The Great Dismantling
American Political Dynamics
We have, in the past, stood by as we watched great inhumanity, injustice, racism, and even genocide unfold before our eyes and in full view of the world. What is happening now, in real time, is the apparent dismantling of our democracy. Will we be mere spectators, as we so often have been, or will we find the courage to stand up to this onslaught and reclaim our democratic principles?
This challenge goes back to the very foundation of our nation. When Benjamin Franklin was asked outside the Constitutional Convention of 1787, “Well, Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?” his response underscored a fundamental truth: “A republic, if you can keep it.” Maintaining a republic requires constant vigilance, active participation, and responsibility from its citizens. And now, here we are—faced with just that challenge.
What Has Changed?
What are the changes the Trump administration has already implemented?
• The Rule of Law Undermined: Our president is a convicted felon, and one of his first acts was to release over 1,000 individuals convicted under the law. He has gutted the Justice Department, fired judges, and eliminated key oversight roles meant to uphold law and ethics.
• The Government Transformed into a Loyalty Test: He is replacing professionals with friends and party loyalists. Just look at his cabinet.
• The Military Restructured: He is systematically removing officials and replacing them with those whose loyalty is to him, rather than the Constitution.
• The Wealth Gap Widened: He has delivered enormous tax breaks to the wealthiest Americans, making our tax system even more regressive—a far cry from the progressive taxation that once built this nation.
• Regulation and Oversight Dismantled: Industries are now freer than ever to operate without accountability, focused solely on profit.
• Education System Under Attack: He seeks to eliminate the Department of Education, privatize schooling, restrict learning, and transform education into a system of indoctrination.
• The Workforce Weakened: Plans for mass deportations threaten labor stability and communities nationwide.
• Public Services Privatized: Functions once performed by the federal government to serve ordinary citizens are being stripped away and turned into profit streams for the wealthy.
The Great Unraveling
The overall result? The erosion of hard-fought democratic advances:
• The New Deal Dismantled: Replacing it with his version of “No Deal”—unless there’s profit involved.
• The Civil War Undone: A return to states’ rights, emboldening racism and white supremacy.
• The Revolutionary War Reversed: Moving from democracy back to an oligarchy ruled by an economic aristocracy.
• The Rise of Neo-Feudalism: Ordinary citizens reduced to modern-day serfs, laboring outside the castle walls to sustain the wealth and power of the elite. We are expected not only to provide the work but also to fund their wars—and, when necessary, serve as cannon fodder.
The Road to Resistance
We, as citizens, have watched as this process plays out before our very eyes. Even before this moment, our leadership allowed democratic values to erode:
• Manipulating Voting Rights: Through gerrymandering, voter suppression, and other political maneuvers.
• The Rise of Elites: In education, technology, politics, banking, and business—consolidating power in the hands of a few.
• The Betrayal by the Democratic Party: Once a champion of working-class citizens under the New Deal, it has shifted its focus toward big-money donors and corporate interests.
• The Tolerance of Bigotry: Allowing racism, extremism, and domestic terrorism to fester.
• A Justice System Rigged for the Powerful: The courts protect the wealthy while scapegoating marginalized communities.
• A Self-Serving Political Class: More interested in their own survival than in serving the people.
• A Foreign Policy That Abandons Our Ideals: No longer prioritizing human rights or humanitarian aid.
The Moment of Truth
This is where the rubber meets the road. This is the ultimate test of American citizenship. Do we still believe in The Great American Experiment? There is no one among us who has not benefited from living in a structured, functioning democracy. Countless sacrifices have been made to build and protect these democratic principles.
And yet, what do we receive in return for our faith in democracy? For our unwavering support of this nation?
Are we expected to simply stand by and accept this fate?
I think not.
As Howard Beale proclaimed in Network: “I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take this anymore!”
As Shakespeare wrote in Macbeth, “But screw your courage to the sticking-place, and we’ll not fail.”
The Fight for Our Future
We must stage a resistance that is furious, persistent, and unyielding. It must be a movement that sustains itself—not just in grand protests, but in the quiet, everyday acts of defiance.
• In the streets and town halls—through demonstrations and grassroots organization.
• In art, music, and storytelling—turning our struggle into a force of culture and identity.
• In digital spaces and public forums—ensuring our voices remain loud and undeniable.
• Across borders and communities—finding solidarity in the international fight for democracy.
• In all venues-In the courts, in Congress, and in the institutions that remain—demanding accountability and refusing to yield.
I see you feel strongly about this.
You are so far off base that you need to retract your writings and lock your office and go back to retirement. NOW!