As you explained so well, the answer to your headline is, yes. I watch in frustration as a good man, Beto O'Rourke loses to a mean-spirited liar and profiteer like Greg Abbott. Politicians have become polished at spin, journalists are told to play nice in exchange for access, voters are distracted by shiny objects. We're a mess. Until we turn from irresponsible capitalism and turn toward ethics we will continue to be a mess. Thank you for this important question.
“The challenge for progressive politicians is to tell the truth about our dire situation on this planet.”
So true, these words! Not only in politics but, as exemplified in the COP28 debacle, anyone in a position of power or leadership has a moral obligation to speak truth.
In the US, with 30,000+ lies credited to him, many have become anesthetized to lies of Trump and shrug them off. How did we come to this?
Kelley Anne Conway invented alternative facts and it was laughed off. However, it was a doormat for the GOP to continue the trope and expound on it.
There was a time when a politician when caught in a lie was scandalized. Even a politician who misspelled potato lost credibility. What has happened to expecting truth and honesty from leaders?
PS: One of the best ways to support The Planet newsletter and keep the author motivated to provide excellent content is with new subscribers. Keep The Planet in mind as a gift giving option if there’s someone on your gift list who’d enjoy reading the best newsletter on the internet.
So many topics tonight; agree on all as always. Thank you for perspective on idiocy in USA politics, your take refreshing from a Dutchman living in Canada having lived in many areas of the world. The COP28 challenge to eliminate conflicts of interest in Dubai was always a loser. I am beginning to think the organizers were indulging self interest only. If we can avoid an autocracy come November, 2024, and at least get some of the MAGA lying crowd out of governance, that will be a start and a welcome relief. Today I understand the Russian interests and Party of Leonard Leo are working on a new constitution, name? , sorry, acronym slips my mind presently, to initiate on Inauguration Day in 2025 assuming Trump or a minion wins. But I’m not buying that much ignorance in America the Beautiful; close perhaps and it’s going to be a war, but the good in us will prevail. Ask me again another day and I may be terrified.
I've often refered to future historians. Someday, they will describe these years in the wisdom of hindsight, and their readers will shake their heads in disbelief as if Reading a Tuchman bestseller about folly in the 14th century.
Dec 5, 2023·edited Dec 5, 2023Liked by Alexander Verbeek 🌍
SNL Cold Open portrays Santos in a cape declaring " I am just regular old Professor, Major, General, Astronaut Santos. Protector of the realm and Princess of Genovia!" And the American public are eating this up.
Switch to Rachel Maddow interviewing unlikely guest, Liz Cheney, who says: "Trump is not an acceptable alternative. He is not the lesser of two evils. He is a completely unfit man for office." Yet poll after poll show Trump leading. As the Music Man says: We got trouble in River City.
There is no North Star visible. No White Knight is coming to save us. If Trump is elected, we will lose our Democracy. We lost Nelson Mandela 10 years ago today and his words ring true "There can only be one division among us: those who cherish democracy and those who do not."
COP28 is full stop telling us that Climate Change is a direct cause of loss of life, loss of health and loss of the only place we call home. Yet all of these warnings are overshadowed by a conflict of interest so blatant & brazen that it has become as Gore says an "absurd masquerade."
Good insights here, Alex. Truth is in short supply in our world and hypocrisy is riding shotgun. I am a big fan of Merlin in King Arthur's Court. "When a man lies, he murders some part of the world." I hope we can learn something from this and find our voice of conscience that while it may be small, it is still there. Thank you for using yours.
To answer/comment on your challenging question and not repeat my own words, I choose paragraphs from a 2020 article by Samantha Hill in Open Democracy, referencing essays by Hannah Arendt, German-American historian and philosopher:
“We can shout truth to power and will never be heard because truth and politics cannot stand on common ground.” “Political power, she warned, will always sacrifice factual truth in favour of political gains. But the side effect of lies and propaganda is the destruction of the meaning by which we can orient ourselves in the world; it is the loss of both the common good and common sense.”
(Hannah Arendt essays - “Lying in Politics” / “Truth and Politics”)
I think we live in a virtual reality fabricated by our own narcissistic needs, confusion and projections. During Thanksgiving, “ a friend” told me that he thought Obama was a narcissist. He had previously voted for Trump, alias the narcissist in chief. Usually we reject and mock what bothers and touches us the most. There’s plenty of people who live a dissociative life. Trump supporters mirror each other in his leader, but liberals do it too of course. It’s a problem when you can’t see yourself in your leaders any longer. I can’t and won’t vote again for a man who is giving support to kill innocent children or for leaders who protect and praise Hamas. Both right and left wing extremists are narcissist who live in a fantasy world where the Wild West is the law (right) or where la la land will fix everything and will solve all problems with rules and regulations. They both live in the past.
Such a pity when a democracy is effectively a two party system. As I Dutchman, I can choose between dozens of parties. It's not that I have more choice, it is also a system where no party has the majority: compromise solutions are always needed in a coalition government. It doesn't make new legislation spectacular, but it is often supported by large parts of the population. Even when an extremist party gets the most votes, it can only govern when finding other -more central- parties to join.
As you explained so well, the answer to your headline is, yes. I watch in frustration as a good man, Beto O'Rourke loses to a mean-spirited liar and profiteer like Greg Abbott. Politicians have become polished at spin, journalists are told to play nice in exchange for access, voters are distracted by shiny objects. We're a mess. Until we turn from irresponsible capitalism and turn toward ethics we will continue to be a mess. Thank you for this important question.
It's hard to realize how much our standards have changed in such a short time, we need progress but are lipping backwards
Agree!
“The challenge for progressive politicians is to tell the truth about our dire situation on this planet.”
So true, these words! Not only in politics but, as exemplified in the COP28 debacle, anyone in a position of power or leadership has a moral obligation to speak truth.
In the US, with 30,000+ lies credited to him, many have become anesthetized to lies of Trump and shrug them off. How did we come to this?
Kelley Anne Conway invented alternative facts and it was laughed off. However, it was a doormat for the GOP to continue the trope and expound on it.
There was a time when a politician when caught in a lie was scandalized. Even a politician who misspelled potato lost credibility. What has happened to expecting truth and honesty from leaders?
PS: One of the best ways to support The Planet newsletter and keep the author motivated to provide excellent content is with new subscribers. Keep The Planet in mind as a gift giving option if there’s someone on your gift list who’d enjoy reading the best newsletter on the internet.
There’s a gift button to make it easy. 🎄🎁
yes, our moral values and expectations of honesty seems to have inflated.
So many topics tonight; agree on all as always. Thank you for perspective on idiocy in USA politics, your take refreshing from a Dutchman living in Canada having lived in many areas of the world. The COP28 challenge to eliminate conflicts of interest in Dubai was always a loser. I am beginning to think the organizers were indulging self interest only. If we can avoid an autocracy come November, 2024, and at least get some of the MAGA lying crowd out of governance, that will be a start and a welcome relief. Today I understand the Russian interests and Party of Leonard Leo are working on a new constitution, name? , sorry, acronym slips my mind presently, to initiate on Inauguration Day in 2025 assuming Trump or a minion wins. But I’m not buying that much ignorance in America the Beautiful; close perhaps and it’s going to be a war, but the good in us will prevail. Ask me again another day and I may be terrified.
Have a good night! 😘❤️🇺🇸🌎🕊️
I've often refered to future historians. Someday, they will describe these years in the wisdom of hindsight, and their readers will shake their heads in disbelief as if Reading a Tuchman bestseller about folly in the 14th century.
100% in agreement with the "cool alternatives" that you describe! :)
Thank you for all your thoughts.
To answer the question you asked in the title - I'm just going to go with YES!
I agree with you ;-)
SNL Cold Open portrays Santos in a cape declaring " I am just regular old Professor, Major, General, Astronaut Santos. Protector of the realm and Princess of Genovia!" And the American public are eating this up.
Switch to Rachel Maddow interviewing unlikely guest, Liz Cheney, who says: "Trump is not an acceptable alternative. He is not the lesser of two evils. He is a completely unfit man for office." Yet poll after poll show Trump leading. As the Music Man says: We got trouble in River City.
There is no North Star visible. No White Knight is coming to save us. If Trump is elected, we will lose our Democracy. We lost Nelson Mandela 10 years ago today and his words ring true "There can only be one division among us: those who cherish democracy and those who do not."
COP28 is full stop telling us that Climate Change is a direct cause of loss of life, loss of health and loss of the only place we call home. Yet all of these warnings are overshadowed by a conflict of interest so blatant & brazen that it has become as Gore says an "absurd masquerade."
Good insights here, Alex. Truth is in short supply in our world and hypocrisy is riding shotgun. I am a big fan of Merlin in King Arthur's Court. "When a man lies, he murders some part of the world." I hope we can learn something from this and find our voice of conscience that while it may be small, it is still there. Thank you for using yours.
Thank you Sharon, beautifully said.
Muchas gracias por todo.
To answer/comment on your challenging question and not repeat my own words, I choose paragraphs from a 2020 article by Samantha Hill in Open Democracy, referencing essays by Hannah Arendt, German-American historian and philosopher:
“We can shout truth to power and will never be heard because truth and politics cannot stand on common ground.” “Political power, she warned, will always sacrifice factual truth in favour of political gains. But the side effect of lies and propaganda is the destruction of the meaning by which we can orient ourselves in the world; it is the loss of both the common good and common sense.”
(Hannah Arendt essays - “Lying in Politics” / “Truth and Politics”)
well spoken indeed.
I think we live in a virtual reality fabricated by our own narcissistic needs, confusion and projections. During Thanksgiving, “ a friend” told me that he thought Obama was a narcissist. He had previously voted for Trump, alias the narcissist in chief. Usually we reject and mock what bothers and touches us the most. There’s plenty of people who live a dissociative life. Trump supporters mirror each other in his leader, but liberals do it too of course. It’s a problem when you can’t see yourself in your leaders any longer. I can’t and won’t vote again for a man who is giving support to kill innocent children or for leaders who protect and praise Hamas. Both right and left wing extremists are narcissist who live in a fantasy world where the Wild West is the law (right) or where la la land will fix everything and will solve all problems with rules and regulations. They both live in the past.
Such a pity when a democracy is effectively a two party system. As I Dutchman, I can choose between dozens of parties. It's not that I have more choice, it is also a system where no party has the majority: compromise solutions are always needed in a coalition government. It doesn't make new legislation spectacular, but it is often supported by large parts of the population. Even when an extremist party gets the most votes, it can only govern when finding other -more central- parties to join.
Agree