Dear Readers,
I’m about to turn 85, which, for me, feels like a milestone, an accomplishment after a not-always-easy life, a joy, a curse, another moment in time. What surprises me about this is what I can and cannot do; what pain is left, what pain has dissipated.
What has shocked me the most is the loss of the democratic government I took for granted. I can’t wrap my head around that. It’s clearly gone: no more checks and balances from the courts, the Congress; no more adherence to the Constitution, the Bill of Rights; no more free speech, no loyal opposition; only more loss every day. Yet we keep walking through our lives as if they were normal, attending a protest now and then, waving our clever signs [Make Orwell Fiction Again; Now You Know What Germany Felt Like In 1933; “Must I Repeat Myself,” History].
Climate change and the environmental crisis and its impact on all life forms, including Homo sapiens, is the most consequential, all-inclusive event happening today, but it’s a blank, not even a blink, of the public eye, let alone the powerful elite. Trying to address the massive humanitarian crisis in Gaza and Israel’s genocide there only draw insults of antisemitism, which such justified actions most clearly are not. AI, Russian, Chinese, and US hackers have destroyed any semblance of identifying reality, facts, and truth except for the most trained and educated in that realm, and why should we believe them? Just a few of the fact-filled and existential crises we face now.
Where is the hope? It’s like a field with a dearth of fireflies. “I think I saw one there”; “Maybe there’s one”; “Look, oh, it’s gone.”
If you want to know what’s happening, you’re most likely to find it in Substack emails; not the normal “news” media, now controlled by billionaires for their own purposes and priorities. It’s all turned upside down; we’ve fallen down the rabbit hole, descended through the looking glass. “’Curiouser and curiouser!’ cried Alice (she was so much surprised, that for the moment she quite forgot how to speak good English.)” Yes, Alice in Wonderland might be the book for our times.
“Begin at the beginning,” the King said gravely, “and go on till you come to the end: then stop.” We are at the end, but, somehow, we’re not all stopped.
July 2025
For more information about me, click on my signature.
PERSPECTIVE – DEFY FASCISM JANUARY 20 and BEYOND
This country is sliding rapidly into becoming a fascist state. That is not just my opinion, it is a fact recognized by many.
You could start by going to a Walk Out Protest on Tuesday January 20.
A good friend—the kind that tells you the truth that you may not want to hear—told me that I should change my Home page photo of my Hands Off protest sign because it was outdated. The Trump administration already had put their “hands” on all those items, people, agencies, and, these are my words, destroyed, razed, obliterated, dismantled, blotted out, annihilated, sacked, raped, and pillaged them. He was right. A photo of Gaza would represent all that, but that was Netanyahu, yes, with Trump’s help, but not a true Trumpian devastation.
I live, at least partly, in the woods; piñon primarily, representatively considered piñon-juniper, but I have only a small handful of juniper, a larger sprinkling of Ponderosa, and hundreds of piñon. The birds like the piñon seeds along with a lot of other wildlife, and they periodically drop one in my various gardens and potted plants that I have in what I call my “yard,” a small area around the house; the rest of my a little over 6 ½ acres is left wild. I came upon the one starting to grow when it was just emerging from its seed similar to the top photo.
Essentially, I watched it being born. I transplanted it to its own pot, and then I starting spotting others here and there. I collected a few and put them in pots, too. Now, I just have to decide where my great granddaughter’s generation might like a piñon forest. It seems appropriate for me now to cherish and nurture these little, miniature lives.
Look around. In the darkest of times, the fascists can’t kill all joy, hope, and beauty.
What You’ll Find Here
Politics, history, civics, social justice, economics, philosophy. Comments and an ongoing dialogue with readers are welcome.
Brief descriptions of news to celebrate, updates, and serendipity.
Climate change, solutions, sustainability, pollution. Please feel free to contribute your own green ideas and practices.
Art, literature, poetry, essays, by me and others. No doubt, some commentary on banned books, which I hope you read.
Experience the world, be awed by stunning landscapes, learn history and geography, indulge in armchair travel, plan your next trip.
The story of a word, etymology, usage history, and meanings; not just individual words/phrases, but the difference between such words as Socialism vs. Communism, Nadir vs. Zenith, and more. Add a word you’d like to know more about or tell about one of your favorite words.
Brief descriptions of news to celebrate, updates, and serendipity.
What’s New
- PERSPECTIVE – Who Started a War in Iran to Get Re-elected?
- PERSPECTIVE- The REAL State of the Union
- PERSPECTIVE – The Deja-vu of History
- PERSPECTIVE – Letter to Jeff Bezos
- ENVIRONMENT – Water Saving Tips
- PERSPECTIVE – DEFY FASCISM JANUARY 20 and BEYOND
- SNIPPETS – Political and Environmental Action Ideas