Ruminations

There’s 7 New People Born

Bryan Watson8 years ago02 mins

Into this world came this song. It certainly wasn’t on the radio, but I had bought the album – my second Dylan album – and listened to it, late at night, in the living room, on the hi-fi console, with my headphones on, in stereo.

When I first heard it, it was just “the next track” on the album. But halfway through, I stopped and moved the needle back to the beginning. I listened. Then played it again. And again. And again.

I learned, in 5 minutes, about poverty. Farming. South Dakota. Pain. Helplessness. Desperation. Terror. Loss.

President “Not My Fault” (Sad!)

Bryan Watson9 years ago01 mins

As if on cue, a defender of the White House rushed to respond…. Yes, Benghazi. Still. Clearly, and unsurprisingly, this passionate defender missed my point (and, by doing so, reinforced my point).

Nothing that is going on now is about President Obama or Secretary Clinton. What is going on now, and in the future, is about Trump – no one else is making the decision about what we do next.

Yet he could not resist. He cannot speak unless he is attacking someone – he must always attack, always denigrate, always demean, and always cast himself as a victim of that other person’s failings.

A Teaching Moment, Squandered

Bryan Watson8 years ago5 years ago02 mins

Give 30 minutes to walk out and return, then give an hour to study of these basic tenets of being a citizen in the US, their history, the difficulties of conflicts between rights and safety, how bills become law, and how protests change (or don’t change) law, how courts decide conflicts.

Basic civics education.

Step Away – Find Your Pathway

Bryan Watson5 years ago5 years ago03 mins

perhaps these months away from the job have allowed workers to think about the work they were doing, the pay, the benefits, the responsibilities, the supervision, the hours. Perhaps they took the time to examine the path they were on – to re-imagine the career path that they had once dreamed of, the one they were now too busy – too exhausted – to pursue at the end of the day.

Is it still murder if the president orders it?

Bryan Watson9 months ago9 months ago02 mins

He’s been murdering people week after week, sometimes day after day, now month after month. We’re getting used to it. It’s not a big story anymore. It isn’t the headline. It isn’t the lead story. Oh, sure, at first, some folks were shocked, outraged, demanded an investigation. At first … but not now, not anymore. It’s become normal. Dog bites man. No big deal. Happens all the time. Not news.

Message-Making: The Biden Speech

Bryan Watson4 years ago04 mins

The speech is a lesson in the tactics, large and small, that hold a message together and burn your ideas into your audience’s consciousness. Repetition. Litanies. Framing. Promoting your Values, naming the Villain, holding out a Vision.

Impeachment

Bryan Watson7 years ago03 mins

I am confident that any bill of impeachment passed by the House will not only fail in the Senate – it will never go to trial in the Senate. Senate boss McConnell has shown that he is perfectly willing to simply ignore House-passed bills, so they never get a hearing, never get a vote, never…

Politics Never Stops – That’s Good!

Bryan Watson8 years ago04 mins

But there’s no need to stop canvassing. Perhaps it’ll be less formal than a campaign might canvass – no mobile app, no careful selection of which doors to knock and which to skip, no glossy door-hangers to leave behind. But canvassing is a formalized version of that most basic political act – talking.

Results AND Resistance

Bryan Watson8 years ago02 mins

What do we resist? We resist job losses. We resist wage stagnation. We resist corporate welfare. We resist corruption. We resist cruelty. We resist dictators.

We resist Republicans.

The Death of the Death of Obamacare

Bryan Watson9 years ago01 mins

It took the Resistance, the nationwide gaggle of Indivisible groups, ADAPT protesters, health care advocates, and the people themselves to bring this reality to the forefront. They marched and shouted, they posted and tweeted, they emailed and called and sang, they carried photos of their friends and family, yes, they disrupted and got arrested – but mostly they told their stories.

“I meant to do that.”

Step Away – Find Your Pathway

Speak to their Values

Candidates: How Do You Decide?

How Do We Pay For it?

“Our Sacred Honour”

There’s 7 New People Born

President “Not My Fault” (Sad!)

A Teaching Moment, Squandered

Step Away – Find Your Pathway

Is it still murder if the president orders it?

Message-Making: The Biden Speech

Impeachment

Politics Never Stops – That’s Good!

Results AND Resistance

The Death of the Death of Obamacare