You captured what I am feeling exactly and I will NOT be told to be calm. I don’t fucking feel anything close to calm. My husband is on the southern border for a temporary duty assignment and I’m waiting for some Texas national guardsman to pull the trigger, kill a few Mexican officers or innocent bystanders so the orange Nazi can declare war on Mexico when they return fire. This is another version of the tinderbox just waiting for some idiot to light the match. With Abbott sucking up to Heir Orange, nothing is off the table. My heart aches for all the innocents who have done nothing wrong but want a better, safe life for their families. I’m pissed but I’m also scared.
We lived on the border thru family separation and I never want to experience that kind of gut wrenching pain again. We left Texas because of that and the direction we saw the state going in. Hubby has a big heart and is trying to keep folks calm. I just want him home safely, soon and in one piece.
MomCavanagh, I share your feelings..... sending up prayers for your husband's safety and safe return 🙏. It's a horrifying thing we're going through now. 😢
I am exhausted from being told to calm down and stop overreacting as we've been hearing since trump was a joke candidate in 2015. I refuse to live in outrage now because that poison did bad things to my body the first go round, so I am now steadfast in my determination to be defiant in every and any way I find, including keeping things that give me joy. I will not give up joy for the orange turd and his reich.
How has it been moving to move to a different state? Except for your husband being at the border now, have you found a way to thrive elsewhere in a place of your choosing?
Moving was a big relief for us as we are in a blue area of Virginia and have a wonderful supporting neighborhood. Hubby is no longer involved with the border and he loves the new assignment. I miss the connections I had in Austin but I’ll rebuild those here. I’m so happy to be out of an area where I saw cruelty every day.
Thank you all for your support and comments. Looks like he’s there til March as of today. I’m bouncing between utter horror and sadness. I don’t recognize this country.
Thanks Earl and thanks MomCavanagh. It feels like the lid is about to blow off the pressure cooker. Trump pardoning1600 thugs, many of whom are armed and already proven dangerous could well provide for bloody mayhem. I'll hope for your husbands safe return.
I have a friend who teaches in an underprivileged community/school in Chicago. She only had 2 students show up for school yesterday. They are a largely Hispanic community, and they’re afraid of being deported.
Songgirl Kim, omg, that is so sad 😢.....those poor kids, I can't imagine the terror those families are experiencing right now.....dear God, how could so many stupid Americans do this to us 😭. It's truly unforgivable.
Add this to the horrors of school shootings and where in the world can these kids go? There are monsters everywhere but I never would have thought the most horrendous one would be in the White House. And I hope and pray that all the horror these children are being forced to live under comes crashing down with a vengeance on every asshole who voted for him! And I also hope and pray it's soon!!
I can't "like" your comment because this is so very upsetting and sad for these students and their families who already struggle and live in fear of deportation. I do appreciate you letting us know.
No calmness here. My NYT loving liberal birth family is exactly who you are steamed at! They really do think they can just vote their troubles away in 2026 and 2028. Trying to tell them that the electoral system is broken- under fascism you do not have free and fair election- has been totally frustrating. They just don't get the crisis we are in.
On the bright side, please check out my small substack- I just decided today I will be highlighting one act of bravery in the resistance every day for the forseeable future. Today was the right reverend Marianne Budde. Tomorrow will the woman who refused Trump's pardon.
I'm so glad you highlighted Reverand Marianne Budde. What she did with her sermon to the the orange menace and his family was more heroic than anything I've seen since the election.
I asked one such Substack writer if he had read The Atlantic article about Hitler dismantling the representative republic of Germany using its own constitution in 53 days. The parallels and similarities to what Trump is doing in the US right now cannot be ignored. I asked him if this terrified him.
He said not to worry. Our government is much stronger than the government of Germany at that time. Trump won’t be able to do what Hitler did. What fantasy world are these people living in?
We’ve all watched as Trump has used Hitler’s Nazi playbook like a paint by numbers on how to dismantle democracy in America. Our institutions are no stronger. Look at all the institutions that have all ready failed us:
-SCOTUS
-The Justice System in general
-Merrick Garland
-The Republican Party
-The Democratic Party
-Congress
-Our public education system
-The appalling lack of educated voters
-Main stream media with their lies and propaganda
-America’s billionaires who have used their wealth for evil
-The uprising of the incels
-The racists/bigots/xenophobes who are out and proud now
-Our Christian institutions
-The laws making women second class citizens again
So, nobody tells me not to worry, not to be terrified. They’ve still got their rose colored glasses on. They’re still in denial, because this is utterly terrifying.
I pray every day that this is the day he eats the fatal hamberder, or that an 18 wheeler collides with the presidential limo with him inside, or that Air Force One explodes midair with him aboard.
Barbara, 💯🎯......all I can say is, Seal Team 6 is the only thing that's going to rectify this problem. They need to deploy under the radar and TCB asap. I'm so done with this bullshit of "violence is never the answer".....in extreme cases (and THIS is an extreme case), it's Truly the only best solution.
There are a lot people-powerful people- who are on our side. They loathe the new administration as much as I and other people do. trump isn't as powerful as he thinks he is. I waiting for him to do a Rumpelstiltskin and bury his own sorry self.
I've heard that there is no cavalry coming. We are the cavalry. I have signed up to be a volunteer for the Democratic party. I write to my representatives and tell the WH what I think of the current residents. It will eventually get me banned or for my more than nasty notes to them, a visit from someone or other. I want trump to be found in the bathroom with his innards leaking all over him. I want to know that he will be burned, salted and hidden in a cave where no one can ever worship him again.
While there are a few I would miss, AOC, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren (maybe) and others, it wouldn't hurt my feelings if "something" were to happen to the WH and Cap while everyone was present. . .
After the Jan 6th rioters were pardoned and I heard complaints about injustice from my friends and family (how could this happen they asked) I thought of our African Americans citizens and all their ancestors endured and they are still enduring. How many of their ancestors were denied justice. Think of all the lynchings that happened without one single charge being brought against anyone at all. Not one charge. At all. Denied the GI Bill. Still denied housing. Still denied so much! Hundreds of years of living with injustice. This is nothing new for them. They’ve seen it all. And the 1619 Project and (many many) other brilliant works written by those descendants of slavery were ultimately met with derision and a backlash so extreme it has shutdown DEI efforts and affirmative action that was finally starting to yield benefits to our country. But just as happened in Prince Edward County VA after Brown vs Board of Education where schools were closed rather than be shared, the GOP will burn the whole thing down rather than treat people equal under the law. How dare we hold white men accountable? We white people are shocked. Our black neighbors will say: Been here. Done that. How can you be surprised? Maybe now you will start to get it. Not all men (or women) are are equal under the law in this country and have never been.
They're never going to leave the Biden family alone. I read Johnson defending the J6 pardons and then going after the Biden "crime family". Johnson, all of them, are evil. Talking to Stewart Rhodes!!?? What the actual fuck. And what are Democrats doing? Too many of them signed on with Republicans to pass the Laken Riley bill. John Fetterman, Mark Kelly, Jon Ossoff, etc. This bill allows authorities to detain anyone without due process. Democrats are supposed to be the opposition party, but the majority has given up. I saw Meghan McCain's tweet congratulating Trump and celebrating Democrats being in "ashes". The man who denigrated her father is her new hero. Trump is taking a hammer to the pillars of democracy. It's overwhelming.
There is no word to describe the anger and disgust I feel. I'm guessing the DOJ will still assume it holds some meaning in society for awhile. I think of how Brian Sicknick's family must feel knowing blanket pardons were given to all the J6 assholes. Such a damn disgrace!
Not to encroach on this thread but not all J6 assholes were pardoned. 15 (?) or so of them had their sentence commuted, the rest were pardoned. Those 15 with commuted sentences will have the conviction on their permanent record and have a history of convicted felon (can't vote, can't own/purchase a gun, good luck finding a job, . . .). I wonder why orange man did that? Of what benefit to him it might turn out to be some day?
Thank you for this. There's been an anxiety building in me aside from the obvious, which I couldn't put my finger on. I have NO one I can talk to about this stuff because everyone just seems to be 'busy with life' or in denial, or can't deal with talking about any of it. I DO feel gaslit!
However, I do need to give one perspective on this from my own experience. I've been through a LOT the past few years (husband nearly died from cardiac arrest, and then our house burned down right before the pandemic hit), and my PTSD level is dangerously high. I'm really thinking you have heard some of the same things I have, and I TOTALLY agree with you, *except* - for myself, my hair is on fire to such a degree, that I seriously need to take a wet towel thrown at me now and again. It's THAT bad for me.
But YOUR perspective is helping me right now, to balance that out and be aware of what is happening, and to not feel irrational about why I seem to be so much more upset than everyone else.
Sorry for such a long comment, but I wanted to be clear. And, like I said, I have no one to talk to.
Nice to meet you, Virginia. Do you have an account on BlueSky? I know there are many others like us, and we need to find a way to connect. Sorry for the odd names (here and elsewhere), but after the election "results" (?!!) came in, after decades of a pointed effort to be nothing but authentic and use my real name, I made some frantic moves, and immediately hid my identity (which I'm kinda ashamed of, and kinda think might not have been the WORST idea!). My Bluesky handle is ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Onward! @phoenix--rising.bsky.social . I hope to see you there.
I do have an account there. I will have to look it up in my notebook. I have never used it. I just keep my name. There are so many Virginia Arthur’s in this country that they will have a time proving it is me, I hope.
Hahahah! The only person in the country who had my name was my sister-in-law. And she died a few years ago. So...nobody has to walk through the weeds to find me! If I find you, I will follow you.
I'm scared too, but what the hell do we do?? I mean the nuts and bolts, actual physical actions? Get mad HOW? I can write a bunch of postcards, sure, but will that help? Marching? I'm an old lady, so I can't see myself fighting in the streets.
Unclear it really means anything but I'm calling, sending emails, talking to anyone who will listen. While I was a heavy activist in the 60s and 70s, at my current age I'm not sure about taking to the streets or how committed I can be to action. Damn frustrating.
I want them to start impeachment proceedings! trump is trampling on the Constitution! I want those election computers checked. He cheated. I know he cheated!
Hi Virginia! I haven't forgotten about you. Things are in the works for the support group. We've got 8 of us so far and I'm hoping to schedule something soon, if only to get the ball rolling and make introductions. More to come!
Thank you. I am going to try to find that woman I told you about. I have not had any luck so far. If you check D. Earl Stephens Substack from today, you will find several older women like me who are extremely upset and some who have no one to talk to about it like me.
Hey, I found the woman that I told you about. Her name is Cynthia Kirby. You will find her posts under the Mouthy Renegade Warrior’s column on the Nazi Inauguration. It is where that picture of musk doing the Nazi salute. Jason Provenso’s column. (I don’t think I spelled his last name correctly. )
I love you Dr Stephens but somehow that just doesn't seem to be enough. It's like throwing pennies into a wishing well. The people in Congress who could stand up don't seem to be doing that. And that's more frightening to me than even dt. Because if someone doesn't stand up then nothing will ever change. Now that's terrifying!!
Another old lady here, mad as hell, but not sure what I can do besides help inform others, even though it's met with disdain most of the time. Just had a blow-up with my husband because while reading through these comments, he told me he thought it was 'time to shut the computer'. I'll spare you the rest of it, but my frustration levels on top of my horror are sending me through the roof. I need a positive place to put what little energy I have left that comes out in the form of fury.
I'm going to be 77 in a few weeks. I am not going to let Maga own my mind. If I did I would stroke out. The French Resistance wasn't always in people's faces. My representatives are all Maga Republicans. We can call Hakeem Jeffries or Chuck Schumer instead. But it's not going to help to be at odds with your husband. I was radiating so much intensity my husband of 47 years said I was going to burn out. He was right. This is going to be a marathon not a sprint. Hugs from another old lady.
From one old lady to another. I totally hear you and other women of similar age. I've had to part ways with a few friends who while seemingly well intentioned are clueless. I don't trust myself like, I might blow a fuse with them. The older I get the less tolerance I have for BS.
AFewMoreFsToGive, *hugs*. I know how frustrating it is.. I'm finding that I need to take a break from social media for a few days in a row, otherwise I will just collapse from the stress. 🙏
Sounds much like the evening I'm having with my dh. I'm trying to start a women's support group for women and those who support women in this dark time. So many of us feel alone and scared and helpless and I'm desperate to find connections with like-minded people. If you're interested, dm me! (That goes for anyone else reading as well).
I am right there with you, Reese. I am an old lady, too. I want to do something. I am so angry! What can we do? I have sent lots of emails and signed petitions. What can we do that is truly effective?
I would say this crap the felon is doing isn't unexpected but I am damn mad and not going to stand for it. He needs hit even harder than shero Budde did to his face. His clowns in congress need a trip to the woodshed.
Thank you Earl. At least I know I’m not alone in my anger and fear. And I hate to admit it, but I’m really glad you’re as pissed as you are, bc it validates my feelings and that gives me strength. I don’t find it often these days, but thanks to this community, I feel less isolated and determined not to let this destroy me. Please don’t go anywhere…
I feel your anger, Earl. I think one thing Democrats have to start asking themselves is when they will have the guts to start telling the truth about MAGA voters (not just politicians) and stop trying to live in some fantasy land where they can somehow sway these voters to their side by appealing to their better angels? I was first drawn to your writing when you wrote the TO HELL WITH TRUMP VOTERS piece before the election and said things that no Dem politician seems to have the guts to say (including our presidential ticket before the election, which spent more time bragging that they are gun owners than expressing outrage about the toll of gun violence on our society and the role of the right-wing gun fanatics have enabled). At what point do we start pointing a finger at not only the MAGA establishment but the MAGA voters who created this sick establishment, in the way that ardent racists enabled Jim Crow, instead of constantly trying to appease and coddle them, alienating our our own base and potential allies in the process? Trump and MAGA pay no price whatsoever by constantly denigrating voters on the left with every name in the book, but the Dem establishment (along with the corporate media/pundit class) is still scared to death to speak the truth that you did so accurately in your piece about the voters who led us to this place, because they think that somehow they can win them back with some finely tuned working class, heartland talking points? What planet are they living on? They aren't winning back these white working class voters who have powered the Trump machine because this isn't about economic displacement anymore (in what world do corporate billionaires solve the problems of the working class?); it's about white grievance and the politics of hate, pure and simple. Maybe it's time to hitch our saddle to a liberal horse with the courage to say the truth not only about Trump and Co but the voters who enabled them and work to mobilize a counter-insurgency that will train their outrage not only on Trump and the Republican Party in D.C. but on the 78 million Americans who voted for this monster, because the truth is they're no better than the voters who drank the Kool-Aid of Joe McCarthy in the 1950s and George Wallace in the 1960s, and I don't think too many of them magically woke up one day and came to their senses.
Every since Hillary's "Basket of Deplorables" comment in 2016, Democrats and the corporate media have been falling over themselves to normalize these voters and pretend that the problem is not with them but with everyone and everything else (out-of-touch Dems, elite liberals, bad "messaging," an over the hill president, you name it). They've been given free license for the last 8 years to act as deplorable as they want to support every deplorable action from their leader, fraud, treason, sexual assault, racism, you name it. When I would hear Walz and Shapiro talk on podcasts leading up to the election, they'd fall over themselves normalizing Trump supporters as salt of the earth people like you and me, not a thing wrong with them, at the same time they called out Trump for every deranged, criminal act and statement. How exactly does that work, where the corrupt fascist is the problem but the millions of people who enable and normalize him are perfectly normal, good, patriotic Americans?
And they want a clone of that guy with liquor addiction that he needs to treat before accepting the nomination by Trump for him to be Secretary of Offense in charge of US Armed Forces. Namely, Pete Hegseth:
As with Trump, not exactly of Executive temperament......Trump's nominees are all mirrors of his own failings as Executive anything...........Certainly not DECISIONMAKERS I want in charge of deliberating and deciding on wise counsel from wide circle and non-conflicted interest US Intel reporters to the Executive (that W. "Dubya" Bush Jr insisted on hearing out as did Clinton and Presidents of both parties until guess who entered the White House for Morning Intel briefings back in 2016.....)
"...How vital is the president’s daily intelligence briefing?
Politics Dec 13, 2016 5:05 PM EST
President Bill Clinton preferred to read his daily intelligence briefing in paper form. George W. Bush insisted on a daily in-person briefing. President Obama consumes his digitally, on a custom tablet.
"Presidents have different styles when it comes to the briefing, or the President’s Daily Brief, a summary of classified information on national security issues compiled by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
"But President-elect Donald Trump has taken an unprecedented approach: ignoring the briefing most days altogether. Instead, Trump has opted to receive the report roughly once per week since he won the election, a break from tradition for a president-elect.
"Trump dismissed the daily briefings as repetitive and unnecessary in an interview with Fox News on Sunday, arguing that the report rarely changes from one day to the next. Trump said that “my generals” and the vice president-elect, Mike Pence, were receiving the daily briefings so he didn’t have to.
“You know, I’m, like, a smart person. I don’t have to be told the same thing in the same words every single day,” Trump said. He added, “But I do say, if something should change, let us know.”
"The comments sparked an uproar, with critics claiming that Trump was neglecting a key part of his job. But some national security experts and intelligence officials said Trump was right — to a point...."
"....The daily briefing, which began after World War II under Harry Truman, can contain repetitive information on specific issues and regions around the world, according to several former officials who have worked on the briefing in the past.
“Sometimes it’s really boring and you spend two minutes on it. Sometimes it’s really interesting,” said Andrew Liepman, a former senior C.I.A official. Moreover, the brief represents just one facet of a nuanced relationship between the president and the intelligence community, Liepman said..."
They won this election using right-wing media. So maybe a very rich Democrat can buy some news stations, and we will lob their crap right back at 'em. I know this is simplistic because I don't really know how propaganda works, but you get the idea.
Let the young people, who know how social media works, figure out a plan. Social media is the weapon dejour, so to speak. Most of the democrats in office now are too old to know how to figure it out.
Since Zuckerberg bowed down to trump and did away with censorship, we should be able to tell the truth about trump and his Nazi cohorts all over social media! Good thinking!
I'm so tired of people acting like I'm being overly dramatic. This is a Fucking 5 Alarm Fire and they are carefully folding clothes while the flames are consuming the door. I am trying to parse what is truly dangerous and not pay attention to the things that are merely for distraction, but it is getting harder to tell. When you can't trust Democrats in the house to vote no on a heinous and stupid Republican bill because they're afraid of being "primary-ed" in the next election, it is a sad state of affairs. We need fighters! Man and Woman UP and DO something! Stop cooperating with these evil trolls. Vote HELL NO on all of their self-serving bullshit and while you're at it, try to find the handful of Repubs in Congress who *might* still have souls and try to get them to listen to reason, the Constitution, and basic right and wrong. It couldn't hurt!
You captured what I am feeling exactly and I will NOT be told to be calm. I don’t fucking feel anything close to calm. My husband is on the southern border for a temporary duty assignment and I’m waiting for some Texas national guardsman to pull the trigger, kill a few Mexican officers or innocent bystanders so the orange Nazi can declare war on Mexico when they return fire. This is another version of the tinderbox just waiting for some idiot to light the match. With Abbott sucking up to Heir Orange, nothing is off the table. My heart aches for all the innocents who have done nothing wrong but want a better, safe life for their families. I’m pissed but I’m also scared.
My best to your husband. Can't imagine.
We lived on the border thru family separation and I never want to experience that kind of gut wrenching pain again. We left Texas because of that and the direction we saw the state going in. Hubby has a big heart and is trying to keep folks calm. I just want him home safely, soon and in one piece.
Please keep us updated.
My heart goes out to you and your husband.
Agreed — my heart is with you too💗
MomCavanagh, I share your feelings..... sending up prayers for your husband's safety and safe return 🙏. It's a horrifying thing we're going through now. 😢
Thank you.
I am exhausted from being told to calm down and stop overreacting as we've been hearing since trump was a joke candidate in 2015. I refuse to live in outrage now because that poison did bad things to my body the first go round, so I am now steadfast in my determination to be defiant in every and any way I find, including keeping things that give me joy. I will not give up joy for the orange turd and his reich.
How has it been moving to move to a different state? Except for your husband being at the border now, have you found a way to thrive elsewhere in a place of your choosing?
Moving was a big relief for us as we are in a blue area of Virginia and have a wonderful supporting neighborhood. Hubby is no longer involved with the border and he loves the new assignment. I miss the connections I had in Austin but I’ll rebuild those here. I’m so happy to be out of an area where I saw cruelty every day.
Thank you for that piece of good news! I relish each and every one of these stories in this time of chaos.
Wishing your Husband Safety and Peace. You, Too. 💕🕊️
Thank you all for your support and comments. Looks like he’s there til March as of today. I’m bouncing between utter horror and sadness. I don’t recognize this country.
Thanks Earl and thanks MomCavanagh. It feels like the lid is about to blow off the pressure cooker. Trump pardoning1600 thugs, many of whom are armed and already proven dangerous could well provide for bloody mayhem. I'll hope for your husbands safe return.
I have a friend who teaches in an underprivileged community/school in Chicago. She only had 2 students show up for school yesterday. They are a largely Hispanic community, and they’re afraid of being deported.
This is real and terrible.
Songgirl Kim, omg, that is so sad 😢.....those poor kids, I can't imagine the terror those families are experiencing right now.....dear God, how could so many stupid Americans do this to us 😭. It's truly unforgivable.
This is heartwrenching.
It is. The families heard that no schools or churches were safe, so they hid at home.
Horrible
Add this to the horrors of school shootings and where in the world can these kids go? There are monsters everywhere but I never would have thought the most horrendous one would be in the White House. And I hope and pray that all the horror these children are being forced to live under comes crashing down with a vengeance on every asshole who voted for him! And I also hope and pray it's soon!!
I couldn’t agree more. Chicago is a sanctuary city, Obama is from Chicago. I’m not surprised he has targeted the city.
That is truly awful, Songgirl Kim.
I can't "like" your comment because this is so very upsetting and sad for these students and their families who already struggle and live in fear of deportation. I do appreciate you letting us know.
No calmness here. My NYT loving liberal birth family is exactly who you are steamed at! They really do think they can just vote their troubles away in 2026 and 2028. Trying to tell them that the electoral system is broken- under fascism you do not have free and fair election- has been totally frustrating. They just don't get the crisis we are in.
On the bright side, please check out my small substack- I just decided today I will be highlighting one act of bravery in the resistance every day for the forseeable future. Today was the right reverend Marianne Budde. Tomorrow will the woman who refused Trump's pardon.
Will do, Nancy.
I'm so glad you highlighted Reverand Marianne Budde. What she did with her sermon to the the orange menace and his family was more heroic than anything I've seen since the election.
Already sent her a thank you note. Rev Budde has been getting hate mail
I asked one such Substack writer if he had read The Atlantic article about Hitler dismantling the representative republic of Germany using its own constitution in 53 days. The parallels and similarities to what Trump is doing in the US right now cannot be ignored. I asked him if this terrified him.
He said not to worry. Our government is much stronger than the government of Germany at that time. Trump won’t be able to do what Hitler did. What fantasy world are these people living in?
We’ve all watched as Trump has used Hitler’s Nazi playbook like a paint by numbers on how to dismantle democracy in America. Our institutions are no stronger. Look at all the institutions that have all ready failed us:
-SCOTUS
-The Justice System in general
-Merrick Garland
-The Republican Party
-The Democratic Party
-Congress
-Our public education system
-The appalling lack of educated voters
-Main stream media with their lies and propaganda
-America’s billionaires who have used their wealth for evil
-The uprising of the incels
-The racists/bigots/xenophobes who are out and proud now
-Our Christian institutions
-The laws making women second class citizens again
So, nobody tells me not to worry, not to be terrified. They’ve still got their rose colored glasses on. They’re still in denial, because this is utterly terrifying.
Stay calm? Not likely from me. I really can't say what I want to happen to him and the other members of his cartel, but it isn't pretty.
I pray every day that this is the day he eats the fatal hamberder, or that an 18 wheeler collides with the presidential limo with him inside, or that Air Force One explodes midair with him aboard.
TCinLA, 💯🎯..... I share your sentiments. He needs a plutonium hamberder, double cheddar 🧀.....⚰️🪦
As do the rest of the dangerous sycophants. This shit has gone too far.
Yes!
Too bad Western Star quit making trucks. One of those would do the trick!
I'm with you on this.And the next person that tells me I'm overreacting and to call down will get a fuck you and shut the fuck up from me.
Barbara, 💯🎯......all I can say is, Seal Team 6 is the only thing that's going to rectify this problem. They need to deploy under the radar and TCB asap. I'm so done with this bullshit of "violence is never the answer".....in extreme cases (and THIS is an extreme case), it's Truly the only best solution.
My fear is Seal Team 6 would back Trump.
I agree, wholeheartedly! However, at this point, I really don't know who to trust. As Rita Parker says "My fear is Seal Team 6 would back Trump."
There are a lot people-powerful people- who are on our side. They loathe the new administration as much as I and other people do. trump isn't as powerful as he thinks he is. I waiting for him to do a Rumpelstiltskin and bury his own sorry self.
Where are all the powerful people who are on our side and When the HELL ARE THEY GOING TO STAND UP??!!
I've heard that there is no cavalry coming. We are the cavalry. I have signed up to be a volunteer for the Democratic party. I write to my representatives and tell the WH what I think of the current residents. It will eventually get me banned or for my more than nasty notes to them, a visit from someone or other. I want trump to be found in the bathroom with his innards leaking all over him. I want to know that he will be burned, salted and hidden in a cave where no one can ever worship him again.
While there are a few I would miss, AOC, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren (maybe) and others, it wouldn't hurt my feelings if "something" were to happen to the WH and Cap while everyone was present. . .
Agreed!
Barbara, same here. 😡
I know exactly what you are thinking and I am thinking it, too!
After the Jan 6th rioters were pardoned and I heard complaints about injustice from my friends and family (how could this happen they asked) I thought of our African Americans citizens and all their ancestors endured and they are still enduring. How many of their ancestors were denied justice. Think of all the lynchings that happened without one single charge being brought against anyone at all. Not one charge. At all. Denied the GI Bill. Still denied housing. Still denied so much! Hundreds of years of living with injustice. This is nothing new for them. They’ve seen it all. And the 1619 Project and (many many) other brilliant works written by those descendants of slavery were ultimately met with derision and a backlash so extreme it has shutdown DEI efforts and affirmative action that was finally starting to yield benefits to our country. But just as happened in Prince Edward County VA after Brown vs Board of Education where schools were closed rather than be shared, the GOP will burn the whole thing down rather than treat people equal under the law. How dare we hold white men accountable? We white people are shocked. Our black neighbors will say: Been here. Done that. How can you be surprised? Maybe now you will start to get it. Not all men (or women) are are equal under the law in this country and have never been.
Which is why Black Americans are among the very few who can lay claim to being true patriots.
They're never going to leave the Biden family alone. I read Johnson defending the J6 pardons and then going after the Biden "crime family". Johnson, all of them, are evil. Talking to Stewart Rhodes!!?? What the actual fuck. And what are Democrats doing? Too many of them signed on with Republicans to pass the Laken Riley bill. John Fetterman, Mark Kelly, Jon Ossoff, etc. This bill allows authorities to detain anyone without due process. Democrats are supposed to be the opposition party, but the majority has given up. I saw Meghan McCain's tweet congratulating Trump and celebrating Democrats being in "ashes". The man who denigrated her father is her new hero. Trump is taking a hammer to the pillars of democracy. It's overwhelming.
The Biden Family will be fine.
The rest of us? Not so sure ...
Walk softly and carry a switchblade.
I love that!!
I heard that Mike Johnson say they are going to investigate the “Corrupt Biden family”. It never stops.
When they come for Meghan I hope its televised.
There is no word to describe the anger and disgust I feel. I'm guessing the DOJ will still assume it holds some meaning in society for awhile. I think of how Brian Sicknick's family must feel knowing blanket pardons were given to all the J6 assholes. Such a damn disgrace!
Not to encroach on this thread but not all J6 assholes were pardoned. 15 (?) or so of them had their sentence commuted, the rest were pardoned. Those 15 with commuted sentences will have the conviction on their permanent record and have a history of convicted felon (can't vote, can't own/purchase a gun, good luck finding a job, . . .). I wonder why orange man did that? Of what benefit to him it might turn out to be some day?
Thank you for this. There's been an anxiety building in me aside from the obvious, which I couldn't put my finger on. I have NO one I can talk to about this stuff because everyone just seems to be 'busy with life' or in denial, or can't deal with talking about any of it. I DO feel gaslit!
However, I do need to give one perspective on this from my own experience. I've been through a LOT the past few years (husband nearly died from cardiac arrest, and then our house burned down right before the pandemic hit), and my PTSD level is dangerously high. I'm really thinking you have heard some of the same things I have, and I TOTALLY agree with you, *except* - for myself, my hair is on fire to such a degree, that I seriously need to take a wet towel thrown at me now and again. It's THAT bad for me.
But YOUR perspective is helping me right now, to balance that out and be aware of what is happening, and to not feel irrational about why I seem to be so much more upset than everyone else.
Sorry for such a long comment, but I wanted to be clear. And, like I said, I have no one to talk to.
THANK YOU.
No apologies necessary.
Glad to hear from you.
I have no one to talk to, either. My anger is through the roof!
Nice to meet you, Virginia. Do you have an account on BlueSky? I know there are many others like us, and we need to find a way to connect. Sorry for the odd names (here and elsewhere), but after the election "results" (?!!) came in, after decades of a pointed effort to be nothing but authentic and use my real name, I made some frantic moves, and immediately hid my identity (which I'm kinda ashamed of, and kinda think might not have been the WORST idea!). My Bluesky handle is ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Onward! @phoenix--rising.bsky.social . I hope to see you there.
I do have an account there. I will have to look it up in my notebook. I have never used it. I just keep my name. There are so many Virginia Arthur’s in this country that they will have a time proving it is me, I hope.
I just searched your name, and nothing comes up. If you're interested, maybe click the link to my account and follow me or dm?
Hahahah! The only person in the country who had my name was my sister-in-law. And she died a few years ago. So...nobody has to walk through the weeds to find me! If I find you, I will follow you.
I am following you here.
I hear you... 💕🫂
I'm scared too, but what the hell do we do?? I mean the nuts and bolts, actual physical actions? Get mad HOW? I can write a bunch of postcards, sure, but will that help? Marching? I'm an old lady, so I can't see myself fighting in the streets.
What kind of monkey wrench actions can we take?
You sound like an activist and know that ANYTHING helps.
Today's piece went to the right to your feelings.
As always, call your reps and tell them how you are feeling, and what actions you want them to take on your behalf.
-Peace
Unclear it really means anything but I'm calling, sending emails, talking to anyone who will listen. While I was a heavy activist in the 60s and 70s, at my current age I'm not sure about taking to the streets or how committed I can be to action. Damn frustrating.
I want them to start impeachment proceedings! trump is trampling on the Constitution! I want those election computers checked. He cheated. I know he cheated!
Hi Virginia! I haven't forgotten about you. Things are in the works for the support group. We've got 8 of us so far and I'm hoping to schedule something soon, if only to get the ball rolling and make introductions. More to come!
Thank you. I am going to try to find that woman I told you about. I have not had any luck so far. If you check D. Earl Stephens Substack from today, you will find several older women like me who are extremely upset and some who have no one to talk to about it like me.
I am on the hunt for them as we speak!
Great!
Hey, I found the woman that I told you about. Her name is Cynthia Kirby. You will find her posts under the Mouthy Renegade Warrior’s column on the Nazi Inauguration. It is where that picture of musk doing the Nazi salute. Jason Provenso’s column. (I don’t think I spelled his last name correctly. )
I love you Dr Stephens but somehow that just doesn't seem to be enough. It's like throwing pennies into a wishing well. The people in Congress who could stand up don't seem to be doing that. And that's more frightening to me than even dt. Because if someone doesn't stand up then nothing will ever change. Now that's terrifying!!
At least he is validating our feelings. Why don’t you call the offices of your Senators and Congressmen and ask them to stand up and protect us?
I have done this already but thanks anyway 👍🏿
Now it is time for me to call mine. My Senators are Democrats and my Representative is a Republican. What did yours say to you?
Another old lady here, mad as hell, but not sure what I can do besides help inform others, even though it's met with disdain most of the time. Just had a blow-up with my husband because while reading through these comments, he told me he thought it was 'time to shut the computer'. I'll spare you the rest of it, but my frustration levels on top of my horror are sending me through the roof. I need a positive place to put what little energy I have left that comes out in the form of fury.
I'm going to be 77 in a few weeks. I am not going to let Maga own my mind. If I did I would stroke out. The French Resistance wasn't always in people's faces. My representatives are all Maga Republicans. We can call Hakeem Jeffries or Chuck Schumer instead. But it's not going to help to be at odds with your husband. I was radiating so much intensity my husband of 47 years said I was going to burn out. He was right. This is going to be a marathon not a sprint. Hugs from another old lady.
From one old lady to another. I totally hear you and other women of similar age. I've had to part ways with a few friends who while seemingly well intentioned are clueless. I don't trust myself like, I might blow a fuse with them. The older I get the less tolerance I have for BS.
I lost everybody. All I have left is dh and our kids. It's hard to make connections when you're protecting yourself from abuse and trying to heal.
AFewMoreFsToGive, *hugs*. I know how frustrating it is.. I'm finding that I need to take a break from social media for a few days in a row, otherwise I will just collapse from the stress. 🙏
Sounds much like the evening I'm having with my dh. I'm trying to start a women's support group for women and those who support women in this dark time. So many of us feel alone and scared and helpless and I'm desperate to find connections with like-minded people. If you're interested, dm me! (That goes for anyone else reading as well).
Yes, Reese! That’s what I want to know (as another old lady)!
I am right there with you, Reese. I am an old lady, too. I want to do something. I am so angry! What can we do? I have sent lots of emails and signed petitions. What can we do that is truly effective?
I would say this crap the felon is doing isn't unexpected but I am damn mad and not going to stand for it. He needs hit even harder than shero Budde did to his face. His clowns in congress need a trip to the woodshed.
The Vichy "Democrats" can go to hell.
So disappointed in them.
I am scared Earl. More scared than I’ve ever been. Not how I thought I’d spend the last remaining years of my life…
Yep, exactly, Joanne.
I thought I'd be writing of fluffy things, and one day I'd be gone.
Instead, I'm furious at how hard we've fallen.
Thank you Earl. At least I know I’m not alone in my anger and fear. And I hate to admit it, but I’m really glad you’re as pissed as you are, bc it validates my feelings and that gives me strength. I don’t find it often these days, but thanks to this community, I feel less isolated and determined not to let this destroy me. Please don’t go anywhere…
Sending you well wishes. I am scared and angry as well.
Fearful and Sad every day 😔...
😢
I feel your anger, Earl. I think one thing Democrats have to start asking themselves is when they will have the guts to start telling the truth about MAGA voters (not just politicians) and stop trying to live in some fantasy land where they can somehow sway these voters to their side by appealing to their better angels? I was first drawn to your writing when you wrote the TO HELL WITH TRUMP VOTERS piece before the election and said things that no Dem politician seems to have the guts to say (including our presidential ticket before the election, which spent more time bragging that they are gun owners than expressing outrage about the toll of gun violence on our society and the role of the right-wing gun fanatics have enabled). At what point do we start pointing a finger at not only the MAGA establishment but the MAGA voters who created this sick establishment, in the way that ardent racists enabled Jim Crow, instead of constantly trying to appease and coddle them, alienating our our own base and potential allies in the process? Trump and MAGA pay no price whatsoever by constantly denigrating voters on the left with every name in the book, but the Dem establishment (along with the corporate media/pundit class) is still scared to death to speak the truth that you did so accurately in your piece about the voters who led us to this place, because they think that somehow they can win them back with some finely tuned working class, heartland talking points? What planet are they living on? They aren't winning back these white working class voters who have powered the Trump machine because this isn't about economic displacement anymore (in what world do corporate billionaires solve the problems of the working class?); it's about white grievance and the politics of hate, pure and simple. Maybe it's time to hitch our saddle to a liberal horse with the courage to say the truth not only about Trump and Co but the voters who enabled them and work to mobilize a counter-insurgency that will train their outrage not only on Trump and the Republican Party in D.C. but on the 78 million Americans who voted for this monster, because the truth is they're no better than the voters who drank the Kool-Aid of Joe McCarthy in the 1950s and George Wallace in the 1960s, and I don't think too many of them magically woke up one day and came to their senses.
I go back to that piece myself all the time, Craig.
I hate Trump, but I hate the weak, grotesque people who have empowered him more.
They have put the drunken, loudmouth racist at the end of the bar in charge of the town.
I curse them. What kind of parents are they? And, yes, why can't we just say these things plainly? We've never needed to speak the truth more ...
Every since Hillary's "Basket of Deplorables" comment in 2016, Democrats and the corporate media have been falling over themselves to normalize these voters and pretend that the problem is not with them but with everyone and everything else (out-of-touch Dems, elite liberals, bad "messaging," an over the hill president, you name it). They've been given free license for the last 8 years to act as deplorable as they want to support every deplorable action from their leader, fraud, treason, sexual assault, racism, you name it. When I would hear Walz and Shapiro talk on podcasts leading up to the election, they'd fall over themselves normalizing Trump supporters as salt of the earth people like you and me, not a thing wrong with them, at the same time they called out Trump for every deranged, criminal act and statement. How exactly does that work, where the corrupt fascist is the problem but the millions of people who enable and normalize him are perfectly normal, good, patriotic Americans?
And they want a clone of that guy with liquor addiction that he needs to treat before accepting the nomination by Trump for him to be Secretary of Offense in charge of US Armed Forces. Namely, Pete Hegseth:
https://www.democracynow.org/2025/1/22/headlines/former_sister_in_law_describes_violent_and_threatening_behavior_by_pete_hegseth
As with Trump, not exactly of Executive temperament......Trump's nominees are all mirrors of his own failings as Executive anything...........Certainly not DECISIONMAKERS I want in charge of deliberating and deciding on wise counsel from wide circle and non-conflicted interest US Intel reporters to the Executive (that W. "Dubya" Bush Jr insisted on hearing out as did Clinton and Presidents of both parties until guess who entered the White House for Morning Intel briefings back in 2016.....)
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/trumps-relationship-intelligence-community-off-rocky-start
"...How vital is the president’s daily intelligence briefing?
Politics Dec 13, 2016 5:05 PM EST
President Bill Clinton preferred to read his daily intelligence briefing in paper form. George W. Bush insisted on a daily in-person briefing. President Obama consumes his digitally, on a custom tablet.
"Presidents have different styles when it comes to the briefing, or the President’s Daily Brief, a summary of classified information on national security issues compiled by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
"But President-elect Donald Trump has taken an unprecedented approach: ignoring the briefing most days altogether. Instead, Trump has opted to receive the report roughly once per week since he won the election, a break from tradition for a president-elect.
"Trump dismissed the daily briefings as repetitive and unnecessary in an interview with Fox News on Sunday, arguing that the report rarely changes from one day to the next. Trump said that “my generals” and the vice president-elect, Mike Pence, were receiving the daily briefings so he didn’t have to.
“You know, I’m, like, a smart person. I don’t have to be told the same thing in the same words every single day,” Trump said. He added, “But I do say, if something should change, let us know.”
"The comments sparked an uproar, with critics claiming that Trump was neglecting a key part of his job. But some national security experts and intelligence officials said Trump was right — to a point...."
"....The daily briefing, which began after World War II under Harry Truman, can contain repetitive information on specific issues and regions around the world, according to several former officials who have worked on the briefing in the past.
“Sometimes it’s really boring and you spend two minutes on it. Sometimes it’s really interesting,” said Andrew Liepman, a former senior C.I.A official. Moreover, the brief represents just one facet of a nuanced relationship between the president and the intelligence community, Liepman said..."
Tio Mitchito
Mitch Ritter\Paradigm Sifters, Code Shifters, PsalmSong Chasers
Lay-Low Studios, Ore-Wa (Refuge of Atonement Seekers)
Media Discussion List\Looksee
"Do not let anybody deny you of your feelings." AMEN!!!
They won this election using right-wing media. So maybe a very rich Democrat can buy some news stations, and we will lob their crap right back at 'em. I know this is simplistic because I don't really know how propaganda works, but you get the idea.
Let the young people, who know how social media works, figure out a plan. Social media is the weapon dejour, so to speak. Most of the democrats in office now are too old to know how to figure it out.
Just throwin stuff out there...
You are onto something here vitally important.
Our megaphone is silent ...
Since Zuckerberg bowed down to trump and did away with censorship, we should be able to tell the truth about trump and his Nazi cohorts all over social media! Good thinking!
I'm so tired of people acting like I'm being overly dramatic. This is a Fucking 5 Alarm Fire and they are carefully folding clothes while the flames are consuming the door. I am trying to parse what is truly dangerous and not pay attention to the things that are merely for distraction, but it is getting harder to tell. When you can't trust Democrats in the house to vote no on a heinous and stupid Republican bill because they're afraid of being "primary-ed" in the next election, it is a sad state of affairs. We need fighters! Man and Woman UP and DO something! Stop cooperating with these evil trolls. Vote HELL NO on all of their self-serving bullshit and while you're at it, try to find the handful of Repubs in Congress who *might* still have souls and try to get them to listen to reason, the Constitution, and basic right and wrong. It couldn't hurt!
THIS is what I am talking about ...