One year on

It’s hard to believe that The Warning turns one this week. I suppose I have become a writer — or at least a diligent imitator of one — after a year of writing on Substack. Before this, I hadn’t written much beyond a couple of memos. I never liked writing, and found it painfully difficult. It was something that I had no interest in whatsoever.

Over the year, there were days where the words came easily, and others where it was late at night before granite blocks obstructing my efforts suddenly gave way, usually with some gentle cajoling. My partner in all things has edited every essay. The simple truth is that, without her, I would have written somewhere between 3 to 10 of them over the year — at best.

I didn’t write everyday, but I did on most, and wrote every single one of them with my left index finger and right thumb on my phone. I don’t know why I’m sharing that, but the people who know usually are amazed by it — and not in a good way!

I am deeply grateful that so many people have become part of The Warning community, and have found it to be a place where they can discuss their political views and opinions without being threatened, smeared, bullied, harassed and castigated. That’s a good thing.

Ideas shouldn’t trigger rage and a loss of composure in stable adults. Tolerance, compromise, good faith, rationality, pragmatism and an understanding that different people have different perspectives shouldn’t be a novel concept by adulthood.

We live in an age of narrow mindedness that is constricting vital arteries of information that have warped reality. The system is blinking red.

The Musk-Zuckerberg cage match is a further sign of decay, and an eradication of boundaries, probity and judgement that perfectly reflects the toxic era that has broken America. Break up these monopolies and stop cheering for billionaire monopolists. 

Our era is not very different than the Edwardian age of gilded glamour that ended on the night the Titanic sunk in 1912. It is staggering that 111 years later more privileged people have died of hubris at the bottom of the sea. They died of arrogance in an unfit vessel commanded by an arrogant captain and a greedy company that ignored every warning, took every conceivable risk and killed five people. They will be entombed as a memorial next to a memorial that will speak to the next generations about lessons that seem unlearnable.

This moment isn’t just perilous, it is dangerous. Almost everything that I have talked about over the last 10 years on television and social media has come to pass. We are witnesses together to the hours that will determine if American democracy falls to an autocratic movement, headed by Donald Trump or one of his scheming lieutenants.

What I have tried to do with The Warning is to tell the truth as best as I can. I’ve also let you know how someone who has been in the room where it happens sees the dangers, threats and opportunities.

Throughout the year, writing evolved from a chore to something much more fulfilling. Some days it feels like a privilege. When I think about someone taking time to read and contribute to a conversation about the subject of the day, it is very humbling and fulfilling. It’s a simple pleasure, and I have really grown to enjoy it. Thank you.

I hope you will stay with the growing The Warning community as it begins its second year. When I started the Warning I stated its mission as follows:

There is a very significant, “exhausted majority” of Americans looking to move past this rotten moment in American life. They have lost trust and faith in government, business, media and not-for-profit institutions at a moment of technological, cultural and economic upheaval. Fascism did not rise in the 1930s because it was strong, but rather, because democracy was weak. The cycle is repeating itself with a new extremism rising in 2020s America. This newsletter will help readers orient to the currents that are shaping our times and the unseen forces driving politics that are rarely discussed on cable news. 

This remains The Warning mission in the year ahead and beyond. Why? While it has become a cliché to say that the election ahead is the most important of our lifetime, so long as democracy remains one election away from extinction in America, it will be true. Make no mistake, that isn’t hyperbole. We are one election away from ending the evolving American revolution. I will continue to use this platform — as well as my YouTube channel and podcast (please subscribe to these if you haven’t already!) — to argue and warn against that.

I’ve repeatedly gotten feedback from our community that I should make all of my content free as a public service. You may have noticed that over the past six weeks, I haven’t paywalled any of my essays. So long as we continue to gain support, we will do this. Please spread the word to your family and friends so that we can continue to see this community grow.

In order to sustain this effort, which includes almost daily essays and video commentaries, as well as my podcast, and to get my messages out, I hope you will consider becoming a paid subscriber if you aren’t already. To those who are, thank you, and I hope that you’ll continue to be.

Thank you to each of you for joining me on this incredible ride. Buckle up for year two!

Steve