Dear President Trump, Last night the illegal fireworks were relentless. They started around 7pm and went until at least 1am. Once they really got going there were long bursts of ten or fifteen rounds every five minutes and there were more different types of scary, percussive sounds than any of us can remember ever hearing … Continue reading Relentlessly cruel
Racism
Thin white skin
Dear President Trump, Yesterday when Nina Totenberg quoted the R.E.M. line “it’s the end of the world as we know it” in reference to Justice Kennedy’s retirement announcement, I started crying. It does look like it’s the end of the world as we know it and I don’t feel fine. You, however, must be beyond … Continue reading Thin white skin
Swallows, roosters, and “Darth Becky”
Dear President Trump Sunday we took the dogs to the Union Bay Natural Area on Lake Washington. About a quarter mile into the walk one of our dogs apparently got too close to a swallow’s nest because suddenly two swallows came at me, screaming and darting around my head. I was furthest away from where … Continue reading Swallows, roosters, and “Darth Becky”
Odious, despicable, hateful
Dear President Trump, I’m struggling today. I’m at a loss as to how to respond to what you are doing to people, to our country, to the world. This isn’t a new experience, by any means, but the Supreme Court’s decision upholding your Muslim travel ban in the wake of our country separating children from … Continue reading Odious, despicable, hateful
Grappling with bias yet again
Dear President Trump, The other day I was stuck behind a midnight blue Nissan I thought was really beautiful and thought, ‘I know, along with green cars, I’ll send blessings to ones I think are pretty.’ I immediately recoiled from my own mental process. Sending nice thoughts to green cars still seems ok as I … Continue reading Grappling with bias yet again
The pieces
Dear President Trump, I need to address three (related) topics today so I am going to allow myself way more than my usual 2500 characters for this letter, which of course doesn’t matter to you because you never read them. First, there is the issue of whether punishments fit crimes or don’t fit crimes. Regardless … Continue reading The pieces
“Why are you lying about it, sir?”
Dear President Trump, What happens now? Are you going to start detaining entire families in cages? Although that would be marginally better than sending parents and children to separate cages hundreds of miles away from each other, it is still a sick, cowardly approach to the humanitarian crises asylum seekers and immigrants from Mexico and … Continue reading “Why are you lying about it, sir?”
We need more voices
Dear President Trump, I don’t know what you did today or where things stand with your shameful insistence that families be separated at the border. I bet, though, that you are still flailing between blaming the Democrats and taking credit for inflicting misery on asylum seekers. Even though the specifics of your cruelties are a … Continue reading We need more voices
Monstrous
Dear President Trump, You are getting it from all sides. Even Melania has a carefully crafted statement calling out the reprehensible nature of your cynical family separation policy. You will no doubt want to close your eyes and plug your ears in a “see no evil, hear no evil” kind of defensive defiance, but Mrs. … Continue reading Monstrous
When protection circles are trashed
Dear President Trump, I learned about protection circles today at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. On the ride around the park the guide pointed out several groups of animals laying down or standing in loose circles, all looking out in different directions. The park is set up so the predators aren’t able to get … Continue reading When protection circles are trashed