Resist
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Everyone who normalizes Mr. Trump now, or has in the past, will have to answer to future generations for their acquiescence, silence, or sophistry—if, indeed, not outright cowardice.
—Dan Rather
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Dan Rather's Post
March 6, 2017
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At some points words fail, or they are starting to fail me. We have an Administration in freefall. Have we passed through the circle of chaos? Are we at the circle of havoc?
The real Donald Trump has stood up, once again. Let no one ever be fooled. Let there be no doubt. The man who sends out a twitter tirade accusing a former President of crimes for which he provides no evidence, the man who doubles down when everyone with any sense pushes back, that man is our Commander in Chief. Every one who normalizes Mr. Trump now, or has in the past, will have to answer to future generations for their acquiescence, silence or sophistry—if, indeed, not outright cowardice.
How hollow do all those pundit plaudits (including from many progressives) sound now for an average and disingenuous speech of someone else's words read from a teleprompter to Congress and the nation a week ago? A "presidential" Trump is a punchline to a joke no one wants to have told. Conspiracy theories are corrosive in society at large. When they dictate national policy, they can be lethal.
This is a man who challenged the citizenship of President Obama, with lies, innuendo, and no evidence. This is a man who claimed widespread voter fraud with lies, innuendo, and no evidence. This is a man who has taken a rhetorical blowtorch to our Constitutional principles with lies, innuendo, and no evidence. Those who rose in Congress to applaud his turns of phrase bear responsibility. Those who cynically use his presidency to push forward unpopular giveaways to the rich and well connected bear responsibility. Those in the press who meet insults with explanations bear responsibility.
Even the most grounded of presidents must fight to keep themselves moored to the real world. The Oval Office can be a bubble. Power attracts sycophants and cynics. But I have never seen anything like this. The sheer level of paranoia that is radiating out of the White House is untenable to the workings of a republic. I have a real question if President Trump actually believes what he is saying. Even Richard Nixon, the most paranoid president to date, ruled for years with a relatively calm hand. This Administration has been an off kilter whirlwind since the inauguration, and news reports suggest that seething anger from Mr. Trump is only getting worse. There is a growing consensus that the President may be "unhinged." It's a serious allegation, but even if it is not the case, Mr. Trump only has himself to blame.
To call a drama Shakespearean or operatic is usually an overreach. But I imagine artists of the future, and even the present, will find ample inspiration in our moment in history. Doesn't Steve Bannon strike you as an Iago whispering in the ear of an Othello-like Trump, consumed by jealousy and paranoia?
As the questions mount around Russia, as the circles of defense begin to falter, the determination to create diversions will escalate. But if the President hoped he could create a distraction, I think he misjudged the will of the American people. We have woken. We are paying attention. And we love our country too much to let it falter without a fight.
March 23, 2025
Verena Compton
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💚🌱🙏💙
H O P I :
Hopi Indian Leader White Eagle commented on the situation we are in.
I saw this this morning and knew in my heart and soul to share it!
❤️
“This moment that mankind is experiencing now can be seen as either a door or a hole.
The decision to fall into the hole or go through the door is yours.
If you absorb negative information 24 hours a day, you’re constantly nervous, and pessimistic, then you will fall into this hole”.
But if you take the opportunity to look at yourself,
use the time to rethink life and death,
to care for yourself and others, you are walking through the portal.
Keep your home, keep your body safe.
Connect with your spiritual home.
When you take care of yourself, you take care of everyone else.
Don't underestimate the spiritual dimension of this crisis.
Take the perspective of an eagle that sees everything from above with a broader perspective.
There is a social issue in this crisis but also a spiritual issue.
They both go hand in hand.
Without the social dimension we fall into bigotry.
Without the spiritual dimension, we perish in pessimism and meaninglessness.
You’re ready to pass this crisis. Pack your toolbox and use all the tools at your disposal.
Learn resistance from the example of the Indian and African people: We are and still are being threatened, to be extinct.
But we never stopped singing, dancing, building bonfires and having joy.
Don't feel guilty for feeling happy in these difficult times. It doesn't help at all to be sad or angry.
Resistance is resistance through joy!
You have every right to be strong and positive.
And there's no other way to do this than by adopting a beautiful, cheerful and empathetic attitude.
This has nothing to do with alienation (ignorance of the world)
- It's a resistance strategy.
When we enter the door, we are given a new worldview because we have faced our fears and overcome adversity.
That's all you can do now:
- Seek solace in the storm
- Keep calm, pray daily
- Make it a habit to meet the Holy everywhere, everyday.
Show resistance through art, joy, trust and love.”
~Hopi Indian Chief White Eagle