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The Dangerous Moment...So Far [1]

['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']

Date: 2025-03-24

The truth is, I am an old-fashioned, flaming superpatriot. I’m a flag-waving yahoo who gets misty-eyed and sentimental on the Fourth of July. My favorite composer is John Philip Sousa. I am cornball crazy about this country. I enjoy movies like Dirty Harry, Death Wish, and Red Dawn with no irony whatsoever. I am pro-law and order. I have no desire to dismantle capitalism (a little regulation is alright with me though). Until 2016 I was a staunch middle-of-the-road Republican, since 1995. Before that, growing up in the 1970s I was a Cold War Liberal in the Truman/Kennedy/Johnson/Carter tradition. It’s also true that as a “person of color” I had it pretty good growing up in this country, middle class and integrated. I know that America has its problems, but unlike a lot of my friends on the left, I have never defined America by the most negative aspects of its power, culture, and history. Until recently, I had great faith in this country and its people and our ability to meet a host of challenges, socially, economically and internationally. I don’t have to tell you that a crisis that I never imagined has come to us (although I have been worried about this for a couple of years now). The dangerous moment has arrived, and it’s worse than I thought it would be. Various styles of authoritarianism have converged and seized the centers of power, and they are intent on destroying everything that America has at least tried to stand for. Every day brings new horror, paralyzing us, making us exhausted and despairing. The damage is proceeding so rapidly that it may be irreparable. Of course, authoritarians want us to be overwhelmed and exhausted; that’s part of the classic totalitarian playbook. I know that I have felt the impulse to just curl up in a ball and pretend nothing is happening. Watching our various institutions like the media and universities and law firms pre-emptively surrendering is discouraging to say the least. What to do? Well, some pushback is happening. The courts are doing their best. The most encouraging sign is that people across the spectrum seem to be getting riled up about the wanton destruction of governmental function in the name of “efficiency”. People are waking up to the fact that the fascists are assaulting our civil rights as well as creating new misery for citizens here and various groups of people abroad. Something like a coalition seems to be forming. Not sure how it will shake out. Bernie and AOC are barnstorming everywhere. Even red-state rightwingers are getting pissed. As for myself, speaking as an extreme moderate, I am willing to work with people to my left. The way I see it, our centrist/moderate vs left/progressive divisions won’t matter if the fascists prevail. We need to keep that in mind and not fall prey to infighting over ideological purity. The Enemy will steamroller over us and our country while we are arguing over doctrinal points. Lefties and moderates don’t need to give up what we believe to unify against these monsters who threaten us all. The bottom line for me is that I believe that what we have here is worth preserving (or conserving in my case, haha) and improving. We need to stay laser-focused on defeating those who would burn this country to the ground and make the world a more dangerous place. We are defeated if we believe that we are defeated. That is all.The truth is, I am an old-fashioned, flaming superpatriot. I’m a flag-waving yahoo who gets misty-eyed and sentimental on the Fourth of July. My favorite composer is John Philip Sousa. I am cornball crazy about this country. I enjoy movies like Dirty Harry, Death Wish, and Red Dawn with no irony whatsoever. I am pro-law and order. I have no desire to dismantle capitalism (a little regulation is alright with me though). Until 2016 I was a staunch middle-of-the-road Republican, since 1995. Before that, growing up in the 1970s I was a Cold War Liberal in the Truman/Kennedy/Johnson/Carter tradition. It’s also true that as a “person of color” I had it pretty good growing up in this country, middle class and integrated. I know that America has its problems, but unlike a lot of my friends on the left, I have never defined America by the most negative aspects of its power, culture, and history.

Until recently, I had great faith in this country and its people and our ability to meet a host of challenges, socially, economically and internationally. I don’t have to tell you that a crisis that I never imagined has come to us (although I have been worried about this for a couple of years now). The dangerous moment has arrived, and it’s worse than I thought it would be. Various styles of authoritarianism have converged and seized the centers of power, and they are intent on destroying everything that America has at least tried to stand for. Every day brings new horror, paralyzing us, making us exhausted and despairing. The damage is proceeding so rapidly that it may be irreparable. Of course, authoritarians want us to be overwhelmed and exhausted; that’s part of the classic totalitarian playbook. I know that I have felt the impulse to just curl up in a ball and pretend nothing is happening. Watching our various institutions like the media and universities and law firms pre-emptively surrendering is discouraging to say the least.

What to do? Well, some pushback is happening. The courts are doing their best. The most encouraging sign is that people across the spectrum seem to be getting riled up about the wanton destruction of governmental function in the name of “efficiency”. People are waking up to the fact that the fascists are assaulting our civil rights as well as creating new misery for citizens here and various groups of people abroad. Something like a coalition seems to be forming. Not sure how it will shake out. Bernie and AOC are barnstorming everywhere. Even red-state rightwingers are getting pissed. As for myself, speaking as an extreme moderate, I am willing to work with people to my left. The way I see it, our centrist/moderate vs left/progressive divisions won’t matter if the fascists prevail. We need to keep that in mind and not fall prey to infighting over ideological purity. The Enemy will steamroller over us and our country while we are arguing over doctrinal points. Lefties and moderates don’t need to give up what we believe to unify against these monsters who threaten us all. The bottom line for me is that I believe that what we have here is worth preserving (or conserving in my case, haha) and improving. We need to stay laser-focused on defeating those who would burn this country to the ground and make the world a more dangerous place. We are defeated if we believe that we are defeated. That is all.

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