpayers a small fortune to subsidize much of the Kirk worship, is not only immoral and un-American, but represents a complete moral breakdown, to our allies and enemies overseas. No one respects the US these days. I know this from frequently chatting with former colleagues overseas with our allied nations.

A quick note about Kirk’s confessed murderer. I’m still not sold on any left/ right issue regarding motive. There is so much that we still don’t know. What we do know is that if there was any real alleged, “left-wing” biased involved, we would never hear the end of it from the White House, Congress or their delusional base. Their relative silence, is as they say, “deafening.”

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Kimmel and the demise of the First Amendment

No one should be surprised at any of this censorship and everyone should be furious, regarding the obvious violation of the First Amendment rights of Kimmel, his writers and their bosses. Nexstar and Disney should be ashamed of themselves and so far as I can find a connection, I won’t be patronizing Mickey Mouse anything for the foreseeable future. Also don’t be surprised when I say that we are rapidly approaching a justice system where no one is “equal before the law.” Our press is largely spineless in reporting on the administration, our right to assemble threatened and Christian Nationalism permeates the halls of all government agencies. Yes, it’s fair to say that our beloved First Amendment, is now for show only. The only question still unanswered is, “what are we going to do about it?”

The only way that we can recover and hold our constitutional rights, is to fight encroachment at every step. If we are told to not assemble, we must assemble and in overwhelming numbers. The same applies to our free speech and separation of church and state rights, proudly ensconced in that first amendment to our constitution, the first in our Bill of Rights. In short, we must insist on still behaving as Americans, not a Russian serf.

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Well my friends, this was just a few short notes, but it felt good to pound these keys for a bit this evening. Tomorrow, a bit more cherished, “grandpa time.” I’m savoring every minute. When I look into those precious young faces, full of excitement, curiosity and a zest for life, I am even more determined to return our nation to its founding principles. I want everyone’s children and grandchildren to have the same opportunity I had growing up in a very different America. I refuse to stand by silently, watching anyone attempting to steal their futures.

We can guarantee that future, but we will all have to work together, not as Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians or any other system of beliefs. The only way that any of us get out of this intact, is to work as one, based exclusively on those same inalienable rights, Jefferson spoke so eloquently of in our Declaration of Independence.

I’ll try to be back as time avails itself later in the week. In the meantime, I wish everyone strength, determination and the courage it will require, to see this through.

Onward

Publius Redux