Insurrection, Impeachment, Inauguration

Just another Wednesday in 2021

Lower the temperature. Elevate joy.

I have a message for those in the GOP…most notably those in leadership, but yes, those who live down the block…who want everyone else to “move on,” look towards unity and healing,” and “turn down the temperature” now that the January 6th Attack on the Capitol failed. And probably mostly now that the Attack on the Capitol is generating lots of arrests and a second Trump impeachment thrown in for good measure. And that message is: Start in your own house.

There is still a tremendous amount of online chatter about seditious intentions and proposed actions, targeting not just DC, but every state capitol too. I don’t care if it’s realistic or “letting off steam.” Start lowering the temperature there.

You’ve got GOP congresspeople refusing to go through metal detectors or wear masks. Start lowering the temperature there.

You’ve got GOP state legislators and party officials who traveled to DC to participate in the Attack. Start lowering the temperature there.

It’s well-worn advice for any problem, political or not. In fact, it dates back to biblical times: Remove the plank in your eye. Look in the mirror. Start at home.

I also have a message for the rest of us: Do not let your joy be stolen from you. Every time something amazing has happened in the past year, has your joy been constrained, tamped down, offset? In many cases, it felt like there were intentional escalations designed to distract and dishearten. Just in the last couple of months, I’ve written about feeling like we never fully celebrated electing the first woman Vice President (who is a Black and Asian woman to boot), or flipping the Senate by flipping Georgia blue electing a Black Senator and a Jewish Senator. And with the rise in antisemitism that has accompanied Trumpism yes, both are wins. California finally has a Latino Senator representing it, a state that is plurality Latinx. And this Wednesday the first and only Latina Supreme Court Justice will swear in that Black and Asian woman Vice President while her Jewish “Second Gentleman” husband accompanies her. And I plan to celebrate with all the joy I can muster. I will not let it be stolen from me.

That’s also well-worn advice in any context, political or not: Take the wins when you get them, and let them motivate you. Let love lead and inspire you vs. fear and dread. I don’t say this in a hippy-dippy (or out-of-touch) way. We think clearer, make better decisions, and have more stamina when we lead this way.

We have miles to go before we sleep, but our marching orders should be clear.

Last week-ish

Last week’s episode 43 of The Op-Ed Page podcast tried to organize my jumbled thoughts on insurrection (mostly that it was shocking but not surprising), reviewed the positive habits I’m trying to sustain in 2021 (and the app I am using to track my success) and reviewed the many many shows, movies, and more that I consumed over a holiday break where I wasn’t really able to do much else. Yes, I really sat down on New Years Day and watched the ENTIRE season 1 of Ted Lasso again in one sitting, because I wanted to start the new year off right! I also watched both big Christmas releases, Wonder Woman 84 and Soul. I return to my statement that nothing is unproblematic, but in this case, one of these wasn’t even that entertaining.

I also had an article published on the Gender Avenger site last week about Tiffany Haddish saying “no” to hosting a pre-Grammys ceremony for the “exposure.” It’s entitled I’d Like to Scold the Academy. I dig into the Recording Academy’s disclosure report to figure out how much money they have and where it’s going, if not to an A-List talent they want to dress up and work for three hours on a live stream that will reach millions…uncompensated, and even unreimbursed for her expenses. (Side note: Where is Ms. Haddish’s union in all this?)

Coming this Week-ish

A sneak peek of episode 44 of The Op-Ed Page podcast: I’m going to tell a little story from when I got into tech, how I advanced my career, and how I’ve come to see that if that happened even five years later I probably wouldn’t have been able to advance in the same way. All it takes, apparently, is one big company making one unfounded decision to cement barriers to inclusivity for an industry. It’s an opportunity to talk about how we hire, and how college is great, but not for the reasons some companies seem to think.

As always I appreciate a share of this newsletter or my podcast. And I appreciate feedback and hearing from you too.

And if you think I can help you break through the things that are keeping you stuck, you can always set up your first introductory 30-minute consult for free by booking it in my Calendly.

Have a great week-ish!