This will be a bit of a quickie today as I’m battling a head cold, and between that and the medicine I’m taking for it and my regular medicine I’m not physically or mentally up to par. And gosh knows I wasn’t exactly overflowing with physical or mental prowess to begin with.
So my message today is pretty simple. We mustn’t lose hope, and we must not let evil, selfish people win because we aren’t willing to work as hard to build a better world as they are to tear it down. That’s it.
The assault on our values, our families, and on our very survival is relentless. It wears one down, and it can seem at times that our cause is hopeless. It is very easy to decide that success is impossible and that the struggle is just too exhausting. After all, that is the message that is continually broadcast at us. Why keep fighting a losing battle? Why not accept the reality that the forces arrayed against us are invincible and overwhelming?
I believe that constant message is part of a deliberate strategy. The proponents of the politics of hate and of an economic system that inevitably results in medieval levels of income inequality know that they cannot prevail against a motivated, confident majority. So they create an information environment designed to make us give up, and present us with a cornucopia of cheap entertainment and the promise of material goods that we are told can all be ours if we just relax, accept that despair is the only logical response to what’s happening, and rest our tired minds and bodies in front of the TV and let them do whatever they’re going to do. Why, they say, keep banging you head against the wall when there’s a new season of Dancing With The Stars, when there’s all the thrilling action of your favorite sport, and there’s always a sale on at the mall or on Amazon?
That’s the message we are subjected to. Those who oppose what America stands for aggressively push it, with the assistance of those, ostensibly on our side, who have already accepted it and want us to join them in their surrender.
But we believe in something greater than our own personal comfort, and we believe in the value of hard work for a good cause. We know if we take the more difficult path, foregoing some of the comforts of striving for flashy new stuff or of losing ourselves in the nepenthe offered nightly on a 55” TV with surround sound, that we can overcome.
Two days ago I found a diary here at DKos which presented a powerful message of not giving in to despair. It was little more than quotation from a Facebook post by Dan Rather, but it didn’t need to be much more. Listen:
They are counting on despair. That's how they win.
Those who seek to undermine our democracy, to normalize corruption and hate and division... They are counting on despair.
Those who say our votes don't matter, that facts don't matter, that the truth doesn't matter... They are counting on despair.
Those who say there are "real Americans," that we need to go back to a mythic past, that we should close ourselves to the world... They are counting on despair.
Those who would despoil our environment and undermine science... They are counting on despair.
Those who would gaslight, lie, and revel in propaganda... They are counting on despair.
Those who look the other way, make excuses, and normalize autocracy... They are counting on despair.
There is a tendency to feel the despair well up from within, and not recognize it as a weapon being wielded with precision and purpose from without. They are counting on despair.
Now, look at your children or grandchildren, at your friends and family. If all you have is yourself, look in the mirror—you deserve a better world, too. Then read this:
The greatest leaders in our history knew that despair is toxic to progress. Washington at Valley Forge. Lincoln at Gettysburg. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Birmingham. But more than the famous names are the countless women and men who have fought back against despair in the service of hope, and progress. I have seen it in foxholes, on picket lines, in classrooms, and in midst of natural disasters. I have seen it in the marches, movements, and moments where people rose up and said our world can be better, and we will do the hard work to make it so.
Despair these days is an understandable feeling. Our world seems in many ways upside down. To fight against the odds, against the powerful, against the morally bankrupt, is exhausting. But just remember, they are counting on despair. Will you let them have it?
Now, on to today’s good news. Because when people do the hard work of fighting for good, good things happen. You can get it if you really want it…
trump’s impeachment “acquittal” does not impress texas voters
Despite the delusional boasting of Trump and his followers, the phony Senate impeachment scam has had no positive effect on his standing with voters in one of the most important states in November’s election, according to a University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll.
Only 39% liked the way President Donald Trump handled impeachment, and 38% approved of congressional Republicans’ work. Only 37% approved of the way Democrats in Congress handled the process.
Just who liked what depends largely on party. Among Republicans, 75% approved of Trump’s handling of the impeachment proceedings, and another 12% had neutral opinions. Only 11% of Republicans expressed disapproval. But only 6% of Democrats approved of his work, while 83% disapproved.
The disapproval of Democrats’ handling of things might look discouraging, but it doesn’t necessarily means that 2/3 think Trump shouldn’t have been impeached. I don’t approve of the way Democrats handled impeachment, either. But look at the fact that a larger part of the GOP disapprove of Trump’s actions than Democrats approve of them. And look at this:
Remember, this is in Texas. And so is this:
So if Trump’s approval is under water and Cornyn looks to have a tough re-election fight in Texas, one has to wonder how some of the pundits are finding the chutzpah to claim the impeachment somehow hurt Democrats’ election chances.
And speaking of the Texas Senate race:
texas democratic senate candidates agree—it’s time to legalize marijuana
Austin’s TV station KVUE hosted a debate Tuesday between the Democrats vying to take on John Cornyn in November. There was one issue all the candidates agreed on—it’s time for Texas to join most of the rest of the country and legalize marijuana.
The unwieldy field of Democratic Senate candidates saw mostly eye to eye on legalizing marijuana at a televised debate Tuesday, drawing attention to an issue on which they may be a bit closer to the center of gravity of public opinion in Texas than is U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, the man they are hoping to unseat.
The University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll last February found that 20% of Texans felt that marijuana should never be legal, and 26% felt it should only be legal for medical purposes. But 32% said the possession of small amounts of marijuana should be legal and 22% said that possession of any amount of marijuana should be legal.
Cornyn, who as chairman of the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control, wields power on the issue, has been skeptical about the seemingly inexorable movement toward normalizing marijuana use.
So while John Cornyn is till worried about reefer madness, Texas Democrats agree with Texans.
So what’s happening in some of the other states? Well…
Looks like the impeachment vote hasn’t helped Collins, either. I wonder if she’s concerned?
If you want to help make Susan Collins concerned, maybe even disturbed, think about kicking down some cash if you can afford it.
mcsally trailing in arizona senate race
That impeachment vote keeps right on not helping Republicans. McSally is down by 6.
Q. If the election for United States Senate were held today, would you vote for [Rotate] Republican Martha McSally or Democrat Mark Kelly?
39.3% Martha McSally
46.0% Mark Kelly
2.5% Some other candidate
12.2% Don’t know, Refused
Meanwhile, North Carolina’s voter ID law has been but on hold at least temporarily, and Florida’s attempt to go around voters’ intent to restore voting rights to felons has been slapped down by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals.
There’s so much more good news out there, but my Nyquil’s starting to kick in and I figure I better cut this short before I start just posting fractal videos and Brian Eno music. But the comment section always has some great additions, and I know that today won’t disappoint.
(And, please, this is the Good News Roundup. The fact that Trump or a Republican did something terrible is neither good nor news, so please don’ comment with links or tweets to that effect.)
I’ll close today with some sounds to get you up and moving, and with a reminder that if today’s small collection of good news wasn’t enough—go out and make some of your own.