Things are looking up!

Photo of me by Sue, perhaps more interesting than what I was photographing at the time. 

Biden's withdrawal gives me great hope that maybe we can actually hold off Trump and the fascism he wants to ride in on. Here's what Aric Clark, a friend who is a Presbyterian minister, wrote on Facebook (and with which I agree): 

1) Yes, it's good Biden withdrew. No one knows how this will play out, and we should ignore anyone who is claiming certainty about outcomes, whether triumphantly or in despair, but we can still be glad the guy funding genocide of Palestinians is not going to retain power. Embrace the uncertainty.


2) Yes, we can organize the election in time. There may be uncertainty about the mechanisms, but they organize elections in other countries in a few weeks. If we fail, it is not because it was impossible. It is because we get in our own way.


3) Social Media is not where meaningful political action occurs. It's still local organizing and down ballot voting that matters most in this thing. Don't spin out worrying about which box you're going to tick in one federal office. Defund the police in your town. Attend a school board meeting. Feed some houseless neighbors. That's all way more important and impactful.


4) If you're mad or worried that the Democrats are having to scramble late in the game, blame Biden for not keeping his promise to be a single term president. The writing was on the wall and lots of us knew it was a bad idea for him to run. His advisors committed malpractice getting him into this and then keeping him in way past the time it was obvious he was a liability.


5) Opinions on social media are shouting into the void, but if I was advising Democrats I would say "lean hard left". Democrats win when turnout is high. Biden was depressing enthusiasm. Don't make the mistake of trying to replace him with a younger carbon copy policy-wise. Give people who haven't had a reason to vote something to be excited about. You say this election is the most consequential ever? Act like it. Don't run the same play you've been running. Call a Hail Mary.


6) For those of you who've been saying that the only moral choice is to vote blue no matter who, it looks like you'll get a chance to prove your faith.