Democracy

With All Due Respect

With all

due respect,

Sir,

I suspect 

it’s impossible

to accept

the possibility

of losing

our democracy

because of 

a bad night.

You would

be right,

Sir,

if what did

occur

was merely

an hour,

but our

attempts

to rectify

can not

justify

what seems

like a weakened

state.

The spate

of outcry

grows by

the day,

Sir,

as your stiffened

spine

looks less

fine

than arthritic.

Those who

play critic

with your 

performance

were surprised

not by

the other guy’s

lies 

or word 

salad,

but by your

eyes

looking lost,

and muffled

speech

with its

cost

too great

to proceed.

Mistakes happen.

That’s not

the problem.

Your presidency

has been

legislatively

powerful.

Your passion

and compassion

are the aspiration

for this nation,

and you saved

us from Trump

and Covid.

You are a super

hero

but not super

human,

Sir,

and we respect

you 

and your

legacy.

As you have

fought

and taught

us,

reliance

on defiance

has brought

us

to a dangerous

precipice,

now on

this side.

Your pride

won’t win

and we can’t

spin

this 

any more.

The American

people

deserve

respect,

and I suspect

you detect

what they

reflect:

We need

amazing

grace;

for you 

to

step aside

in this race

and decide

someone

else 

should take 

your place

or release

your delegates

and open

the convention,

however

unconventional

this may be.

It’s where

we are,

Sir,

at this moment.

It would be

most constructive

and instructive, 

and certainly 

most brave.

You could

save

your legacy

with our 

democracy

in this emergency,

with All

due respect.

Patriot Acts

“I know how

to tell

the truth,”

declared

the POTUS

the day after

the rest of us

saw 

he couldn’t claw

his way out

of a debate

with a liar

lying

about 

everything.

Telling 

the truth

for the uncouth

MAGA man

is seen 

in the ways

he conveys

fears and aches.

The stakes

being grilled

have filled

our capacity

on this anniversary

of America.

Patriotism

on display

today,

waiving in 

red, white,

and blue,

hate and fear

is still clear

while professing

love

for America

above everything

except embryos.

I chose

anniversary

instead of birthday

because a union

was created

and debated

since 1776.

America

is not

biological;

it’s philosophical

and ideological, 

though sometimes

with 

the logical part

missing.

We are all

patriots today,

celebrating

this anniversary

of possibility

for humanity

to live decently

in democracy,

once 

associated

with liberty

and justice

for all.

Truth

has been

spinning

for winning

elections.

But reflections

of  acts

of patriotism

reveal

less cynicism

and criticism

than truism,

until the era

of MAGA.

Now,

truth telling

is telling.

Claiming

to be

a patriot

with mendacity

and audacity

to blatantly

lie

is the truth

this 

4th of July

of one party

claiming

the future.

The truth

is grim,

but patriotism

for US

has meant 

a system

dependent

upon

truth

and accountability.

A patriot

acts

for 

a more

perfect union,

not for

a savior

or

not with 

a diety

but with

democracy,

where 

the truth

is not easy

to accept.

Hearing Aids

It’s hard

to regard

calls

to step 

down

as 

the sound

of success.

But two 

things

can be true

at the same

time. 

Not everything

must 

rhyme.

Biden can be

his legacy

now,

taking 

a bow,

with a vow

to make

us all

better.

Fearing

a worse

defeat

that

would

seem like

a complete

disaster,

I understand

the reticence.

I imagine

the pain

and belief

that Biden’s

relief

is the best

shot

we’ve got

going forward.

He’s always

bounced

forward

but now

must

fall back,

knowing

he’s slowing

down

along

the way

down.

How cruel

the circumstance

of his

last chance

that may

be ours.

I have to

think

his aids

are hearing

what 

is happening

here.

It is clear

he is losing

a losing

battle,

and winning

the election

won’t

be the correction

for the ravages

of aging.

It’s torturous

to witness

declining

fitness

and not

having

access

to more.

I understand 

the seriousness

of the iffiness

of Harris

at the top

the ticket.

Fear of losing

is confusing

issues:

winning

and delivering

for the future.

Biden 

is not

winning

now,

and the 

trajectory

is not

good.

Would

that his

aids

are listening

and that

he can hear

that we

see

his legacy

cemented 

gracefully,

which

is utterly

anti

Trump.

Before 

the 4th,

the irony

of the immunity

of the presidency

decision

did not escape

me. 

Washington

stepped down

when he could

have remained

in office.

He distinguished

the presidency

from a monarchy.

For different 

reasons

but still

guided

by pride,

if Biden

steps

aside,

it will

be 

for the

better. 

Be who

we say

we are.

After the Mourning After

The mourning

after

the disaster

from

the Supreme

Court’s decision

based on the 

division

between

the so-called

conservative

and liberal

justices,

is disbelief

and profound

grief

at what 

has happened

and where

we are 

headed.

Wedded

to The Constitution,

yet 

with bizarrely

cynical

interpretation,

the judicial

wing

is sanctioning

unlimited acts

perhaps

illegal

for which

a POTUS

is not 

accountable.

To the tune:

Immune.

Immune.

Immune.

From 

Delay.

Delay.

Delay,

to 

the striptease

of expertise,

including

the last

resort

to abort,

The Supreme

Court

is sort

of 

an untouchables

in this

sequel

to the no- longer

co-equal 

branch of government

term.

I fear

what we 

see

in Trump

and Biden

is actually

us:

One side

bloated,

greedy,

aging

and needy,

impulsively

and compulsively

grifting.

The other,

honest,

decent,

with legislative

skill,

understanding

and displaying

what is 

still

required

and admired

in democracy.

But aging

happens,

despite

staging

and stance,

and the way

to advance

is with

improvement.

Our aging

democracy

has hit

a new low

although

each time

it feels

like

the bottom.

Now

the Presidency

is the real

fantasy

for criminality.

The clarity

of the disparity

has never

been

easier

to see.

Eventually,

our democracy

could become

more democratic.

But that will

mean

we must 

lean in

actively

to the only

party 

for democracy

left. 

Energy Crisis

I couldn’t watch.

I wouldn’t watch.

Governance

is not 

a debate.

Yet our 

tradition 

of performance

of endurance

to provide 

assurance

is the substance

we use

to  choose

the POTUS.

By all 

mounting

accounting

in real

time

and thereafter,

I glimpsed

the sad

theater

of our absurd

election.

A weak-

voiced

Joe

seeming

slow

against

each

blow

no matter

how false

the statement,

was a statement

of fitness

to those

who witnessed

what should

never

have taken

place.

Sad 

to say

that the

job

at bay

is partially

appearance.

The grievance

guy

with

each lie

conveys

energy.

He may 

be cruel

but his

fuel

is addictive

despite

being

convicted

so far,

34 times.

We are

addicted

to energy

at all

costs.

But

thoughts

of being

slow,

embodied

by Joe,

are dreadful.

Last century’s

model

seems

on the way

out,

as autocrats

plow through.

But 

dictators

playing

orators

is also 

old

while selling

retold

as something

new—

or at least,

something

strong.

A power

fueled

by desperation

supported

by

exasperation,

cannot

trump

our democracy.

This is crazy.

Alternative

energy

seems necessary

now

more than

ever,

while

voters

still

have power.

Heat Wave

Desantis

cut

all grants

for arts

in Florida.

This is not

merely

the display

of Tom Delay

opposing

a nude

sculpture.

This is culture

war 

gone

nuclear.

Aside

from 

refuge

from the deluge

of the monstrosity

of absurd 

political

verbosity,

the arts

engage 

with less savage

rage

and elevate

hearts

and minds.

Thinking

critically

is critically

necessary,

and increasingly

lacking

in society.

Not merely

criticizing

the opposing

position,

but juxtaposing

division

for consideration

is the job

of the thoughtful

democratic

citizen.

Of course

arts 

are 

not exclusive

to democratic,

inclusive

societies.

All cultures

create

culturally 

great

works,

that work

to showcase

impressions,

expressions,

confessions,

obsessions

beyond

politics

or religion,

or economics

or any statistics.

Art 

is part

of being

human,

if only

to be

appreciated.

No reason

was given

as to what

had driven

Desantis

to defund

grants

for arts

across

the great

state

of Florida.

How about 

opera

in Tampa?

Or the Miami

City

Ballet?

Or the New

Word Symphony

or every gallery

from Tallahassee 

to The Keys?

More importantly,

these sacred

places 

not

for profit

benefit

the public—

educating,

celebrating,

debating,

and creating

connections

anew.

He won’t

undo

what he 

threatens

to,

despite

his defunding

veto.

It’s abundantly

clear

he’s sincere

about 

being a

rage 

machine.

He won’t

be outdone

by anyone

except

by himself.

Should

we be 

outraged

or disengaged?

Which

would be

most effective

against

the invective

and incentive

to be incensed

by the lack

of sense

and every 

pretense

and policy

to lash

back

against

culture

and history

since 1960?

Adding fuel

and heat

to compete

for VEEP

may be

a steep

conquest,

but my best

guess

is that

this wave

won’t 

save

him.

Heat

waves

have begun

not just

in the Sunshine

State. 

The first 

debate

will ignite

the fight

that will

get overheated

as MAGA

acolytes

on the right

like to 

make waves

and heat

things up.

The boiling

point

is the point;

to foil

any opposition

even if

the position

is to defund

all arts.

Don’t let

the heated

rhetoric

and waves

of crazy

keep you

lazy.

Support

the arts.

Buy and read

banned books.

Help women

access care

as needed.

Ignore the 

debate.

Help create

access

and accountability.

It’s your responsibility

in this 

heat wave.

The Escalator

Moving down

the moving

staircase,

(in case

you have

forgotten),

The Escalator

descended

and upended

American

politics

nearly

9 years

ago.

Almost

a decade

of the charades

and parades

of The Escalator

whose descent

has meant

foment

and

torment

with consent

of a once

grand

old party,

now a party

to a criminal.

No longer

liminal

or minimal,

it’s all

so predictable,

as The Escalator,

a dictator

from 

day one,

intensifies

what he denies

and defies

with whatever

flies

in the face

of truth,

decency,

or honor.

Ascending

to power

while descending

to shower

the pathetic

with anesthetic;

the feel good

prescription

of the description

of support

that purports

to suggest

that he 

is an idea

whose time

has come:

A savior

with bad

behavior.

But he needs

complicity

for his

duplicity,

and pretending

that policy

is really

at issue

is the 

connective

tissue

of The Escalator.

The cost

is too great

to amplify

hate

and the haters

he loves

above 

almost

anything

except

escalating

lies,

fear,

and threats

as he bets

on getting

out of 

jail free,

feiging

a victim

of conspiracy.

Out of order

nearly

a decade 

in,

don’t let

The Escalator

win!

Hunter Gatherers

The Biden

hunters

now get

their turn

as they 

yearn

for retribution

for the prosecution

they claim

for their famed

MAGA leader

was in search

of a crime.

But crimes

were found,

(34!!),

around

falsifying

documents

in order

to thwart

the election.

As jury selection

for Hunter

Biden

commenced,

I sensed

a sobering.

What we

are really

confronting,

is the affronting

behavior

not of hunting

and gathering

evidence

unfounded,

but of unbounded

people

of wealth

and power

and those

who cower

to prevent

being

devoured

by 

the Former

Guy.

Most

important,

though,

is not

the hunting

game

(particularly

of fame)

but the gathering

of evidence

and its relevance

to greater issues. 

The Biden

pain

is unimaginable

yet felt

every day

by parents

who aren’t

presidents.

And the drug-

crime

intersection

deserves

reflection

as does

the application

process

to possess 

guns

in this

country.

The Biden

hunters

who investigated

Joe

know

there was no

there there.

But sadly,

his son

admittedly

had done

what those

who didn’t

get caught

often do:

he lied

when he

applied

for a gun.

Bad behavior

was always

assumed,

and now

we’re

consumed

by those

who presume

it doesn’t

matter

and 

that laws

only apply

to some.

Hunter’s

father—

President

Biden—

did not

cry,

“Sham!”

or try

to shut

down 

the trial.

The Whataboutism

prism

seeks to

deepen

the schism

and screams

of victimization.

But the reality

shows

that to merely

oppose 

and compose

fake theories,

electors,

and more

to score

points,

disjoints

and points

to a party

lacking

veracity,

morality.

or substance.

The abuse

is profuse

on  one side

as they deride

endlessly.

But watch 

which 

Hunter 

gatherers

contribute

to retribution

and which

seek a just

solution

to the real

scams

and shams

that are

damning

us.

Border Crossings

Imagine 

a climate

scientist

as president

who is

a woman

and is

Jewish.

Mexico,

you know….

the place

that sends

its worst

first

across

our border

in order

to rape

and murder

before 

taking

all 

the beautiful

jobs here

nobody

here

wants,

has elected

a she/her

who practices

science

and governance

more than

religious 

observance.

We 

have done

none

of the above.

We are

exceptional

in our

deception

of greatness

again

and again

as we profess

with success

a succession

of limited

qualities.

No question

the exception

of America

has been

our freedom,

once 

unparalleled

and profound.

But the grave

wave

of regression

in freedom’s

name

feels 

insane,

not to mention

the election

that has 

2 very old

white men

running

again

and again.

The possibility

of American

democracy

has never 

been more

clear.

And yet

Mexico’s

new president

is a precedent

we have not

yet set. 

In fact,

we are

the exception—

the odd one—

with the highest

glass ceiling.

It’s revealing.

An anti-

science,

anti-

climate change,

anti-

woman,

anti-

Semitic

sizable

demographic

is anti-

democratic

in this country

that gave

the world

democracy.

It’s crazy.

And will

ultimately

be 

an uncomfortable

chapter

of our

history;

not merely

a record

of what 

was,

but 

of what

could be

again.

America, Pure and Simple

We tell

our early

history

like the purity

of Eden,

as though we

began

in the 50s.

Our garden

was victorious,

and thus,

we were born

as us

in the glorious

nation

of Perry Mason.

The wrongly

accused

used 

the best 

defense

to reveal

the pretense

of the guilty.

Mid Century

Modern

beyond the 

aesthetic,

was the 

Cold War

ethic,

pure,

and 

simple.

The 60s revolt

was jolt

after jolt

to the preceding

calm

and conformity.

The enormity

of change

and a lost

war

tore

us apart.

The politics

of identity

was the new

purity

test,

while testing

nukes

against

or from

Soviets

remained

the most 

deadly threats.

After the fall

of the wall,

our Eden

seemed 

on the verge

of restoration

until 

the devastation

of 2001

took us on

an odyssey

of 

and against

hate

and crazy.

We have 

an affinity

for purity

despite

reality.

It’s practically

our DNA

to this day,

whether

individually

or societally.

It’s how we

see,

unless

we profess

to look

beyond

or respond

with inquiry.

It’s messy,

and unsatisfying

to have what

you don’t 

want

or like.

Evil

exists

just

as gravity

persists,

even though

we can

go to 

the moon

or across

the earth

through

the sky.

Our history

of purity

did not

make

America

great.

Like too much

Purell,

we lose

our ability

to quell

super 

contagions.

Our actual

history-

factual

and blistery-

is a longing

for purity

while

being

very messy.

Long before

the 50s

and the trials

that we’ve

endured,

we’ve been

lured

by purity

as morality.

Confronting

evil,

pure 

and simple,

is maybe

the purest

thing 

we can do.

No need

for perfection

or purity

test

to vociferously

and actively

object

to those who

detest

democracy,

diversity,

and the reality

that makes

America

great.

It’s not

a unified

reich.