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• It took less than 100 years.

• From American historian, Timothy Snyder, author of “On Tyranny” from his comment in the New Yorker, 11/8/24:

  “When the historian Robert Paxton was asked about Trump and fascism a few weeks ago, he made an important point. Of course, Trump is a fascist, Paxton concluded. It was fine to compare him to Mussolini and Hitler, but there was a larger point. It took some luck for those two to come to power. ‘The Trump phenomenon looks like it has a much more solid social base,’ Paxton said, ‘which neither Hitler nor Mussolini would have had.’

  “Fascism is a phenomenon, not a person. Just as Trump was always a presence, so is the movement he has created. It is not just a matter of the actual fascists in his movement, who are scarcely hiding, nor of his own friendly references to Hitler or his use of Hitlerian language (“vermin,” “enemy within”). He bears responsibility for what comes next, as do his allies and supporters.

  “Yet some, and probably more, of the blame rests with our actions and analysis. Again and again, our major institutions, from the media to the judiciary, have amplified Trump’s presence; again and again, we have failed to name the consequences. Fascism can be defeated, but not when we are on its side.”

• From “Selling Hitler: Propaganda and the Nazi Brand,” by Nicolas O’Shaughnessy:

  “According to Goebbels, what was distinctive about the Nazis was ‘the ability to see into the soul of the people and to speak the language of the man in the street.’ The propagandist was an artist who ‘sensed the secret vibrations of the people.’ What distinguished European fascism above all was its discovery of new ways, a new methodology, of speaking to the working class. The fascists were not ashamed of mass media and marketing, understood the cultures of consumerism, and recognized the role these now played in the lives of the masses; media was a new language with which the masses were now familiar, including its styles, forms, and assumptions. Fascists were at ease in this exciting new world and recognized that it could be exploited for political purposes.”

  This was BEFORE the internet and social media.

• More from “Selling Hitler: Propaganda and the Nazi Brand,” by Nicolas O’Shaughnessy:

  “The propagandists did not have it all their own way and we are much mistaken if we imagine Nazi Germany to have been a nation only of fanatics. There were the convinced, the semi-convinced, and the doubters; one could in fact have been in all three categories through the lifetime of the Reich. The Nazis were the most electorally successful of all Europe’s fascist parties, yet they never garnered more than 37 percent of the vote.”

  Trump garnered 50.2% of the vote.

• My beloved friend, LeAnne Marie, sent me this beautifully wise comment in response to today’s post:

  “The juxtaposition of glorious and grievous, bucolic and blighted—it hurts to think how we can be in wonder of nature and then wound it so deeply. (An aching part of the Ukraine ballet I just attended.) And, then, as if not satisfied with decimating our land, our Earth, we go after one another, committing atrocities of the heart.

  “But, when ready, when we overcome (even bits) of our fatigue and pain, the heart returns to being sublimely capable of healing, loving, pounding rhythm, propelling us forward, manifesting our best (albeit weary) selves. Without skipping one beat, it pulses these truths: I have you. You have me. We have our tribe. We hold tight.

  “I very much love that the composition of your photo essay is an homage to Ms. Woolf: ‘The beauty of the world has two edges, one of laughter, one of anguish, cutting the heart asunder.’

  “And then. And then… we reassemble, a heart whole again.”

• Thanks for naming what is happening. We need to grieve and then we need our hearts, each other, and a way to hold fast without hate. I don’t know yet how. I am still grieving.

  • Charlotte, I am still grieving, too.

    Adrienne, who has been with me in the past when I descend into the abyss of depression, has been patient and kind; drove me to the ocean on Saturday. She is the only person I have been able to talk to since the reality of the election set in (Jesus, it will be setting in for a very long time).

    I am unable to find my own words. I forced myself to go out to farmland on Sunday morning when I took the photos in this post. Mother Nature, like Adrienne, was very healing.

    I don’t know when I will be able to write my own words. I am hoping that I can embrace the perspective of the 12th-century Buddhist monk and poet Saigyo who reflected on the gaps between falling raindrops, noting that the pauses between their sounds were just as important as the drops themselves.

    Or Stanza V from Wallace Stevens’ poem, “Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird”:

    “I do not know which to prefer,
    The beauty of inflections.
    Or the beauty of innuendoes, The blackbird whistling.
    Or just after”

• I, too, have been without words and have been relying on the words of others to lift me up and move me forward. This poem from the Zen Peacemaker’s newsletter today echoes your gorgeous photos:

  hold your tears gently

  rest now, my dear warriors

  the sun’s coming up

  Geoff O’Keeffe, 11.06.24 0500 h

  Followed by this:

  As Zen practitioners and as practitioners of other contemplative paths, we learn to be still, and at a time like this, that is a priceless tool. It could be said that silence–not speaking or opining or emoting verbally at times like these–may often be the wisest path.

  But the Bodhisattva Vow and our Three Tenets call us to speak, to act, to commit ourselves to everyone’s healing, to our realization of oneness. So what do we do? How do we lean forward and not cause more harm due to our own upset and anxiety?

  Speech is always a slippery slope. Everyone is talking these days, trying to analyze, or to apportion blame or ascribe motives, or to express their anger. This is certainly fertile ground for enhancing dualism and “othering”, for bolstering fear and alienation. But we have a choice. …

  Let’s move ahead together into our unknown future, speaking wisely and compassionately, with kindness and truth as our guideposts.

  • ❤️🙏

• It is so helpful to share our shock and grief over the events of last week. We won’t be able simply to move on quickly, but must sit for a time with our perplexity and despair. At the same time, we need, I think, to be careful that we not become paralyzed indefinitely. We cannot right now plot/plan/map out what our response to the election will or should be, but I am encouraged by those who urge simple thoughts and deeds of kindness during this time of grief and shock. These, I believe, can light tiny candles in this darkness, candles that may in time shine the way for us to more clearly see what our role might be in counteracting the powers that threaten to overwhelm.

• Thank you, Carol, for your always-compassionate — and always, always, always, prayerful perspective. It is needed, and I hope that there are folks who will light those candles.

  At the moment, I cannot.

  When the President-elect of the United States posts on Truth Social that “we kicked ass and come January, we are going to kick more ass,” lighting a “candle” is not enough. I am reminded of this scene from the movie, “Manhattan.” It is a fundraiser at the Guggenheim and features all of New York City’s beautiful people; the literati and cultural elites:

  “ISAAC DAVIS: Has anybody read that Nazis are gonna march in New Jersey? Y’know, I read this in the newspaper. We should go down there, get some guys together, y’know, get some bricks and baseball bats and really explain things to them.

  “PARTY GUEST: There is this devastating satirical piece on that on the Op Ed page of the Times, it is devastating.

  “ISAAC DAVIS: Well, a satirical piece in the Times is one thing, but bricks and baseball bats really gets right to the point.”

  Some light candles. At the moment, I need bricks and baseball bats. Forgive me.

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