Today’s Ultimate Blogging Challenge prompt is to talk about how my industry as changed as a result of the U.S. president.
This prompt came with a warning: it could be a very controversial post. “Sometimes, you have to stir the pot.” As a storyteller and an observer of life and the world as it is, I suppose that I stir the pot frequently. I have written about participating in a Witness Against War walk, Walks for a Nuclear Free Future, and more. I believe that, as an ordinary person, it is my responsibility to speak truth to power and to advocate for change.
In the past, I have done so with hope and with faith that change was indeed possible. Today, my belief that we can improve and that we can become better and that we can learn from our mistakes and resolve never to repeat them has been shaken. How do I reconcile my nation’s current reality of anger, xenophobia, and toxicity with my natural optimism and my belief that human beings are inherently good?
The reality is of a president who, in 2022, suggested “terminating the constitution.”
The president’s divide and conquer approach to governing makes speaking truth to power and advocating for change feel extremely risky. Exercising the rights that are guaranteed to everyone in the first amendment shouldn’t feel like jumping out of an airplane without a parachute, but that’s exactly how it feels. Even asking for mercy for frightened people as Episcopal Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde of Washington, D.C., did in January 2025 at an interdenominational service at the Washington National Cathedral, has its risks.
“You have felt the providential hand of a loving God. In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now.” — Mariann Edgar Budde, Episcopal Bishop of Washington, D.C. “I ask you to have mercy, Mr. President, on those in our communities whose children fear that their parents will be taken away, and that you help those who are fleeing war zones and persecution in their own lands to find compassion and welcome here.“
The president, apparently, did not like the appeal for mercy, so he went straight to personal attack. He said that the service was not good. Later, on Truth Social, he claimed that the “so-called bishop” was a “Radical Left Hard Line Trump Hater.”
The president has had names and commentary for everyone, and they didn’t have to be U.S. citizens, either. He referred to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney as a “governor” and repeatedly suggested that Canada could be the “51st state.” That was impressively disrespectful of a nation that has done so much to help us in our many hours of need. By doing that, he has threatened the sovereignty of another nation for no valid reason, and he has added “isolate Americans” to “divide and conquer.” When the response to an appeal to mercy is an all-out attack, we become afraid to speak truth to power.
I have written stories with all sorts of villains and witches, but my fiction cannot compete with reality.
When does this stop? Let’s hope that it’s brought to an end before democracy is dead and buried.
I totally agree with you. I started being politically active in the early 60s and I’m tired of having to keep doing political activities. When will we ever learn that there are political people who want to destroy the United States – they say they don’t but their actions speak louder than their words. Thank you for saying this. Just want you to know that there’s people who agree with you – like me.
Thank you so much, Lynn. I am so grateful for your support.
Alice, we live in very concerning times. I agree with what you’ve said. When even Congresspeople are afraid to challenge the President, we have a problem. He is consolidating power and must be stopped. Alas, the gravy train of the wealthy and corrupt has grown very strong. You may find my post today dovetails with yours. JFK was killed 5 months after giving a speech making clear that he wanted the US to stay out of the Vietnam War. War is wasteful to humanity and profitable to the uberwealthy. Johnson signed us into the war on the flight back to D.C. Believe it. War is profitable. I pray thanks every day for God rolling back the damage of the T administration and of the insatiable oligarchs. Thank you for your post today.
Thank you for your comments, you historical information, and your perspective. It’s very much appreciated.
Everything you said is true! I have the same concerns and the same heartbreak. I struggle to hold onto that belief that we are inherently good. Right now, I’m convinced that we are but can be taken over by evil ones. It’s still hard to stomach though.
Hugs, Jeanine. You are not alone. I agree that it’s hard to stomach.
As an outsider watching from over the fence it’s hard to take. I feel bad for all of you who are having your country destroyed by him and his minions. He has done so much damage to the whole world. It’s going to take a long time to come back from this and mend relationships.
Thank you so much for your support, Barbara. It means the world to me. I agree that he has done a great deal of damage to the whole world and rebuilding trust will be very difficult.
Thank you for speaking out, Alice. I have wonder if people are afraid to. I don’t blame them when you can get killed or thrown in jail for nothing. And they can repaint their version to justify their actions.
You’re very welcome. I think that many people are afraid to say anything, not only because of official reaction but also because of the toxicity of the supporters of this administration. Quite honestly, I have never seen anything like this.