Great piece, Stew. I hate the lying, the covert manipulation of money we don't have. I don't want to give one cent to this disgusting joke of an administration. The USAID debacle? The orange goon is a monster, a hateful, arrogant piece of crap. We have starving, homeless people in this country. We have a medical system that is so dysfunctional and overpriced that no one gets good care, except for that fabulous 1%. I'm so fed up, not just with this administration, but with the ones that came before. We don't know what's going on behind the scenes. And they lie to us in the name of "national security." Our governments should be 100% transparent, and accountable to us. They have to be reminded that they work for us. Their mission is to do the right thing. Not the thing that will generate illegal wealth as the monster helps himself to whatever he wants, and no one is stopping it. And yes, I second what Elizabeth Beggins said. I want to hear more about your experience when you worked for USAID. I know my post is an emotional rant. Because I'm an emotional person driven by my moral compass. It's enough already. It's got to implode. Hopefully sooner than later. xo
Not a rant, Nan - a sincere and heartfelt philipic against these times. High empaths like yourself feel this stuff so keenly it hurts. There are glimmers of hope, but it doesn't feel like enough. We have been hoping for 10+ years that the wheels will fall off this thing. But let's keep on doing what we are doing - writing, sharing, connecting, shining a light on the best of what we the people can be. Thanks!
Thanks, yup. That's my full intention. I'm not running scared from this nightmare. Because on the other side of the nightmare is an opportunity to show up as our very best, bravest selves. xo
I wonder if you can hear me shrieking from where you're sitting...or shoveling. I know little about defense spending and probably less about how defense budgets are compiled or campaigned. Someone very close to me used to complain about how the less fortunate were too dependent on government handouts, never reckoning with their own use of VA benefits, Social Security or Medicare. This is illuminating and prompted me to read more deeply, which then made me realize more fully how little I know!
I'd be curious to know what you think about this, if you have time to delve into it.
Wealth disparity raises my hackles more than most topics. I realize tax reform conversations can get radioactive pretty quickly, and I realize that changing how the billionaire class is taxed won't solve our debt issues by themselves. But refusing to look at all the available options limits the policy toolkit to cutting spending alone, which means touching either entitlements or defense if you want serious deficit reduction. No matter which side of the aisle you're on.
I also want to know more about your work with USAID. :) Thanks, Stew.
Oh dear, I did hear something, but I didn't know it was you! I scanned the article you linked, and want to read it proper-like when it's not 11:30 at night. I want to understand more about the connection between military-industrial complex and poverty. I think MLKJr talks about this back in 1967 in his speech about the Vietnam War.
It was interesting to shine the light on the military excess, while intentionally not focusing on the other side of the pie chart: the non-discretionary half of our budget composed of the entitlement programs.
If were made to feel some sacrifice in funding war, we as a nation might have stronger feelings about it. But all the consequences are in the future, and humans are terrible at taking action now to avoid something later.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts here, E. I didn't intend to make anyone shriek, but I do appreciate your engagement with the material!
It’s okay. I’ve also been known to shriek at traffic. And occasionally, in my head, at the DMV. It’s like a pressure release valve, a safety feature. 🤣
Thanks, Busy. I seem to have struck a chord in a few of my readers. Thanks for your help and support with this Substack venture, now almost a year old!
Great piece, Stew. I hate the lying, the covert manipulation of money we don't have. I don't want to give one cent to this disgusting joke of an administration. The USAID debacle? The orange goon is a monster, a hateful, arrogant piece of crap. We have starving, homeless people in this country. We have a medical system that is so dysfunctional and overpriced that no one gets good care, except for that fabulous 1%. I'm so fed up, not just with this administration, but with the ones that came before. We don't know what's going on behind the scenes. And they lie to us in the name of "national security." Our governments should be 100% transparent, and accountable to us. They have to be reminded that they work for us. Their mission is to do the right thing. Not the thing that will generate illegal wealth as the monster helps himself to whatever he wants, and no one is stopping it. And yes, I second what Elizabeth Beggins said. I want to hear more about your experience when you worked for USAID. I know my post is an emotional rant. Because I'm an emotional person driven by my moral compass. It's enough already. It's got to implode. Hopefully sooner than later. xo
Not a rant, Nan - a sincere and heartfelt philipic against these times. High empaths like yourself feel this stuff so keenly it hurts. There are glimmers of hope, but it doesn't feel like enough. We have been hoping for 10+ years that the wheels will fall off this thing. But let's keep on doing what we are doing - writing, sharing, connecting, shining a light on the best of what we the people can be. Thanks!
Thanks, yup. That's my full intention. I'm not running scared from this nightmare. Because on the other side of the nightmare is an opportunity to show up as our very best, bravest selves. xo
I wonder if you can hear me shrieking from where you're sitting...or shoveling. I know little about defense spending and probably less about how defense budgets are compiled or campaigned. Someone very close to me used to complain about how the less fortunate were too dependent on government handouts, never reckoning with their own use of VA benefits, Social Security or Medicare. This is illuminating and prompted me to read more deeply, which then made me realize more fully how little I know!
I'd be curious to know what you think about this, if you have time to delve into it.
https://www.ineteconomics.org/perspectives/blog/trillions-for-war-pennies-for-people-how-soaring-military-spending-fails-americans
Wealth disparity raises my hackles more than most topics. I realize tax reform conversations can get radioactive pretty quickly, and I realize that changing how the billionaire class is taxed won't solve our debt issues by themselves. But refusing to look at all the available options limits the policy toolkit to cutting spending alone, which means touching either entitlements or defense if you want serious deficit reduction. No matter which side of the aisle you're on.
I also want to know more about your work with USAID. :) Thanks, Stew.
Oh dear, I did hear something, but I didn't know it was you! I scanned the article you linked, and want to read it proper-like when it's not 11:30 at night. I want to understand more about the connection between military-industrial complex and poverty. I think MLKJr talks about this back in 1967 in his speech about the Vietnam War.
It was interesting to shine the light on the military excess, while intentionally not focusing on the other side of the pie chart: the non-discretionary half of our budget composed of the entitlement programs.
If were made to feel some sacrifice in funding war, we as a nation might have stronger feelings about it. But all the consequences are in the future, and humans are terrible at taking action now to avoid something later.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts here, E. I didn't intend to make anyone shriek, but I do appreciate your engagement with the material!
It’s okay. I’ve also been known to shriek at traffic. And occasionally, in my head, at the DMV. It’s like a pressure release valve, a safety feature. 🤣
Another illuminating and sobering post. Thank you Stew for bringing this tough stuff into focus.
Thanks, Busy. I seem to have struck a chord in a few of my readers. Thanks for your help and support with this Substack venture, now almost a year old!