Welcome to a discussion about the upcoming 5th Revolution in the US, which I’ve titled the “Revenge Revolution.” For more about the Revenge Revolution and the author, Entry #1.  Periodically I write a “sense check” to assess whether a revolution in the US is possible or whether the entire exercise is based on a statistical aberration — i.e., a roughly 50-year cycle between major upheavals in the US. Entry #430 was the most recent “sense check.”

ENTRY #470 BEGINS: On the 2nd Anniversary of one of the worst days in American history, I thought it might be worthwhile to discuss why I believe, “When There’s Smoke, There’s Hope.” When someone or some group starts to burn down something, there is always smoke and that sickening feeling. Those who are standing by have an option of doing nothing and watching something be destroyed or taking action and try to save whatever has been torched.

2023 seems to be a turning point for the US populace, where parts of society are saying “no” to the hard-right Republican torch carriers who want to burn the foundations of government and beginning to take action to save societal and cultural foundations.

Let’s look at a couple of examples of what’s happening now and what’s likely to happen in the coming weeks. What will these activities mean for the US Revolution V, the Revenge Revolution? First, as noted in earlier blog entries, the Revenge Revolution has started, and the Revenge Revolution will continue. However, what is starting to occur now is a coalescence of groups to counter the forces promulgating the Revenge Revolution. 

The end result should be the good guys win. Like all revolutions, however, life post revolution will be different. Fortunately, post Revenge Revolution core societal values will remain intact.

What’s likely to happen near term? We the (American) people – in today’s political climate, “We the people” seems like an oxymoron – will begin to start working together rather pulling in opposite directions.  And while “We the people” might seem like an oxymoron, even thinking “We the people” will make progress might make me a moron. 

Regardless of progress, 2023 looks to be filled with lots of smoke. In the last four (4) days – 01/03/23 to 01/06/23, members of the House of Representatives have been voting to select a Speaker of the House.  To be elected Speaker requires a simple majority of votes from members.  After 3.5 days, and 12 votes, no speaker has been elected.  Republicans, who have a thin majority in the House, cannot decide who should be awarded the Speaker’s gavel. [Late afternoon 01/06, McCarthy was 0 for 13, although picked up some votes.]

Republicans have been so fractured, that until the 12^th vote, a Democrat received more votes than any Republican.  Taking this long to elect the Speaker hasn’t happened since 1859, and we all know what came a few years later.

The Republican front-runner for Speaker, Kevin McCarthy, apparently has been willing to compromise on any issue in order to be elected. Such behavior does not bode well for governing. On the contrary, such behavior might bode well for getting the American public, particularly Republicans, to finally understand that both parties need to be reasonably rational in their approach.

Why does the ineptness of the Republican Party and the resulting chaos provide a ray of hope?  The ray of hope is a growing percentage of Republicans appear to be disgusted with the behavior and demands of the far-right Trump MAGAts.  Many of these Republicans seem to be rethinking how the Party should operate. How soon they will take action is another story since they’ve proved to be remarkably spineless the past six plus (6+) years.

Another ray of hope is the likely prosecution of Trump for an array of illegal activities while president. The January 6th Committee recently released numerous transcripts that added to the pile of evidence about criminal behavior by Trump and his family.

How many Republicans will finally admit Trump is a crook remains to be seen. But, the results of the midterm elections and the constant smoke from the January 6th committee is a hopeful sign.

OK, so you still think I’m a moron for being so optimistic. The Revenge Revolution, as noted in a couple of previous entries, effectively started when Trump was elected president. The Revenge Revolution has grown more insidious – the 01/06/21 insurrection is a good example – and now we have a Republican Party going at least 0 for 12 in being able to elect someone to hold the gavel to manage meetings.

An old saying suggests it is always darkest before dawn. The darkest part of the night is not yet over. However, at the beginning of 2023 we seem closer to dawn than we do to dusk — a positive sign. More to come. ENTRY #470 ENDS

Other Topics. Interested in more info about climate change, what’s required to electrify a fleet of cars/trucks, what it was like to work day-to-day with Lee Iacocca and an array of other topics? Visit another page of this website, https://usrevolution5.com/jrd-thought-comments/

Welcome to a discussion about the upcoming 5th Revolution in the US, which I’ve titled the “Revenge Revolution.” For more about the Revenge Revolution and the author, Entry #1.  Periodically I write a “sense check” to assess whether a revolution in the US is possible or whether the entire exercise is based on a statistical aberration — i.e., a roughly 50-year cycle between major upheavals in the US. Entry #430 was the most recent “sense check.”

BEGIN ENTRY #469: Thank you, January 6th Committee, for shedding light on America’s darkest day. December 21, 2022 will be the day a full report from the Committee is released.  In addition to December 21 being known as the Winter Solstice, it should be known as the “Truth Solstice.”

Every U.S. citizen, regardless of political preference, should be grateful the Committee has been shining light on events leading up to the January 6th insurrection and shining light on who was leading the charge. Shining light on truth is not a political issue but critical for a democracy to function long term.

If you are a diehard Trump supporter, imagine the same actions leading up to the 01/06 insurrection, but rather than actions being led by Trump, the actions were led by a Democratic president. Would you still want the investigation suppressed?  We know the answer, and the answer is, “No!”

We, all US citizens, should be eternally grateful for the fortitude and sacrifices of members of the January 6th Committee in providing this country with the “Truth Solstice.” END ENTRY #469

Other Topics. Interested in more info about climate change, what’s required to electrify a fleet of cars/trucks, what it was like to work day-to-day with Lee Iacocca and an array of other topics? Visit another page of this website, https://usrevolution5.com/jrd-thought-comments/

Welcome to a discussion about the upcoming 5th Revolution in the US, which I’ve titled the “Revenge Revolution.” For more about the Revenge Revolution and the author, Entry #1.  Periodically I write a “sense check” to assess whether a revolution in the US is possible or whether the entire exercise is based on a statistical aberration — i.e., a roughly 50-year cycle between major upheavals in the US. Entry #430 was the most recent “sense check.”

ENTRY #466: It is Thanksgiving weekend 2022. I started this blog entry over a week ago after having waited a couple of weeks after the mid-term elections. So, what I have I learned by waiting?

The results of the midterms were a bit of a relief, at least temporarily. While there has been a lot of ink about the results of the 2022 midterms, my take is rational Republicans and Democrats took charge and the American public should be generally pleased by the outcomes.

Not to say all is rosy. Even though Republicans gained far fewer seats in the House of Representatives than expected, rational voters should be concerned the incoming House leadership will be a triumvirate of whackos – McCarthy, Green, and Jordan. The far-right trio will generate a lot of noise in the House, but fortunately, all the efforts will end up being for show and of little consequence. 

The brakes on the Trumpian trifecta will be by the Senate, where Democrats will retain at least 50 seats. In addition, based on voters’ expressions in the mid-terms, some Republicans from “purple” states are likely to join Democrats on key issues.

What may be most encouraging for the longer term is a majority of voters in more balanced purple states elected candidates committed to the Federal and state constitutions rather than the Trump autocracy.  Georgia, for example, reelected Republican Brad Raffensperger to Secretary of State by a significant margin.  Raffensperger, scorned by Trump, clearly drew some Democratic voters.  The election in Georgia was not unique.  Overall, most of the Trump-endorsed candidates were defeated. 

As of this writing, there is one major congressional race to be decided — the Georgia senate race. The runoff is in early December between a highly educated preacher, who is currently filling out a term, Ralph Warnock, and a former Heisman Trophy winner, who played at Georgia, but never bothered to graduate, Herschel Walker.

Why Republicans nominated Walker to run is a mystery. While Mr. Walker certainly had a stellar college football career, his academic accomplishments are what one would generously call “limited.”  As they say in the south, “bless his little heart.“

We shall see if Georgia voters continue to be reasonably rational and avoid electing a senator that can’t put two sentences together, Mr. Walker, or elect someone who is highly respected and understands voters, and how things need to work.

Where do the results of the mid-terms lead? From earlier blog entries, fair to say I think the 5^th US Revolution, aka the Revenge Revolution, has started. The 5^th Revolution started in earnest when Trump became president, and the cultural war has intensified since.

Much like the 4^th US Revolution in the 1960s, early 1970s, this revolution will drag out for a while. And over time different factions will come to the fore to lead the insurrection.

Part of the revolution will continue to be mass killings. In the last two weeks there have been three high-profile mass shootings. One was at an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs where five people were killed and 18 or more injured.

That same weekend and what received almost no press was the arrest of two far-right extremists at Penn Station. The individuals were armed and wore body armor, as well as swastika patches.  Apparently the two were headed to one or more synagogues in NYC.

The second high-profile shooting was at the University of Virginia where three football players were killed.  The third incident was at a Walmart, also in Virginia, where six employees were killed by a manager. 

Given the spate of incidents and the continued death threats against members of Congress, and other people in government – when did government doctors become the “enemy”? – what seems likely in the next few months is a successful assassination of a high-profile Democrat in Congress or a “liberal“ member of SCOTUS.

Even though Trump seems to be more and more marginalized by his own party and the right-wing media – Rupert Murdoch’s New York Post mocked his announcement about running in 2024 – Republicans in the House seem hell-bent on rallying Trump’s hard-core base, even if their actions pose a serious threat to democracy.

A surge of the far right is not a new phenomenon. In the 1930s, and even during World War II,  far-right supporters of Nazi Germany included high-profile Americans – Charles Lindbergh and Henry Ford I, for example.  In addition, at least 24 members of Congress were supporters of Nazi Germany.

The Nazi-supporting members of Congress were influential in thwarting investigations by the Department of Justice into who in Congress was involved in taking payments from Nazi Germany. (For a good introduction to the people involved and some activities of the far right in the late 1930s and early 1940s, listen to the podcast “Ultra,“ which is hosted by and partially written by Rachel Maddow.  Put aside your politics and listen to some straight-up history that you should not want repeated.)

Another bit of optimism why the length of the 5^th US Revolution might be tempered.  After the far-right members of Congress were “outed” for their support of Nazi Germany, most were voted out of office in the next election.  Some supporters never were endorsed by their party, even those with decades of service in Congress. My hope is the public in the US will awaken and vote the supporters of the insurrection out of office. 

Defeat of the Trump MAGAts in the midterms might be an inkling of how fed up many voters are with members of Congress taking extreme positions, especially positions on the far right.  A further indication of frustration may become apparent over the next 6-9 months as the public is exposed to the three-ring circus in the House led by ringmasters McCarthy, Jordan and Greene. 

In parallel with the  circus in the House, more information about Trump’s illegal activities will be released – from tax evasion, to…wanna bet…unreported income from foreign governments, especially governments in the Middle East and Russia. Don’t be surprised if there’s a charge of money laundering as well.  Analyzing Trump is straightforward – just follow the money.

As far as presidential candidates for 2024, lots of emerging candidates on either side. However, way too early to guess who is likely to emerge. Historically many of the early front runners became “also rans” before the third or fourth primary. I’ll bet neither Trump nor Biden is the nominee.

Back to the next 6-9 months, keep your fingers crossed the amount of violence does not escalate.  And keep your fingers crossed the DOJ vigorously pursues those involved with the insurrection of January 6, starting with the lead dog.  More later. END ENTRY #466

Other Topics. Interested in more info about climate change, what’s required to electrify a fleet of cars/trucks, what it was like to work day-to-day with Lee Iacocca and an array of other topics? Visit another page of this website, https://usrevolution5.com/jrd-thought-comments/

Welcome to a discussion about the upcoming 5th Revolution in the US, which I’ve titled the “Revenge Revolution.” For more about the Revenge Revolution and the author, Entry #1.  Periodically I write a “sense check” to assess whether a revolution in the US is possible or whether the entire exercise is based on a statistical aberration — i.e., a roughly 50-year cycle between major upheavals in the US. Entry #430 was the most recent “sense check.”

BEGIN #451: As noted occasionally in this blog, the “real me” is a member of a group of fellow MIT Alumni working on developing, assessing, and/or recommending practical solutions to climate change. The vision is to provide guidance to government, industry and the public about actions that should result in slowing the increase in the earth’s temperature to ~2.0^oC by 2100. The baseline temperature is pre-Industrial Revolution.

One of the workgroups held a Zoom call on June 6. Part of the call was devoted to reviewing a deck of PowerPoint slides that could be used to help educate the general public about causes of climate change and possible solutions.

One slide, describing the difficulty of the task, was titled “Very Difficult to Solve but Possible.” Almost immediately one member of the group strenuously objected to the word “Possible” in the title. He claimed there was really no solution to climate change, and we should not imply that there was. Several people objected, and I believe rightfully so.

Because a problem is extremely difficult to solve does not mean it cannot be solved. Apparently, he forgot we all went to MIT.

In addition, I found the objection ironic, given that the meeting was on the 78th anniversary of D-Day. What if the commanders of the Allied forces had decided that trying to retake much of Western Europe from the Axis was too difficult? That the landing at Normandy was too difficult and too dangerous? Had those efforts been deemed too difficult, what kind of world would we have today?

My father-in-law was one of those who participated in D-Day, landing at Omaha Beach, 2nd wave. He also fought in the Battle of the Bulge. While training in England before D-Day, he volunteered as a waist gunner on bombing runs over Germany. Thank goodness he and thousands of others who fought in WWII did not think retaking Western Europe was too difficult.

After spending the last few years trying to help address climate change, I believe that we, societal we, can solve the problem and avoid a catastrophe for mankind worldwide. The necessary effort will be as complex and difficult as the Americans and Allies found in World War II. Another layer of difficulty will be the time required. Rather than a war effort of 4-5 years, the “war on climate change” is going to last for probably 50 years, or more.

Yes, during those 50 years, there will be rationing and restrictions. There will be other inconveniences as well. To address the causes of climate change, life is not going to return to what was once considered “normal.”

Life after WWII was different than before WWII. As with post-WWII, if the climate change effort is managed properly, there will be widespread implementation of new technology and creation of many job opportunities.

Getting there is not going to be easy. As a nation we need to put on our big-boy pants, quit whining that the solution is too difficult, and start acting like adults. Everyone is society is going to be affected by climate change and everyone needs to commit to a solution.

We need to begin thinking about addressing climate change in much the same way the US and the Allies viewed D-Day. There’s really not much choice. It’s a “do” or “die” situation. END #451

Other Topics. Interested in more info about climate change, what’s required to electrify a fleet of cars/trucks, what it was like to work day-to-day with Lee Iacocca and an array of other topics? Visit another page of this website, https://usrevolution5.com/jrd-thought-comments/