To help lift the cloud over these dark times, I’m going to tell you a story about my cousin, Shay Banks Young. I didn’t know she was my cousin until 1998 when my sister Mary and I appeared with Shay and her son Douglas on the Oprah Winfrey show shortly after DNA evidence had proven that the descendants of Sally Hemings were also descendants of Thomas Jefferson because he and Sally had had children together. Shay was the fifth great granddaughter of Madison Hemings, who was the son of Sally and Thomas Jefferson, born at Monticello in 1805. My sister Mary and I are sixth great grandchildren of Jefferson and his wife, Martha.
Brought me to tears. Thank you. But I've been fighting for justice for almost 60 years and I'm so tired. Trying to keep my energy going for the battles ahead.
Has the Jefferson family relented? You did not say they had so I assume not. Let that be our lesson. Alcoholics Anonymous has taught us a very real lesson. If you know an alcoholic you know you can’t change them, only they can change themselves. The alcoholic must want to get sober him or herself. We must try nonviolent civil disobedience but wouldn’t it be wise to also explore other options like nullification of new laws that intend to crush our values? Texas already went down that path by deploying its national guard to patrol its border in opposition to federal law. I say what is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander. We might also come to realize that we are not one nation under God in actual truth. Never have been. A careful reading of history will tell us that. If we get our heads around that fact we might see our nations future in a totally new light.
I'm crying. I've never commented here before but thank you for your moral clarity and emotional fortitude. I needed this. I won't give up if you won't.
Thank you once again, Lucian, for an inspiring, courageous column. I just came from a virtual national Indivisible meeting, and they are ready to act. Find a group near you, or start one. All of us working together can show up for each other, obstruct Trump, Project 2025, and even Matt Gaetz(!!!); and limit the harm they do. Working together, we can defend our democracy and fight against authoritarianism, bigotry, and corruption. www.indivisible.org
It is heartbreaking to hear what people of color have faced and continue to face. The next four years will be brutal for so many. The Republican party is working to keep people uneducated and scared. That's their M.O. Thank you for your diligence and dedication to keeping people aware and educated.
An important column LTK. Many of us are tempted to just give up caring about politics, it seems hopeless. Trump wins by shamelessly repeating his lies, until finally they become reality. The big one now is that he received a "mandate" from the American people to enact his policies. The truth his he prevailed by one of the narrowest margins in history. But like claiming that Mueller "exonerated him completely" it became truth when democrats simply gave up on disputing it. We have to keep fighting by disputing every lie he utters no matter how little control we have. We'll see shortly if Congress has any backbone or if they too will simply roll over and let Trump run government as he pleases.
Agree completely, Tom! We must fight key lies and narratives.
As has been said before, Dem leaders need to watch the movie “Idiocracy”! Maybe once per quarter? Dems have been doing a lot better, e.g. Walz, Obama joining Harris in crafting sound/video bites that no news outlets can ignore. That said, many patriots laughed at Trump on a dump truck calling it a massive failure, but it was an effective PR stunt.
So maybe a staffer dressed in a $20 Halloween razor blade costume isn’t the answer, but — Think Hard! What would be to make the “ain’t no mandate” point?
Will Biden and Harris have a “big bill send-off” reminding the public — in a way the news can’t ignore — of the infrastructure, high tech industry/chips, economic and jobs a) accomplishments and b) FUTURE EFFECTS of the major legislation and policies that will be rolling out for years? Maybe they stand in the scoop of a giant bulldozer? (Douglass Adams anyone?). Don’t chuckle. Without it, *Trump* more credibly claims Infrastructure, jobs, the chip industry, etc.
I’m adding this “Reply to my own post” because for some reason, without it, the last line of my previous post (“…CARNEY ON”) doesn’t show even when one clicks to read the entire post. [SubStack, you have a bug!].
Let me just add, it’s obviously not just “news outlets” any more (just like it’s no longer just “sound bites”). It’s also social media influencers, individuals, et. al…
You have my greatest respect, Lucian. I fear we will all be fighting to our last breath. I thought it was bad during Vietnam/Nixon. Reagan and the Bushes were pretty bad too, but what we are about to face will make those times pale by comparison. Half the country is getting the government it deserves. Our half is trying to respond. But everyone is going to suffer, and that other half is going to be punished, but won’t realize it because they’ll continue to believe the propaganda they’re fed on a daily basis. We elitists are being told we’re not allowed to look down, or point out the deplorables who won’t/can’t learn. But they have the same right to vote we do. And therein lies the conundrum of democracy. They are taking democracy away from everyone because ultimately democracy is defenseless against an insurgency of ignorance, racism, and stupidity.
The uninformed, whether by choice or inability to know better, have the same right to vote as those who take the time to stay informed about issues, have learned about our history, and can realize a lie is just that when they hear it. Thank you Lucian for the great and inspirational column.
I know words. Simple ones, complex ones, technical terms and poetry. But they all turn to dust when I try to describe what we're facing. It's like trying to explain a nightmare using only primary colors.
The situation towers over our vocabulary. Every attempt to capture its scale only emphasizes how far short we fall. Our most precise language reads like children's drawings next to this reality.
Each sentence I construct feels like building sandcastles at the edge of an abyss. The harder I try to articulate the depth of it, the more the words crumble. Our finest dictionaries, our most eloquent phrases - they're matchsticks against a mountain.
We've built civilizations on words. Created laws, love stories, manifestos. But here, at this precipice, language itself seems to bow its head in submission. Even our silence feels insufficient.
Sometimes silence says more than words ever could. Maybe that's where we are now - at the edge where language fails and only the void speaks back. All our careful eloquence dissolves into the dark, leaving us with nothing but the raw truth of our inadequacy.
The words don't fail because they're wrong. They fail because they're finite, and what we face knows no bounds.
Yet here I stand, as I always have. My marriage certificate sits in a fireproof bag next to my passport - not because I lack courage, but because I've learned that survival requires both defiance and preparation. Years in Southern California taught me that stability is an illusion, that safety demands readiness. The go bag by my door isn't surrender - it's wisdom earned in a world where rights can evaporate like morning dew.
You should have one too. Not because we plan to run, but because we plan to survive. Because sometimes holding your ground means knowing exactly when and how to shift it. This isn't paranoia - it's the clear-eyed pragmatism of those who've watched hard-won freedoms turn fragile overnight.
(2008)?). Principled leaders need to re-think oratory. Think crafty, high-minded PR stunts. I'm stuck on a phrase I crafted above as advice for patriots (Dems and democracy-loving Republicans!): KEEP CALM AND CARNEY ON!
Yes, I remember that story; it’s why I decided to subscribe. I am going to be fine over the next few years. It’s the less fortunate who will suffer. Your cousin has a lot of spirit. We should take her as our model.
Lucian: One of the main reasons I came to regard your writing (and buy subscriptions for my liberal friends) was your earlier position(s) on Sally Hemmings. The obvious reason your white descendent's voted 95 to 6 was because they didn't want to endorse Jefferson's 18th Century behavior and somehow make it okay, that, and Sally and her children were "illegitimate." After all, how would it look with a descendent gathering if almost half the people in the photograph were black? From a "Father" of the country? Even today, there would be hell to pay. DNA is one thing; optics is the other.
A friend sent me a message via What’s Ap saying that Matt Gaetz will be nominated for Attorney General. I responded, “I’m assuming that’s a joke.” No joke! I guess the Dumpster is nominating him to ‘own the libs.’ The brotherhood of sexual predators hangs together.
Personally, both the nomination of Gaetz and Peter Hegseth for DoD were low points---especially Hegseth whose only qualifications seem to be that he's good-looking, vain, stupid and a irremediable womanizer (cheated on wife #1 with the woman who became #2, then cheating on her with the woman who became wife #3)....in other words, just like Trump (except for the germs thing). Maybe that is what Trump likes about him.
Brought me to tears. Thank you. But I've been fighting for justice for almost 60 years and I'm so tired. Trying to keep my energy going for the battles ahead.
Has the Jefferson family relented? You did not say they had so I assume not. Let that be our lesson. Alcoholics Anonymous has taught us a very real lesson. If you know an alcoholic you know you can’t change them, only they can change themselves. The alcoholic must want to get sober him or herself. We must try nonviolent civil disobedience but wouldn’t it be wise to also explore other options like nullification of new laws that intend to crush our values? Texas already went down that path by deploying its national guard to patrol its border in opposition to federal law. I say what is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander. We might also come to realize that we are not one nation under God in actual truth. Never have been. A careful reading of history will tell us that. If we get our heads around that fact we might see our nations future in a totally new light.
You go my man. I won't be pushed around either for my Jewish faith to name one thing.
Yeah, we've been dealing with horseshit like this for [checks watch] about three thousand years now. What's one more time?
I'm crying. I've never commented here before but thank you for your moral clarity and emotional fortitude. I needed this. I won't give up if you won't.
Thank you once again, Lucian, for an inspiring, courageous column. I just came from a virtual national Indivisible meeting, and they are ready to act. Find a group near you, or start one. All of us working together can show up for each other, obstruct Trump, Project 2025, and even Matt Gaetz(!!!); and limit the harm they do. Working together, we can defend our democracy and fight against authoritarianism, bigotry, and corruption. www.indivisible.org
Terrific!
It is heartbreaking to hear what people of color have faced and continue to face. The next four years will be brutal for so many. The Republican party is working to keep people uneducated and scared. That's their M.O. Thank you for your diligence and dedication to keeping people aware and educated.
You are a better man than me. My soul wants to barf. I'm ready to get up and do it again, but it ain't easy. Thanks for being so steadfast.
An important column LTK. Many of us are tempted to just give up caring about politics, it seems hopeless. Trump wins by shamelessly repeating his lies, until finally they become reality. The big one now is that he received a "mandate" from the American people to enact his policies. The truth his he prevailed by one of the narrowest margins in history. But like claiming that Mueller "exonerated him completely" it became truth when democrats simply gave up on disputing it. We have to keep fighting by disputing every lie he utters no matter how little control we have. We'll see shortly if Congress has any backbone or if they too will simply roll over and let Trump run government as he pleases.
Powerful article, Lucian!
Agree completely, Tom! We must fight key lies and narratives.
As has been said before, Dem leaders need to watch the movie “Idiocracy”! Maybe once per quarter? Dems have been doing a lot better, e.g. Walz, Obama joining Harris in crafting sound/video bites that no news outlets can ignore. That said, many patriots laughed at Trump on a dump truck calling it a massive failure, but it was an effective PR stunt.
So maybe a staffer dressed in a $20 Halloween razor blade costume isn’t the answer, but — Think Hard! What would be to make the “ain’t no mandate” point?
Will Biden and Harris have a “big bill send-off” reminding the public — in a way the news can’t ignore — of the infrastructure, high tech industry/chips, economic and jobs a) accomplishments and b) FUTURE EFFECTS of the major legislation and policies that will be rolling out for years? Maybe they stand in the scoop of a giant bulldozer? (Douglass Adams anyone?). Don’t chuckle. Without it, *Trump* more credibly claims Infrastructure, jobs, the chip industry, etc.
KEEP CALM AND CARNEY ON!
I’m adding this “Reply to my own post” because for some reason, without it, the last line of my previous post (“…CARNEY ON”) doesn’t show even when one clicks to read the entire post. [SubStack, you have a bug!].
Let me just add, it’s obviously not just “news outlets” any more (just like it’s no longer just “sound bites”). It’s also social media influencers, individuals, et. al…
I am heartbroken that women’s rights seem to be going backward.
You have my greatest respect, Lucian. I fear we will all be fighting to our last breath. I thought it was bad during Vietnam/Nixon. Reagan and the Bushes were pretty bad too, but what we are about to face will make those times pale by comparison. Half the country is getting the government it deserves. Our half is trying to respond. But everyone is going to suffer, and that other half is going to be punished, but won’t realize it because they’ll continue to believe the propaganda they’re fed on a daily basis. We elitists are being told we’re not allowed to look down, or point out the deplorables who won’t/can’t learn. But they have the same right to vote we do. And therein lies the conundrum of democracy. They are taking democracy away from everyone because ultimately democracy is defenseless against an insurgency of ignorance, racism, and stupidity.
The unfortunate truth.
The uninformed, whether by choice or inability to know better, have the same right to vote as those who take the time to stay informed about issues, have learned about our history, and can realize a lie is just that when they hear it. Thank you Lucian for the great and inspirational column.
I know words. Simple ones, complex ones, technical terms and poetry. But they all turn to dust when I try to describe what we're facing. It's like trying to explain a nightmare using only primary colors.
The situation towers over our vocabulary. Every attempt to capture its scale only emphasizes how far short we fall. Our most precise language reads like children's drawings next to this reality.
Each sentence I construct feels like building sandcastles at the edge of an abyss. The harder I try to articulate the depth of it, the more the words crumble. Our finest dictionaries, our most eloquent phrases - they're matchsticks against a mountain.
We've built civilizations on words. Created laws, love stories, manifestos. But here, at this precipice, language itself seems to bow its head in submission. Even our silence feels insufficient.
Sometimes silence says more than words ever could. Maybe that's where we are now - at the edge where language fails and only the void speaks back. All our careful eloquence dissolves into the dark, leaving us with nothing but the raw truth of our inadequacy.
The words don't fail because they're wrong. They fail because they're finite, and what we face knows no bounds.
Yet here I stand, as I always have. My marriage certificate sits in a fireproof bag next to my passport - not because I lack courage, but because I've learned that survival requires both defiance and preparation. Years in Southern California taught me that stability is an illusion, that safety demands readiness. The go bag by my door isn't surrender - it's wisdom earned in a world where rights can evaporate like morning dew.
You should have one too. Not because we plan to run, but because we plan to survive. Because sometimes holding your ground means knowing exactly when and how to shift it. This isn't paranoia - it's the clear-eyed pragmatism of those who've watched hard-won freedoms turn fragile overnight.
You have inspired me to unpack my own bug-out-bag and rethink it. What may have worked 8 years ago might not be as well-suited as it was then.
It looks a lot more dangerous out there now than it did in 2016, which is remarkable.
Thank you.
McDonald's uniforms. Dump trucks. Idiocracy
(2006) (If that's too far out, maybe WALL-E
(2008)?). Principled leaders need to re-think oratory. Think crafty, high-minded PR stunts. I'm stuck on a phrase I crafted above as advice for patriots (Dems and democracy-loving Republicans!): KEEP CALM AND CARNEY ON!
.
Yes, I remember that story; it’s why I decided to subscribe. I am going to be fine over the next few years. It’s the less fortunate who will suffer. Your cousin has a lot of spirit. We should take her as our model.
86-year-old member of Indivisible West Marin here, we're not going back. Thank you for your always inspiring columns!
Lucian: One of the main reasons I came to regard your writing (and buy subscriptions for my liberal friends) was your earlier position(s) on Sally Hemmings. The obvious reason your white descendent's voted 95 to 6 was because they didn't want to endorse Jefferson's 18th Century behavior and somehow make it okay, that, and Sally and her children were "illegitimate." After all, how would it look with a descendent gathering if almost half the people in the photograph were black? From a "Father" of the country? Even today, there would be hell to pay. DNA is one thing; optics is the other.
My POV is that they voted to expel because they endorse Jefferson's behavior and proved it with their vote.
Thereby making it even more not-OK.
There isn't hell to pay now or tomorrow, unfortunately. Most of the racists believe racism was "cured" long ago.
Thank you. I’m so glad you fought for Shay and she damn well fought for herself!
I hope I never have to live through another day when Matt Gaetz is nominated for attorney general of the United States. This is a new low.
A friend sent me a message via What’s Ap saying that Matt Gaetz will be nominated for Attorney General. I responded, “I’m assuming that’s a joke.” No joke! I guess the Dumpster is nominating him to ‘own the libs.’ The brotherhood of sexual predators hangs together.
Together
I'm still in shock. This can't be real.
Personally, both the nomination of Gaetz and Peter Hegseth for DoD were low points---especially Hegseth whose only qualifications seem to be that he's good-looking, vain, stupid and a irremediable womanizer (cheated on wife #1 with the woman who became #2, then cheating on her with the woman who became wife #3)....in other words, just like Trump (except for the germs thing). Maybe that is what Trump likes about him.
It seems every day brings a new new low
Count me in.