Dan Rather answers his question: “With the rise of Donald Trump, I concluded early that this man could pose a danger to the fundamental nature of the United States as a constitutional republic based on the principles of democracy. I desperately hoped that I was wrong, but I saw a man who stoked division, scapegoated, lied with reckless impunity, and had no regard for the norms by which our nation has functioned.” Read more: Why am I (still) speaking out?
At MY RURAL AMERICA, we agree. We must speak out. We must ask questions.
When we founded MY RURAL AMERICA, we aimed to help rural Americans access verified, vetted news. Even in rural areas, nearly one-fourth of the population —14.5 million people—lack access to Internet service. In tribal regions, almost one-third of the population lacks Internet access.
More than 360 newspapers have closed since 2000. Only a few statewide newspapers remain. Some, like the Des Moines Register — purchased and mostly strangled by its new owner Gannett, are mere ghosts of their former selves, only serving the Des Moines metro areas. Others, like the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, were honest about their demise, as they admitted in an announcement — we will no longer serve the whole state of Georgia because it costs us $5.00 to deliver a single newspaper.
Just like so many decades ago, when rural people were denied electricity by the power companies who made the excuse that it was just too expensive to run electrical services from farm-to-farm and just like when Bell Telephone refused to allow anything but 8-party phone lines in rural America, the same excuses have been made by Internet suppliers who cry that offering Internet to rural residents is unaffordable. We know better.
Joe Biden knows better. His Infrastructure bill is funding Internet access in all 50 states. CNN reports how much each state is receiving — $42.5 Billion overall.
MY RURAL AMERICA’S 2ND QUESTION: How can rural voters learn about the issues affecting their families without access to vetted, trustworthy information? The Internet gap and the demise of newspapers have left rural people gasping for information while right-wing radio lies, distorts, and strangles the resources necessary to raise families. These families deserve more respect and trustworthy resources.
We also need to ask ourselves a 3RD QUESTION: How did we get to a place where some people in this country seem to instantly forgive Donald Trump for claiming the 2020 election was stolen? Or maybe “forgive” is the wrong word. The election was not stolen. What words should we use? Maybe “liar, liar, pants on fire” would work, but oops! We’re trying to be civil here.
Today’s news concerns the Georgia indictment: AP News reports, “Trump and 18 Allies Charged in Georgia Election.”
In “Meyerson on TAP,” Harold Meyerson declared, “It Took a Village to Try to Seize the Presidency.“
So many headlines and so little time. Nineteen co-conspirators and 30 unindicted conspirators. My favorite story is how the Georgia Republican Party Chairman’s face blanched when he realized that he and others were being asked to lie — to help steal the election … to “find” votes that hadn’t been cast … but he went ahead and jumped into the trap. What kind of leadership is that? These folks prefer lies, trashing the U.S. Constitution, and stepping on people’s rights vs. standing for the truth. They would rather throw their voters into the garbage than let them vote. Why? Why? Why?
These are the kinds of questions that we as a nation must ask. Remember when Senator Tom Harkin led the way with the American Disabilities Act (ADA)? … and now, we have Trump supporters cheering as Trump makes fun of people with disabilities. What happened? Is that the way we want our kids to act?
Or take a look at our Constitution’s protection of FREE SPEECH. Why do we have Trump supporters demanding that Free Speech includes outright lies? Why do people fall for FOX NEWS? Even the original architects of FOX and FOX News, who served as allies of founder Rupert Murdoch, know better. Paul Farhi reports for The Washington Post: An architect of Fox’s success picks a new target: Fox.
And just what has happened to our respect as a nation for RULE OF LAW? Fifty years of precedents are tossed with little more than a flick of a finger by our “bought and paid for” Supreme Court judges. Remember? These are the same people who declared, “Corporations are People, too.” HA!
See ProPublica’s reports on the worst judge of the lot — Clarence Thomas: Clarence Thomas’ 38 Vacations: The Other Billionaires Who Have Treated the Supreme Court Justice to Luxury Travel
The bottom line — 4TH QUESTION: What can we do? What can YOU, DEAR READER do?
May I suggest we all must make motion. ?MOTION! Speaking up is MOTION.
— Grab one of our stories, share it, and ask a friend: Did you see that article? Oh my gosh. Even those who helped build FOX NEWS say FOX is dangerous to democracy.
— Put up a yard sign. This is MOTION. Choose a sign that says, “Everyone is welcome here,” or “If you tell the truth, you won’t have to remember anything,” or maybe “Fire Clarence Thomas NOW!
— Being a volunteer at the polls is MOTION.
Don’t just sit there. Speak up! Volunteer!
If we don’t stand up, who will?