The fact that a historian is showing up in person—-at rallies, in crowds, making circles through fifteen thousand people for handshakes; matters more than the speech itself. Snyder is putting his body where his analysis is. That’s rarer than it should be.
Most public intellectuals are content to diagnose from a safe distance. Snyder is choosing the harder thing: to be accountable to the people he’s writing about, in real time, in the rain.
Yes, Johan. An historian of Dr Snyder’s stature circling through the crowd signifies that yes indeed, we the people are a powerful voice of intention and direction.
YES! We have to envision a better future and work to create it. We need to have conversations about what the structure should look like to ensure our safety and freedom. I applaud the people around the world who are standing up and speaking out against this current chaos--AND we should also be talking in great detail about what we want next. In my small town, I'm creating some interactive theatre sketches to do that-- get people talking. It's a tiny start, but we need these conversations -- and we need to keep envisioning a future we can all live with. Thanks for your encouragement and good work!
Underneath all the rhetoric is the fact that Trump’s presidency is a remarkable gift to us - a powerful but ultimately deeply flawed reminder that that our Republic is far more fragile than we understood it to be. He is the test that had to come in order to make us understand that our trajectory almost ever since we were the Arsenal of Democracy has been far too complacent, far too self indulgent.
1) Encouraging employers of all sizes to close on election day (with or without pay)
2) Encouraging all to identify & assist those vulnerable re: Obtaining Proper ID/documentation
3) Encouraging all to identify & assist those vulnerable re: Access To Physical Polls if necessary - ready to pivot to last minute changing of poll locations without notice
4) Encouraging all to identify & assist those vulnerable - and Provide ‘Cover’ and representation for them at The Polls
5) Encouraging all starting NOW - Well Ahead Of The Midterms that these measures may be necessary and To Anticipate the Subversion and likelihood of Federal Agents Present at The polls
6) Encouraging all to phone camera image their Voting Machine Receipt Scroll Pages Where Possible… (How can this be pre-organized to Prevail if needed against the claims of “Fraud?”)
7) Pre-address messaging to Gen Z on a mass scale to minimize turnout insufficiency / Stimulate Their Future politics and Power To Effect Change
Thank you for saying "But opposition makes no sense without a vision of what is better." This is the philosophy I operate under which I learned, in part, from Buckminster Fuller. He once said "Don't fight the existing system. Design a better system that makes the existing system obsolete." (I'm paraphrasing a bit.)
We MUST plan to implement a better way for America to organize itself... as the Founding Fathers did 250 years ago. But while their focus was on writing a Constitution that counted on "the rule of law" to guide us (save us from having a "king" again), I believe our focus must be on the non-religious-specific concept of "love thy neighbor".
Coming from a place of love instead of hate is a spiritual (not religious) choice... one that benefits our mental health (it's NOT healthy to be angry all the time, even as Fox News makes a lot of money from keeping people angry) as well as the larger society. A society organized around love is also a society that's organized around cooperation and learning from each other. When you "love your neighbor," you listen to them... which opens the door to learning from them.
And if the learning everyone seeks is specifically oriented towards "creating a more perfect union," then we get the kind of culture the Founding Fathers dreamed of us having... one where pursuing life, liberty, and happiness is made possible for all.
I invite you to read Jeffrey Rosen's 2024 book about the "continuous learning and improvement" mindset of the Founding Fathers. It's called "The Pursuit of Happiness: How Classical Writers on Virtue Inspired the Lives of the Founders and Defined America"
Does anyone in this community know of organizing around ideas for a revised constitutional framework for America, post Trump & MAGA? I thank Prof Snyder for being honest with us: there’s no going back. We need to move forward. I feel like there must be organizational efforts happening, but have been unable to learn about who/where these efforts are happening through usual means (Google searches).
Our Constitution is obsolete in one way. It allows unequal representation. 250 years ago that may have been OK with the people. That is no longer the case and it has turned into a form of minority rule that is devolving into the worst form of autocracy. Are we ready to become a real democracy?
The current autocrats are deeply entrenched. So deep that the current leadership cabal is able to act out the wildest of destructive dreams. The rest of us are arguing over what is the cheapest strategy for saving ourselves while we cling to material assets and poorly based ideas we think we need to survive. Look around at the new reality of life on Earth. The time has come to deal with it.
Yes, Ed -- dark money now "allows unequal representation.
That's the title of the key Jane Mayer book, and the center of what you here call "the current leadership cabal."
When Timothy Snyder says "We have to work together rather than allowing ourselves to be isolated," I'd prefer specificity. I'd like schools to center essay writing so students learn the skills to listen to others and quote them in the contexts of their lives as the students see themselves in their lives. For more specifics, see www.EssayingDifferences.com .
And kill standardized testing, as the Finns did to make their schools best in the world.
Thank you Ed. I don’t disagree with any of your essential points. But I do think I asked a question that I will not get an answer to in this Substack thread. Thanks again.
Solidarity is deliberately living a life that humanity's wisdom traditions have been clarifying for 3500 years. We must start with the basics: understanding that distinctions between us become less visible when we are intentional, so we are more likely to unite against those who want to amplify them. They profit from the turmoil that divisiveness causes.
As Thomas Paine said: “A constitution is not the act of a government, but of a people constituting a government; and government without a constitution, is power without a right.” Even from our Nation’s very founding forming a democratic government under the Constitution was fraught with difficulties and disagreements. Many thought it would be better to wait for a better, more stable time but Thomas Paine was adamant that there was never going to be a better time, that time never comes because there will always be some other problem(s)that arises.
And now the U.S. Constitution is even more difficult to change and has only been amended 27 times. State constitutions, on the other hand, are much easier to modify, and state constitutional amendments are adopted on a regular basis. The current constitutions of the 50 states have been amended around 7,000 times. Republican-controlled states are actively pursuing two paths to amend constitutions: altering their state constitutions to limit voter initiatives and campaigning for an Article V Convention to amend the U.S. Constitution. To amend the United States Constitution, 38 of the 50 states (three-fourths) must ratify a proposed amendment. Amendments are proposed either by a two-thirds vote in both houses of Congress or by a constitutional convention called by two-thirds of state legislatures, then sent to the states for ratification.
This is not the way we want to going forward with amending the Constitution but it seems like it would be pretty difficult to find some consensus in our divided Nation right now and with a Republican controlled Congress that has abdicated their responsibilities and power to Trump. But it’s obvious that we do need more clarifying wording in the Constitution and updating that will make our republic stronger, more secure and resistant to the tyranny and harm done by this Trumpian regime and the MAGA cultist Republicans.
Were you referring to the points made by Phil Barish about standing with Americans who need help, and encouraging election turnout? I think those are all good ideas, but it doesn’t address what I am asking for, which is: what groups are doing the intellectual work of imagining a new US Constitution, not just what that might look like, but how we organize to achieve it.
What does a new Constitution look like? What is proven to work. A single legislative body based on EQUAL representation with leadership controlled by the mechanism we call a "vote of confidence." This has proven to work in modern nations that have experienced the worst of human wars and conflict. We can keep the Senate in what is very strictly an advisory role. No more governance by political minorities. How do we organize it? By starting at the state and even city levels. "Senates" hearken back to ancient Rome where the wealthy wanted not just a piece of the action, but the entire show.
The wealthy among us will not like this. To which I answer "you've had you time and you botched it."You fell victim to greed.
The income tax structure of the immediate post WWII worked well. It benefited the leaders of productive industry rather than a cabal of lazy heirs enriched by inflation and carried interest that we have today. I grew up in the middle of all this, and I watched from the inside out how it worked. It was pretty much a culture of back scratchers as long as their increasing wealth was not directed toward politics.
I'm trying to follow this convo. I think you and I might be on the same page, wondering how a brilliant new constitution can even hope to come to be. It is desperately needed, but who will comprise the new "constitutional committee?"
Thank you Candace. That’s part of the question I’m trying to answer. Conservatives have been hanging their hopes on something called “The Convention of the States.” That project has stalled, but activity of the US Supreme Court could bring it roaring back to life. If it does come to pass, I want to make sure that those of us who are supporters of rule of law and civil liberties are prepared to engage. Something Prof Snyder said was very similar to something Marc Elias has said: the old world (before Trump) is not coming back. I think that is true. So the question is: what’s next? I’m a retired lawyer, and while I probably couldn’t contribute directly to such an effort (in terms of drafting language or funding the political organizing), I have financial resources that I would contribute to a group provided I trusted them. That’s the long story of what I am looking for. But I have probably asked this question in the wrong place!
thank you as always. one of my idiosyncrasies is to use the word, freedom to indicate my internal capacity to chose my thoughts and conduct whereas liberty is what's enshrined in law, granted to me - or not, by the government in which i live.
I was in the crowd when you spoke in Philly. May the crowds keep getting bigger, the fellowships stronger, the sense of urgency more acute, the sense of agency more powerful.
Our planet is in deep trouble, but it is never time for us to shrink into a cowardly fortress… unless we are mad kings, malevolent oligarchs, or complicit haters. All of the above can change, except perhaps the madness of the king.
In today's post Mr. Snyder returns to his theme of not just resistance- but asking, what are we fighting for? Encapsulating this in the idea of freedom is important. But there is also the recognition that for resistance to be successful- to bear long term fruits for society and humanity- it must embrace something greater and better.
May Day will soon be upon us. At its roots it embraces labor rights, fairness, anti-racism, anti-colonialism and issues of social justice and unity. It is seen as a manifestation of Left thinking- but it need not be exclusively represented by the Left. It offers an opening to the themes of freedom Mr. Snyder talks about.
However, we are at a point that for resistance to be successful at all- it must seriously critique society itself. Going well beyond, in my opinion, the typical voices of the Democratic Party.
From my perspective there are two frameworks to consider. One discusses the resistance itself- and the other the roots of the problem- and paves the way to go beyond just resistance.
The first perspective/framework are the deliberate efforts of right-wing fascist movements to exploit the machinery of democracy to defeat democracy itself and give rise to corrupt., elite power structures. Big Lies, foreign interventions, intimidation of political enemies (or worse), decimation of the media and civil society, scapegoating, mass incarceration, and the institutionalism of a culture of fear- are all part of this often-deadly onslaught. Mr. Snyder's works have laid this bare for what it is- giving it needed historical perspective. MAGA- in its explicit embodiment of "America First," almost invites us to hearken back to Hitler's rise to power in the 1930s. And in my opinion peculiar similarities abound to Nazi Germany- but there are many others to draw on.
The second perspective is that these movements arise in a vacuum of emptiness and isolation- where the populace is experiencing levels of denial and loss as the world they (think) they knew becomes uncertain and even hostile. This opens the doors to strongmen- who convince the populace to sacrifice their own political rights and genuine participation in exchange for security and a "comforting" version of the truth that is in reality an extreme denial of once held moral and ethical values- and reality. This perspective is not new. Two World Wars also laid it bare- but today it is even more urgent as the destruction of two world wars pales when compared to the threats to our very existence posed by nuclear war, environmental devastation and unbridled technology.
If the first framework is the only one accepted as true, as meaningful- then I believe the Trump's of the world become a recurrent nightmare- until ultimately the current civilization collapses. They can be resisted and defeated for a time- but other "versions" will rear their ugly head- even worse. The rubble of Gaza becomes the rubble of all.
If the second framework is understood- the necessity of transformation becomes obvious. In this light Trump, Orban and their ilk are misbegotten teachers and warnings- they herald a breakup of the old and the need for something new. Not what they offer as "new"- but genuine transformation.
Capitalism, in today's world, heralded and cursed the world with the idea of endless consumption. The ecological landscape- life itself is under catastrophic threat. Technology in the form of AI, cannot be ignored for its evolutionary implications- and the threats and changes it heralds. Entire systems of denial and escape have operated for today's and prior generation's humans since infancy. TV, social media, technology addiction, and now AI craft a reality dominated by those that see humans as economic units to be manipulated. Conventional politicians harken to opinion polls that see people as predictable and plan strategies around their manipulation. Political propaganda in every country has created "enemies" that are convenient for the state and its elites- and that goes way further back than Trump. I could list a plethora of "isms"- colonialism, militarism, imperialism, etc. that have deep historical roots, are ingrained in modern "liberal" institutions and countries- and give lie to professed greatness, invincibility and morality. A trail and trial of tears and devastation.
The era of liberalism is dead. This is a bold assertion. Like any long-held societal paradigm- it doesn't die overnight- but in stages. Saying it is dead- is intended awaken acceptance of the inevitable. It also doesn't mean there are not many elements of liberalism worth preserving and extending. And it distinguishes liberalism in theory to liberalism in practice. Liberalism doesn't equal neoliberalism- with the latter in my opinion a clear failure.
What replaces it revolves around a recognition of why this is the case, an acceptance of the need for transformation and the rejection of denialism and the acceptance of oneness, ethics, morality and cooperation.
Some historians have an aversion when ethics and morality are injected into the argument. And if done so as mere words- rightly so.
But in a period of great transformation- they are key to defining what it means to be human.
Choice. If one admits choice- one must admit morality and ethics into the unfolding of history.
What follows from the second perspective or framework is the question of what would this "new" society look like. How will it meaningfully extend the freedom Snyder and others write about. It is easier to define it from what it is not than from what it is.
From my perspective, I know that if I outline my specific ideas- it will be deemed unrealistic- and possibly lead to a sense of hopelessness. But in the end- a critical component is participation and the hearing and incorporation of many voices. Only with this participation will there be empowerment and a chance for experimentation and a better world.
So yes- we need freedom to be free. But time is running out.
Brilliant! Thank you. Check out carbon pricing to mitigate climate change. https://climate.mit.edu/explainers/carbon-pricing - Transitioning off fossil fuels will not only help end these senseless wars, but help create the kind of republic and democracy we all need and want.
The return of the crew of Artemis II last night reminded me powerfully of the first time human beings travelled around the moon I was a soldier then. Then, too, America was in chaos. An increasingly unpopular and terribly frustrating war had taken the lives of tens of thousands of American and millions of Vietnamese. Amid governmental and military claims of victory, the Tet Offensive had proven our incompetence and the utter misunderstanding of what we were doing over there. Civil rights protests had torn our cities apart with the violence of the reaction to two hundred years of racial bigotry, suppression, and mass murder. Millions of Americans were in the streets, both sides utterly convinced of their righteousness. American leaders, both black and white had been assasssinated.
Then, at the end that terrible year of 1968, Frank Borman and his two companions in Apollo 8 went far further than any human beings had ever gone, rounding the moon, counting on a single untried engine to break them out of lunar orbit and send them home. The specter of engine failure hung over the mission, raising the unthinkable possibility of three dead men orbiting the moon, endlessly unreachable.
But then an extraordinary photograph appeared; the first Earthrise. And the voices of three Americans reached the earth reciting the Biblical story of the creation of that lovely blue, white, and green world which we saw for the first time from a quarter of a million miles away. One did not need to be a Christian or a Jew to get the message. We were only the one species, we had only the one world, the one home. And then the engine fired and three human beings did come home.
For an extraordinary moment, all of us on this good earth had the chance to understand what that moment meant.
But we chose not to, and so here we are again.And once again we have a chance to remember the nature and purpose of our founding. We were to be the response to four thousand years of top down rule; the most extraordinary, the most crucial, the riskiest, and the most complex ongoing experiment ih human society and government ever attempted. It is an experiment in which Donald Trump and his collection of lickspittles have no interest.
Indeed, we are very, very grateful for all you are doing. Selfishly, I would love for you to be running the country, but of course, we need you out there keeping track of everything and making sense of it all. What I do know is we (all sides) need much better candidates for office, all offices. My fear is those who would be the BEST candidates will never even consider running for office, given the complete shambles government has become. If you do have particular people in mind that could help save us, I hope you'll find a way to persuade them. (If we end up running "the same old slate" in the "same old way" [i.e., endless surveying & emailing for $$$$$] I will just scream.)
Solidarity is being deliberate about living a life that humanity's wisdom traditions have been clarifying for 3500 years. We must start with the basics: understanding that the distinctions between us become less visible, so that we are more likely to unite against those who want to amplify them, so that they may profit from the turmoil this causes.
The fact that a historian is showing up in person—-at rallies, in crowds, making circles through fifteen thousand people for handshakes; matters more than the speech itself. Snyder is putting his body where his analysis is. That’s rarer than it should be.
Most public intellectuals are content to diagnose from a safe distance. Snyder is choosing the harder thing: to be accountable to the people he’s writing about, in real time, in the rain.
Thank you!!
Johan 🐌
Yes, Johan. An historian of Dr Snyder’s stature circling through the crowd signifies that yes indeed, we the people are a powerful voice of intention and direction.
this is an excellent point that cannot be overemphasized!
But not you Johan. Bless you 🐌. 💔🇺🇸
YES! We have to envision a better future and work to create it. We need to have conversations about what the structure should look like to ensure our safety and freedom. I applaud the people around the world who are standing up and speaking out against this current chaos--AND we should also be talking in great detail about what we want next. In my small town, I'm creating some interactive theatre sketches to do that-- get people talking. It's a tiny start, but we need these conversations -- and we need to keep envisioning a future we can all live with. Thanks for your encouragement and good work!
Underneath all the rhetoric is the fact that Trump’s presidency is a remarkable gift to us - a powerful but ultimately deeply flawed reminder that that our Republic is far more fragile than we understood it to be. He is the test that had to come in order to make us understand that our trajectory almost ever since we were the Arsenal of Democracy has been far too complacent, far too self indulgent.
I hope you are correct when we look back someday 🙏
1) Encouraging employers of all sizes to close on election day (with or without pay)
2) Encouraging all to identify & assist those vulnerable re: Obtaining Proper ID/documentation
3) Encouraging all to identify & assist those vulnerable re: Access To Physical Polls if necessary - ready to pivot to last minute changing of poll locations without notice
4) Encouraging all to identify & assist those vulnerable - and Provide ‘Cover’ and representation for them at The Polls
5) Encouraging all starting NOW - Well Ahead Of The Midterms that these measures may be necessary and To Anticipate the Subversion and likelihood of Federal Agents Present at The polls
6) Encouraging all to phone camera image their Voting Machine Receipt Scroll Pages Where Possible… (How can this be pre-organized to Prevail if needed against the claims of “Fraud?”)
7) Pre-address messaging to Gen Z on a mass scale to minimize turnout insufficiency / Stimulate Their Future politics and Power To Effect Change
I was one of those people making you late for the march. Thank you for coming to Cincinnati again and for your words beforehand.
Thank you for saying "But opposition makes no sense without a vision of what is better." This is the philosophy I operate under which I learned, in part, from Buckminster Fuller. He once said "Don't fight the existing system. Design a better system that makes the existing system obsolete." (I'm paraphrasing a bit.)
We MUST plan to implement a better way for America to organize itself... as the Founding Fathers did 250 years ago. But while their focus was on writing a Constitution that counted on "the rule of law" to guide us (save us from having a "king" again), I believe our focus must be on the non-religious-specific concept of "love thy neighbor".
Coming from a place of love instead of hate is a spiritual (not religious) choice... one that benefits our mental health (it's NOT healthy to be angry all the time, even as Fox News makes a lot of money from keeping people angry) as well as the larger society. A society organized around love is also a society that's organized around cooperation and learning from each other. When you "love your neighbor," you listen to them... which opens the door to learning from them.
And if the learning everyone seeks is specifically oriented towards "creating a more perfect union," then we get the kind of culture the Founding Fathers dreamed of us having... one where pursuing life, liberty, and happiness is made possible for all.
I invite you to read Jeffrey Rosen's 2024 book about the "continuous learning and improvement" mindset of the Founding Fathers. It's called "The Pursuit of Happiness: How Classical Writers on Virtue Inspired the Lives of the Founders and Defined America"
https://constitutioncenter.org/go/the-pursuit-of-happiness
Bucky was a highly thoughtful man.
Does anyone in this community know of organizing around ideas for a revised constitutional framework for America, post Trump & MAGA? I thank Prof Snyder for being honest with us: there’s no going back. We need to move forward. I feel like there must be organizational efforts happening, but have been unable to learn about who/where these efforts are happening through usual means (Google searches).
Our Constitution is obsolete in one way. It allows unequal representation. 250 years ago that may have been OK with the people. That is no longer the case and it has turned into a form of minority rule that is devolving into the worst form of autocracy. Are we ready to become a real democracy?
The current autocrats are deeply entrenched. So deep that the current leadership cabal is able to act out the wildest of destructive dreams. The rest of us are arguing over what is the cheapest strategy for saving ourselves while we cling to material assets and poorly based ideas we think we need to survive. Look around at the new reality of life on Earth. The time has come to deal with it.
Move to Canada where we Canadians are still free and live in a sovereign and democratic nation which is also still beautiful and very peaceful.🇨🇦
Yes, Ed -- dark money now "allows unequal representation.
That's the title of the key Jane Mayer book, and the center of what you here call "the current leadership cabal."
When Timothy Snyder says "We have to work together rather than allowing ourselves to be isolated," I'd prefer specificity. I'd like schools to center essay writing so students learn the skills to listen to others and quote them in the contexts of their lives as the students see themselves in their lives. For more specifics, see www.EssayingDifferences.com .
And kill standardized testing, as the Finns did to make their schools best in the world.
Thank you Ed. I don’t disagree with any of your essential points. But I do think I asked a question that I will not get an answer to in this Substack thread. Thanks again.
I hold these truths to be self-evident...
Solidarity is deliberately living a life that humanity's wisdom traditions have been clarifying for 3500 years. We must start with the basics: understanding that distinctions between us become less visible when we are intentional, so we are more likely to unite against those who want to amplify them. They profit from the turmoil that divisiveness causes.
As Thomas Paine said: “A constitution is not the act of a government, but of a people constituting a government; and government without a constitution, is power without a right.” Even from our Nation’s very founding forming a democratic government under the Constitution was fraught with difficulties and disagreements. Many thought it would be better to wait for a better, more stable time but Thomas Paine was adamant that there was never going to be a better time, that time never comes because there will always be some other problem(s)that arises.
And now the U.S. Constitution is even more difficult to change and has only been amended 27 times. State constitutions, on the other hand, are much easier to modify, and state constitutional amendments are adopted on a regular basis. The current constitutions of the 50 states have been amended around 7,000 times. Republican-controlled states are actively pursuing two paths to amend constitutions: altering their state constitutions to limit voter initiatives and campaigning for an Article V Convention to amend the U.S. Constitution. To amend the United States Constitution, 38 of the 50 states (three-fourths) must ratify a proposed amendment. Amendments are proposed either by a two-thirds vote in both houses of Congress or by a constitutional convention called by two-thirds of state legislatures, then sent to the states for ratification.
This is not the way we want to going forward with amending the Constitution but it seems like it would be pretty difficult to find some consensus in our divided Nation right now and with a Republican controlled Congress that has abdicated their responsibilities and power to Trump. But it’s obvious that we do need more clarifying wording in the Constitution and updating that will make our republic stronger, more secure and resistant to the tyranny and harm done by this Trumpian regime and the MAGA cultist Republicans.
Were you referring to the points made by Phil Barish about standing with Americans who need help, and encouraging election turnout? I think those are all good ideas, but it doesn’t address what I am asking for, which is: what groups are doing the intellectual work of imagining a new US Constitution, not just what that might look like, but how we organize to achieve it.
What does a new Constitution look like? What is proven to work. A single legislative body based on EQUAL representation with leadership controlled by the mechanism we call a "vote of confidence." This has proven to work in modern nations that have experienced the worst of human wars and conflict. We can keep the Senate in what is very strictly an advisory role. No more governance by political minorities. How do we organize it? By starting at the state and even city levels. "Senates" hearken back to ancient Rome where the wealthy wanted not just a piece of the action, but the entire show.
The wealthy among us will not like this. To which I answer "you've had you time and you botched it."You fell victim to greed.
The income tax structure of the immediate post WWII worked well. It benefited the leaders of productive industry rather than a cabal of lazy heirs enriched by inflation and carried interest that we have today. I grew up in the middle of all this, and I watched from the inside out how it worked. It was pretty much a culture of back scratchers as long as their increasing wealth was not directed toward politics.
Perhaps it is worth asking that question on The Contrarian substack or Robert Reich's substack.
Both analyse events, discuss democratic values and look to the future:
1. The Contrarian's body of lawyers called "Democracy Defenders" has 300 active legal cases vs. the Trump regime, and more coming);
and
2. Robert Reich and his team propose solutions, and also run "Inequality Media", which could be characterized as anti-excessive-inequality!
Thank you! Will do.
No. See new reply...
OK. Guess we’re just talking past each other. I will keep searching.
I'm trying to follow this convo. I think you and I might be on the same page, wondering how a brilliant new constitution can even hope to come to be. It is desperately needed, but who will comprise the new "constitutional committee?"
Thank you Candace. That’s part of the question I’m trying to answer. Conservatives have been hanging their hopes on something called “The Convention of the States.” That project has stalled, but activity of the US Supreme Court could bring it roaring back to life. If it does come to pass, I want to make sure that those of us who are supporters of rule of law and civil liberties are prepared to engage. Something Prof Snyder said was very similar to something Marc Elias has said: the old world (before Trump) is not coming back. I think that is true. So the question is: what’s next? I’m a retired lawyer, and while I probably couldn’t contribute directly to such an effort (in terms of drafting language or funding the political organizing), I have financial resources that I would contribute to a group provided I trusted them. That’s the long story of what I am looking for. But I have probably asked this question in the wrong place!
thank you as always. one of my idiosyncrasies is to use the word, freedom to indicate my internal capacity to chose my thoughts and conduct whereas liberty is what's enshrined in law, granted to me - or not, by the government in which i live.
I was in the crowd when you spoke in Philly. May the crowds keep getting bigger, the fellowships stronger, the sense of urgency more acute, the sense of agency more powerful.
Our planet is in deep trouble, but it is never time for us to shrink into a cowardly fortress… unless we are mad kings, malevolent oligarchs, or complicit haters. All of the above can change, except perhaps the madness of the king.
In today's post Mr. Snyder returns to his theme of not just resistance- but asking, what are we fighting for? Encapsulating this in the idea of freedom is important. But there is also the recognition that for resistance to be successful- to bear long term fruits for society and humanity- it must embrace something greater and better.
May Day will soon be upon us. At its roots it embraces labor rights, fairness, anti-racism, anti-colonialism and issues of social justice and unity. It is seen as a manifestation of Left thinking- but it need not be exclusively represented by the Left. It offers an opening to the themes of freedom Mr. Snyder talks about.
However, we are at a point that for resistance to be successful at all- it must seriously critique society itself. Going well beyond, in my opinion, the typical voices of the Democratic Party.
From my perspective there are two frameworks to consider. One discusses the resistance itself- and the other the roots of the problem- and paves the way to go beyond just resistance.
The first perspective/framework are the deliberate efforts of right-wing fascist movements to exploit the machinery of democracy to defeat democracy itself and give rise to corrupt., elite power structures. Big Lies, foreign interventions, intimidation of political enemies (or worse), decimation of the media and civil society, scapegoating, mass incarceration, and the institutionalism of a culture of fear- are all part of this often-deadly onslaught. Mr. Snyder's works have laid this bare for what it is- giving it needed historical perspective. MAGA- in its explicit embodiment of "America First," almost invites us to hearken back to Hitler's rise to power in the 1930s. And in my opinion peculiar similarities abound to Nazi Germany- but there are many others to draw on.
The second perspective is that these movements arise in a vacuum of emptiness and isolation- where the populace is experiencing levels of denial and loss as the world they (think) they knew becomes uncertain and even hostile. This opens the doors to strongmen- who convince the populace to sacrifice their own political rights and genuine participation in exchange for security and a "comforting" version of the truth that is in reality an extreme denial of once held moral and ethical values- and reality. This perspective is not new. Two World Wars also laid it bare- but today it is even more urgent as the destruction of two world wars pales when compared to the threats to our very existence posed by nuclear war, environmental devastation and unbridled technology.
If the first framework is the only one accepted as true, as meaningful- then I believe the Trump's of the world become a recurrent nightmare- until ultimately the current civilization collapses. They can be resisted and defeated for a time- but other "versions" will rear their ugly head- even worse. The rubble of Gaza becomes the rubble of all.
If the second framework is understood- the necessity of transformation becomes obvious. In this light Trump, Orban and their ilk are misbegotten teachers and warnings- they herald a breakup of the old and the need for something new. Not what they offer as "new"- but genuine transformation.
Capitalism, in today's world, heralded and cursed the world with the idea of endless consumption. The ecological landscape- life itself is under catastrophic threat. Technology in the form of AI, cannot be ignored for its evolutionary implications- and the threats and changes it heralds. Entire systems of denial and escape have operated for today's and prior generation's humans since infancy. TV, social media, technology addiction, and now AI craft a reality dominated by those that see humans as economic units to be manipulated. Conventional politicians harken to opinion polls that see people as predictable and plan strategies around their manipulation. Political propaganda in every country has created "enemies" that are convenient for the state and its elites- and that goes way further back than Trump. I could list a plethora of "isms"- colonialism, militarism, imperialism, etc. that have deep historical roots, are ingrained in modern "liberal" institutions and countries- and give lie to professed greatness, invincibility and morality. A trail and trial of tears and devastation.
The era of liberalism is dead. This is a bold assertion. Like any long-held societal paradigm- it doesn't die overnight- but in stages. Saying it is dead- is intended awaken acceptance of the inevitable. It also doesn't mean there are not many elements of liberalism worth preserving and extending. And it distinguishes liberalism in theory to liberalism in practice. Liberalism doesn't equal neoliberalism- with the latter in my opinion a clear failure.
What replaces it revolves around a recognition of why this is the case, an acceptance of the need for transformation and the rejection of denialism and the acceptance of oneness, ethics, morality and cooperation.
Some historians have an aversion when ethics and morality are injected into the argument. And if done so as mere words- rightly so.
But in a period of great transformation- they are key to defining what it means to be human.
Choice. If one admits choice- one must admit morality and ethics into the unfolding of history.
What follows from the second perspective or framework is the question of what would this "new" society look like. How will it meaningfully extend the freedom Snyder and others write about. It is easier to define it from what it is not than from what it is.
From my perspective, I know that if I outline my specific ideas- it will be deemed unrealistic- and possibly lead to a sense of hopelessness. But in the end- a critical component is participation and the hearing and incorporation of many voices. Only with this participation will there be empowerment and a chance for experimentation and a better world.
So yes- we need freedom to be free. But time is running out.
Timothy Snyder is right. It’s time to remind ourselves that the American Revolution had goals beyond removing the king.
Our Declaration of Independence says these things.
All people have the rights to life, liberty, and freedom to choose their goals.
Governments exist to secure these rights.
Governments get their powers from the consent of the people.
The people have the right to alter or abolish a government that is destructive of those rights and to institute a new government.
Brilliant! Thank you. Check out carbon pricing to mitigate climate change. https://climate.mit.edu/explainers/carbon-pricing - Transitioning off fossil fuels will not only help end these senseless wars, but help create the kind of republic and democracy we all need and want.
The return of the crew of Artemis II last night reminded me powerfully of the first time human beings travelled around the moon I was a soldier then. Then, too, America was in chaos. An increasingly unpopular and terribly frustrating war had taken the lives of tens of thousands of American and millions of Vietnamese. Amid governmental and military claims of victory, the Tet Offensive had proven our incompetence and the utter misunderstanding of what we were doing over there. Civil rights protests had torn our cities apart with the violence of the reaction to two hundred years of racial bigotry, suppression, and mass murder. Millions of Americans were in the streets, both sides utterly convinced of their righteousness. American leaders, both black and white had been assasssinated.
Then, at the end that terrible year of 1968, Frank Borman and his two companions in Apollo 8 went far further than any human beings had ever gone, rounding the moon, counting on a single untried engine to break them out of lunar orbit and send them home. The specter of engine failure hung over the mission, raising the unthinkable possibility of three dead men orbiting the moon, endlessly unreachable.
But then an extraordinary photograph appeared; the first Earthrise. And the voices of three Americans reached the earth reciting the Biblical story of the creation of that lovely blue, white, and green world which we saw for the first time from a quarter of a million miles away. One did not need to be a Christian or a Jew to get the message. We were only the one species, we had only the one world, the one home. And then the engine fired and three human beings did come home.
For an extraordinary moment, all of us on this good earth had the chance to understand what that moment meant.
But we chose not to, and so here we are again.And once again we have a chance to remember the nature and purpose of our founding. We were to be the response to four thousand years of top down rule; the most extraordinary, the most crucial, the riskiest, and the most complex ongoing experiment ih human society and government ever attempted. It is an experiment in which Donald Trump and his collection of lickspittles have no interest.
Can we prove them wrong?
Bless you Dr Snyder. Thank you for speaking with clarity, knowledge, heart and courage. We are grateful.💔🇺🇸
Indeed, we are very, very grateful for all you are doing. Selfishly, I would love for you to be running the country, but of course, we need you out there keeping track of everything and making sense of it all. What I do know is we (all sides) need much better candidates for office, all offices. My fear is those who would be the BEST candidates will never even consider running for office, given the complete shambles government has become. If you do have particular people in mind that could help save us, I hope you'll find a way to persuade them. (If we end up running "the same old slate" in the "same old way" [i.e., endless surveying & emailing for $$$$$] I will just scream.)
Solidarity is being deliberate about living a life that humanity's wisdom traditions have been clarifying for 3500 years. We must start with the basics: understanding that the distinctions between us become less visible, so that we are more likely to unite against those who want to amplify them, so that they may profit from the turmoil this causes.
Trump and his allies are corrupted. The work you do is special.