Grounded: A Senator’s Lessons
on Winning Back Rural America
Book by Montana U.S. Senator Jon Tester
---- Book ‘interview’ by Gayle Brauner 5-25-2021
Jon & Sharla Tester -- https://twitter.com/SenatorTester/status/1236701575814529025
Since moving to the North Olympic Peninsula 5 years ago, I’ve had to adjust to ‘town’ living close to neighbors. Of my 70+ years, 50 were spent in the quiet, semi-privacy of small town or rural living. This span of time included woods and farmlands, along rivers and lakes, on mountains, in high desert country, and amidst the wet, lush west side of the Cascades. The Pacific Northwest is my home.
Another adjustment has been cultural, experiencing the clash of rural versus urban upbringing. Since the north peninsula has become a draw for retirees and many others seeking their paradise (called ‘transplants’ by some locals), the urban bigotry toward long-time residents (and I might add, toward Pacific north westerners in general) is palpable. My thought is – transplants need to assimilate not vice versa. Understand that people who have committed themselves to an area for decades, even generations, have knowledge, skills, experiences, connections, and feelings that new residents do not. Rural people are diverse.
On the other hand, the often typical provincial defensiveness, aggression, exclusion, false sense of superiority, and slow acceptance towards ‘outsiders’, exhibited by ‘locals’, can tax one’s patience.
When I heard of Senator Tester’s 2020 book on organizing in rural areas for Democrats, I hoped to find a political and cultural ally - someone who UNDERSTANDS. And that happened.
His book seems like a face-to-face interview - a book which drenches you in a prairie storm, and dries you out in prairie heat 30 minutes later. Thus my ‘book interview’. I want Sen. Tester’s authenticity to dominate the words in this article, with his emphasis that a democratic country must have quality public education and family-owned agriculture.
Jon and Sharla Tester own 1800 acres in Montana’s ‘Golden Triangle’, near Big Sandy, where generations of farmers, including their extended families, learned how to coax a high-caliber wheat to grow. It’s an organic enterprise, where they rotate crops. They “grow several varieties of wheat, barley, safflower, buckwheat, alfalfa hay, lentils, millet, and peas…I don’t harvest peas,” Jon explains. “I plow them back into the dirt, where they release their nitrogen and replenish the soil as green manure. We don’t use any chemical fertilizers.” I fluctuate between being in awe and wonder, and tired from all the work our farmers do. Ch. 7
Younger Years
Jon’s mother inspired him to be aware of politics from an early age. “In the mornings all of us gathered downstairs at the kitchen table, where we would plot out our work for the day over a hearty breakfast and whatever political opinions were on Mother’s mind.”
While his Father was away one day, his Mother asked 10-year-old Jon to help her finish packaging some recently dressed beef. He, being a responsible boy, was set to task grinding the meat in their new grinder. That’s how he lost the 3 middle fingers of his left hand. He stood mesmerized by the inner workings of the electric grinder and simply extended his fingers into the mashing tool. I relate to that curiosity and loss of judgment. At age 56, I poured a gallon of gas on a brush pile to expedite it’s burning. I was in a hurry. I knew better from being told over and over, and recently heard of High School kids getting severely burned while at drunken bonfires. The pile exploded as soon as I lit the match, and a layer of skin on one side of my face and an arm was seared. I wouldn’t recommend this method for a ‘face peel’ as cosmetic surgery. Ch. 2
Jon’s Mother’s family passed the farm down to her. Jon’s Father, not a farmer, but a man who enjoyed riding his horses in the Montana wildernesses, gave up that life almost entirely. “The mountain man whose duty to his family redirected him to a quiet career on the flatland,” Jon reflected with admiration.
He learned the creed of all good farmers: The animals come first.
“The loathed chore of “pickin’ rock” is familiar to most farm kids,” Jon recalls. “In my childhood I spent many difficult days with my ass higher than my head, soaked with muddy sweat, hands buried in the dirt, picking rocks larger than my fist and tossing them into the back of a pickup…when my folks sent me out to pick rock… my goal was to finish the job without losing my mind…I now know the valuable lessons …taught me: patience, pride in work, humility, and persistence despite physical discomfort.” When I worked in central Oregon and learned of kids having to pick rocks to clear the field for planting and to prevent damage to farm machinery, I could not fathom it. No way. Then I realized how lucky I had been born into a logging family. Ch 2.
When Jon and friends were being bullied at school, he asked his older brother, Bob, what he should do. “You find the biggest, meanest SOB you can find, and beat the hell out of that guy. The big guys aren’t used to getting a fist in the face, and it’ll show the rest of them what you are made of.” Jon followed the advice. He and friends were never bothered again. Jon remembers this strategy, metaphorically, when he has to deal with outrageous political situations as a US Senator. Ch. 2
Public Service Through Elected Offices
“Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth,” Mike Tyson. A poster with this quote was hung in Jon’s campaign office by manager Christie Roberts. Ch. 1. The following list shows some of Jon’s important policy issues, and how he fought to get them reconciled.
Indian Health Services.
“I became familiar with the problems plaguing the IHS long before I became a US Senator…chronic workforce shortages, crumbling buildings, substandard training, and insufficient federal funding.” When questioning the new appointee of IHS in 2017, Rear Admiral Michael Weahkee, Senator Tester’s long fuse exploded. “If you have a hard time understanding government-speak like I do, here’s a translation: We’re obligated to say we want to provide health care to more people in need, but I’m certainly not going to complain about getting significantly less money, and I’d rather gaslight you than piss off the White House.” Ch. 5
Veterans
Jon, a Veteran advocate, started as a teenage bugler for the burial services for Vietnam Veterans.
In 2014, his Republican colleagues wouldn’t fully fund health care costs for Veterans. After six weeks of obstructionism, he tore into them: “Many of these lawmakers are the same ones…who put our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan on a credit card. Many didn’t blink when they sent hundreds of troops into Iraq earlier this month…(now) they worry about the (health care) cost. Well, I got news for them: Taking care of our veterans is a cost of war. You do not send young Americans to war and then not take care of them.” The Veterans Access, Choice and Accountability Act was finally passed, months later, and signed into law by Pres. Obama. Ch. 3
Federal Land and Wilderness Areas
“Federal land in the US designated as ‘wilderness’ is some of the most protected land in the world…that means wilderness is controversial, because it is preserved forever, protected from development, roads, or even the intrusion of any form of ‘mechanical transport.’” Jon supports wilderness protection. In 2006, right before he assumed his first term duties as a US Senator, Jon met with a group of conservation leaders, owners of Montana’s timber mills, and recreation enthusiasts to help them draw up a compromise on some federal land. “After all, I was raised in a community built, for the most part, by compromise and cooperation. The honyockers of north-central Montana had no other choice in order to survive…” Ch. 6
Loss of Family Farms
‘The consolidation of family farms at the hands of multinational food giants threaten the very existence of family farms…We ought to start by rejiggering how we invest in America’s land-grant and agricultural research universities…One or two companies own and control every part of the process: the genetically modified seed, the herbicide…, the grain, the shipping method, the factory and the food product that comes out the other side of it. A small-farm producer like me wants nothing to do with that kind of system.” Ch. 7
Women Across Rural America
Besides the disadvantages caused by pay disparity, families supported by women “face even more hurdles: lack of access to quality health care, lack of access to nutritious food, lack of affordable childcare… In a nation of abundance like ours, the fact that fifteen million households don’t get enough food is staggering and shameful.” Ch. 6
Supreme Court
“I had mostly made up my mind on Judge Kavanaugh…when the nation watched Dr. Christine Blasey-Ford’s reluctant public testimony, followed by Kavanaugh’s belligerent response on live TV”, Jon announced. Also, “…citing my concerns over his defense of the Patriot Act, his support of dark money, and ‘who he believes is in charge of making personal health decisions’… I have deep concerns about the allegations of sexual assault…I’ll be voting against him.” Ch. 17
Trade War with China and the 2018 US Senatorial Race
While Donald Trump stumped Montana in July, (and 3 other times in 2018) to try to beat Sen. Tester, Jon met with Billings’ Chamber of Commerce. Jon emphasized, “For a president who claimed to support agriculture, his trade war had already cost Montana farmers millions in lost revenue.” The President of the Montana Grain Growers Association, Michelle Erickson-Jones exclaimed, “If and when the tariffs are enacted…we face significant duties of $65 million in wheat exports to China annually. Right now, current daily impacts have been substantial: the price of bins, the price of steel, the price of equipment, the impacts to the used equipment market.” Ch. 17
Tester’s full page campaign ads in Montana’s newspapers read: ‘Welcome to Montana and THANK YOU PRESIDENT TRUMP for supporting Jon’s legislation to help veterans and first responders, hold the VA accountable, and get rid of waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government.’ Listed below in smaller print were the 16 bills sponsored by Tester, all which passed and Trump signed. Ch 17
“…Donald Trump Junior had called me a ‘piece of garbage’ during a pre-Election Day political rally in Montana…I did challenge Junior to spend a day with me, pickin’ rocks on my farm, the old-fashioned way. Let’s put our asses higher than our heads and see who lasts the longest, I said.” Junior never responded. Ch. 2
2020 Impeachment Trial
“All of us (members of Congress) took another oath during the president’s impeachment trial in early 2020, swearing to ‘do impartial justice according to the Constitution and laws’…When I came home to Montana after comfortably voting guilty on both articles of impeachment, I heard only thank-yous. That’s because in Montana, character matters in public service.” Epilogue
Winning Political Races in Rural Areas
Sharla has always been a guide in Jon’s success as a Senator. He also gives credit to his Mother and Grandmother. “It’s about to get a whole lot tougher,” he told Sharla during the 2012 Senatorial race. “We can handle it,” she said. “Just keep your priorities straight and everything else will follow in a straight line. The farm and family are priorities.”
People must believe in a candidate, that he/she has the best interests in mind for people locally and state wide, so they will donate and vote. Know what significantly impacts their lives. This takes leg work and phone work. Knocking on every door possible, calling lists of people to introduce oneself and asking for their vote. Signs up all over. Listen to stories and concerns. Hold many meetings and townhalls. Get your name and face recognized.
With elections being so expensive now, especially with the challenges of ‘dark money’ and ‘Citizens’ United’ 2010 legislature (‘corporations are people’ – not!), fund raising is constant work. Jon is highly esteemed by hometown childhood friend, Jeff Ament, and other members of the band ‘Pearl Jams’. They hold campaign fundraising concerts each year he runs for re-election.
“Stick to one’s guns” over important policy issues, legislation and promises made to constituents. Jon states practically of his political team’s efforts: “And we did it, the same way my folks had on the farm for years: Setting priorities, cutting the fat, living within our means.”
I’ve only touched on some ‘gems’ of Senator Tester’s book, the values and policy issues that are important to him, Montanans, and our country. As he says, “I know most Americans are used to a life without stars, without solitude, and without the peace that comes with the quietness of a place like Chouteau County, Montana. It makes me realize how lucky I really am.” Enjoy reading his book filled with a ‘field of jewels’.
Another adjustment has been cultural, experiencing the clash of rural versus urban upbringing. Since the north peninsula has become a draw for retirees and many others seeking their paradise (called ‘transplants’ by some locals), the urban bigotry toward long-time residents (and I might add, toward Pacific north westerners in general) is palpable. My thought is – transplants need to assimilate not vice versa. Understand that people who have committed themselves to an area for decades, even generations, have knowledge, skills, experiences, connections, and feelings that new residents do not. Rural people are diverse.
On the other hand, the often typical provincial defensiveness, aggression, exclusion, false sense of superiority, and slow acceptance towards ‘outsiders’, exhibited by ‘locals’, can tax one’s patience.
When I heard of Senator Tester’s 2020 book on organizing in rural areas for Democrats, I hoped to find a political and cultural ally - someone who UNDERSTANDS. And that happened.
His book seems like a face-to-face interview - a book which drenches you in a prairie storm, and dries you out in prairie heat 30 minutes later. Thus my ‘book interview’. I want Sen. Tester’s authenticity to dominate the words in this article, with his emphasis that a democratic country must have quality public education and family-owned agriculture.
Jon and Sharla Tester own 1800 acres in Montana’s ‘Golden Triangle’, near Big Sandy, where generations of farmers, including their extended families, learned how to coax a high-caliber wheat to grow. It’s an organic enterprise, where they rotate crops. They “grow several varieties of wheat, barley, safflower, buckwheat, alfalfa hay, lentils, millet, and peas…I don’t harvest peas,” Jon explains. “I plow them back into the dirt, where they release their nitrogen and replenish the soil as green manure. We don’t use any chemical fertilizers.” I fluctuate between being in awe and wonder, and tired from all the work our farmers do. Ch. 7
Younger Years
Jon’s mother inspired him to be aware of politics from an early age. “In the mornings all of us gathered downstairs at the kitchen table, where we would plot out our work for the day over a hearty breakfast and whatever political opinions were on Mother’s mind.”
While his Father was away one day, his Mother asked 10-year-old Jon to help her finish packaging some recently dressed beef. He, being a responsible boy, was set to task grinding the meat in their new grinder. That’s how he lost the 3 middle fingers of his left hand. He stood mesmerized by the inner workings of the electric grinder and simply extended his fingers into the mashing tool. I relate to that curiosity and loss of judgment. At age 56, I poured a gallon of gas on a brush pile to expedite it’s burning. I was in a hurry. I knew better from being told over and over, and recently heard of High School kids getting severely burned while at drunken bonfires. The pile exploded as soon as I lit the match, and a layer of skin on one side of my face and an arm was seared. I wouldn’t recommend this method for a ‘face peel’ as cosmetic surgery. Ch. 2
Jon’s Mother’s family passed the farm down to her. Jon’s Father, not a farmer, but a man who enjoyed riding his horses in the Montana wildernesses, gave up that life almost entirely. “The mountain man whose duty to his family redirected him to a quiet career on the flatland,” Jon reflected with admiration.
He learned the creed of all good farmers: The animals come first.
“The loathed chore of “pickin’ rock” is familiar to most farm kids,” Jon recalls. “In my childhood I spent many difficult days with my ass higher than my head, soaked with muddy sweat, hands buried in the dirt, picking rocks larger than my fist and tossing them into the back of a pickup…when my folks sent me out to pick rock… my goal was to finish the job without losing my mind…I now know the valuable lessons …taught me: patience, pride in work, humility, and persistence despite physical discomfort.” When I worked in central Oregon and learned of kids having to pick rocks to clear the field for planting and to prevent damage to farm machinery, I could not fathom it. No way. Then I realized how lucky I had been born into a logging family. Ch 2.
When Jon and friends were being bullied at school, he asked his older brother, Bob, what he should do. “You find the biggest, meanest SOB you can find, and beat the hell out of that guy. The big guys aren’t used to getting a fist in the face, and it’ll show the rest of them what you are made of.” Jon followed the advice. He and friends were never bothered again. Jon remembers this strategy, metaphorically, when he has to deal with outrageous political situations as a US Senator. Ch. 2
Public Service Through Elected Offices
“Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth,” Mike Tyson. A poster with this quote was hung in Jon’s campaign office by manager Christie Roberts. Ch. 1. The following list shows some of Jon’s important policy issues, and how he fought to get them reconciled.
Indian Health Services.
“I became familiar with the problems plaguing the IHS long before I became a US Senator…chronic workforce shortages, crumbling buildings, substandard training, and insufficient federal funding.” When questioning the new appointee of IHS in 2017, Rear Admiral Michael Weahkee, Senator Tester’s long fuse exploded. “If you have a hard time understanding government-speak like I do, here’s a translation: We’re obligated to say we want to provide health care to more people in need, but I’m certainly not going to complain about getting significantly less money, and I’d rather gaslight you than piss off the White House.” Ch. 5
Veterans
Jon, a Veteran advocate, started as a teenage bugler for the burial services for Vietnam Veterans.
In 2014, his Republican colleagues wouldn’t fully fund health care costs for Veterans. After six weeks of obstructionism, he tore into them: “Many of these lawmakers are the same ones…who put our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan on a credit card. Many didn’t blink when they sent hundreds of troops into Iraq earlier this month…(now) they worry about the (health care) cost. Well, I got news for them: Taking care of our veterans is a cost of war. You do not send young Americans to war and then not take care of them.” The Veterans Access, Choice and Accountability Act was finally passed, months later, and signed into law by Pres. Obama. Ch. 3
Federal Land and Wilderness Areas
“Federal land in the US designated as ‘wilderness’ is some of the most protected land in the world…that means wilderness is controversial, because it is preserved forever, protected from development, roads, or even the intrusion of any form of ‘mechanical transport.’” Jon supports wilderness protection. In 2006, right before he assumed his first term duties as a US Senator, Jon met with a group of conservation leaders, owners of Montana’s timber mills, and recreation enthusiasts to help them draw up a compromise on some federal land. “After all, I was raised in a community built, for the most part, by compromise and cooperation. The honyockers of north-central Montana had no other choice in order to survive…” Ch. 6
Loss of Family Farms
‘The consolidation of family farms at the hands of multinational food giants threaten the very existence of family farms…We ought to start by rejiggering how we invest in America’s land-grant and agricultural research universities…One or two companies own and control every part of the process: the genetically modified seed, the herbicide…, the grain, the shipping method, the factory and the food product that comes out the other side of it. A small-farm producer like me wants nothing to do with that kind of system.” Ch. 7
Women Across Rural America
Besides the disadvantages caused by pay disparity, families supported by women “face even more hurdles: lack of access to quality health care, lack of access to nutritious food, lack of affordable childcare… In a nation of abundance like ours, the fact that fifteen million households don’t get enough food is staggering and shameful.” Ch. 6
Supreme Court
“I had mostly made up my mind on Judge Kavanaugh…when the nation watched Dr. Christine Blasey-Ford’s reluctant public testimony, followed by Kavanaugh’s belligerent response on live TV”, Jon announced. Also, “…citing my concerns over his defense of the Patriot Act, his support of dark money, and ‘who he believes is in charge of making personal health decisions’… I have deep concerns about the allegations of sexual assault…I’ll be voting against him.” Ch. 17
Trade War with China and the 2018 US Senatorial Race
While Donald Trump stumped Montana in July, (and 3 other times in 2018) to try to beat Sen. Tester, Jon met with Billings’ Chamber of Commerce. Jon emphasized, “For a president who claimed to support agriculture, his trade war had already cost Montana farmers millions in lost revenue.” The President of the Montana Grain Growers Association, Michelle Erickson-Jones exclaimed, “If and when the tariffs are enacted…we face significant duties of $65 million in wheat exports to China annually. Right now, current daily impacts have been substantial: the price of bins, the price of steel, the price of equipment, the impacts to the used equipment market.” Ch. 17
Tester’s full page campaign ads in Montana’s newspapers read: ‘Welcome to Montana and THANK YOU PRESIDENT TRUMP for supporting Jon’s legislation to help veterans and first responders, hold the VA accountable, and get rid of waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government.’ Listed below in smaller print were the 16 bills sponsored by Tester, all which passed and Trump signed. Ch 17
“…Donald Trump Junior had called me a ‘piece of garbage’ during a pre-Election Day political rally in Montana…I did challenge Junior to spend a day with me, pickin’ rocks on my farm, the old-fashioned way. Let’s put our asses higher than our heads and see who lasts the longest, I said.” Junior never responded. Ch. 2
2020 Impeachment Trial
“All of us (members of Congress) took another oath during the president’s impeachment trial in early 2020, swearing to ‘do impartial justice according to the Constitution and laws’…When I came home to Montana after comfortably voting guilty on both articles of impeachment, I heard only thank-yous. That’s because in Montana, character matters in public service.” Epilogue
Winning Political Races in Rural Areas
Sharla has always been a guide in Jon’s success as a Senator. He also gives credit to his Mother and Grandmother. “It’s about to get a whole lot tougher,” he told Sharla during the 2012 Senatorial race. “We can handle it,” she said. “Just keep your priorities straight and everything else will follow in a straight line. The farm and family are priorities.”
People must believe in a candidate, that he/she has the best interests in mind for people locally and state wide, so they will donate and vote. Know what significantly impacts their lives. This takes leg work and phone work. Knocking on every door possible, calling lists of people to introduce oneself and asking for their vote. Signs up all over. Listen to stories and concerns. Hold many meetings and townhalls. Get your name and face recognized.
With elections being so expensive now, especially with the challenges of ‘dark money’ and ‘Citizens’ United’ 2010 legislature (‘corporations are people’ – not!), fund raising is constant work. Jon is highly esteemed by hometown childhood friend, Jeff Ament, and other members of the band ‘Pearl Jams’. They hold campaign fundraising concerts each year he runs for re-election.
“Stick to one’s guns” over important policy issues, legislation and promises made to constituents. Jon states practically of his political team’s efforts: “And we did it, the same way my folks had on the farm for years: Setting priorities, cutting the fat, living within our means.”
I’ve only touched on some ‘gems’ of Senator Tester’s book, the values and policy issues that are important to him, Montanans, and our country. As he says, “I know most Americans are used to a life without stars, without solitude, and without the peace that comes with the quietness of a place like Chouteau County, Montana. It makes me realize how lucky I really am.” Enjoy reading his book filled with a ‘field of jewels’.
Central Montana
https://centralmontana.com/photosandvideos/
Paul Manafort – The Ukrainian Lessons
---- By Gayle Brauner, April 25, 2021
Viktor Yanukovych (left) and Paul Manafort
|
Konstantin Kilimnik
|
Paul Manafort is one kind of American. Not one to emulate.
When Paul Manafort worked in Ukraine for a decade, he was hired to improve the image and political appeal of Viktor Yanukovych, the Party of Reason candidate for Prime Minister and later President. How did he revivify a known thug, linked to murders, corrupted to the bone, and playmate of Russian and Ukrainian oligarchs, into a professional, suave politician who would appear to have Ukraine’s best interests in mind?
When Paul Manafort worked in Ukraine for a decade, he was hired to improve the image and political appeal of Viktor Yanukovych, the Party of Reason candidate for Prime Minister and later President. How did he revivify a known thug, linked to murders, corrupted to the bone, and playmate of Russian and Ukrainian oligarchs, into a professional, suave politician who would appear to have Ukraine’s best interests in mind?
Let’s cut to the chase – Yanukovych’s intentions were to become richer and gain more power, not to look after the best interests of the Ukrainian people. Paul Manafort was hired to cast a disorienting, deceitful spell on the populace by embellishing Yanukovych – and it worked from time to time. That is, until Yanukovych, caught again in corruption and overthrown by revolution, fled from Ukraine to live in Russia. (1)(2)
Konstantin Kilimnik played a central role with Manafort in Ukraine. He’s the Russian agent barred from the U.S, ‘Person A’ indicted by Bob Mueller with a $250,000 reward for his informant. Kilimnik managed the Kiev, Ukraine office for friend Manafort to swing Ukraine east toward Russian influence and domination, rather than west, to democratic NATO involvement. He later worked with Manafort in the U.S. to mesmerize a disgruntled, disillusioned populace for another election: The Presidential race of 2016. (2) (3) (14)
Kilimnik and Manafort used similar election tampering tactics in both the Yanukovych and Trump campaigns. Now it’s come to light Kilimnik siphoned off Trump campaign data and polling information, passing it on to Russian intelligence, in order to disrupt our 2020 elections to favor Trump. Fortunately, we had learned a big lesson, and that didn’t work. (4) (5) (6)
Manafort had a talent and an abundance of methods to turn corrupt political crooks into thriving politicians, to hide those with wolf fangs under soft, sheep wool. Such transformations were made by:
After landing in Ukraine in 2004, Manafort met one of the main opposition challengers to Yanukovych, Yulia Tymoshenko. She held the office of Prime Minister and ran for President while he lived in that country. He appeared to relish the smear campaign and punishment delved out to her. Through ‘news’ outlets such as Breitbart, he manufactured accusations of anti-Semitism against her. Depicted as a criminal deserving incarceration, she was charged with bribery, misusing public finances, and tax evasion, later revealed to be false accusations. Utilizing tactics like these listed above, his most disgraceful success was participating in her trial and imprisonment for brokering a natural gas deal with Russia. She was released from prison and acquitted of all charges when Yanukovych was run out of Ukraine during the 2014 Revolution of Honor. Then Putin invaded and annexed Ukraine’s Crimea to punish their audacity at self-determination. (8) (9)(10)(14)
The yowling cry of “Lock her up” directed at Hillary Clinton, even this year, mainly by shrill, hateful white men, struck me with disbelief. On one guy’s pickup in my neighborhood a bumper sticker still reads: Hillary for prison. The banal chorus croaking “crooked Hillary’ indicated how language was manipulated to cover up her opponent’s own misdeeds. Language, in general, can be used to inform or provoke. When I learned that the specific ways of targeting Hillary had origins in the defamation and imprisonment of another politically astute, dynamic woman, Tymoshenko, half a globe away, by the same ‘influence peddler’ (as Manafort called himself), I felt alarmed at the widespread, imminent danger of despotic, loathsome aspirants, and those who promote and hype them. (11)(12) (13)
The repackaging of the notorious to be professional and presentable became a trademark of Manafort’s skills – easy enough for a wealthy man devoid of ethical principles or integrity. From his earliest years, Manafort’s strategies were sought, from Presidents Reagan and George H.W. Bush. Looking back, that’s concerning! For a hefty price, he advised controversial foreign leaders like Filipino dictator Ferdinand Marcos, Jonas Savimbi, notorious guerrilla leader in Angola, and the strong- armed Zairian, Mobutu Sese Soku. Manafort said these were just jobs, never mind the atrocities his contributions might have incurred. For him to be pardoned after his conviction of conspiring against our country, and a history of heinous associations, was incredible and unacceptable. (2)(3) (7)
All of us, in our private lives, make choices which gauge our character. Are we driven by greed, status, biases, malice, and power like Paul Manafort? Do we try to con, take advantage of and hurt others ruthlessly? Or do we endeavor to accomplish our best at work, in our communities, and at home, apply our skills scrupulously, continue to learn more, and especially have high ethical standards?
Democracy challenges us. We choose whom we advance into leadership roles. Leaders’ values and characters need to be honestly clear. Their motives for seeking influential local and national high-level positions must be transparent. Accountability is key. The Ukrainian, Russian and American connections and Manafort’s corruption instruct us in valuable lessons to evaluate and direct our personal and political actions.
“The greatest evil today is indifference. To know and not to act is a way of consenting to these injustices. The Planet has become a very small place. What happens in other countries affects us.” -- Elie Wiesel, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, 1986
Konstantin Kilimnik played a central role with Manafort in Ukraine. He’s the Russian agent barred from the U.S, ‘Person A’ indicted by Bob Mueller with a $250,000 reward for his informant. Kilimnik managed the Kiev, Ukraine office for friend Manafort to swing Ukraine east toward Russian influence and domination, rather than west, to democratic NATO involvement. He later worked with Manafort in the U.S. to mesmerize a disgruntled, disillusioned populace for another election: The Presidential race of 2016. (2) (3) (14)
Kilimnik and Manafort used similar election tampering tactics in both the Yanukovych and Trump campaigns. Now it’s come to light Kilimnik siphoned off Trump campaign data and polling information, passing it on to Russian intelligence, in order to disrupt our 2020 elections to favor Trump. Fortunately, we had learned a big lesson, and that didn’t work. (4) (5) (6)
Manafort had a talent and an abundance of methods to turn corrupt political crooks into thriving politicians, to hide those with wolf fangs under soft, sheep wool. Such transformations were made by:
- Learning how to give effective speeches and stay on message
- Wearing make-up when needed, an attractive hair style, and the best clothes to create an illusion of professionalism and stature
- Using policies and issues to one’s advantage; changing a position depending on the audience to whom the message is addressed
- Driving wedges into and polarizing the voting public by calculated means
- Utilizing language effectively to promote self and to demean others - slogans, memes, lies repeated over and over until believed
- Designing fake websites, blogs, personas to elevate self, or to eviscerate opponents’ characters with false information, made up stories and testimonials for widespread dissemination
- Constantly barraging opponents with mendacious accusations and investigations
- Imprisoning opponents using duplicitous charges for political expediency
After landing in Ukraine in 2004, Manafort met one of the main opposition challengers to Yanukovych, Yulia Tymoshenko. She held the office of Prime Minister and ran for President while he lived in that country. He appeared to relish the smear campaign and punishment delved out to her. Through ‘news’ outlets such as Breitbart, he manufactured accusations of anti-Semitism against her. Depicted as a criminal deserving incarceration, she was charged with bribery, misusing public finances, and tax evasion, later revealed to be false accusations. Utilizing tactics like these listed above, his most disgraceful success was participating in her trial and imprisonment for brokering a natural gas deal with Russia. She was released from prison and acquitted of all charges when Yanukovych was run out of Ukraine during the 2014 Revolution of Honor. Then Putin invaded and annexed Ukraine’s Crimea to punish their audacity at self-determination. (8) (9)(10)(14)
The yowling cry of “Lock her up” directed at Hillary Clinton, even this year, mainly by shrill, hateful white men, struck me with disbelief. On one guy’s pickup in my neighborhood a bumper sticker still reads: Hillary for prison. The banal chorus croaking “crooked Hillary’ indicated how language was manipulated to cover up her opponent’s own misdeeds. Language, in general, can be used to inform or provoke. When I learned that the specific ways of targeting Hillary had origins in the defamation and imprisonment of another politically astute, dynamic woman, Tymoshenko, half a globe away, by the same ‘influence peddler’ (as Manafort called himself), I felt alarmed at the widespread, imminent danger of despotic, loathsome aspirants, and those who promote and hype them. (11)(12) (13)
The repackaging of the notorious to be professional and presentable became a trademark of Manafort’s skills – easy enough for a wealthy man devoid of ethical principles or integrity. From his earliest years, Manafort’s strategies were sought, from Presidents Reagan and George H.W. Bush. Looking back, that’s concerning! For a hefty price, he advised controversial foreign leaders like Filipino dictator Ferdinand Marcos, Jonas Savimbi, notorious guerrilla leader in Angola, and the strong- armed Zairian, Mobutu Sese Soku. Manafort said these were just jobs, never mind the atrocities his contributions might have incurred. For him to be pardoned after his conviction of conspiring against our country, and a history of heinous associations, was incredible and unacceptable. (2)(3) (7)
All of us, in our private lives, make choices which gauge our character. Are we driven by greed, status, biases, malice, and power like Paul Manafort? Do we try to con, take advantage of and hurt others ruthlessly? Or do we endeavor to accomplish our best at work, in our communities, and at home, apply our skills scrupulously, continue to learn more, and especially have high ethical standards?
Democracy challenges us. We choose whom we advance into leadership roles. Leaders’ values and characters need to be honestly clear. Their motives for seeking influential local and national high-level positions must be transparent. Accountability is key. The Ukrainian, Russian and American connections and Manafort’s corruption instruct us in valuable lessons to evaluate and direct our personal and political actions.
“The greatest evil today is indifference. To know and not to act is a way of consenting to these injustices. The Planet has become a very small place. What happens in other countries affects us.” -- Elie Wiesel, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, 1986
Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton and former Prime Minister of Ukraine, Yulia Tymoshenko.
- NBC News, 6/27/2017, ‘What did ex-Trump aide, Paul Manafort, really do in Ukraine?’ by Kenzi Abou-Sabe, Tom Winter & Max Tucker https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/what-did-ex-trump-aide-paul-manafort-really-do-ukraine-n775431
- Time magazine, 10/31/2017, ‘How Paul Manafort Helped Elect Russia’s Men in Ukraine’, by Simon Schuster, reporter in Kiev, Ukraine https://time.com/5003623/paul-manafort-mueller-indictment-ukraine-russia/
- American Constitution Society & Citizens for Responsibility & Ethics in Washington, March 2019, ‘Key Findings of the Mueller Report’. https://www.acslaw.org/projects/the-presidential-investigation-education-project/other-resources/key-findings-of-the-mueller-report/
- NBC News, 4/16/2021, ‘U.S. has new intel that Manafort friend Kilimnik gave Trump campaign data to Russia’, by Tom Winter & Monica Aba https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/u-s-has-new-intel-manafort-friend-kilimnik-gave-trump-n1264371
- CNBC news, 4/15/2021 ‘Trump campaign Chief Manafort’s associate Kilimnik gave Russia 2016 election strategy, polling, U.S. says’, by Dan Mangan https://www.cnbc.com/2021/04/15/trump-campaign-chief-paul-manafort-employee-kilimnik-gave-russia-election-data.html
- US Department of Treasury, Press Release 4/15/2021, ‘Treasury Escalates Sanctions Against the Russian Government’s Attempts to Influence US Elections. https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy0126
- The Center for Public Integrity, 1992, ‘The Torturer’s Lobby: How Human Rights – Abusing Nations Are Represented in Washington’, by Pamela Brogan https://cloudfront-files-1.publicintegrity.org/legacy_projects/pdf_reports/THETORTURERSLOBBY.pdf
- Reason, 10/31/2017, ‘Yulia Tymoshenko warned us about Paul Manafort years ago’, by Elizabeth Nolan Brown https://reason.com/2017/10/31/tymoshenko-warned-us-about-paul-manafort/
- Reuters, 3/3/2019, ‘Ukraine’s Tymoshenko: ‘Gas princess’, prisoner, and next president?’ by Matthias Williams, Pavel Polityuk https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ukraine-election-tymoshenko/ukraines-tymoshenko-gas-princess-prisoner-and-next-president-idUSKCN1QL0LT
- BBC News, 11/21/2014, ‘Ukraine’s Revolution: Making Sense of a Year of Chaos’, by Andrew Kurkov https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-30131108
- What Happened (book) by Hillary Clinton, 2017; pp. 325-376 ‘Trolls, Bots, Fake News, and Real Russians’
- Rolling Stone, 7/21/2016, “How ‘Lock Her Up’ Became a Mainstream GOP Rallying Cry”, by Tessa Stuart https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/how-lock-her-up-became-a-mainstream-gop-rallying-cry-96172/
- WBUR, Boston’s NPR news station, 7/25/2018; ‘The Disturbing Evolution of ‘Lock Her Up’”, by Steve Almond https://www.wbur.org/cognoscenti/2018/07/25/lock-her-up-jeff-sessions-steve-almond
- Npoekt (The Project), 8/22/2018, ‘The Absolute Soviet Man. A Portrait of Konstantin Kilimnik, Russian Patriot and Paul Manafort’s Buddy’, by Maria Zholobova and Roman Badanin https://www.proekt.media/en/article/kilimnik-manafort-eng/
Guest Commentary
Countering White Christian Nationalism (Part 3)
--- By Gayle Brauner April 5, 2021
Young NAACP Legal Defense Fund lawyer, Vanita Gupta, her co-attorneys, and team, in 2001, traveled to a small town, population 5000, in the panhandle of Texas to meet with 46 people, 35 of whom had been convicted and imprisoned in 1999. Arrested on bogus drug charges, roused from bed by police, paraded barefoot in their pajamas in embarrassment before TV cameras, and soon tried and put in prison, these innocent people were victims of Texas’s prolonged history of racial injustice. Most of these Tulia, TX citizens were Black. Their combined sentences added up to 730 years. (1)(2)(3)(4)(27)(33)
Tom Coleman, a racist undercover policeman who ‘busted’ them, provided no evidence. It was his word alone that forced them into incarceration with the aid of a nearly all white jury, a judge and a sheriff. His actions were approved by the Texas Attorney General, John Cornyn, a graduate of the private protestant Trinity University. He awarded Officer Coleman the prestigious “Lawman of the Year” after the trials. (1)(2)(3)(4)(5)(6)(33)
In 2003, the 35 imprisoned citizens, were pardoned by Gov. Rick Perry, with 45 absolved individuals receiving a combined settlement of $6 million, due to the perseverance of Vanita Gupta’s team. Officer Coleman, in 2005, was convicted of two unrelated perjury counts. He wasn’t charged for the Tulia defendant cases because the statute of limitations had expired. A travesty. (1) (2)(3) (4)
Fast forward nearly 20 years, January 2021. Ms. Gupta is nominated for a position in our U.S. Justice Department by Pres. Biden, after years of committed legal effort for civil rights. Rough on the edges at times, biting back at Republican bigotry, personally wealthy and from a rich corporate family, Ms. Gupta, I believe, will be an extraordinary addition to our justice system. John Cornyn, skunked in the Tulia fiasco by Ms. Gupta, gripping a bitter grudge and prejudice, is trying to undermine her confirmation. (1)(2)(11)(12) (14)
Whether opposing the nominations of women to high level Government positions (such as Hillary Clinton for Sec. of State, Sonia Sotomayor for Supreme court, Debra Haaland for Sec. of Interior) and against women’s equality issues (plurality of male elders in his church – women shall not speak or lead; Violence Against Women Act, access to safe abortion, Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009), John Cornyn’s affiliation with the rigid Restorationist Church of Christ determines his politics. This church perpetuates historical Christian nationalism for our country (see parts 1 & 2 in this series) by simple Biblical threats: “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” (process of salvation, as in Mark 16:16). His opaque opinions and alliances, and legislative history concerning racial justice lead to an impression of tolerance for White Christian nationalism. (3)(7)(8)(9)(10)(26)(27)(28)
I tell this story because Vanita Gupta is an experienced, successful fighter against attacks on our liberty and freedom. Not possessing a rhetorical, arm-chair pedantic character, she’s rather a weathered, on the ground medic tending to our brutally inflicted partisan wounds. Her focus, her family’s belief in her, enabled her to save 45 individuals and their families, and gave us a champion. She has broad support, even from conservative and Law Enforcement organizations, for her Associate Attorney General confirmation. (11)(13) (33)
In this last of three essays on White Christian nationalism, I focus on remedies to this malady. Rather than make lists of actions to take, I’ll provide some RESOURCE groups that have made these lists already over decades of work. (See RESOURCES list below - #15-25)
What I will provide are some ideas to foster confidence, resilience, and the ability to endure hardships, to be effective, through a few stories, anecdotes, and tools.
Leaders of Christian Churches and organizations are now outspoken, endeavoring to educate and warn their parishioners about white supremacist sophistry in Christian circles. Because this deadly movement uses Christian text, symbols, and faith, the alt-right co-opts these teachings by brandishing false messages in Biblical language. Part of dispelling the hold White Christian nationalism has on parishioners, such as heralding an apocalyptic end date, is to reveal these conniving tactics, and confronting the sticky web of influence and control some really creepy groups, like QAnon, have over people, which suck out people’s humanity and common sense.
(10)(19)(20)(21) (25)(27)(28)(29)(32)
Education is a major key: Knowing the symbols and tactics of hate groups; understanding propaganda and indoctrination techniques and how vulnerable people are targeted; discerning fact from fiction (example - Pres. Biden speaks honestly and cares about our well-being versus Putin stokes disinformation to undermine democracies worldwide and is a cold-blooded murderer); reading many sources on history and current events; attending college and graduating; traveling and learning about other cultures and our planet; and realizing that White Christian nationalism resides as a menace in our communities. (RESOURCES # 15-25)
Self -awareness is an essential undertaking in order to become effective, to truly understand and resolve one’s own issues, biases, questionable motivations, destructive impulses, vulnerable weaknesses. Making excuses or blaming others for one’s bad behavior doesn’t cut it. Each person must do whatever it takes to gain this inner knowledge, to stop destructive drives which cause hideous actions towards society. Seeking help to overcome these ‘demons’ is not weakness. (29)(30)
Our responsibility also includes turning in to Law Enforcement those around us possessed by hateful bigotry, religious and/or political threatening fanaticism, with intentions to commit violent acts. Learn the signs. When a woman turned her ‘Ex’ in to FBI as a Capitol rioter, after he texted her from a vandalized Capitol – calling her a moron for not believing the 2020 election ‘stop the steal’ mantra - I felt almost giddy with appreciation, especially when several other women followed suit. (29)(31) (32)
Christian Piccolini, recruited in a Chicago alley by a neo-nazi skinhead at age 14, was later anointed as leader to “write propaganda, devise infiltration strategies, and broker mergers with other similar extremist organizations”. He said, “People join extremist groups because they’re looking for identity, community and purpose. Ideology becomes the vehicle to be angry and violent.” After a reckless life filled with self-hatred, losing his wife and children, he came to his senses and started the group “Life After Hate” which assists former neo-nazis and other extremists to abandon virulent ideology. “When people are more confident and competitive in the workplace, when they feel more whole,” he explains, “they feel less of a need to blame the other for taking away.” (30)
Tools to improve our confidence, resilience, safety, and endurance, give us strength and courage in all aspects of our lives. We need skills to be effective personally, at work, as a community activist, and so on. These tools / skills include but are not limited to: Communication, such as listening, writing, and speaking; Conflict resolution; Research, including online skills; Self-defense training and safety plans for home and out in the world; Maintenance of physical and mental health; Mentors, heroes, who we admire and emulate; Information which challenges our minds, assumptions and world views; and acquaintance with people of myriad heritage.
Networking leads us to overcome isolation and find groups committed to a multitude of issues in which we may be involved: Being a volunteer, helping with a campaign, joining a civic group, participating in community events and meetings, donating funds. As MLK Jr said, “If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way.” We may end up doing great things, like Stacy Abrams, leading the ‘Fair Fight’ voting rights organization, ensuring the elections of 2 new US Senators from Georgia in 2020! (23) “When you have decided what you believe, what you feel must be done, have courage to stand alone and be counted.” -- Eleanor Roosevelt.
There is so much to learn and do! We have the gumption to ensure our democratic values of, by and for ALL Americans prevail. Let’s live by upholding our Country’s motto: E pluribus Unum – Out of Many, We are One.
Tom Coleman, a racist undercover policeman who ‘busted’ them, provided no evidence. It was his word alone that forced them into incarceration with the aid of a nearly all white jury, a judge and a sheriff. His actions were approved by the Texas Attorney General, John Cornyn, a graduate of the private protestant Trinity University. He awarded Officer Coleman the prestigious “Lawman of the Year” after the trials. (1)(2)(3)(4)(5)(6)(33)
In 2003, the 35 imprisoned citizens, were pardoned by Gov. Rick Perry, with 45 absolved individuals receiving a combined settlement of $6 million, due to the perseverance of Vanita Gupta’s team. Officer Coleman, in 2005, was convicted of two unrelated perjury counts. He wasn’t charged for the Tulia defendant cases because the statute of limitations had expired. A travesty. (1) (2)(3) (4)
Fast forward nearly 20 years, January 2021. Ms. Gupta is nominated for a position in our U.S. Justice Department by Pres. Biden, after years of committed legal effort for civil rights. Rough on the edges at times, biting back at Republican bigotry, personally wealthy and from a rich corporate family, Ms. Gupta, I believe, will be an extraordinary addition to our justice system. John Cornyn, skunked in the Tulia fiasco by Ms. Gupta, gripping a bitter grudge and prejudice, is trying to undermine her confirmation. (1)(2)(11)(12) (14)
Whether opposing the nominations of women to high level Government positions (such as Hillary Clinton for Sec. of State, Sonia Sotomayor for Supreme court, Debra Haaland for Sec. of Interior) and against women’s equality issues (plurality of male elders in his church – women shall not speak or lead; Violence Against Women Act, access to safe abortion, Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009), John Cornyn’s affiliation with the rigid Restorationist Church of Christ determines his politics. This church perpetuates historical Christian nationalism for our country (see parts 1 & 2 in this series) by simple Biblical threats: “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” (process of salvation, as in Mark 16:16). His opaque opinions and alliances, and legislative history concerning racial justice lead to an impression of tolerance for White Christian nationalism. (3)(7)(8)(9)(10)(26)(27)(28)
I tell this story because Vanita Gupta is an experienced, successful fighter against attacks on our liberty and freedom. Not possessing a rhetorical, arm-chair pedantic character, she’s rather a weathered, on the ground medic tending to our brutally inflicted partisan wounds. Her focus, her family’s belief in her, enabled her to save 45 individuals and their families, and gave us a champion. She has broad support, even from conservative and Law Enforcement organizations, for her Associate Attorney General confirmation. (11)(13) (33)
In this last of three essays on White Christian nationalism, I focus on remedies to this malady. Rather than make lists of actions to take, I’ll provide some RESOURCE groups that have made these lists already over decades of work. (See RESOURCES list below - #15-25)
What I will provide are some ideas to foster confidence, resilience, and the ability to endure hardships, to be effective, through a few stories, anecdotes, and tools.
Leaders of Christian Churches and organizations are now outspoken, endeavoring to educate and warn their parishioners about white supremacist sophistry in Christian circles. Because this deadly movement uses Christian text, symbols, and faith, the alt-right co-opts these teachings by brandishing false messages in Biblical language. Part of dispelling the hold White Christian nationalism has on parishioners, such as heralding an apocalyptic end date, is to reveal these conniving tactics, and confronting the sticky web of influence and control some really creepy groups, like QAnon, have over people, which suck out people’s humanity and common sense.
(10)(19)(20)(21) (25)(27)(28)(29)(32)
Education is a major key: Knowing the symbols and tactics of hate groups; understanding propaganda and indoctrination techniques and how vulnerable people are targeted; discerning fact from fiction (example - Pres. Biden speaks honestly and cares about our well-being versus Putin stokes disinformation to undermine democracies worldwide and is a cold-blooded murderer); reading many sources on history and current events; attending college and graduating; traveling and learning about other cultures and our planet; and realizing that White Christian nationalism resides as a menace in our communities. (RESOURCES # 15-25)
Self -awareness is an essential undertaking in order to become effective, to truly understand and resolve one’s own issues, biases, questionable motivations, destructive impulses, vulnerable weaknesses. Making excuses or blaming others for one’s bad behavior doesn’t cut it. Each person must do whatever it takes to gain this inner knowledge, to stop destructive drives which cause hideous actions towards society. Seeking help to overcome these ‘demons’ is not weakness. (29)(30)
Our responsibility also includes turning in to Law Enforcement those around us possessed by hateful bigotry, religious and/or political threatening fanaticism, with intentions to commit violent acts. Learn the signs. When a woman turned her ‘Ex’ in to FBI as a Capitol rioter, after he texted her from a vandalized Capitol – calling her a moron for not believing the 2020 election ‘stop the steal’ mantra - I felt almost giddy with appreciation, especially when several other women followed suit. (29)(31) (32)
Christian Piccolini, recruited in a Chicago alley by a neo-nazi skinhead at age 14, was later anointed as leader to “write propaganda, devise infiltration strategies, and broker mergers with other similar extremist organizations”. He said, “People join extremist groups because they’re looking for identity, community and purpose. Ideology becomes the vehicle to be angry and violent.” After a reckless life filled with self-hatred, losing his wife and children, he came to his senses and started the group “Life After Hate” which assists former neo-nazis and other extremists to abandon virulent ideology. “When people are more confident and competitive in the workplace, when they feel more whole,” he explains, “they feel less of a need to blame the other for taking away.” (30)
Tools to improve our confidence, resilience, safety, and endurance, give us strength and courage in all aspects of our lives. We need skills to be effective personally, at work, as a community activist, and so on. These tools / skills include but are not limited to: Communication, such as listening, writing, and speaking; Conflict resolution; Research, including online skills; Self-defense training and safety plans for home and out in the world; Maintenance of physical and mental health; Mentors, heroes, who we admire and emulate; Information which challenges our minds, assumptions and world views; and acquaintance with people of myriad heritage.
Networking leads us to overcome isolation and find groups committed to a multitude of issues in which we may be involved: Being a volunteer, helping with a campaign, joining a civic group, participating in community events and meetings, donating funds. As MLK Jr said, “If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way.” We may end up doing great things, like Stacy Abrams, leading the ‘Fair Fight’ voting rights organization, ensuring the elections of 2 new US Senators from Georgia in 2020! (23) “When you have decided what you believe, what you feel must be done, have courage to stand alone and be counted.” -- Eleanor Roosevelt.
There is so much to learn and do! We have the gumption to ensure our democratic values of, by and for ALL Americans prevail. Let’s live by upholding our Country’s motto: E pluribus Unum – Out of Many, We are One.
- The New York University School of Law; “Turning the Tables in Tulia”; 2004 (Please note, there are discrepancies in nearly all the articles I’ve read about how many people were charged, how many imprisoned and the collective number of years of imprisonment). https://blogs.law.nyu.edu/magazine/2004/turning-the-tables-in-tulia/
- The Hill; Rachel Maddow Calls into Question Cornyn Connection to Gupta; By Joseph Choi; 3/25/21 thehill.com/homenews/media/544884-rachel-maddow-calls-into-question-cornyns-connection-to-biden-nominee-vanita
- The Texas Signal; “The Complicity of Sen. John Cornyn and Rep. Michael McCaul in the Mass Arrest of Black People in Tulia, Texas; By Chris Chu de Leon; 7/9/2020 https://texassignal.com/the-complicity-of-sen-john-cornyn-and-rep-michael-mccaul-in-the-mass-arrests-of-black-people-in-tulia-texas/
- NBC News/Associated Press; “Texas Undercover Cop Convicted of Perjury”, by Jim Watkins; 1/14/2005; https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna6827494 TEXAS MONTHLY; “Bust Town”, by Nate Blakeslee; Nov. 2005 https://www.texasmonthly.com/articles/bust-town/
- Trinity University where John Cornyn was graduated. Historically, it didn’t allow professors of differing religious beliefs. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinity_University_(Texas)
- Trinity University, San Antonio, Texas - state historical association https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/trinity-university
- Christianity. Org; “Church of Christ – 10 things to know about their history and beliefs”,by Bannon Diebert https://www.christianity.com/church/denominations/churches-of-christ-10-things-to-know-about-their-history-and-beliefs.html
- The Texas Tribune; “U.S. Senator John Cornyn faces outcry from Democrats after questioning idea of systemic racism”; by Abby Livingston; 6/17/2020. https://www.texastribune.org/2020/06/17/john-cornyn-systemic-racism/
- The Dallas Morning News; “Cornyn’s 18-year Senate record more nuanced, less warm and fuzzy, than his curated TV Ads”, by Todd J. Gillman; 10/23/2020 https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2020/10/23/cornyns-18-year-senate-record-more-nuanced-less-warm-and-fuzzy-than-his-curated-tv-ads/
- Christianity Today; “Kelly Edmiston and Women in Churches of Christ: Who gets to speak into that microphone?” by Kelly Edmiston; 3/04/2020 https://www.christianitytoday.com/scot-mcknight/2020/march/kelly-edmiston-and-women-in-churches-of-christ.html
- Accountable U.S.; press release, 3/19/21; “Watchdog Group Condemns Cornyn’s Baseless Attack Against Justice Nominee Gupta.” https://www.accountable.us/news/watchdog-condemns-cornyns-vitriolic-and-baseless-attack-against-justice-nominee-gupta/
- Economic Times, Indian-American, Vanita Gupta regrets past harsh rhetoric, attacked by Republicans at Senate hearing; 3/10/21 https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/world-news/indian-american-vanita-gupta-regrets-past-harsh-rhetoric-attacked-by-republicans-at-senate-hearing/articleshow/81425632.cms?fro
- The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights; “Broad Support Grows Ahead of Vanita Gupta’s Hearing for Justice Department”; by Rafael Medina; 3/8/2021. https://civilrights.org/2021/03/08/broad-support-grows-ahead-of-vanita-guptas-hearing-for-justice-department/
- ABC News; “Biden’s Associate Attorney General pick would be the wealthiest member of Administration”; by Soo Rin Kim and Alexander Mallin; 3/7/2021. https://abcnews.go.com/US/bidens-associate-attorney-general-pick-wealthiest-member-administration/story?id=76280582
- RESOURCE: Southern Poverty Law Center. SPLC 10 ways to combat hate groups https://www.splcenter.org/20170814/ten-ways-fight-hate-community-response-guide
- RESOURCE: Anti-Defamation League; https://www.adl.org/hate-symbols
- RESOURCE: Jewish Virtual Library https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/
- RESOURCE: Bloomberg Lab: tracking hate groups https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-10-16/is-far-right-political-violence-getting-worse
- RESOURCE: CARR (Centre for Analysis of the Radical Right); “All Hail Q! The forging of a right-wing religion and its extreme threat to security”; by James Hardy; 3/21/2021 https://www.radicalrightanalysis.com/2021/03/23/all-hail-q-the-forging-of-a-right-wing-religion-and-its-extreme-threat-to-security/
- RESOURCE: The Atlantic; “The Librarian War Against QAnon”; by Barbara Fister; 2/18/2021 https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2021/02/how-librarians-can-fight-qanon/618047/
- RESOURCE: UK gov. PREVENT extremism https://www.gov.uk/goernment/publications/prevent-duty-guidance/revised-prevent-duty-guidance-for-england-and-wales
- RESOURCE: Hold Unity Rallies, if this thing happens: https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2018/feb/27/racist-flyers-found-on-ewu-campus/#/0
- RESOURCE: Fair Fight! Stacy Abrams’ voting rights organization in Georgia https://fairfight.com/
- RESOURCE: We beat Trump, now let’s save Democracy: https://indivisible.org/
- RESOURCE: Boston Review; “Can Christian Democracy Save Us? By Udi Greenburg; 10/22/2019 http://bostonreview.net/philosophy-religion/udi-greenberg-christian-democracy (unsecured)
- Texas Observer, “How Cristian Nationalism Moved from Fringe to White House”, by Karl Richter; 3/10/2021 – Book Review of Katherine Stewarts, Power Worshippers https://www.texasobserver.org/power-worshippers-christian-nationalism-katherine-stewart/
- Religion Dispatches; “New study of Christian Nationalism in Texas should be a warning for whole country”, by David Brickman; 4/2/2020 https://religiondispatches.org/new-study-of-christian-nationalism-in-texas-should-be-a-warning -for-the-whole-country/
- National Public Radio; “Disinformation Fuels A White Evangelical Movement. It Led One Pastor to Quit; by Dalia Mortada, Rachel Martin, Bo Hamby; 2/21/2021 https://www.npr.org/2021/02/21/969539514/disinformation-fuels-a-white-evangelical-movement-it-led-1-virginia-pastor-to-qu
- Willamette Week; “The Oregon Brothers Accused of Storming the U.S. Capitol Spent Much of Their Lives as the Children of Baptist Missionaries”; by Tess Riski; 3/31/2021 https://www.wweek.com/news/courts/2021/03/31/the-oregon-brothers-accused-of-storming-the-u-s-capitol-spent-much-of-their-lives-as-the-children-of-baptist-missionaries/
- Chicago Tribune; “Fight against extremism for former neo-Nazi after Trump, Charlottesville”;By Manya Brachear Pashman; 8/19/2017 https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-life-after-hate-white-supremacist-met-20170818-story.html
- People Magazine; “After Receiving Text Calling Her a ‘Moron’, Woman Reports Capitol Rioter Ex-Boyfriend to FBI”; by Chris Harris; 2/25/2021 https://people.com/crime/after-receiving-text-calling-her-a-moron-woman-turns-in-capitol-rioter-ex-boyfriend/
- ProPublica; “Ranks of Notorious Hate Group Include Active-Duty Military”; by A.C. Thompson, Ali Winston, Jake Hanrahan; 5/03/2018 https://www.propublica.org/article/atomwaffen-division-hate-group-active-duty-military
- Forham Law Review, Vol 73, Issue 5, Article 3; Critical Race Lawyering in Tulia, TX; by Vanita Gupta; 2005 (I found this extensive article after all of my article was completed, but see it’s important relevance to the Tulia, TX Case mentioned here, and to racial justice.) https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://www.google.com/&httpsredir=1&article=4071&context=flr
Guest Commentary
--- Guest Commentary by Gayle Brauner 2-13-21
Downed trees blocking exit of bus near Forks, WA. Photo credit: (9) https://www.myclallamcounty.com/2020/06/05/spokane-family-harrassed-by-forks-area-residents-accused-of-being-antifa/
Why Antifa Matters on the Olympic Peninsula
Across our Country, a steady, urgent awareness has grown these past five years, but especially since the Jan. 6 mob desecration of our U.S. Capitol. Simply observed, this riot was attended mainly by a braggadocious, reckless, gunslinging, flagpole pummeling fellowship of toxic masculinity, assisted by the judgmental zealotry and gratuitous fears of hysterical, privileged women.
We must support and grow grassroot activism focused on citizen-directed democratic governance. Let’s be keenly involved in our communities, enthusiastically comprehending the disparate ideologies and plethora of information which influence our opinions and conduct.
In this article, I propose two undertakings – one specific and immediate, the other the work needed in our County for resistance against autocratic inclinations.
First, we must find and prosecute the criminals who harassed and threatened the Spokane camping family last June in Forks, and who cut down those trees. This includes knowing and understanding the misinformed rationale for such conduct.
Second, let’s learn about Antifa, and the antifascist resistance movement. This involves exposing and preventing the acceptance of authoritarianism from infiltrating and polluting our government, law enforcement, military, community leaders, politicians, and populace.
To begin with, in our County, a specific way to start this new determination to build trust and accountability is for the people who harassed and threatened the Spokane camping family last June 3rd, to turn themselves in to Law Enforcement. (1) (2)
If you are a teenager, choosing to hide your criminal acts will preoccupy you for the rest of your life. It will haunt you, eat at your spirit, and affect your relationships and future. You may think since you got away with it once, you can continue a path of criminal activity and the accumulation of a closet full of skeletons. Those guilty feelings may harm your self-esteem and ability to lead a successful, confident life.
Turning yourself in will cleanse you of the misdeed, and help you learn how you were manipulated by adults who spread disinformation about “Antifa” and supporters of the Black Lives Matter movement. It wasn’t the people in a white bus who threatened the well-being of the Forks community, but locals drawn into the calculated, fabricated conspiracy theories which cause brainwashing, distrust and viciousness.
At about age 12, I joined my cousin “in town” for Halloween. We were set free to roam the streets with hundreds of other kids to trick or treat. Following my cousin’s lead, we pulled up one family’s beautiful dahlias, as a trick, laid them on their front porch, rang the doorbell, and laughingly ran away. Haunted still, I imagine the look of disbelief, pain and anger of the family who grew those colorful flowers, opening their door, thinking they’d see little kids asking for treats. I still feel the shame of my behavior, unable to blame my cousin, since I fully participated and didn’t say, “No”.
We carry wrongdoing and crimes all our lives. Better to choose ethical behavior. (3) If you know who participated in the violent acts in Forks, whether teenagers or adults, call the County Sheriff’s Office: 360-417-2259. This is not being a fink, not snitching, but rather being a responsible, law-abiding citizen. Help Forks and our County right this horrible wrong.
Secondly is to discount disinformation campaigns leveled at the Antifa movement. It’s important to know that most people who align with Antifa are not causing violent, destructive problems, but are protecting people and freedoms that fascists attack. (4)
Historically, ordinary people became ardent antifascists when their lives were endangered. Currently, some, like Antifa, confront neo-Nazis, and other creepy white power militants, who influence millions of our White neighbors. The lethal focus of white supremacist terrorist groups is our main national threat, as FBI Director Wray explicitly stated (5). Antifa goes home when there are no fascists to oppose.
Anti-Fascist: This is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideology, groups, and individuals; started in the early 1920s, was one of dozens of resistance movements, from across the political spectrum, in all occupied European countries during
WWII. (4)
Fascism: This is a political system based on a powerful leader, state control with no political opposition allowed, and propaganda designed to advance extreme pride of one’s country and race. Far-right ultra-nationalistic ideology was used by Italian fascists and Nazis in WWII, but started about 1910. (4)
Antifa is not anarchism. I have no patience for the inflammatory chaos and destruction promoted by self-important, “lone wolf” anarchists of any stripe. Keep these two movements and their goals separated.
To think that talking about Antifa and fascism is irrelevant or overblown, I encourage these doubters to research extensively, not only of the history of the anti-Fascist movements of WWII, but of current countries who lately have moved away from liberal democratic forms of government: Such as Poland, Turkey and Hungary; At the present time German and Austrian governments and people continue to fight the influence of those wanting mythical “purity” and totalitarianism; Also be aware of the crushing of the freedom movement in Hong Kong; the imprisonment – or killing - of opposition leaders and critics in Myanmar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and many other countries. (6)
In our own USA, insurrectionists, incited and directed by the former POTUS, became adherents of despotism when they denounced the national election outcome and refused the peaceful transfer of power from one party to the other.
People who do not believe in equal rights, opportunities, and protections for all residents of our County, State and Nation and the reforms needed to ensure these principles, need to wrench themselves free of their prejudices. Those who are mesmerized by indoctrination and hateful, malicious violence directed at certain people, sponsored by the white power movement, need to be deprogrammed, subjected to intervention, and received back by family and friends. If it is difficult for them to fully let go of the warped, anti-human rights, anti-government rhetoric, then they must at the very least disengage themselves from perverting other people.
Multitudes of people are working tirelessly to ensure that democracy prevails. Take Stacey Abrams of Georgia, for example. to name one courageous woman, who led voters in her State in a successful effort to put control of our U.S. Senate in the hands of leaders who will have the common good in mind. Please contribute in your own way to the acceptance of diversity and the promotion of democratic principles and processes that we need in our Olympic Peninsula community. This land is our land, from sea to shining sea.
(1) Spokane Family harassed, accused of being from Antifa. https://www.peninsuladailynews.com/crime/family-harassed-in-forks-after-being-accused-of-being-members-of-antifa/
Hundreds of Clallam County residents apologize to Spokane Family. https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2020/jun/11/from-hundreds-of-clallam-county-families-an-apolog/
(2) Extended October 2020 report of Forks “Antifa” bus debacle. https://www.wired.com/story/antifa-social-media-rumor-forks-washington/
Sheriff’s Department halts investigation. https://www.peninsuladailynews.com/news/forks-probe-halted-with-no-arrests/
(3) Ethical values, such as honesty, trustworthiness, responsibility; developing good habits of character: Doing the right thing, at the right time and place.https://www.ethicssage.com/2017/03/why-do-we-need-ethics.html
(4) What is Antifa? Antifa is an abbreviated term for anti-Fascist. https://www.livescience.com/what-is-antifa.html
Definitions: Antifascism and Fascism. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-fascism
(5) FBI Director Wray: racially motivated white supremacists have been responsible for most lethal attacks in U.S., not Antifa. https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-race-and-ethnicity-archive-bdd3b6078e9efadcfcd0be4b65f2362e
(6) Democracy and Disorder: The Struggle for Influence in the New Geopolitics: https://www.brookings.edu/research/democracy-disorder-the-struggle-for-influence-in-the-new-geopolitics/
(7) Book: Twilight of Democracy: The Seductive Lure of Authoritarianism by Anne Applebaum. With a focus on Poland and Hungary, Anne delves into the identity politics and alternative realities that divide political parties and countries.
(8) Book: How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and Them by Jason Stanley. Understanding the history and tactics of fascistic ideology, and how to counter this deadly movement.
(9) https://www.myclallamcounty.com/2020/06/05/spokane-family-harrassed-by-forks-area-residents-accused-of-being-antifa/
We must support and grow grassroot activism focused on citizen-directed democratic governance. Let’s be keenly involved in our communities, enthusiastically comprehending the disparate ideologies and plethora of information which influence our opinions and conduct.
In this article, I propose two undertakings – one specific and immediate, the other the work needed in our County for resistance against autocratic inclinations.
First, we must find and prosecute the criminals who harassed and threatened the Spokane camping family last June in Forks, and who cut down those trees. This includes knowing and understanding the misinformed rationale for such conduct.
Second, let’s learn about Antifa, and the antifascist resistance movement. This involves exposing and preventing the acceptance of authoritarianism from infiltrating and polluting our government, law enforcement, military, community leaders, politicians, and populace.
To begin with, in our County, a specific way to start this new determination to build trust and accountability is for the people who harassed and threatened the Spokane camping family last June 3rd, to turn themselves in to Law Enforcement. (1) (2)
If you are a teenager, choosing to hide your criminal acts will preoccupy you for the rest of your life. It will haunt you, eat at your spirit, and affect your relationships and future. You may think since you got away with it once, you can continue a path of criminal activity and the accumulation of a closet full of skeletons. Those guilty feelings may harm your self-esteem and ability to lead a successful, confident life.
Turning yourself in will cleanse you of the misdeed, and help you learn how you were manipulated by adults who spread disinformation about “Antifa” and supporters of the Black Lives Matter movement. It wasn’t the people in a white bus who threatened the well-being of the Forks community, but locals drawn into the calculated, fabricated conspiracy theories which cause brainwashing, distrust and viciousness.
At about age 12, I joined my cousin “in town” for Halloween. We were set free to roam the streets with hundreds of other kids to trick or treat. Following my cousin’s lead, we pulled up one family’s beautiful dahlias, as a trick, laid them on their front porch, rang the doorbell, and laughingly ran away. Haunted still, I imagine the look of disbelief, pain and anger of the family who grew those colorful flowers, opening their door, thinking they’d see little kids asking for treats. I still feel the shame of my behavior, unable to blame my cousin, since I fully participated and didn’t say, “No”.
We carry wrongdoing and crimes all our lives. Better to choose ethical behavior. (3) If you know who participated in the violent acts in Forks, whether teenagers or adults, call the County Sheriff’s Office: 360-417-2259. This is not being a fink, not snitching, but rather being a responsible, law-abiding citizen. Help Forks and our County right this horrible wrong.
Secondly is to discount disinformation campaigns leveled at the Antifa movement. It’s important to know that most people who align with Antifa are not causing violent, destructive problems, but are protecting people and freedoms that fascists attack. (4)
Historically, ordinary people became ardent antifascists when their lives were endangered. Currently, some, like Antifa, confront neo-Nazis, and other creepy white power militants, who influence millions of our White neighbors. The lethal focus of white supremacist terrorist groups is our main national threat, as FBI Director Wray explicitly stated (5). Antifa goes home when there are no fascists to oppose.
Anti-Fascist: This is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideology, groups, and individuals; started in the early 1920s, was one of dozens of resistance movements, from across the political spectrum, in all occupied European countries during
WWII. (4)
Fascism: This is a political system based on a powerful leader, state control with no political opposition allowed, and propaganda designed to advance extreme pride of one’s country and race. Far-right ultra-nationalistic ideology was used by Italian fascists and Nazis in WWII, but started about 1910. (4)
Antifa is not anarchism. I have no patience for the inflammatory chaos and destruction promoted by self-important, “lone wolf” anarchists of any stripe. Keep these two movements and their goals separated.
To think that talking about Antifa and fascism is irrelevant or overblown, I encourage these doubters to research extensively, not only of the history of the anti-Fascist movements of WWII, but of current countries who lately have moved away from liberal democratic forms of government: Such as Poland, Turkey and Hungary; At the present time German and Austrian governments and people continue to fight the influence of those wanting mythical “purity” and totalitarianism; Also be aware of the crushing of the freedom movement in Hong Kong; the imprisonment – or killing - of opposition leaders and critics in Myanmar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and many other countries. (6)
In our own USA, insurrectionists, incited and directed by the former POTUS, became adherents of despotism when they denounced the national election outcome and refused the peaceful transfer of power from one party to the other.
People who do not believe in equal rights, opportunities, and protections for all residents of our County, State and Nation and the reforms needed to ensure these principles, need to wrench themselves free of their prejudices. Those who are mesmerized by indoctrination and hateful, malicious violence directed at certain people, sponsored by the white power movement, need to be deprogrammed, subjected to intervention, and received back by family and friends. If it is difficult for them to fully let go of the warped, anti-human rights, anti-government rhetoric, then they must at the very least disengage themselves from perverting other people.
Multitudes of people are working tirelessly to ensure that democracy prevails. Take Stacey Abrams of Georgia, for example. to name one courageous woman, who led voters in her State in a successful effort to put control of our U.S. Senate in the hands of leaders who will have the common good in mind. Please contribute in your own way to the acceptance of diversity and the promotion of democratic principles and processes that we need in our Olympic Peninsula community. This land is our land, from sea to shining sea.
(1) Spokane Family harassed, accused of being from Antifa. https://www.peninsuladailynews.com/crime/family-harassed-in-forks-after-being-accused-of-being-members-of-antifa/
Hundreds of Clallam County residents apologize to Spokane Family. https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2020/jun/11/from-hundreds-of-clallam-county-families-an-apolog/
(2) Extended October 2020 report of Forks “Antifa” bus debacle. https://www.wired.com/story/antifa-social-media-rumor-forks-washington/
Sheriff’s Department halts investigation. https://www.peninsuladailynews.com/news/forks-probe-halted-with-no-arrests/
(3) Ethical values, such as honesty, trustworthiness, responsibility; developing good habits of character: Doing the right thing, at the right time and place.https://www.ethicssage.com/2017/03/why-do-we-need-ethics.html
(4) What is Antifa? Antifa is an abbreviated term for anti-Fascist. https://www.livescience.com/what-is-antifa.html
Definitions: Antifascism and Fascism. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-fascism
(5) FBI Director Wray: racially motivated white supremacists have been responsible for most lethal attacks in U.S., not Antifa. https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-race-and-ethnicity-archive-bdd3b6078e9efadcfcd0be4b65f2362e
(6) Democracy and Disorder: The Struggle for Influence in the New Geopolitics: https://www.brookings.edu/research/democracy-disorder-the-struggle-for-influence-in-the-new-geopolitics/
(7) Book: Twilight of Democracy: The Seductive Lure of Authoritarianism by Anne Applebaum. With a focus on Poland and Hungary, Anne delves into the identity politics and alternative realities that divide political parties and countries.
(8) Book: How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and Them by Jason Stanley. Understanding the history and tactics of fascistic ideology, and how to counter this deadly movement.
(9) https://www.myclallamcounty.com/2020/06/05/spokane-family-harrassed-by-forks-area-residents-accused-of-being-antifa/
Photo of bus leaving Forks. Photo credit: (9) https://www.myclallamcounty.com/2020/06/05/spokane-family-harrassed-by-forks-area-residents-accused-of-being-antifa/
Guest Commentary
Guest Commentary submitted by Gayle Brauner
While doing research on Alt-right groups, I came across this Nov. 2020 article in The Atlantic by Mike Giglio. Analyzing the precipitous evolution of the Oath Keepers, started in 2009, by Stewart Rhodes, a concerned ex-military man who wanted to "protect the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic", he solicited and enlisted law enforcement, active military and veterans to join him in keeping their oaths to the Country and Constitution. A main goal, even today, he encourages recruits to become involved in their local communities, states and the nation. Their tactics have morphed into planned violent actions, as seen on January 6th at the D.C. Capitol insurrection.
The article is a thorough, thoughtful, objective look at how The Oath Keepers' initial goals (10 oaths) became encrusted, like so many other supposedly “patriot” groups, in an alternative reality. This radicalization was influenced by conspiracy theories, espoused by such groups as QAnon; extremist alt-right and religious ideologues; ardent gun rights groups; rampant disinformation campaigns by nefarious parties; misunderstandings about Black Lives Matter, "Antifa", and other civil rights groups; the pandemic deniers and opponents of the COVID-19 government mandates; and eventually the “stop the steal" 2020 POTUS election result deniers.
This article holds key concepts showing why our Country became polarized.
With the current trend toward violence aimed at people and groups who The Oath Keepers see as their "enemies", even locally and around our State, understanding the beliefs of groups like them, how influential they can be, and alerting the public is extremely important.
Here is a verbatim statement by Rhodes from the article, which indicates to me how he has succumbed to the blinding force of propaganda - or he’s just plain deceiving others[LR1] : “Us old Vets and younger ones are going to have to end up killing these young kids (Antifa adherents) … and they’re going to die believing they were fighting Nazis.”
We can’t let this happen.
Gayle Brauner
Port Angeles
Article link: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/11/right-wing-militias-civil-war/616473/?fbclid=IwAR1zplShSWuGgShsjG4uzesiPXPyRkzfuKQ2Ohj72xw5hziIDq2kmxQrf-k
[LR1]
The article is a thorough, thoughtful, objective look at how The Oath Keepers' initial goals (10 oaths) became encrusted, like so many other supposedly “patriot” groups, in an alternative reality. This radicalization was influenced by conspiracy theories, espoused by such groups as QAnon; extremist alt-right and religious ideologues; ardent gun rights groups; rampant disinformation campaigns by nefarious parties; misunderstandings about Black Lives Matter, "Antifa", and other civil rights groups; the pandemic deniers and opponents of the COVID-19 government mandates; and eventually the “stop the steal" 2020 POTUS election result deniers.
This article holds key concepts showing why our Country became polarized.
With the current trend toward violence aimed at people and groups who The Oath Keepers see as their "enemies", even locally and around our State, understanding the beliefs of groups like them, how influential they can be, and alerting the public is extremely important.
Here is a verbatim statement by Rhodes from the article, which indicates to me how he has succumbed to the blinding force of propaganda - or he’s just plain deceiving others[LR1] : “Us old Vets and younger ones are going to have to end up killing these young kids (Antifa adherents) … and they’re going to die believing they were fighting Nazis.”
We can’t let this happen.
Gayle Brauner
Port Angeles
Article link: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/11/right-wing-militias-civil-war/616473/?fbclid=IwAR1zplShSWuGgShsjG4uzesiPXPyRkzfuKQ2Ohj72xw5hziIDq2kmxQrf-k
[LR1]
Make the Best Choice for our City Council
--- Written by Marsha Maguire
The partisanship expressed by a majority on the City Council this year has only served to turn neighbor against neighbor and divide us further in an already tense and divided political environment. Many residents have expressed their dissatisfaction with the extreme ideologies evident in the words and actions of several Council members and some residents.
In 2019 County Republican Party Board member Donnie Hall, said in an interview on KONP Radio (here's the URL https://www.myclallamcounty.com/2020/01/23/the-making-of-a-city-council-conservative-mentors-aim-to-change-sequim-policies-from-the-inside/?fbclid=IwAR1fjzI0gKkGH67XsRKTdLOWMwvQaDAWwCTOkU6Y1cA_LTfkEmEJPuN_L_c), that he “coached” three candidates to run on his stated attempt to turn the Council sharply to the right. High on their agenda was stopping the MAT clinic, even at the risk of expensive legal action against the city (this was stated during the interview). The three he coached were elected – although they ran unopposed – in Nov. 2019.
Our City Council is supposed to be nonpartisan, which, given the civic issues the Council considers on a regular basis, makes good sense (they address topics regarding streets and roads, access to broadband, budgetary issues, etc.). But the two appointments that were made when we lost Council members Ted Miller and Jennifer States reflected the same sharp-right political points of view. While it might be human nature to select people who agree with our views, the ideological stands on issues such as the MAT Healing Clinic, and decisions regarding the prevention of COVID-19, have led to raucous behavior at City Council meetings, and area residents insulting one another on social media and elsewhere.
I'm asking our City Council members to do something extraordinary. Extremely well-qualified citizens of varying political opinions are likely to apply for the vacant City Council seat. I'm asking Council members to select the most qualified applicant, regardless of personal political beliefs. We all know that diversity and long-term knowledge and experience of the issues that face Sequim will make for more informed decision-making, and will be more representative of the people of Sequim. We might even become a model for how to treat one another – how to make well-reasoned, non-partisan decisions – for other places currently contending with extreme partisan rancor. That will make our city and our beautiful Sequim-Dungeness Valley a more tranquil, economically strong, and welcoming place for residents and visitors alike.
We are watching and depending on you to make the best choice – the most courageous choice – for all of us.
In 2019 County Republican Party Board member Donnie Hall, said in an interview on KONP Radio (here's the URL https://www.myclallamcounty.com/2020/01/23/the-making-of-a-city-council-conservative-mentors-aim-to-change-sequim-policies-from-the-inside/?fbclid=IwAR1fjzI0gKkGH67XsRKTdLOWMwvQaDAWwCTOkU6Y1cA_LTfkEmEJPuN_L_c), that he “coached” three candidates to run on his stated attempt to turn the Council sharply to the right. High on their agenda was stopping the MAT clinic, even at the risk of expensive legal action against the city (this was stated during the interview). The three he coached were elected – although they ran unopposed – in Nov. 2019.
Our City Council is supposed to be nonpartisan, which, given the civic issues the Council considers on a regular basis, makes good sense (they address topics regarding streets and roads, access to broadband, budgetary issues, etc.). But the two appointments that were made when we lost Council members Ted Miller and Jennifer States reflected the same sharp-right political points of view. While it might be human nature to select people who agree with our views, the ideological stands on issues such as the MAT Healing Clinic, and decisions regarding the prevention of COVID-19, have led to raucous behavior at City Council meetings, and area residents insulting one another on social media and elsewhere.
I'm asking our City Council members to do something extraordinary. Extremely well-qualified citizens of varying political opinions are likely to apply for the vacant City Council seat. I'm asking Council members to select the most qualified applicant, regardless of personal political beliefs. We all know that diversity and long-term knowledge and experience of the issues that face Sequim will make for more informed decision-making, and will be more representative of the people of Sequim. We might even become a model for how to treat one another – how to make well-reasoned, non-partisan decisions – for other places currently contending with extreme partisan rancor. That will make our city and our beautiful Sequim-Dungeness Valley a more tranquil, economically strong, and welcoming place for residents and visitors alike.
We are watching and depending on you to make the best choice – the most courageous choice – for all of us.
Opening Statement for Silent Vigil - by Vicki Lowe
--- June 5, 2020
A silent vigil commemorating Black Lives Matter and trauma caused by racism was hell on Friday afternoon, June 5, 2020, from 4 to 5 pm at the Sequim Civic Center. An estimated 130 people showed up and participated. This vigil was organized by Vicki Lowe and Karen Hogan. The intent of this vigil was not only to remember the slaying of George Floyd, but also to have a time of acknowledging, remembering and healing from historical trauma inflicted upon Americans of color by racism embedded in American society and culture. Part of the process of healing from trauma is to have those feelings of trauma validated by other members of the public. The following is the opening statement given by Vicki Lowe as she opened the vigil.
Thank you for joining us here this afternoon. My name is Vicki Lowe, I am a lifelong resident of Sequim and a descendant of both the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe and Bella Coola First Nations. I want to thank my friend, Karen Hogan for her work in organizing this event and to Tim Wheeler for his leadership with the Voices for Health and Healing, also the VFHH steering committee, and to all of you who want to understand and help with the healing.
In difficult times, we want to comfort ourselves and each other. Comfort seems difficult to find right now. Protests about injustice are important, they bring attention to what is happening now. The last two days, our City has seen its citizens rise-up and peacefully join in the protests. This has been such a great act of caring for one another.
Tonight we are having a silent vigil to mourn the deaths and losses from the ongoing violence of racism, racism that has embedded itself in our institutions and our society, and to acknowledge that healing the ongoing impacts of historical trauma that is inflicted on Americans of color is incumbent on us all.
Dr. Maria Yellow Horse Brave Heart tells us about historical trauma is “cumulative emotional and psychological wounding across generations, including the lifespan, which emanates from massive group trauma.”
Historical trauma is the phenomenon where those who never directly experienced trauma (enslavement, rape, lynchings, murder) can still exhibit signs and symptoms of the trauma.
Historical trauma can be observed in unresolved grief, expressed as depression and despair and harboring of unexplained anger. Often oppression is internalized by accepting the lie of inferiority, which can then lead to self-loathing.
Brian Cladoosby, Former President of NCAI shared in 2016 - “We have inherited an anguished history that should not be ignored but understood—so it will never be repeated. Our history produced generations of trauma, poverty and abuse that we are still fighting to undo.”
We cannot change history, but we need to acknowledge what happened. We need to acknowledge these traumas have impacts that we see playing out today in communities across our nation. This is not about blaming and guilt. It is certainly uncomfortable to talk about this history, but it is necessary. Pretending the trauma did not happen or saying it was in the past, get over it, contributes to the hurt. How do we move forward? By saying it out loud- the trauma is real, these atrocities happened.
More than that, we need to learn to accept each other and honor that we have different experiences, beliefs, and values. When we are able to honor the beliefs of others, they are able to be who they were truly meant to be and not who they are expected to be. Assimilation continues. When we talk of historical trauma we also need to talk about ongoing discrimination and racism. These acts are often not intentional but need to have attention called to them, so they can begin to be addressed.
Discrimination is acts of superiority and hierarchy and unjust treatment of groups of people based on race, including culture, systems, beliefs and values on the grounds of RACE.
There are three levels of racism:
Institutionalized racism: different access to goods, services, and opportunities;
Personal Mediated Racism: assumptions about abilities, motives, and intent of other races; and
Internalized Racism: acceptance of the stigma of the negative messages about our own abilities and intrinsic worth value.
In this country, we have many rights and responsibilities, but all do no share those rights equitably. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are not the same for all. Many lives have been lost to these inequities. Tonight, we acknowledge these losses and the impacts they have had to their families and communities.
The opposite of oppression is acceptance.
I would just like to close by saying, the loss of lives due to racial violence, keeps us from knowing the true potential of those who are killed. We will never know what they might have been able to accomplish. That opportunity was robbed from them, their families and communities.
Normally we would sing a prayer song. Because the coronavirus is more easily spread from loud talking/singing, even with our masks on, I have asked permission to play a recording of the Chief Dan George Prayer Song from Squamish Nation in North Vancouver. This prayer song has been shared with the Coast Salish People as the Coast Salish National Anthem. In this recording, Joe Price, Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribal Member is leading S’Klallam singers.
Then we will have 45 minutes of silence to mourn our losses.
Footnotes:
Yellow Horse Brave Heart, M., & DeBruyn, L. M. (1998). The American Indian holocaust: Healing historical, unresolved grief. American Indian and Alaska Native Mental Health Research, 8, 56–78. 9 Whitbeck, L.B., Walls, M.L, Johnson, K.D., Morrisseau, A.D., & McDougall, C.M. (2009). Depressed affect and historical loss among North American indigenous adolescents. American Indian and Alaska Native Mental Health Research, 16(3), 16-49. 10 See, e.g., Kuzawa, C.W., & Sweet, E. (2009). Epigenetics and the embodiment of race: Developmental origins
In difficult times, we want to comfort ourselves and each other. Comfort seems difficult to find right now. Protests about injustice are important, they bring attention to what is happening now. The last two days, our City has seen its citizens rise-up and peacefully join in the protests. This has been such a great act of caring for one another.
Tonight we are having a silent vigil to mourn the deaths and losses from the ongoing violence of racism, racism that has embedded itself in our institutions and our society, and to acknowledge that healing the ongoing impacts of historical trauma that is inflicted on Americans of color is incumbent on us all.
Dr. Maria Yellow Horse Brave Heart tells us about historical trauma is “cumulative emotional and psychological wounding across generations, including the lifespan, which emanates from massive group trauma.”
Historical trauma is the phenomenon where those who never directly experienced trauma (enslavement, rape, lynchings, murder) can still exhibit signs and symptoms of the trauma.
Historical trauma can be observed in unresolved grief, expressed as depression and despair and harboring of unexplained anger. Often oppression is internalized by accepting the lie of inferiority, which can then lead to self-loathing.
Brian Cladoosby, Former President of NCAI shared in 2016 - “We have inherited an anguished history that should not be ignored but understood—so it will never be repeated. Our history produced generations of trauma, poverty and abuse that we are still fighting to undo.”
We cannot change history, but we need to acknowledge what happened. We need to acknowledge these traumas have impacts that we see playing out today in communities across our nation. This is not about blaming and guilt. It is certainly uncomfortable to talk about this history, but it is necessary. Pretending the trauma did not happen or saying it was in the past, get over it, contributes to the hurt. How do we move forward? By saying it out loud- the trauma is real, these atrocities happened.
More than that, we need to learn to accept each other and honor that we have different experiences, beliefs, and values. When we are able to honor the beliefs of others, they are able to be who they were truly meant to be and not who they are expected to be. Assimilation continues. When we talk of historical trauma we also need to talk about ongoing discrimination and racism. These acts are often not intentional but need to have attention called to them, so they can begin to be addressed.
Discrimination is acts of superiority and hierarchy and unjust treatment of groups of people based on race, including culture, systems, beliefs and values on the grounds of RACE.
There are three levels of racism:
Institutionalized racism: different access to goods, services, and opportunities;
Personal Mediated Racism: assumptions about abilities, motives, and intent of other races; and
Internalized Racism: acceptance of the stigma of the negative messages about our own abilities and intrinsic worth value.
In this country, we have many rights and responsibilities, but all do no share those rights equitably. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are not the same for all. Many lives have been lost to these inequities. Tonight, we acknowledge these losses and the impacts they have had to their families and communities.
The opposite of oppression is acceptance.
I would just like to close by saying, the loss of lives due to racial violence, keeps us from knowing the true potential of those who are killed. We will never know what they might have been able to accomplish. That opportunity was robbed from them, their families and communities.
Normally we would sing a prayer song. Because the coronavirus is more easily spread from loud talking/singing, even with our masks on, I have asked permission to play a recording of the Chief Dan George Prayer Song from Squamish Nation in North Vancouver. This prayer song has been shared with the Coast Salish People as the Coast Salish National Anthem. In this recording, Joe Price, Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribal Member is leading S’Klallam singers.
Then we will have 45 minutes of silence to mourn our losses.
Footnotes:
Yellow Horse Brave Heart, M., & DeBruyn, L. M. (1998). The American Indian holocaust: Healing historical, unresolved grief. American Indian and Alaska Native Mental Health Research, 8, 56–78. 9 Whitbeck, L.B., Walls, M.L, Johnson, K.D., Morrisseau, A.D., & McDougall, C.M. (2009). Depressed affect and historical loss among North American indigenous adolescents. American Indian and Alaska Native Mental Health Research, 16(3), 16-49. 10 See, e.g., Kuzawa, C.W., & Sweet, E. (2009). Epigenetics and the embodiment of race: Developmental origins
Why Trump is the likely 2020 winner
Written by Tony Corrado
2-27-2020
2-27-2020
Regardless of the measure, 2020 is shaping up to be both a momentous and a game changer in terms of American democracy. Many Americans have come to accept that Trump is a misogynist, racist, narcissistic and corrupt sociopath. He has absolutely zero redeeming personal qualities as a human being, and much less as a President. Yet, the chances are very high he will be re-elected.
The reasons are becoming all too obvious to any serious observer that is tuned to the current political wars.
Republicans are as organized as they ever were, despite losses in their ranks of traditional memberships. They have lots of money, a truly elegant data machine and the help of every anti-American country in the world today. Their strategy is elegant in that it relies not on destroying the Democratic candidate; rather, it is hell bent on letting the Democrats destroy themselves by attacking the ability for Democrats to achieve unity.
The Democratic National Committee has not learned the most vital lesson of 2016.
They continue to believe that politics as conducted for the last 50 years is still relevant. They want the “establishment” to choose the candidate as well as the issues and method by which major concerns of voters will be addressed. They resist the populist liberal movement that the Democratic base so desperately wants, and in truth, needs to survive.
One classic error is the emphasis on getting out the vote (GOTV).
Traditionally, this is the single most vital pursuit of candidate parties, as it ensures that the Democratic voters cast their vote. Common knowledge shows that when a majority of Democrat turn out to vote, they invariably win. This will be essential once a candidate is chosen.
For 2020 however, voter motivation is NOT the issue. People are highly motivated to vote. In 2020 the two most important issues are to prevent voter intimidation/suppression, and to ensure that the peoples’ choices are not overruled.
Millennials (a group larger than baby boomers) are out in force and they favor the most progressive candidates, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. As much as these voters may claim to grasp the dictum that any candidate must be supported in order to beat Trump, they are also expressing their reluctance to vote, at all, if they perceive the process to be rigged and therefore illegitimate. Has Bernie Sanders yet committed to this ????? policy?
The Democrats, from local party apparatus thru to the state organizations and at the national level, continue to ignore this very viscerally felt fact. These young voters realize that they face existential threats such as climate change, lack of medical access, decent paying jobs, nuclear war and a dysfunctional government. However, if their dreams are not to be addressed by either party, then why bother supporting “any-Democrat-that-is appointed-will-be-better-than-Trump, if not also a paradigm shift from any Republican? They believe that any result will be the same as the “corporate” Democratic Party, and not deliver the bold initiatives that these troubled times demand. They are correct in this conclusion.
The Russians and others are already using social media to disrupt the Democratic party processes.
They are raising the very same specter that this article addresses. If voters perceive in the facts, or fake news reports, that their desires don’t matter, again Republicans win. History simply has little to add to the changes that are necessary in 2020 and is not a prognosticator. Social media news, and the fact that Democrats are the party of inclusion are both strengths and a weakness. Both black and brown voters, for instance, cannot be taken for granted as they have in the past. The social injustice issues must be addressed. The Democratic party, falsely believing that they must continue to react to large money donors, big pharma, big insurance and big banks in order to win is no longer a valid theory. Continuing to believe that their base will still follow them through the gates of hell are seriously flawed. In fact, it is the traditional big money supporters who have no choice but to support the Democratic candidate regardless of who it is or regardless of their policies.
Voters will react viscerally and the party cannot win with anything but a cohesive, transparent people’s choice. The Democratic effort for the next several months should be focused solely on ensuring that the people’s voice is heard and respected.
The reasons are becoming all too obvious to any serious observer that is tuned to the current political wars.
Republicans are as organized as they ever were, despite losses in their ranks of traditional memberships. They have lots of money, a truly elegant data machine and the help of every anti-American country in the world today. Their strategy is elegant in that it relies not on destroying the Democratic candidate; rather, it is hell bent on letting the Democrats destroy themselves by attacking the ability for Democrats to achieve unity.
The Democratic National Committee has not learned the most vital lesson of 2016.
They continue to believe that politics as conducted for the last 50 years is still relevant. They want the “establishment” to choose the candidate as well as the issues and method by which major concerns of voters will be addressed. They resist the populist liberal movement that the Democratic base so desperately wants, and in truth, needs to survive.
One classic error is the emphasis on getting out the vote (GOTV).
Traditionally, this is the single most vital pursuit of candidate parties, as it ensures that the Democratic voters cast their vote. Common knowledge shows that when a majority of Democrat turn out to vote, they invariably win. This will be essential once a candidate is chosen.
For 2020 however, voter motivation is NOT the issue. People are highly motivated to vote. In 2020 the two most important issues are to prevent voter intimidation/suppression, and to ensure that the peoples’ choices are not overruled.
Millennials (a group larger than baby boomers) are out in force and they favor the most progressive candidates, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. As much as these voters may claim to grasp the dictum that any candidate must be supported in order to beat Trump, they are also expressing their reluctance to vote, at all, if they perceive the process to be rigged and therefore illegitimate. Has Bernie Sanders yet committed to this ????? policy?
The Democrats, from local party apparatus thru to the state organizations and at the national level, continue to ignore this very viscerally felt fact. These young voters realize that they face existential threats such as climate change, lack of medical access, decent paying jobs, nuclear war and a dysfunctional government. However, if their dreams are not to be addressed by either party, then why bother supporting “any-Democrat-that-is appointed-will-be-better-than-Trump, if not also a paradigm shift from any Republican? They believe that any result will be the same as the “corporate” Democratic Party, and not deliver the bold initiatives that these troubled times demand. They are correct in this conclusion.
The Russians and others are already using social media to disrupt the Democratic party processes.
They are raising the very same specter that this article addresses. If voters perceive in the facts, or fake news reports, that their desires don’t matter, again Republicans win. History simply has little to add to the changes that are necessary in 2020 and is not a prognosticator. Social media news, and the fact that Democrats are the party of inclusion are both strengths and a weakness. Both black and brown voters, for instance, cannot be taken for granted as they have in the past. The social injustice issues must be addressed. The Democratic party, falsely believing that they must continue to react to large money donors, big pharma, big insurance and big banks in order to win is no longer a valid theory. Continuing to believe that their base will still follow them through the gates of hell are seriously flawed. In fact, it is the traditional big money supporters who have no choice but to support the Democratic candidate regardless of who it is or regardless of their policies.
Voters will react viscerally and the party cannot win with anything but a cohesive, transparent people’s choice. The Democratic effort for the next several months should be focused solely on ensuring that the people’s voice is heard and respected.