Thank you, thank you. You addressed so many of the same things that have been spinning around in my head in helpful and eloquent ways. It's staggering to hear from our kids who live there - including our daughter in law who teaches in a Somali school, and our son who works with many immigrants. You are not being an alarmist. This is all happening before our eyes and we can not look away.
I find it hard to believe that so called “Christians” support so much of this chaos. As an avid reader of the history of Nazi Germany, there are too many similarities to ignore. Striving for a totally Aryan (White) country. We are a nation of immigrants.
I must say that this writing is truly the most meaningful I have read in a while. I am constantly enraged by what is happening in the country and to the country. I often feel overwhelmed with anger at Trump and all those who support him. Your entreaty for empathy does arrest my temptation to slide into dark feelings towards them. You are a remarkable writer, and this piece is incredibly well crafted. Whether one seeks to find strength in the teachings of Jesus or simply in the desire to be a good and kind person, understanding and empathy should be paramount and our intent and goal. Thank you.
Your words are a balm, Scott. Thank you so much. We all have to do what we can and maybe our combined hearts and voices can turn this ship around. Thanks for being on board.
I've been wrestling with speaking out when I've had to insulate myself so much and I don't feel well informed. But the Scriptures this coming weekend include a passage from Psalm 40 talking about "I did not restrain my tongue, O Lord, I announced your justice in the vast assembly." And that is really pricking my conscience. I have a post to write this weekend on my faith-based Substack, and I'm not as good at letting things bounce off me as you are. Pray for me.
Oh, I never said I was good at letting things bounce off me. ;-) It hurts. It stays. It becomes a part of who I am. But I couldn't look at myself in the mirror if I didn't speak up for what I know is right. You've got this and I'm cheering you on.
Thank you so much for your words, Nicole, and for sharing resources. I have felt a combination or rage, grief and sorrow, without a way to put it into words (yet), and uncertain of where to direct my dollars (one thing I can do). Grateful for your voice in this moment.
It is sad that people unsubscribed from you for posting Anne Frank's words. Not because it hurt your feelings (it probably understandably did), but because those are the kinds of people who would rather encapsulate themselves in a shell of ignorance. I hope you got a chance to post the link to your full-length writing as a response to them--perhaps one of them will put the time in to read about what is really happening? I don't know how we recover from this scene where we only take in what is manicured to our tastes...???
It seems we just want to retreat deeper and deeper into our own corners. I find that terrifying. Thanks for taking the time to read and comment, Beth. Grateful for you.
Nicole, Your writing is my Sunday sermon, thank you. Our country is upside down and the occupation of Minneapolis is a tipping point. I appreciate the links of places to support. Autocracy and a theocracy of retribution go hand in hand; I contest both.
The parallels you draw between what’s happening in Minnesota and the Nazi regime in Germany are correct and unmistakable. They extend far beyond the atrocities in Minnesota. That so many fail to recognize the erosion of the civil rights of American citizens collectively, to say nothing of the vulnerabilities being created for each of us as individuals is dishearteningly astonishing. Kudos to you for pointing this out. If had my way, The Last Days of Hitler by Hugh Trevor-Roper a British historian and Oxford Don, would be required reading for every citizen. The work was commissioned by the British government after the war to investigate rumors Hitler somehow managed to survive the war. Much is exhaustive and tedious detail, although the narrative is sprinkled with dry, perhaps unintended, humor. That said, Trevor-Roper’s epilogue is an eloquent perspective not only on the Nazi regime, but on the fate of dictators throughout history from the conditions enabling them in the first place to the integral weaknesses eventually leading to their inevitable downfall, some of which are already to be seen if one looks carefully. For those of us who lament the current disintegration of the American Dream, the lessons taught by this epilogue provide some comfort and hope and are worth the read. Keep writing.
I think you’re exactly right. I’m grateful for historians and scholars who intimately know the ins and outs and can help us spot parallels. I wish more people were paying attention. Grateful for your voice.
Yes it’s so hard. When we were at our lowest last week we found some balm by responding with a $ gift toward some desperate friends of Caleb, who are working so hard against the tide of oppression in Mpls
I’m so glad you were able to do that. There are so many in need! I have a feeling it’ll only get more desperate for our immigrant and refugee neighbors. Grateful for you and Ver.
Nicole, I support what you are doing and thank you for it. It is devastating to hear what is happening in Minneapolis and I pray it does not spread to other parts of the US. I became a Democrat in the 60s as a teenager with the Civil Rights movement. It does seem that the affects of it have been squashed by Trump.
Thank you for your comforting thoughts Nicole. This column is a keeper. Keep in mind just how many people are extremely stupid and/or bull headed. Reasoning with them is impossible and this exacerbates the situation. We just need to keep moving forward.
Thank you for your good heart and powerful message, Nicole. I, too, Amex furious at what is happening. If you read the second paragraph of Bill and Hilary Clinton’s letter refusing the subpoena to appear before Congress you will get a near-perfect summation of what the hell is going on and a call to action. I will try and find it and post it. Meanwhile keep this up!
This past year has seen our Government engage in unprecedented acts, including against our own citizens. People have been seized by masked federal agents from their homes, their workplaces, and the streets of their communities. Students and scientists with visas permitting them to study and work here have been deported without due process. The people who laid siege to the U.S. Capitol have been pardoned and called heroes. Agencies vital to the country’s national security have been dismantled. Universities, media companies, and law firms have been subjected to threats to their funding, access, and licensing unless they made concessions and surrendered their right to constitutionally protected free speech. American troops have been deployed on the streets of our towns and cities. The Justice Department has been used as a weapon, at the direction of the President, to pursue political opponents. And most recently and searingly, an ICE agent killed an unarmed mother only days ago.
Every person has to decide when they have seen or had enough and are ready to fight for this country, its principles and its people, no matter the consequences.
Dear Nicole, I can’t thank you enough for your truly CHRISTIAN perspective. Your patience and yes, empathy, even for those who seem to have no empathy, is a guiding light.
I had the privilege of visiting this past September, Amsterdam and the home where Anne Frank and her family hid for two years. It was sobering. Upon leaving my immediate comment to my family was, ‘it is difficult to image a political system that devotes so much effort to hunting down children.’ Of course the words were barely across my lips when I realized our own country was now the country hunting marginalized children. So yes! Asa nation we are like WWII Germany whether we like it or not.
Empathy is good. Empathy and honesty belong together now. We must help those among us who are unable to admit what our nation is becoming to be both empathetic and honest. This was not what the authors of the Constitution had in mind for The United States of America.
I.C.E. not America. We must be better than the Trumpist version
Yes! This: “We must help those among us who are unable to admit what our nation is becoming to be both empathetic and honest.” I wholeheartedly agree. Thanks for reading. Seeing the Anne Frank house (and the Corrie Ten Boom house) is on my bucket list.
This is so profoundly well said and needed. Thank you for writing it.
Thanks, Julie.
Thank you, thank you. You addressed so many of the same things that have been spinning around in my head in helpful and eloquent ways. It's staggering to hear from our kids who live there - including our daughter in law who teaches in a Somali school, and our son who works with many immigrants. You are not being an alarmist. This is all happening before our eyes and we can not look away.
I’ve been thinking so much about your kids. They are on the front lines. Praying for them and for you.
I find it hard to believe that so called “Christians” support so much of this chaos. As an avid reader of the history of Nazi Germany, there are too many similarities to ignore. Striving for a totally Aryan (White) country. We are a nation of immigrants.
We are a nation of immigrants! Amen. As a mother of black children and the wife of a green card holder, my life bears testament to this.
I must say that this writing is truly the most meaningful I have read in a while. I am constantly enraged by what is happening in the country and to the country. I often feel overwhelmed with anger at Trump and all those who support him. Your entreaty for empathy does arrest my temptation to slide into dark feelings towards them. You are a remarkable writer, and this piece is incredibly well crafted. Whether one seeks to find strength in the teachings of Jesus or simply in the desire to be a good and kind person, understanding and empathy should be paramount and our intent and goal. Thank you.
Your words are a balm, Scott. Thank you so much. We all have to do what we can and maybe our combined hearts and voices can turn this ship around. Thanks for being on board.
I've been wrestling with speaking out when I've had to insulate myself so much and I don't feel well informed. But the Scriptures this coming weekend include a passage from Psalm 40 talking about "I did not restrain my tongue, O Lord, I announced your justice in the vast assembly." And that is really pricking my conscience. I have a post to write this weekend on my faith-based Substack, and I'm not as good at letting things bounce off me as you are. Pray for me.
Oh, I never said I was good at letting things bounce off me. ;-) It hurts. It stays. It becomes a part of who I am. But I couldn't look at myself in the mirror if I didn't speak up for what I know is right. You've got this and I'm cheering you on.
I published my post today over at Intentional Catholic. Breathing deep.
I can’t wait to read it.
Thank you so much for your words, Nicole, and for sharing resources. I have felt a combination or rage, grief and sorrow, without a way to put it into words (yet), and uncertain of where to direct my dollars (one thing I can do). Grateful for your voice in this moment.
Rage, grief, and sorrow is for sure. Our hearts will never be the same.
It is sad that people unsubscribed from you for posting Anne Frank's words. Not because it hurt your feelings (it probably understandably did), but because those are the kinds of people who would rather encapsulate themselves in a shell of ignorance. I hope you got a chance to post the link to your full-length writing as a response to them--perhaps one of them will put the time in to read about what is really happening? I don't know how we recover from this scene where we only take in what is manicured to our tastes...???
It seems we just want to retreat deeper and deeper into our own corners. I find that terrifying. Thanks for taking the time to read and comment, Beth. Grateful for you.
Nicole, Your writing is my Sunday sermon, thank you. Our country is upside down and the occupation of Minneapolis is a tipping point. I appreciate the links of places to support. Autocracy and a theocracy of retribution go hand in hand; I contest both.
I agree with you, Mary. This is unspeakably heavy and I can’t begin to imagine what’s next. Praying for our country.
As usual, you nailed it, Nicole.
Thank you, Kali.
Nicole,
The parallels you draw between what’s happening in Minnesota and the Nazi regime in Germany are correct and unmistakable. They extend far beyond the atrocities in Minnesota. That so many fail to recognize the erosion of the civil rights of American citizens collectively, to say nothing of the vulnerabilities being created for each of us as individuals is dishearteningly astonishing. Kudos to you for pointing this out. If had my way, The Last Days of Hitler by Hugh Trevor-Roper a British historian and Oxford Don, would be required reading for every citizen. The work was commissioned by the British government after the war to investigate rumors Hitler somehow managed to survive the war. Much is exhaustive and tedious detail, although the narrative is sprinkled with dry, perhaps unintended, humor. That said, Trevor-Roper’s epilogue is an eloquent perspective not only on the Nazi regime, but on the fate of dictators throughout history from the conditions enabling them in the first place to the integral weaknesses eventually leading to their inevitable downfall, some of which are already to be seen if one looks carefully. For those of us who lament the current disintegration of the American Dream, the lessons taught by this epilogue provide some comfort and hope and are worth the read. Keep writing.
I think you’re exactly right. I’m grateful for historians and scholars who intimately know the ins and outs and can help us spot parallels. I wish more people were paying attention. Grateful for your voice.
Thanks Nicole!
Thanks for reading, Joni.
Yes it’s so hard. When we were at our lowest last week we found some balm by responding with a $ gift toward some desperate friends of Caleb, who are working so hard against the tide of oppression in Mpls
I’m so glad you were able to do that. There are so many in need! I have a feeling it’ll only get more desperate for our immigrant and refugee neighbors. Grateful for you and Ver.
Nicole, I support what you are doing and thank you for it. It is devastating to hear what is happening in Minneapolis and I pray it does not spread to other parts of the US. I became a Democrat in the 60s as a teenager with the Civil Rights movement. It does seem that the affects of it have been squashed by Trump.
It’s so sad to think of how racism and misogyny exist just below the surface. Perhaps this can help us do and be better.
Thank you for your comforting thoughts Nicole. This column is a keeper. Keep in mind just how many people are extremely stupid and/or bull headed. Reasoning with them is impossible and this exacerbates the situation. We just need to keep moving forward.
How right you are! I’m already getting messages. 😉 Even Jesus told the disciples to shake the dust off their shoes when they weren’t welcome.
Thank you for your good heart and powerful message, Nicole. I, too, Amex furious at what is happening. If you read the second paragraph of Bill and Hilary Clinton’s letter refusing the subpoena to appear before Congress you will get a near-perfect summation of what the hell is going on and a call to action. I will try and find it and post it. Meanwhile keep this up!
Oh, I hope you find it! I’d love to read it. Thanks for linking arms!
Got it:
This past year has seen our Government engage in unprecedented acts, including against our own citizens. People have been seized by masked federal agents from their homes, their workplaces, and the streets of their communities. Students and scientists with visas permitting them to study and work here have been deported without due process. The people who laid siege to the U.S. Capitol have been pardoned and called heroes. Agencies vital to the country’s national security have been dismantled. Universities, media companies, and law firms have been subjected to threats to their funding, access, and licensing unless they made concessions and surrendered their right to constitutionally protected free speech. American troops have been deployed on the streets of our towns and cities. The Justice Department has been used as a weapon, at the direction of the President, to pursue political opponents. And most recently and searingly, an ICE agent killed an unarmed mother only days ago.
Every person has to decide when they have seen or had enough and are ready to fight for this country, its principles and its people, no matter the consequences.
Dear Nicole, I can’t thank you enough for your truly CHRISTIAN perspective. Your patience and yes, empathy, even for those who seem to have no empathy, is a guiding light.
I had the privilege of visiting this past September, Amsterdam and the home where Anne Frank and her family hid for two years. It was sobering. Upon leaving my immediate comment to my family was, ‘it is difficult to image a political system that devotes so much effort to hunting down children.’ Of course the words were barely across my lips when I realized our own country was now the country hunting marginalized children. So yes! Asa nation we are like WWII Germany whether we like it or not.
Empathy is good. Empathy and honesty belong together now. We must help those among us who are unable to admit what our nation is becoming to be both empathetic and honest. This was not what the authors of the Constitution had in mind for The United States of America.
I.C.E. not America. We must be better than the Trumpist version
of our country.
Yes! This: “We must help those among us who are unable to admit what our nation is becoming to be both empathetic and honest.” I wholeheartedly agree. Thanks for reading. Seeing the Anne Frank house (and the Corrie Ten Boom house) is on my bucket list.