You’ve stumbled onto my blog, which is more of a personal diary — my way of making sense of things — than a public newsletter.
I’m an old liberal who became fascinated by American politics as a teenager. I love this country. I revere our democracy (though it is imperfect — and we’re backsliding) and the freedoms we enjoy (though they appear to be eroding). I feel fortunate to have been born in mid-twentieth century America and to have a life here. My good fortune includes being a first-generation college student who did better economically than my parents. That upward mobility is emblematic of the American dream.
This blog focuses on the Trump era, the turn of the Republican Party in an authoritarian direction, and the chasm between the richest among us and everyone else. I’m appalled by what I’ve witnessed since the rise of Newt Gingrich and Fox News Channel more than a quarter century ago and by the growing inequality of wealth and income since the 1970s.
Americans in the 21st century have separated into antagonistic red and blue camps, which cling to opposing versions of reality. What a confounding species we humans are. On one level, comprehending this phenomenon calls for a look at culture and politics. But we can look deeper. I take it for granted that an explanation for perplexing human behavior will be found in our evolutionary history.
My posts/journal entries are mostly milestones on the state of our politics (This is where we are) and on my reactions. I claim no special talent or credentials as an observer or analyst — just an attentive interest in what’s happening, the perspective of three quarters of a century living in the U.S.A., and a commitment to democracy. I find it convenient to set down my thoughts in a blog that permits cutting and pasting and linking to the web; plus, the search bar makes it easy to return to previous thoughts or arguments. WordPress enables this setup, which works for me.