Spring 2025 Tiny Letter
FIRST…
Amidst the awfulness, a beacon of hope
Transgender Reps Zooey Zephyr and SJ Howell delivered powerful speeches on the Montana House floor. Republicans defected en masse to join them in voting against anti-trans bills.
This is Montana(!)
Powerful Speeches From Trans Dems Flip 29 Republicans, Anti-Trans Bills Die In Montana
Transgender Reps Zooey Zephyr and SJ Howell delivered powerful speeches on the Montana House floor on Thursday. Republicans defected en masse to join them in voting against anti-trans bills.
Well, here we go again. Consider the spectrum from:
It’s fine, I’m not worried «««—»»» The USA is on fire!
It seems like the best thing for mental health is to try to stay grounded. Yes, it’s phenomenally bad, but to paraphrase writer Rebecca Solnit, don’t be too confident that you know the outcome, because we really don’t.
It’s hard to say anything original here. But I’m pretty confident we won’t preserve democracy and rule of law through apathy. Start with:
5 calls
I’m not sure if this is more important if you’re in a red state or blue state, but I know it’s important. Call your Senators and Reps regularly. Make sure they hear from you. It doesn’t take much time.
If you’re in a red state, legislators need to hear from sane people in huge numbers. As in, “they’ve overwhelmed our phone lines” numbers. In blue states, if you’re lucky enough to be represented by folks who are NOT pro-autocracy, whatever their flaws, they need pressure from constituents to stand up and fight.
March
There will be plenty of opportunities to march. Take them!
Talk to conservatives*, non-voters, the apathetic and the anxious
This can take a lot of patience. @Paul and I were discussing how this can take the form of emotional labor. I may comment on that in a later post. For now, FWIW, perhaps ask what issues are most important to them, and point out what’s happening around those issues. Focusing on economic impact can be a way to sidestep culture war stuff, and it also doesn’t require that the person you’re speaking with be especially literate or informed. Everyone can tell if their grocery bill is surging. If you manage to persuade someone that maybe Tr*mp and co. do not have their best interest in mind, the next step is a call to action. Grumbling without taking action will achieve nothing.
If you’ve had success nudging some into understanding what’s happening right now, and why they should care, please share with me. I want to hear your successes, and will share them here with your permissions.
* Conservatives, sure. The MAGA faithful may be too hard to persuade.
I give this one an A. It’s kind of a thriller/action story, but takes detours into breakdowns of internet culture, screen addiction, and folks’ seeming never ending desire for their 15 minutes of fame. The blurb is really good, and I hope they make a film of it:
https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250285959/imstartingtoworryaboutthisblackboxofdoom/Outside Los Angeles, a driver pulls up to find a young woman sitting on a large black box. She offers him $200,000 cash to transport her and that box across the country, to Washington, DC.
But there are rules:
He cannot look inside the box.
He cannot ask questions.
He cannot tell anyone.
They must leave immediately.
He must leave all trackable devices behind.
As these eccentric misfits hit the road, rumors spread on social media that the box is part of a carefully orchestrated terror attack intended to plunge the USA into civil war.
The truth promises to be even stranger, and may change how you see the world.
Better PR: Norwegian Blood Drive
Some of you have heard my rants about ‘Better PR‘, the notion that a lot of efforts, policies, and ideas fail not because they are poor quality, but because their PR sucks. See Figure 1: Democratic Party.
This effort in Norway is a perfect example of better PR - using the friendly (or unfriendly) rivalry between sports fans to massively boost the number of blood donors.
Also to file under Better PR
The Man Who Used Nazi Propaganda to Help the Allies Win | TIME
The strange tale of a fake Nazi radio station that helped win the war. And what it can teach us about disinformation today.
We Don't Need More Cynics. We Need More Builders.
Cynicism is the cheap seats. It’s the fast food of intellectual positions. Anyone can point at something and say it’s broken, corrupt, or destined to fail. The real challenge? Building something better. The cynic sees a proposal for change and immediately lists why it won’t work. They’
Easy AM 66 — Programme 4
An audio parody, sweet and irreverant.
A great primer on AI
This takes perhaps an hour or two to go through. It covers fundamental concepts of AI for non-techies. It’s well structured and totally accessible.
INTRODUCTION
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I’m not sure who shared this (@Jena? @Paul?), but it’s a classic. Portland exemplifies the kind of gentrification and hipsterism this video targets.
Shout out to Yacht Rock
I love a lot of Yacht Rock. Steely Dan is my favorite, but Michael McDonald & Toto are great too. Key fact - Toto’s members were phenomenally prolific session musicians, playing on an incredible number of albums. This documentary is lighthearted, sweet, and a perfect break from the present moment. If you like this genre, you should definitely check out the parody series (NSFW - the intro bit could just be skipped, it’s kind of dumb). In the “Regulate” episode, rapper Warren G hits Michael McDonald with his car by accident, later McDonald comes to and lays down some keyboard funk, which forms the background for G’s hit single.
Closing quote
“A talent for speaking differently, rather than for arguing well, is the chief instrument of cultural change.”
― Richard Rorty