July 1, 2026 – I’m tired and I’m sad. I mourn the unnecessary loss of innocent lives due to an inane war in Iran. I feel the pain of Americans who are losing affordable health care options. I object to congressional districts that disenfranchise certain voters. It boggles my mind that a failed paint job in a reflecting pool is capturing attention that should instead be focused on the critical question of how we end our current slide into authoritarianism.
But a friend recently recommended a documentary, FDR, a 3-part series created by the History Channel in 2023, currently available on Netfilx. I watched it and learned how respected historians credit Franklin Roosevelt with creating programs like Social Security and the Civilian Conservation Corps, likely defusing a rebellion by the working class and in the end protecting capitalism and democracy. And even as his health was failing, FDR forged an unlikely and tenuous alliance with Britain and the Soviet Union to eliminate Nazi fascism from the face of the earth.
Learning (remembering?) what real leadership and statesmanship are about has helped me–forced me, really–to stop indulging distractions like weariness, sadness and anger and instead renew my commitment to protecting freedom, civility and democracy by stepping up and speaking out about the failures of our current leadership and what we must do to save this nation.
Democracy is worth the effort