Kanye West hates Jews. He has made that perfectly clear. Ye is an antisemite. Nick Fuentes hates Jews. He has made that perfectly clear. He is an antisemite and a Nazi: These two men dined with Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday night. Bill Kristol asked a simple question. He asked if there were five decent Republicans who would condemn this disgrace:
The silence is damning. Protest. Shun them all. Make it unacceptable to normalize these monsters. “We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere....Wherever men and women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must - at that moment - become the center of the universe.” - Elie Wiesel
I read the Thompson essay. It’s brilliant. Read it if you haven’t. It’s so sad what we are seeing. The grifter from Queens holding court with those dangerous men. He must be stopped. He must not get air. Media has to stop giving him air. Thx Steve for the reminder.
I am still astonished that those who used to be Repuglicans do not denounce this rampant anti-Semitism. I am feeling increasingly unsafe. So many of my fellow Jews (looking at you David Friedman) still seem to believe that it can't happen here. A shofar needs to be blown to awaken us all to the danger!
I am fascinated by a comment by, of all people, Steve Bannon, who believes they were let into Thanksgiving Dinner by those wanting to discredit Trump. Quite to the contrary, Trump can now show his true intent.
There is a recent clip showing Fuentes calling for Congress to be disbanded and a Dictator installed. Can imagine this was discussed over dinner.
We have the responsibility to call them out. Loud long and direct. No more clutching of pearls the lessons Trump and his crowd leaned are those from the 1930s. Our role is to call the question to every R-do you refute? No response is affirmation of support
Holy moly, I read the Dorothy Thompson essay. It connected several dots for me in my thoughts about our current events. It also struck me that what she wrote contradicts those folks today who believe that these beliefs and positions are something new that has just spontaneously arisen within the US in the past decade or so. These folks scratch their heads, mumble about, wringing their hands, acting as if there are no known solutions to this “new” dilemma. Or maybe, if I’m being completely honest, the dithering mumbling person is me because while I knew those attitudes and beliefs existed, I naively thought they were part of history, part of Dorothy Thompson’s era but certainly not mine. While as a woman, I’ve directly experienced discrimination, as a straight, white woman, I haven’t been exposed to all of the horrors our current system routinely expresses toward POC and the LGBTQ+ community. I realize I’ve been lucky and and privileged to live in that fantasy world. Over the past few decades, my blinders have come down periodically but I always thought those were isolated incidents not actual products of our current system. When Trump won in 2016, it shook me to the core. Almost 63 million people voted for him! How could they not see him for what he was? How could they ignore his hateful rhetoric? Finally, I fully comprehended- “ it’s a feature not a bug”. Those 63 million people voted for him BECAUSE he was hateful and they were okay with that. In fact they were not only okay with it, they enthusiastically supported it. As the comic strip character Pogo said, “I have seen the enemy, and it is us.” Maybe the one ray of hope or optimism could be just that - it isn’t new. There are solutions. It can be pushed back. It can be suppressed. But because it’s in our DNA, complacency is extremely dangerous. Vigilance is required. It seems that once the generation that directly fought and won the war against fascism dies off, the following generation forgets, or believes that the threat was entirely eliminated and there in lies the danger of loosening the constraints. Because it will always be present within humans. This type of cancer is never cured. The best we can hope for is to knock it back into remission. But we must then remain ever vigilant and protect against the next recurrence.
After reading your brilliant ( as always ) essay this morning reminding us about the silence of all those who will not speak out about these atrocities it dawned on me that I understand Paul Simon’s “Sounds of Silence” in a brand new way. “Hello darkness” and “creeping visions” indeed.
I’ve been worried about where America was going since Newt Gingrich. He, DeLay and Rove were not subtle in their message and goals. But because they accompanied their goals with dog whistles and civil language, no one seemed to be understanding their real message and goals...especially Democrats. 🤦🏼♀️ Leaders who shouldn’t have been complacent about where the extremists in the GOP were going, did nothing. Once a full-blown Trump became the GOP nominee, the traditionalists thought THEY could control him and all the deplorables he awakened, just like Von Papen, et. al., thought they could control Hitler. I’ve finally come to the conclusion, unfortunately, that this horror may have been inevitable, especially since the South NEVER evolved from being anti-federal slave owners. They took over the GOP and horror has ensued ever since. It’s disappointing that America had to come to this crisis for good people to wake up. But we have, and the extremists’ full message has been exposed, I’m more hopeful than I was in the early 90’s.
Trump’s 2015 escalator descent was a symbolic harbinger of things to come. The majority of the GOP followed him down. Some were eager sycophants, some spineless cowards. The GOP’s lust for power outweighs any morals, ethics, or fealty to the COTUS. Trump is & always will be a demolition man.
Because DJT has not been held accountable for inciting a brutal attack on our capital and on our democracy, he continues to wreak havoc in our country. This is a glaring problem in our justice system. DJT must be indicted, he must be held accountable, or the message to the GOP and all of the fringe-crazies is that this is all just okay...this is a huge problem and we must protest.
The Republican Party is deficit in courage, morals and patriotism. Instead of protecting their county as they swore to do, they protect themselves first, their party second then maybe the country and least of all the people. What an amazing, sad and scary transformation to know no more than one or two republicans may stand up to a person who would burn down the country. He is a racist, antisemitic who has a diminishing following of about 35% of the republican base. That of course is more frightening. And religious right nationalists are the core of that 35% Republican office holders have to wake up and smell the rancid roses. They will continue to lose elections until they rid themselves of Trump and those who follow him. History will certainly not treat him well and all you know in office will not be viewed favorably as well. Time to think about how you want your kids and grandkids to think about you.
I have read Harper’s (it’s America’s oldest literary magazine) for 40 years. One of my undergrad Profs assigned it - and I’ve been reading it ever since.
But, Steve (and all of us readers) already know you will not get 1 elected Republican to say 1 public thing about any of this. You’ll notice not 1 Elected has even dared to say “He’s a Loser”. In fact, I can guarantee they are planning their self-referential Endorsements right now.
Appreciate the succinct points with back story links! I hope you keep up this style of informative, powerful writing.
The Greeks have a concept ‘deus ex machina’ the timely arrival of God at precisely the 13th hour.
We are proving as citizens of the modern world that we have not learned much in 5000 years, still expecting to be saved, and doing nothing to save ourselves.
This is the whole point of the times we live in, from Nazis to alternate facts to ruckus feral malignant narcissists involved in power plays and burning the house down with us in it--we have the muscle, we just need to be willing to use it to save ourselves.
I would be nice if we had a functioning town Square, I’ve been on many different platforms over the last four weeks. Some have better discourse and a nicer people , functionality, bugs, are a plague leaving a functioning town square yet to be had.
I also think it’s a difficulty that many prominent individuals need to monetize their work (yes, I understand everyone needs to make money and I support that.) so their voice is limited, their engagements on Twitter are taking on a new look of only their monetized feeds, that’s greatly diminishing their voice, and thereby diminishing the town square.
Based on Michael Cohen’s book where he tells us about DT having file cabinets of dirt on people and DT’s obsession with finding dirt on people… it seems to me, once he was president, his access to dirt was increased. I make up they don’t speak up because he may have dirt on them.
It seems one must have the capacity to feel shame in order to stop hurting others. DT has been giving many disconnected people an endless master class on shamelessness.
there is literally nothing he can do that will alarm the crazies, but we live in a state of alarm. Steve, what, what, what can we do to be rid of him. If charged by the DOJ, would there be a way to shut him down until all is settled. Someone has to stop the constant onslaught of madness. You call it out like no other, so maybe you have an idea?
While we can no longer be shocked by any overtly anti-Semitic act committed by Trump, it is beyond sick that a man with three Jewish grandchildren would cavort with the likes of West and Feuntes. Let us not forget that the most virulent Nazis among us remain sickened and bothered by the fact that Ivanka declares herself an Orthodox Jew.
Beware. It will all reach a frightening new level should we learn of an impending Kushner divorce.
The silence is damning. Protest. Shun them all. Make it unacceptable to normalize these monsters. “We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere....Wherever men and women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must - at that moment - become the center of the universe.” - Elie Wiesel
I read the Thompson essay. It’s brilliant. Read it if you haven’t. It’s so sad what we are seeing. The grifter from Queens holding court with those dangerous men. He must be stopped. He must not get air. Media has to stop giving him air. Thx Steve for the reminder.
I am still astonished that those who used to be Repuglicans do not denounce this rampant anti-Semitism. I am feeling increasingly unsafe. So many of my fellow Jews (looking at you David Friedman) still seem to believe that it can't happen here. A shofar needs to be blown to awaken us all to the danger!
I am fascinated by a comment by, of all people, Steve Bannon, who believes they were let into Thanksgiving Dinner by those wanting to discredit Trump. Quite to the contrary, Trump can now show his true intent.
There is a recent clip showing Fuentes calling for Congress to be disbanded and a Dictator installed. Can imagine this was discussed over dinner.
We have the responsibility to call them out. Loud long and direct. No more clutching of pearls the lessons Trump and his crowd leaned are those from the 1930s. Our role is to call the question to every R-do you refute? No response is affirmation of support
Holy moly, I read the Dorothy Thompson essay. It connected several dots for me in my thoughts about our current events. It also struck me that what she wrote contradicts those folks today who believe that these beliefs and positions are something new that has just spontaneously arisen within the US in the past decade or so. These folks scratch their heads, mumble about, wringing their hands, acting as if there are no known solutions to this “new” dilemma. Or maybe, if I’m being completely honest, the dithering mumbling person is me because while I knew those attitudes and beliefs existed, I naively thought they were part of history, part of Dorothy Thompson’s era but certainly not mine. While as a woman, I’ve directly experienced discrimination, as a straight, white woman, I haven’t been exposed to all of the horrors our current system routinely expresses toward POC and the LGBTQ+ community. I realize I’ve been lucky and and privileged to live in that fantasy world. Over the past few decades, my blinders have come down periodically but I always thought those were isolated incidents not actual products of our current system. When Trump won in 2016, it shook me to the core. Almost 63 million people voted for him! How could they not see him for what he was? How could they ignore his hateful rhetoric? Finally, I fully comprehended- “ it’s a feature not a bug”. Those 63 million people voted for him BECAUSE he was hateful and they were okay with that. In fact they were not only okay with it, they enthusiastically supported it. As the comic strip character Pogo said, “I have seen the enemy, and it is us.” Maybe the one ray of hope or optimism could be just that - it isn’t new. There are solutions. It can be pushed back. It can be suppressed. But because it’s in our DNA, complacency is extremely dangerous. Vigilance is required. It seems that once the generation that directly fought and won the war against fascism dies off, the following generation forgets, or believes that the threat was entirely eliminated and there in lies the danger of loosening the constraints. Because it will always be present within humans. This type of cancer is never cured. The best we can hope for is to knock it back into remission. But we must then remain ever vigilant and protect against the next recurrence.
After reading your brilliant ( as always ) essay this morning reminding us about the silence of all those who will not speak out about these atrocities it dawned on me that I understand Paul Simon’s “Sounds of Silence” in a brand new way. “Hello darkness” and “creeping visions” indeed.
I’ve been worried about where America was going since Newt Gingrich. He, DeLay and Rove were not subtle in their message and goals. But because they accompanied their goals with dog whistles and civil language, no one seemed to be understanding their real message and goals...especially Democrats. 🤦🏼♀️ Leaders who shouldn’t have been complacent about where the extremists in the GOP were going, did nothing. Once a full-blown Trump became the GOP nominee, the traditionalists thought THEY could control him and all the deplorables he awakened, just like Von Papen, et. al., thought they could control Hitler. I’ve finally come to the conclusion, unfortunately, that this horror may have been inevitable, especially since the South NEVER evolved from being anti-federal slave owners. They took over the GOP and horror has ensued ever since. It’s disappointing that America had to come to this crisis for good people to wake up. But we have, and the extremists’ full message has been exposed, I’m more hopeful than I was in the early 90’s.
Trump’s 2015 escalator descent was a symbolic harbinger of things to come. The majority of the GOP followed him down. Some were eager sycophants, some spineless cowards. The GOP’s lust for power outweighs any morals, ethics, or fealty to the COTUS. Trump is & always will be a demolition man.
Because DJT has not been held accountable for inciting a brutal attack on our capital and on our democracy, he continues to wreak havoc in our country. This is a glaring problem in our justice system. DJT must be indicted, he must be held accountable, or the message to the GOP and all of the fringe-crazies is that this is all just okay...this is a huge problem and we must protest.
The Republican Party is deficit in courage, morals and patriotism. Instead of protecting their county as they swore to do, they protect themselves first, their party second then maybe the country and least of all the people. What an amazing, sad and scary transformation to know no more than one or two republicans may stand up to a person who would burn down the country. He is a racist, antisemitic who has a diminishing following of about 35% of the republican base. That of course is more frightening. And religious right nationalists are the core of that 35% Republican office holders have to wake up and smell the rancid roses. They will continue to lose elections until they rid themselves of Trump and those who follow him. History will certainly not treat him well and all you know in office will not be viewed favorably as well. Time to think about how you want your kids and grandkids to think about you.
I have read Harper’s (it’s America’s oldest literary magazine) for 40 years. One of my undergrad Profs assigned it - and I’ve been reading it ever since.
But, Steve (and all of us readers) already know you will not get 1 elected Republican to say 1 public thing about any of this. You’ll notice not 1 Elected has even dared to say “He’s a Loser”. In fact, I can guarantee they are planning their self-referential Endorsements right now.
Appreciate the succinct points with back story links! I hope you keep up this style of informative, powerful writing.
The Greeks have a concept ‘deus ex machina’ the timely arrival of God at precisely the 13th hour.
We are proving as citizens of the modern world that we have not learned much in 5000 years, still expecting to be saved, and doing nothing to save ourselves.
This is the whole point of the times we live in, from Nazis to alternate facts to ruckus feral malignant narcissists involved in power plays and burning the house down with us in it--we have the muscle, we just need to be willing to use it to save ourselves.
I would be nice if we had a functioning town Square, I’ve been on many different platforms over the last four weeks. Some have better discourse and a nicer people , functionality, bugs, are a plague leaving a functioning town square yet to be had.
I also think it’s a difficulty that many prominent individuals need to monetize their work (yes, I understand everyone needs to make money and I support that.) so their voice is limited, their engagements on Twitter are taking on a new look of only their monetized feeds, that’s greatly diminishing their voice, and thereby diminishing the town square.
Deus ex machina, indeed.
Based on Michael Cohen’s book where he tells us about DT having file cabinets of dirt on people and DT’s obsession with finding dirt on people… it seems to me, once he was president, his access to dirt was increased. I make up they don’t speak up because he may have dirt on them.
It seems one must have the capacity to feel shame in order to stop hurting others. DT has been giving many disconnected people an endless master class on shamelessness.
there is literally nothing he can do that will alarm the crazies, but we live in a state of alarm. Steve, what, what, what can we do to be rid of him. If charged by the DOJ, would there be a way to shut him down until all is settled. Someone has to stop the constant onslaught of madness. You call it out like no other, so maybe you have an idea?
While we can no longer be shocked by any overtly anti-Semitic act committed by Trump, it is beyond sick that a man with three Jewish grandchildren would cavort with the likes of West and Feuntes. Let us not forget that the most virulent Nazis among us remain sickened and bothered by the fact that Ivanka declares herself an Orthodox Jew.
Beware. It will all reach a frightening new level should we learn of an impending Kushner divorce.