Blog 12
January 18, 2017
Not what we say, but what we do
Those of us who are parents know that our children learn from what we do, not from what we say ,especially, when there is an incongruence between what we say and do. Our President-elect is a master at saying one thing, getting reactions and then doing something at odds with what he has said. It is time for those of us concerned about our democracy to heed what Trump does, not what he says. The same is true for the Congress. Our work is to stand up and take actions against the President and the Congress when their actions challenge our democracy. No matter what we say about it, it is what we do about it that will make the difference, and I do believe we can make the difference.
Fortunately, there is a national bubbling up of action. Women’s Marches throughout the country and resist Trump actions advised by many. Recently, Rachel Maddow spoke about how the opposition to President Obama by the Tea Party started right after his election. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F56Uf9bka14 .She believes that there may be a movement growing in the U.S., which could have as much success blocking Donald Trump as the Tea Party had blocking Obama. The group she spoke about is Indivisible which began online as a guide on how to resist Donald Trump and is growing into a movement (almost 3000 groups formed nationwide so far). https://www.indivisibleguide.com/web. Two nights ago, I was on a conference call with over fifty people from California all organizing Indivisible groups. The great thing about this movement is that it is from the ground up started by volunteers and organized by more volunteers. Indivisible provides a guide of how to get started and then how to continue to work as an activist group, locally, at the state level and nationally. Just this week, I got information that led me to call my senator Kamala Harris and Representative Nancy Pelosi who have not yet stated that they will or will not attend the inauguration. I encouraged them to stay home. I plan to call Senator Dianne Feinstein today.
It is easy to feel overwhelmed, powerless and confused about what is happening and what to do. I often wake up in the night, fearful, with catastrophic thoughts. Speaking with one another, clarifying what we think is happening and then deciding what we will do together is our way of taking care of ourselves, our families, our communities and our country. In solidarity.
Wise Words
The Lord of Misrule
David Brooks NY Times JAN. 17, 2017
Excerpt
…we’ve crowned a fool king. Donald Trump exists on two levels: the presidential level and the fool level. On one level he makes personnel and other decisions. On the other he tweets. (I honestly don’t know which level is more important to him.)
His tweets are classic fool behavior. They are raw, ridiculous and frequently self-destructive. He takes on an icon of the official culture and he throws mud at it.The point is not the message of the tweet. It’s to symbolically upend hierarchy, to be oppositional.The assault on Representative John Lewis was classic. He picked one of the most officially admired people in the country and he leveled the most ridiculous possible charge (all talk and no action). It was a tweet devilishly well crafted to create the maximum official uproar. Anybody who writes for a living knows how to manipulate an outraged response, and Trump is a fool puppet master. The sad part is that so many people treat Trump’s tweets as if they are arguments when in fact they are carnival. With their conniption fits, Trump’s responders feed into the dynamic he needs. They contribute to carnival culture.
The first problem with today’s carnival culture is that there’s an ocean of sadism lurking just below the surface. The second is that it’s not real. It doesn’t really address the inequalities that give rise to it. It’s just combative display.
This is a resolution I’m probably going to break, but I resolve to write about Trump only on the presidential level, not on the carnival level. I’m going to try to respond only to what he does, not what he says or tweets. I really wish some of my
media confreres would do the same.
Received from Sarah Patrick on Facebook
Excerpt
…Education is the crucial groundwork for social transformation, but as shown by leaders such as Malcolm X, Gandhi and Martin Luther King, spiritual and introspective practices are what empower us to do the work,
and hold it all together. Spirituality offers curiosity and freedom of the self. It breaks the shackles of oppression and allows us to see and engage with the world more clearly.
Introspection is necessary in order to maintain the commitment and the thrust to keep wanting to do this work, you have to have some spirituality. There are bad days where without it you will turn somewhere else completely. Spirituality allows you to be objective—to see the whole picture.” Sustained peace for future generation will require our culture to collectively shift towards inner peace, compassion and personal resilience. Tying together education and spirituality is the network that Martin Luther King
referred to as the beloved community—a crucial network of love and compassion between all living beings, that without, no one will succeed. Together as beloved community we have the ability to uproot
the systemic oppression and isolation to reclaim our own personal power and follow the great arc of justice. Together we can challenge ourselves to explore diverse perspectives and respect all life with love,
dignity and respect. For after all, the pursuit of peace means the gentle treatment of all people.
…Feel happy, think positive, embrace others, and try to learn from people who seemingly have a lot of knowledge. But don’t ever be shy or afraid to ask a question if you have something that concerns you, or you don’t fully
understand. Because it is those steps we take when we are receiving information that if we don’t fully grasp an analysis of what it is, we begin crippling ourselves as we go forward to the next step, because we
are translating without fully understanding the previous one.” Through this conversation I learned that it is our responsibility to educate each other and ourselves. Not with books and schools, but with deep human connection and conversation. We must learn to be critical, compassionate and open to change. We must be grounded in reality, and inspired by the intangible. We must question the way things are, and trust that a peaceful future is possible.
Action
National Indivisible Action Calendar -Calls for actions
Indivisible Group Forming -Berkeley -Sunday January 22nd 10:30-noon.. Email ellen.pulleyblank.coffey@gmail.com if you are interested.
Women’s March Oakland
From Monica McCormick on Facebook:
Political action for today. Reposted from a friend...For those worried about ACA coverage for themselves and their families:
After hearing about the midnight repeal of the pre-existing conditions clause, I called Senator Warren's office. The woman I spoke to said they are being flooded with calls, as are the offices of Speakers Ryan and McConnell.
Senator Warren's staff member told me what would help the most would be to call the five Republican senators who have broken away from the GOP to demand a slow down of the repeal. Tell them how much you appreciate their efforts to stop the train wreck and share your story.
Cut and pasted-feel free to share.
IMPORTANT: Please copy and paste. Please DO NOT just share. If you just hit "share" others will not be able to see your post (aside from mutual friends).
They are:
Senator Bob Corker - (202) 224-3344 - represents Tennessee
Senator Lisa Murkowski - (202) 224-6665 - represents Alaska
Senator Rob Portman - (202) 224-3353 - represents OHIO
Senator Susan Collins - (202) 224-2523 - represents Maine
Senator Bill Cassidy - (202) 224-5824 - represents Louisana
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