“We’ve made every decision correctly,” the president said Friday about the coronavirus, “and now the trajectory is great.” In fact, our Covid-19 numbers are up. They had begun to level off as hard-hit New York brought its infections under control, but now other hotspots are emerging. Arizona, Florida, and Texas, along with fifteen other states, are seeing increases in Covid-19 cases. Already, more than 112,000 Americans have died and more than 1.9 million are infected, and from now until July 4, epidemiologists predict 5,000 to 6,000 Americans a week will die from the disease.
To Dr. Richardson, and all of these intelligent and erudite commenters, thank you SO much for bringing me the clarity I so desperately crave in these times. I’ve been reading your newsletter since late last fall and it has been the one thing I so eagerly await each morning.
If I may: my father, John Ensor Harr, passed away in November of 2004. He was an amazing man who not only served his country in World War II (although not in combat), but also as a dedicated civil servant for many years. While working to obtain his MA, and finally his PhD (in Political Science and Public Administration no less!) he was an Attaché d’Embassy in Tel Aviv and Bonn, a research associate for the Herter Committee in ‘62-‘63, and was Director of the Office of Management Planning in the US Department of State. He enjoyed a great many other public service and civic activities as well, and was an amazing writer on top of all that (‘Dark Eagle’, a novel of Benedict Arnold and the American Revolution, was his magnum opus).
I bring my Dad up in remembrance of him and his amazing achievements in light of the upcoming Fathers Day holiday, but also as he is the one I think of, each and every day since his passing, regarding how much he has missed. He would have been SO proud of President Obama. And would so revile the current situation with the buffoon in Chief we have now. My Dad taught me what it meant to embrace all people and to think progressively and intelligently. I so miss the opportunity to discuss these events with him. I am an educated man but nothing even close to what my father achieved. I have always had difficulty discussing politics with anyone, and that is why I write this, my inaugural comment, today to express my gratitude to all of you who do it so well for me. Thank you!
Thanks for doing this! Your email is the best source of sanity to touch each morning. As a two tour Army Special Forces disabled Vietnam Veteran, and a nearly 50 year career in applied behavioral science and leadership, as well as an amateur American History buff, I find your discussions highly informative. Your patriotism helps me remain proud of what America should stand for!
I’m so happy to join this community. The letter is the first and usually only email I read in the morning. I need some solid ground to stand on each day and Heather’s insight and intelligence provides that. Thank you Heather 🙏
I echo the sentiment of so many others of how I look forward to starting my day with your newsletter. It grounds me, it educates me, and reassures me that, while it won't be easy, we will get through this...how long that takes remains to be seen. So, thank you for the time, energy, intellect, and emotion that you put into this daily newsletter that I share with family and friends quite often. I will continue to look forward to my daily read as well as, now, joining this wonderful community of like minded individuals. Cheers to you!
I am extremely concerned about the moves that the Senate and administration flunkies are going to be making in the coming months, not only to attempt to shore up power as the behavior of the POTUS becomes more and more deranged--suing news outlets for presenting polls showing him as losing is the least scary of what I am sure they are prepared to do--but also to preserve their own power in the face of a likely Democratic overthrow of the GOP Senate majority if Biden wins. Every campaign this year, from the most local to the most national, is vital to the survival of anything resembling democracy in the USA. Voter suppression, I predict, is going to be rampant in Republican-governed states not only in the South but also in the Midwest (Iowa being an example right now of a GOP-controlled legislature upset that voting went TOO SMOOTHLY on Tuesday and they want to make it more difficult). Trump having his first rally in Tulsa is a perfect historical moment: a conjunction of the racist past and the racist present of a racist state creating a cataclysm.
Is it November yet? This is exhausting. As an aside, I hope you know how much we all appreciate your daily updates - they are either the first thing I read in the morning or the last thing I read at night. I'd love to see some opinion essays with your take on the future political implications of this administration, because even if (when?) Trump loses, the larger problem is that roughly 40% of the country will still think he's a great idea.
I don't see Trump's call for 'Law and Order' working -- particularly since vandalism and looting have tapered off this week. It is curious to me that Trump continues to pander to his base, even as his base appears to be shrinking. Perhaps this is his only play, realizing he cannot convert middle-ground independents.
Is his strategy to energize his hard-core followers to delegitimize the coming November election and help him stay in power? Or, is this just a reflection of his never-give-an-inch mentality? The crack in his relationship with the military is encouraging. I will be more encouraged when more than two GOP senators express opposition or actually endorse Biden.
Thank You, Heather, for all the time and effort put into reading the days news, summarizing it so well and putting it in historical context - whether that is the history of centuries, decades, months or last week. Each week seems like a decade these days!
What would it require to impeach Barr? Sufficient numbers of legal minds are opposed to his actions that there appears to be cause and evidence to impeach him.
I haven't been able to watch your Tuesday live streams because of work, and and I'm sure you covered this concern. What happens if he refuses to leave office when/if he loses in November? (My brain has an image of a petulant Trump being dragged out of the Oval Office kicking and screaming as officers pry his fingers off the door jamb. It gets me through the day. Don't judge😉) Can you please point me to a video where you've addressed this? I look forward to reading your letter every morning.Thank you for helping me keep my sanity.
The 40% won't be going away and need to be reintegrated...which doesn't mean "re-educated" . Better education of their children...and all children would indeed help. A Biden government must address some of their underlying fears in order to show them that they are not being "left behind"
I first started reading your column on facebook and then I deleted that frustrating antisocial site when the 'bots banned me for "hate speech" when I referred to the ppl who killed Ahmaud Arbery as "white monsters." Why would they allow algorithms who cannot discern nuances of speech have the power of banning without human supervision? Now, missing my cyberfriends there my online habits have changed and this column is helpful in kicking the FB addiction.
To Dr. Richardson, and all of these intelligent and erudite commenters, thank you SO much for bringing me the clarity I so desperately crave in these times. I’ve been reading your newsletter since late last fall and it has been the one thing I so eagerly await each morning.
If I may: my father, John Ensor Harr, passed away in November of 2004. He was an amazing man who not only served his country in World War II (although not in combat), but also as a dedicated civil servant for many years. While working to obtain his MA, and finally his PhD (in Political Science and Public Administration no less!) he was an Attaché d’Embassy in Tel Aviv and Bonn, a research associate for the Herter Committee in ‘62-‘63, and was Director of the Office of Management Planning in the US Department of State. He enjoyed a great many other public service and civic activities as well, and was an amazing writer on top of all that (‘Dark Eagle’, a novel of Benedict Arnold and the American Revolution, was his magnum opus).
I bring my Dad up in remembrance of him and his amazing achievements in light of the upcoming Fathers Day holiday, but also as he is the one I think of, each and every day since his passing, regarding how much he has missed. He would have been SO proud of President Obama. And would so revile the current situation with the buffoon in Chief we have now. My Dad taught me what it meant to embrace all people and to think progressively and intelligently. I so miss the opportunity to discuss these events with him. I am an educated man but nothing even close to what my father achieved. I have always had difficulty discussing politics with anyone, and that is why I write this, my inaugural comment, today to express my gratitude to all of you who do it so well for me. Thank you!
Thanks for doing this! Your email is the best source of sanity to touch each morning. As a two tour Army Special Forces disabled Vietnam Veteran, and a nearly 50 year career in applied behavioral science and leadership, as well as an amateur American History buff, I find your discussions highly informative. Your patriotism helps me remain proud of what America should stand for!
I’m so happy to join this community. The letter is the first and usually only email I read in the morning. I need some solid ground to stand on each day and Heather’s insight and intelligence provides that. Thank you Heather 🙏
I echo the sentiment of so many others of how I look forward to starting my day with your newsletter. It grounds me, it educates me, and reassures me that, while it won't be easy, we will get through this...how long that takes remains to be seen. So, thank you for the time, energy, intellect, and emotion that you put into this daily newsletter that I share with family and friends quite often. I will continue to look forward to my daily read as well as, now, joining this wonderful community of like minded individuals. Cheers to you!
I am extremely concerned about the moves that the Senate and administration flunkies are going to be making in the coming months, not only to attempt to shore up power as the behavior of the POTUS becomes more and more deranged--suing news outlets for presenting polls showing him as losing is the least scary of what I am sure they are prepared to do--but also to preserve their own power in the face of a likely Democratic overthrow of the GOP Senate majority if Biden wins. Every campaign this year, from the most local to the most national, is vital to the survival of anything resembling democracy in the USA. Voter suppression, I predict, is going to be rampant in Republican-governed states not only in the South but also in the Midwest (Iowa being an example right now of a GOP-controlled legislature upset that voting went TOO SMOOTHLY on Tuesday and they want to make it more difficult). Trump having his first rally in Tulsa is a perfect historical moment: a conjunction of the racist past and the racist present of a racist state creating a cataclysm.
Is it November yet? This is exhausting. As an aside, I hope you know how much we all appreciate your daily updates - they are either the first thing I read in the morning or the last thing I read at night. I'd love to see some opinion essays with your take on the future political implications of this administration, because even if (when?) Trump loses, the larger problem is that roughly 40% of the country will still think he's a great idea.
I don't see Trump's call for 'Law and Order' working -- particularly since vandalism and looting have tapered off this week. It is curious to me that Trump continues to pander to his base, even as his base appears to be shrinking. Perhaps this is his only play, realizing he cannot convert middle-ground independents.
Is his strategy to energize his hard-core followers to delegitimize the coming November election and help him stay in power? Or, is this just a reflection of his never-give-an-inch mentality? The crack in his relationship with the military is encouraging. I will be more encouraged when more than two GOP senators express opposition or actually endorse Biden.
Thank You, Heather, for all the time and effort put into reading the days news, summarizing it so well and putting it in historical context - whether that is the history of centuries, decades, months or last week. Each week seems like a decade these days!
What would it require to impeach Barr? Sufficient numbers of legal minds are opposed to his actions that there appears to be cause and evidence to impeach him.
I haven't been able to watch your Tuesday live streams because of work, and and I'm sure you covered this concern. What happens if he refuses to leave office when/if he loses in November? (My brain has an image of a petulant Trump being dragged out of the Oval Office kicking and screaming as officers pry his fingers off the door jamb. It gets me through the day. Don't judge😉) Can you please point me to a video where you've addressed this? I look forward to reading your letter every morning.Thank you for helping me keep my sanity.
The 40% won't be going away and need to be reintegrated...which doesn't mean "re-educated" . Better education of their children...and all children would indeed help. A Biden government must address some of their underlying fears in order to show them that they are not being "left behind"
Somehow I am still shocked by Trump's incredibly overt racism and his extremely fascist language.
I first started reading your column on facebook and then I deleted that frustrating antisocial site when the 'bots banned me for "hate speech" when I referred to the ppl who killed Ahmaud Arbery as "white monsters." Why would they allow algorithms who cannot discern nuances of speech have the power of banning without human supervision? Now, missing my cyberfriends there my online habits have changed and this column is helpful in kicking the FB addiction.
I read your letter first thing every morning. Your analysis both frightens and comforts me. Thank you for being a sane voice in the chaos.
I’m so excited to be a part of this community! I go around quoting Dr Richardson a LOT.
Not about today's post, but if you feel moved to write any opinion pieces on any topic whatsoever (The Pie Cuoboard) I am eager to read them!!!