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*SAD TIMES

by Steve Shapiro

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1.
SAD TIMES 04:16
Feeling sad is the new normal in Trump’s America. Mental health professionals say they have seen an unprecedented increase in stress, sadness and other negative feelings that clients are directly tying to the election and its aftermath. These are sad times.
2.
GLOBAL FEAR 03:31
In today’s climate of growing of global fear and alienation, we must not lose sight of the fundamental truth that all humans are born with inalienable rights, dignity and worth. Our fellow human beings have the same aspirations as we do — lives of peace, prosperity and progress. In January, The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists announced that the Doomsday Clock was moving 30 seconds closer to the end of humanity. The group noted that in 2016, “the global security landscape darkened as the international community failed to come effectively to grips with humanity’s most pressing existential threats, nuclear weapons and climate change.” The organization also cited the election of President Trump in changing the symbolic clock. “Never before has the Bulletin decided to advance the clock largely because of the statements of a single person. But when that person is the new president of the United States, his words matter.” As Hillary Clinton said: “A man you can bait with a tweet is not a man we can trust with nuclear weapons.”
3.
Delicato 02:23
Every element of earth's ecosystem is needed to maintain the delicate balance that supports all life forms. Life on earth is interconnected and environmental responsibility is everyone's business. The Paris Agreement on Climate Change was aimed at cutting emissions and keeping global temperatures from rising more than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. Trump's decision to drop out of the Paris Agreement puts the US at odds with nearly every other nation on Earth. Very bad. We owe an apology to the rest of the world.
4.
The March for Truth on Saturday is about rule of law, and potentially egregious conflicts of interest within the Executive Branch. The truth also is that climate change is real. “Leaving Paris is not good for America or the world.” - Elon Musk “Make our planet great again.” - Emmanuel Macron
5.
AGITATED and NERVOUS. We are struggling to cope with the national nervous breakdown that is the 2016 election. The election of Donald Trump and its aftermath is a new source of fear, sadness and anxiety in our lives. We are shocked, disappointed, sad and scared.
6.
May 1st is International Workers' Day, a celebration of laborers and the working classes. This May Day, let's come together and show the world we will not be intimidated by the attacks on immigrants in our country. Tens of thousands of immigrants and their supporters are set to protest Monday against immigration policies to mark May Day. Organizers are asking immigrants and allies to skip school, work, shopping, and banking to show the value and power of our labor and purchasing power, and to reject discrimination and hate.
7.
Saturday, April 29th is the next iteration of the PEOPLE'S CLIMATE MARCH — a date that coincides with the 100th day of the Trump administration. Trump has begun to roll back Obama-era environmental protections, ease regulations on the fossil fuel industry and ponder pulling out of the Paris climate agreement. WEEKENDS ARE FOR FIGHTING TYRANNY. This is a moment to push back against the Trump agenda and push forward a vision of a clean, safe world where the rights of all people are protected and expanded.
8.
“Trump’s grand and vulgar self-absorption is inviting all of us to examine our own selfishness. His ignorance calls us to attend to our own blind spots. The fears that he stokes and the isolation he promotes, goad us to be braver and more generous. The joker who is now our president has served an important function, waking us up to what we’ve not yet admitted in ourselves or accomplished in our country. He is, without realizing it, challenging us to grow in self-awareness, to act in ways that respect and fulfill what is best in ourselves and our democracy. It’s time for us citizens, who’ve watched the performance, to take the stage.” - James S Gordon, psychiatrist
9.
In his new book, Chris Hayes argues that there are really two Americas: A (black and brown) COLONY and a (white) NATION. In the NATION, we venerate the law. In the COLONY, we obsess over order and fear trumps civil rights where aggressive policing resembles occupation. A COLONY IN A NATION explains how a country founded on justice now looks like something uncomfortably close to a police state. How and why did Americans build a system where conditions in Ferguson and West Baltimore mirror those that sparked the American Revolution?
10.
An estimated 400,000 Syrians have been killed in the conflict, according to the United Nations, while 4.95 million Syrians have fled the country, 33 percent of whom are children 11 and under. “Donald Trump, my name is Bana Alabed, and I am 7-years-old from Aleppo, Syria. We are the children of Syria. We are not terrorists. We are like your children,” she pleads. “Please help us to stop the war. The children deserve life.” Bana escaped Aleppo in December during the mass evacuations, and resettled with her family in Turkey.
11.
“I’ve never been so nervous in my lifetime about what may or may not happen in Washington,” said Leon Panetta who served as chief of staff, secretary of defense and C.I.A. director during a 50-year career that spanned nine presidents from both parties. The early days of the Trump presidency are filled with scandal, legal challenges, personnel drama and questions about his temperament during interactions with world leaders. In record time, the 45th president has set off global outrage with a ban on travelers from Muslim-majority countries, fired his acting attorney general for refusing to defend the ban and watched as federal courts swiftly moved to block the policy, calling it an unconstitutional use of executive power. IT IS VERY SCARY!
12.
A coup is the sudden, violent overthrow of an existing government by a small group. It differs from a revolution in that it happens quickly and doesn't depend on large numbers of people. Instead, it requires only a change in power from the top that results in the abrupt replacement of leading government personnel. Our country is being overthrown by Donald Trump and the people he has appointed to govern with him.
13.
Where were you in 2017, when we had the worst president in the history of the United States? Were you part of the resistance to make sure that Trump is a one-term president? Trump’s first 100 days agenda includes repealing environmental regulations, Obamacare and the Dodd-Frank Act, giving the rich and big corporations a huge tax cut, and putting in place a Cabinet that doesn’t believe in the Voting Rights Act or public schools or Medicare or the Fair Housing Act. Donald Trump presents a silver lining that may be the catalyst the Progressive movement needed. Americans are no longer waiting for a Messiah. They have finally taken one of President Obama’s most effective messages to heart. “You are who you have been waiting for.” Greenpeace activists strung a “Resist” banner from a construction crane towering over the White House. The message was clear: Anyone who cares about climate change, clean water, or human rights needs to do something to show that to the current administration. The Resistance has the full force of Hollywood, the media and the entire Democratic Party behind it. There is also the resistance on the right. The conservatives who didn’t vote for Donald Trump and still voice concerns, but are willing to see what he does and judge him on his actions. Being the resistance means you actually have something to fear. You could face real oppression and violence against yourself or loved ones. The resistance does not get to shout loudly on the street corner without fear of arrest.
14.
BOMBS AWAY 02:48
“I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.” - Albert Einstein It’s difficult to comprehend the devastation caused by a nuclear weapon – whole cities levelled out, severe burns and radiation sickness for those who survive. North Korea warned on Tuesday of a nuclear attack on the United States at any sign of American aggression. Tension has escalated sharply on the Korean peninsula, with talk of military action by the United States gaining traction following its strikes last week against Syria and amid concerns that North Korea may soon conduct a sixth nuclear test. North Korea regularly threatens to destroy South Korea and its main ally, the United States.
15.
1984 04:22
16.
New research suggests watching a tragic movie or play leads us to reflect on our close relationships, which brings us pleasure. In other words, contentment breeds complacency. Tragedy wakes us up, reminds us that horrible things can and do happen, and inspires us to appreciate what we have.

about

Feeling sad is the new normal in Trump’s America.
Mental health professionals say they have seen an unprecedented increase in stress, sadness and other negative feelings that clients are directly tying to the election and its aftermath. These are sad times.

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released June 25, 2017

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Steve Shapiro Oakland, California

Steve Shapiro has composed music for hundreds of radio and TV commercials, documentary films, infomercials and other TV programs. He was the music director at Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, which produced hundreds of award-winning educational films and recordings. He has a BA in Music from Brown University and an MA in Music from the Manhattan School of Music. ... more

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