Thank you so much for this – an inspiring call to action. Something that got me through the election and its on-going aftermath is a piece I read in ‘Tablet’ by Liel Leibovitz. I’m doing my best to follow his admonishments in light of the moral crisis we now find ourselves in.
1. Treat every poisoned word as a promise. Don’t write it off as propaganda, or explain it away as just an empty proclamation meant simply to pave the path to power. Take the haters at their word, and assume the worst is imminent.
2. Treat people like adults, which means respecting them enough to demand that they understand the consequences of their actions. Ultimately, voters are all adults, and all have made their choices, and it is now we who must brace for impact.
3. Refuse to accept what’s going on as the new normal. Not now, not ever. When an inexperienced, thin-skinned demagogue rides into office by explaining away immensely complex problems while arguing that our national glory demands we strip millions of their dignity or their rights, our only duty is to resist by whatever means permitted us by law. The only thing that matters now is the simple moral truth: This isn’t right. As long as we never forget that, we can never lose.
I am still so sad that there are so many who truly believe and feel such hateful things. So many who would harm others for no reason other than that They are not Them. It baffles me. The lack of love. The lack of compassion and empathy.
I’ve been trying to find my way into a succinct piece that sums up my feedback for those in office. I plan to use it as my morning call to those in office each day on speaker phone during my commute.
If you have found any such simple rhetoric, I would be grateful for a link or a paste here. I feel if I were to call without a script I would merely rant in circles each day.
plumdirt 
Thank you so much for this – an inspiring call to action. Something that got me through the election and its on-going aftermath is a piece I read in ‘Tablet’ by Liel Leibovitz. I’m doing my best to follow his admonishments in light of the moral crisis we now find ourselves in.
1. Treat every poisoned word as a promise. Don’t write it off as propaganda, or explain it away as just an empty proclamation meant simply to pave the path to power. Take the haters at their word, and assume the worst is imminent.
2. Treat people like adults, which means respecting them enough to demand that they understand the consequences of their actions. Ultimately, voters are all adults, and all have made their choices, and it is now we who must brace for impact.
3. Refuse to accept what’s going on as the new normal. Not now, not ever. When an inexperienced, thin-skinned demagogue rides into office by explaining away immensely complex problems while arguing that our national glory demands we strip millions of their dignity or their rights, our only duty is to resist by whatever means permitted us by law. The only thing that matters now is the simple moral truth: This isn’t right. As long as we never forget that, we can never lose.
I am still so sad that there are so many who truly believe and feel such hateful things. So many who would harm others for no reason other than that They are not Them. It baffles me. The lack of love. The lack of compassion and empathy.
I’ve been trying to find my way into a succinct piece that sums up my feedback for those in office. I plan to use it as my morning call to those in office each day on speaker phone during my commute.
If you have found any such simple rhetoric, I would be grateful for a link or a paste here. I feel if I were to call without a script I would merely rant in circles each day.
I wish I had something to offer; I’ll keep a lookout. It’s all the more important since we’re living in the time of ‘alternative facts.’
I could not believe that when I heard it. My jaw literally went slack.