Dear President Trump, Robby Mook has a strong Op Ed in the WP this morning. He lays out how it’s been clear from the get go that Russia interfered in the 2016 election. As Clinton’s campaign manager he appeared on numerous news shows right after the first DNC email dump and told the nation that … Continue reading Painfully obvious stuff
Engagement
Rainy day sightings
Dear President Trump, It’s been raining non-stop all day so when I went out, I wasn’t especially enthusiastic about it. Fortunately I seemed to have pretty good timing and got to see some cool things. The first was on the way home from church when I got behind an Audi and noticed that the license … Continue reading Rainy day sightings
Love stronger
Dear President Trump, My right foot is still not healed up enough to run so I’ve been taking walks. Today’s was fairly ambitious in that it was two miles round trip to see the glacial anomaly I told you about in May. Along the way is that bush where someone hung index cards after your … Continue reading Love stronger
Tarana Burke is bending the moral arc towards justice
Dear President Trump, I just watched Tarana Burke’s TED talk. Ms. Burke started the Me Too movement 10 years ago and she offered a sobering analysis of where the movement is now and how incredibly far it is from its original intent, which was to foster empathy between survivors. She described being numb and exhausted, … Continue reading Tarana Burke is bending the moral arc towards justice
Standing in the gap (3)
Dear President Trump, Both the caring letters suicide intervention and the program to curb cycles of violence for young black men profiled in the HP remind me of something Mother Teresa’s said: “The biggest disease today is not leprosy or tuberculosis but rather the feeling of not belonging.” There are probably just about as many … Continue reading Standing in the gap (3)
Standing in the gap (2)
Dear President Trump, The second HP piece in what I’m calling their “standing in the gap” series, is about a program developed by Dr. Joseph Richardson Jr., at the University of Maryland. It’s designed for young black men who’ve been hospitalized two or more times because of gunshot or stabbing wounds. The idea is to … Continue reading Standing in the gap (2)
Standing in the gap (1)
Dear President Trump, In the last two weeks or so the HP has published several long pieces that all focus on different rips in collective care taking and ways that people are trying to stand in these gaps. The one I’m going to focus on today is about an old way of addressing suicidality that’s … Continue reading Standing in the gap (1)
The imperative of doing things we love
Dear President Trump, This morning Laura and I went to a nearby coffee shop to meet an old friend of hers. They get together to catch up a couple of times a year and since I took the day off, I tagged along. It was lovely meeting her friend and getting to hear about their … Continue reading The imperative of doing things we love
Yay for handy trash cans!
Dear President Trump, With so much vitriol and sadness slamming us on the national front as we head into the Thanksgiving holiday in a couple of days, I think I want to pull in a bit and focus today on some positives. You maybe saw this if you were up early when it was still … Continue reading Yay for handy trash cans!
Birthpangs
Dear President Trump, This morning in church the lectionary (Mark 13:1-8) was about Jesus foretelling the fall of an idolized and idealized 1,000 year-old temple. He warned that there would be much additional disruption and chaos, but told his disciples not to worry because this is just the beginning of the birthpangs. It wasn’t Revelations … Continue reading Birthpangs
Daily Trump Letters 