An open letter to the Republican Leadership:

Recent years have seen the unfolding of stunning and historic events.

The American experiment, the very foundations of the American Revolution, is in the throes of what may be its most daunting challenge since the Civil War.

Arguably – it is all one struggle, one continuity of purpose that brings us to this place, a struggle for the freedom of the everyday person, not as an accessory of wealth or as a special birthright, but as a birthright for all.

I say to you that any act or practice attempting to repress the voice of “the people,” is in the most clear definition of the word, treason. Whether through gerrymandering, voting laws, or turning a blind eye to informational warfare, it is treason.

Are there not principles that are more important than short term goals? Are there not values to be prized more than political standing? than “career”? Shouldn’t the health of our republic be our first priority?

We cannot know if the 2016 election was materially altered by Russian interference or not. We didn’t have the opportunity to find out.

It is clear to any but the most naïve pundit that Mr. Trump is grateful for Mr. Putin’s support. Mr. Trump clearly fears that evidence of Russian interference undermines his “accomplishment” of winning. It is his ego that poisons his thinking and attracts him to despots who bolster his own sense of importance. He cannot see, or even care, how what feels good to him might somehow be bad for the country. If you question my conclusions go through and review ALL of his statements on Russia and Putin. Anyone can judge this for themselves absent the filter of spokesperson spin.

Let me repeat – Review Mr. Trump’s statements. All of them. The idea that replacing the word “would” with “wouldn’t” substantively alters his statements in Helsinki is absurd. It is a farce – and you – the Republican leadership must, if you’re truly patriots, do whatever it takes to act as a wall against these foreign assaults.

You must explain, in the most clear terms, to your constituents and the world, what is happening and what you are doing to protect our government and our people from Russia. You cannot sit by and do nothing. As long as you fail to defend us, as long as you fail to move against this erosion of our national principles, whatever you accomplish, whatever you “achieve,” is corrupted.

Mark Zuckerberg, Jack Dorsey, et.al. - Hey I'm talking to you!

Dear Twitter and Facebook – Dear Mark Zuckerberg – Dear Jack Dorsey -

Dear Instagram and all the social medias –

If I can see all the fake accounts, why can’t you?

On Facebook I constantly have men friend me: divorced, widowed, in the military – living far away. They have no friends and limited photos of themselves as middle-aged and smiling nice guys. Sometimes they’re wearing camo, sometimes they’re in business suits, or cargo shorts, sometimes there are pictures of roses or chocolates. Clearly they’re romantic. I suspect they want money from me so they can come visit. I report these guys for having fake accounts. It’s a 50/50 shot as to whether they will be taken down.

I see posts on FB. One recently saying that all the Russian Bots did was tell us the truth. I visited poster’s FB page. It listed, among other things, a personal webpage that linked to nothing and a series of the same kind of weird postings.

Facebook you need an option under the report button that says, “This is a suspected Bot or Troll,” and then you need to actually pay people to investigate these reports. It’s worth the money.

You also need a verification option – similar to the check for Twitter but for everyday folks. You should be able to apply for it. You need to figure out some pretty rigorous criteria to make it worthwhile.

On Twitter – YOU REALLY NEED THE “I THINK THIS IS A BOT OR TROLL” under the report this account!!! Really, really, really. I could see the bots and trolls posting about the Parkland shooting … I can see the bots swarming Trump’s account, et.al. Twitter you are literally drowning in bots and trolls. YOU HAVE TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS OR YOU’RE GOING TO FAIL AS A COMPANY. Regularly send out notices to people for what constitutes suspicious activity. Just like in the subway, we need signs that say “See something, Say something.” We also need guidance as to what to look for – and yes it will be a nightmare for you to wade through it all. It’s going to cost real dollars. YOU HAVE TO DO THIS.

Dear all social media platforms – get your sh*t together. Stop counting your profits and protect your future earnings as well as the people you serve. Get some policies in place and set up teams to constantly watch your platforms for suspicious activities. This is a lot less big brother-y than letting faithless actors wreck public discourse and breed ill will. Be decent – give a crap about the world – DO SOMETHING.

rant ...

I do not understand people who claim to be Christians who have a preoccupation with wealth and “practicality.”

I do not understand how people who claim to believe in a savior who sacrificed his life, people who supposedly revere the martyrs of early Christianity, who say they believe in the bible – I do not understand – do they not read it? Meditate on Jesus’s words, his meaning? Do they not see the logical implications of the things he preached? Loaves and fishes, the overturning the tables, Lazarus, the eye of the needle – What do they think “love” means?

Likewise, I do not understand how anyone imagines there is some fissure between the divine and the material world. I do not understand how anyone could BE and not know it is a miracle. How can we, awake to the little that we are, not see the divine? How is it possible that we need anything more than the mindboggling wonder of just being to let us know of the divine?

How can people who call themselves Christians not believe in science? How can they possibly think that the study of everything isn’t the study of the mind of God? How do you imagine God but in that imagining limit God?

I wish I could find words to say exactly what I mean here. It’s just that there are such petty small conceptions of the divine – of being – such a preoccupation with things that would be stupid if they weren’t so dangerous. There is so much cynicism in the world. All these F**king political games – people grasping for power – as if it matters – what do they think they’re doing? So many people that seem to think that the best we can hope for is labor, not even work, and just crumbs – to imagine and then punish “enemies” – Our fantasies of the nature of things cause us to concern ourselves with cynical, stupid, dangerous things.

I'm going to try to focus on the positive. I'm in truth an optimist but sometimes I get dismayed at the cynicism I see. It seems to me it eats out people's souls and leaves them empty, grasping, and discontent.

I am grateful for the work. It keeps me going forward. It is hope enacted.

ok - enough now.