Dear President Trump, I’m afraid I don’t have much for you tonight, but I’ll give you what I’ve got. It’s raining again (we’re at 131% of normal thus far for 2020) and the forecast is for more and more and more rain this week. Lately it’s been sounding like there’s a creek under our house … Continue reading Breathing out and breathing in
Your Base
Professed beliefs are perhaps not real beliefs
Dear President Trump, Recent events have me going back to Barbara Kruger’s installation at the Hirshorn Museum. I told you about it when I visited there in 2017 and since I’m sure you don’t remember, I’ll remind you that it involves the entire central open space of the museum’s bottom floor as well as the … Continue reading Professed beliefs are perhaps not real beliefs
Truth telling POTUS ~ A thought experiment
Dear President Trump, We haven’t done this in a while and since we seem to be stuck replaying the same old scenes, saying (or yelling) the same old lines at each other, I think it’s time for another thought experiment. Are you ready? No, of course not, but since this whole daily letter writing to … Continue reading Truth telling POTUS ~ A thought experiment
“What a time to be alive”
Dear President Trump, As we head into your impeachment trial, however long or short it is, however integral or craven the major players are, however transparent or opaque its proceedings are, you would do well to remember that we are watching. We are watching you, your advisors, and every last Senator. We are watching what … Continue reading “What a time to be alive”
Wire vine and other mistakes
Dear President Trump, The other day as we were leaving the grocery, Laura and I both spotted a bunch of small pots of iron vine displayed on a tiered table, each plant twisted around a metal circle suggesting that they are simply decorative little darlings that will docilely grace your yard. We looked at each … Continue reading Wire vine and other mistakes
Wrapped toadies and snowed peeps
Dear President Trump, This afternoon’s WP article about Dershowitz joining your legal team (Sonmez & DeBonis) is something else. The authors quote Dershowitz extensively and make clear that he’s no fan of yours, and that in fact, he thinks you’re a menace. In another piece, your buddy George Conway wonders very out loud what Dershowitz … Continue reading Wrapped toadies and snowed peeps
Dreams, identities, and democracy
Dear President Trump, After I wrote to you about Ruby Sales last night, I watched her TED talk from September, 2018. She opened with the story of the attack on her and her friends back in 1965 that resulted in the deaths of Jonathan Daniels and another man. She explained that the sheriff had jailed … Continue reading Dreams, identities, and democracy
“I’m not here to occupy space; I’m here to make it” ~ Representative Ayanna Pressley
Dear President Trump, Because I’m 99% sure you missed it, I’ll remind you that yesterday was Martin Luther King Jr.’s actual birthday (he would have been 91). In honor of him and the day, there was an MLK celebration at the VA yesterday and since some meetings were cancelled I was able to attend. The … Continue reading “I’m not here to occupy space; I’m here to make it” ~ Representative Ayanna Pressley
Guided by poems
Dear President Trump, Our church celebrated its 150th anniversary with a doozy of a service this morning. We opened with a short poem by Hafiz: Everyone Is God speaking. Why not be polite and Listen to God? Pretty dang provocative, right? And radical. And incredibly hard for me to wrap my head and heart around … Continue reading Guided by poems
What if the goal is for all hell to break loose in the Middle East?
Dear President Trump, On the way home from the frame shop this afternoon I got behind a car with an Indiana license plate. It had an American flag inspired background and at the bottom the words “In God We Trust.” When I got home I looked it up to see if it was a specialty … Continue reading What if the goal is for all hell to break loose in the Middle East?