I really didn’t plan it this way, but I hosted the Top Comments diary for last year’s winter solstice as well.
Again, we’ve arrived at the time of the year when many cultures and religions hold celebrations or gatherings to mark the day when daylight hours reach their minimum. We know that the light will return. As I stated in last year’s diary, we’re also in a historically dark time with regard to our federal government, but we have to be confident that the light will return. In fact, the light is guaranteed to return. But unlike the predictable turning of the seasons, we don’t know when this darkness in our nation will recede, and to a large extent, it depends on how hard we work to counteract the damage being done as I type.
With the passage of the Republican tax scam, we have suffered a terrible defeat in recent days. While Republicans have often been tripped up by their own incompetence, this time, they managed to pass a wreck of a bill that rewards the very rich for being very rich, while the rest of us have to pay them for their privilege. All we have to do is clap for the supply-side fairies to reawaken and bring about an economic boom so prodigious that tax receipts will go through the roof and the deficit will disappear. Like what happened in the early 1980s. And the early 2000s. And Kansas under Sam Brownback. Remember that? Yeah, I don’t either because it didn’t happen. The interesting thing is that, apparently, the general public isn’t buying it either, given the historic unpopularity of this bill. Now, Speaker Paul Ryan threatens to pay for the looming deficits caused by this scam by eviscerating programs that the poor and middle class have relied upon for decades: Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, you name it. He sees this as his golden opportunity to make his Randian kegger reveries come true.
As I see it, the GOP’s feverish activity focussed on doing us all harm is equivalent to compressing a stiff spring. The compression actually began during the Trump campaign, and then accelerated after the election, as Trump’s outrageous, irresponsible, and inhumane policies have been dragging us ever closer to an authoritarian dystopia. Now, Ryan is anxiously compressing that spring as far as he can, trying to fit the needs of the American public into a 19th Century Guided Age box.
However, that spring can’t stay in that compressed state forever without somehow permanently containing its formidable force. That box is going to break, and the spring will extend itself again with full force. The people will have their day, and I can even put a date on it: November 6, 2018, also known as election day. We have already seen signs of it from the Democratic victories of election day 2017 in Virginia and New Jersey, as well as victories in special elections, the biggest being Doug Jones’ win in the Senate race in Alabama. Even in elections where the Democrat has not won, in all cases, there has been a very large swing to our side. As the energy that has been trapped in that spring is released, all the damage that the current Congress and the White House occupant have done will begin to be swept away.
The oscillation of a planet. The oscillation of politics. Right now they have both reached their limit of motion in one direction and will start a return to a less extreme environment. We can leverage the force of that decompressing political spring to remake the country into one where justice, fairness, generosity and equality are fundamental. But, again, keep in mind that, unlike the motion of the planet, we have to work to push back against the GOP. We must act to prevent as much of the Republican agenda from being enacted as possible, but most important of all, we must VOTE!
In the meantime, I offer my best wishes to all of you that you find yourself in comfort among loved ones at this time of year, whatever your belief system might be. You will find some music appropriate to the solstice below the fold (distinct from what Tara the Antisocial Social Worker offered last night), but first, here’s a word from our sponsor:
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Chanukah is now over, but I thought I’d offer this song anyway. Interestingly, the best version of this song I could find (in my opinion, at least) was by Miriam Makeba. (In the process of finding this youtube, I discovered that it’s a love song, not a Chanukah song, but years ago, John McCutcheon used the tune on his Winter Solstice album, and so I always associate the song with this time of year.)
Now for songs appropriate to solstice:
We need a wassail:
A cowboy solstice song?:
And let’s wind things up with Jean Ritchie:
And now, to the comments!
Top Comments (December 21, 2017):
From your humble diarist:
Sometimes, you just have to let other’s words stand for themselves with minimal commentary. indycam does that with a batshit quote of Steve Bannon about Trump, from ursulafaw’s recommended post featuring the Bannon interview in Vanity Fair.
Highlighted by NWTerriD:
This comment by maninthemiddle reflecting on our nation’s evolving Constitutional crisis, from JoeCarl’s recommended post on the topic.
Top Mojo (December 20, 2017):
Top Mojo is courtesy of mik! Click here for more on how Top Mojo works.
Top Photos (December 20, 2017):
Tonight’s picture quilt is courtesy of jotter!