Readers of this blog have been very upset by the election and by the results of the election.

There has been altogether too much anger and finger-pointing, directed at one another, not at the source of our mutual disappointment.

I was looking for the right words to address the anger and mutual recrimination. Then I got this message from my son Michael, and it seemed appropriate to post here (I have his permission after having posted it.)


“There never was a war that was not inward; I must fight till i have conquered in myself what causes war” – Marianne Moore

The first step towards defeating President-elect Trump is conquering our inner Trump.

He is cruelty; we must be kinder, towards ourselves, and the people around us, and then to people who disagree with us.

He is greed and selfishness; we must not sink into complacency – we must stay engaged, make a deeper commitment to the black and brown people of this country who will be his targets – we white people must listen to them, follow their lead, take risks on their behalf.

He is a congenital liar, who counts on us forgetting; we cannot be lulled to sleep by any apparent “moderation”, we cannot forget who the man is and how he won this office, we cannot be discouraged by the blizzard of bullshit he spreads.

He is a bully who divides people. We must commit to building bridges among our allies, not forming circular firing-squads. His greatest weapon is our discouragement and disengagement.

He is a fearful man who spreads fear like a contagion. We must be braver than we’ve ever been, braver than we thought possible. I think it’s likely we see a police crackdown like nothing we’ve seen in a generation. It will be legit scary to be a critic and protester in the age of Trump.

He is aesthetic ugliness. I know that seems petty compared to the other things on the list, but I believe it matters. I think human beings are made for more than just mindless consumption, but for making and appreciating beauty. Hatred and blindness thrive in the absence of beauty.

He is a cynic who believes in nothing except his own aggrandizement. In our shame that half of the country voted for this buffoon, we must not give into cynicism. We must have the courage to defend American ideals against their gravest threat ever. If we ever believed in this crazy experiment in self-governance, we must stand up for it now.

Let us be kinder to one another. Let us not forget what matters most. Let us not form a circular firing squad. No more recriminations between supporters of Bernie or Hillary or someone else. Let us remember that our country has survived other dark eras and, with enough pushing, emerged with a vision of what should be, what might be. What we cannot be is vindictive towards our allies. What we must be is informed, alert, organized, and ready to resist what must be resisted. We now live in the Age of Trump. These are interesting times and dangerous times. We must not turn against one another. Let us defend the weak and vulnerable. Let us resist as best we can. Let us be strong enough to know that this too will pass, but only if we make it so. Passivity is acquiescence. We will not acquiesce. We will resist.