action

Winter Games

Everything 

I see

lately

is curling-

in the Olympics

and in politics.

Meddling

at home

without

much medaling

in Italy

yet,

from the outset,

has been

great upset.

Booing Vance

in advance

of the games

brought me

no pride.

Inside

I cringed

at how fringed

our stature

is

on the world

stage.

The rage

against

Trump

is

justified,

as the 

slide

to authoritarianism

can not

be denied,

but mostly,

I felt sad.

And then

the great

losses

early on

by the bosses

of skating

and skiing,

felt metaphoric.

This season

of ICE,

the most

chilling

in memory,

could be

an opportunity.

But not 

yet.

Shutting down

Homeland Security

even partially,

may be

a Hail

Mary,

but it feels

like a lose-

lose.

And gutting

the EPA

and throwing

away

environmental

progress,

much less

democratic

process,

make today,

Presidents Day,

nothing more

than a day

to buy

a mattress.

If you’re feeling

powerless,

know that

you are not.

Politics,

unlike

The Olympics,

is not

a spectator

sport.

The dual

crises,

existential,

democracy

and environmental,

require your

participation.

Sure,

bring your bags

to the grocery

store,

but before 

you do,

take a few

moments

(literally, a few!!)

to take

actions:

Home
Dashboard for Democracy

Use the tools

of democracy

to save democracy

and the climate

crises.

Already crafted

emails

and petitions,

download the apps

for your signature

additions.

I get nothing

out of sharing

here

other than knowing

we are daring 

here

to do democracy

together.

It’s better 

than just watching

the screen

as we careen

off course.

And of course,

share with 

your friends

and family

and your 

networks.

Be a reason

democracy

works.

That’s

how we

win.

Toolbox

Containing.

Constraining.

Obtaining.

Boxing.

Targeting.

Marketing.

The only tool

the fool

has 

is to fuel

fear,

and buy

out

the other

guy

and buy

in

to all

out

crack up.

ICE

picks

at towns

as

crack-

downs

abound

while they

go around

hammering

down

on the innocent,

intent

to invent

probable 

cause

for arrest.

Meanwhile,

he’ll suggest

we “invest”

in 

Greenland,

with the best

minerals

for our

arsenals

and somehow

our oil

on Venezuelan

soil

is worth

the toil

to foil.

Nothing is going

according

to Hoyle.

But this guy

who’s 

“a builder”

will hammer

away

day after day

and drill

baby, drill

until

he thinks

he’s nailed it.

He’s screwing

us

bit by bit

and won’t 

quit

or admit

enough.

Indecent

and cruel

has defined

the tool,

for this

Mr. Fixit.

He alone

wants to

rule

without

adherence,

and cares

not at all

about

actual

governance.

Feeling

boxed in?

Then begin

to activate

and donate

to build

a constituency

with coherency

and fluency

in 21st century

democracy,

which 

must look

differently

than 

in name

only.

All in the Family

* This piece was written before news of Nick Reiner’s arrest. The title is even more loaded now.

Meathead

is dead.

Found inside

his home

with his wife

alongside,

so far

it seems

a double

homicide.

I nearly cried

because

of the sense-

lessness

of the mess,

not just

because 

he was 

terrifically famous.

You know

Reiner’s 

bio,

though

I thought

there’d be 

more

to come

from 

the actor, 

director,

charitable, 

political

voice

of liberal

democracy

(Democratocracy?).

Just

what happened

has yet

been determined,

but another

moment

of violence

against

innocents

should 

test our

tolerance.

This happens

each day,

to the not

so famous,

without

the same

attention.

Shame 

on us

for acting

helpless;

for not

trying

to prioritize

ways to

minimize

crimes

of violence.

Like an

estranged

family,

we

disagree

grossly,

to such 

a degree

that we

no longer

see

commonality

or humanity.

The Reiners’

political activism

was party

driven

with the intention

of improving

the lives

of each American.

They believed

in an American 

family;

that

ALL

in the family

are worthy.

Our family

needs therapy.

Our family

needs policy

that reflects

reality,

not inspired

by conspiracy

theory.

The irony

is that

MAGA country

is a horrible

Archie,

and the real

Meathead

is the POTUS

instead.

Mass Murder. Literally. Moms Demand Action

Children.

Children.

Children attending

Mass.

Murdered.

At School.

In Church

there.

Thoughts

and prayers

instead of laws

by naysayers

when kids 

were literally

shot

while praying.

Alas,

this is mass

murder,

literally

at mass.

How much

more crass

can we be?

I saw a

photo

like no

other

of a 

mother

running 

down the

street

in bare

feet

holding 

her shoes,

sprinting

toward 

the school,

with mother’s

fuel

and fear.

I tear

up just

thinking of

this image;

this extraordinary,

yet insanely

ordinary

scene.

Just back

to school.

Nothing

more cruel,

than doing

nothing

about

mass 

murder.

especially

of children.

Don’t accept

this

unconscionableness.

We can’t remain

still,

hopeless.

Momentum

takes time.

You can take action now:

https://momsdemandaction.org/

Urgent Care

Crisis centers

focus 

upon disaster

faster

than the usual

perusal

of a concerning

issue.

Discerning

misuse

or abuse

from the obtuse,

while trying

not 

to confuse,

we use tools

of expedience

for the 

triage experience;

a quick

fix,

if temporary.

Contrary

to ordinary

problems

of persistence,

when resistance

to change

allows for a range

of ways 

to cope,

the end of 

the rope

of crisis

invites us

to pivot;

to  apply

a tourniquet

to stop

the flow.

The distinction

between

an emergency

and urgency

may be

unclear.

The fear,

however,

is whether

or not

we’ve got

enough

stuff

to manage

the damage.

Just how deadly

is this?

The persistent 

quality

of urgency

insistently

demands

attention

for mitigation

of a critical

situation.

An emergency

emerges

more quickly

than urgency,

yet

both insistently

demand

intervention.

But convention

sometimes

clouds

the urge

to purge

the toxic

ways

that delays

imagined

discomfort.

With no

more room

for emergencies

or crises

imposed

upon us,

we retreat

in defeat

and claim

self preservation,

without realization

that earth’s

land, sea, 

and air

can’t self

repair

without

urgent care.

Urge your legislators:

Home

The Best You Can. Do.

For those who doubt

the efficacy

of protests

weekly,

or 

at all,

I suspect

the doubt

is about

the immediacy

of actions

despite 

distractions

and detractions,

not to mention

legal infractions,

that this 

POTUS

has thrust

upon 

us.

How many

marches

and protests

and civil

unrests,

sit-ins

and be-ins

and legal

tests,

did it take

to make 

history?

To change

the trajectory

of this presidency

seems unlikely,

but 

no response

to immorality

and illegality

ensures fragility

and less ability

to ultimately

overcome.

Find your

courage

against 

this scourge

and your

commitment

to persistence.

The resistance

needs 

your assistance.

The images

of dogs

and hoses,

throngs of 

women,

The March

on Washington,

Pride,

pink pussy hats,

and Black Lives

Matter

demonstrations,

can be 

recalled

as they were

installed 

in our 

memory banks.

It’s thanks

to those

who showed

up

and stood up

to injustice

that moved us

forward,

even when 

there’s been

backlash.

The whiplash

can feel

incapacitating.

But activating

is celebrating

your ability

to meet

humanity

and build

a just 

community

whether 

or not

it’s

weekly.

Contribute

what 

you can;

however

you can;

the best 

you can.

DO. 

Uncle Sam

Needs

YOU.

Shame Must Change Sides

This week

in between

is really seen

as a global

holiday

season.

The contrast

is vast

between 

the miraculous

and the rest

of us;

darkness

and light

and not

just

at night.

The kindness

reminds us

that our

gifts

mend

our rifts

and drifts

from basics.

The memory

of

the year

with a new one

so near

is condensed

to the election

and the fear

of  an inflection

point.

But another

story,

details

quite gory,

is still

quite worthy

of our

consideration.

In France,

was a

trial

so vile

it was almost

beyond

comprehension.

Gisele Pelicot

didn’t know

she was 

being drugged

and raped

and video taped

by her spouse

in their house

while men

he arranged,

(this is all

so deranged),

to violate

her

as he watched

dozens

of them

over dozens

of years.

It sears

the heart

and brain.

In 2024

Gisele

could restore

herself

and us

with justice.

The disregard

of humanity,

the insanity,

and the evil

lengths

to which

people

will go

for their

libido 

and ego

satisfaction

is not

the story’s

end.

With unfathomable

strength

and grace

she reminds

us 

to face

and say

what is so:

“Shame

must change

sides.”

Gisele Pelicot,

my shero.

Beyond

2024,

though

we will

have to endure,

we shall

restore,

and

it will

surely be

a rough ride.

Shame 

must change

sides!

And hope

resides

in action.