The Coup2K
Experience of
Cynthia G.
“A sense of urgency and purpose has taken root,
and the sobering call to rise from a slumber and
to stand up for the fight to shape the future of this country
as well as this planet has become impossible to ignore.”
Dear Tammy " Diva":
Just checking in to tell you how much I applaud today's report ("5
Habits....")
As always, you are just so right on target. Just love how everything you do
comes out in such a straight, clear shot equally from brain and heart. You have
a very special talent. The Steal Penny was genius.
This site is one of my lifelines. Like yourself and many others, my
life has undergone dramatic change since the non-election. Nothing seems the
same at all. About 90% of my waking
consciousness is focused on gathering truthful information about what has
happened, trying to process the "what" and "why",
discussing it ad infinitum with my husband, children and anyone
else who is at all inclined to do so, writing countless letters, faxes and
making phone calls to congress reps, newspapers and magazines, and gearing up
to become active in any and all future electoral campaigns. We haven't (by
choice) had TV for 12 years, so I didn't give that up as a result. But I have stopped listening to mainstream
radio (including NPR News) because I just couldn't take the stress or futility
of hearing all the spin. I even cancelled my 22-year running subscription to
Time magazine after one last straw article broke my readership back.
I spend hours every day on the internet, scouring it for every shred of
alternative progressive news and investigative journalism, and to my delight,
have found a great deal of it to be had. In addition, sites like yours, and bushwatch, buzzflash, indymedia, bartcop, democrats.com, etc., are tremendously gratifying sources of
both information and support. Far from feeling detached, I feel more connected
than ever to the energy that is going in the same direction. My house isn't as clean as it used to be,
many meals have become more basic, 7 hour nights of sleep have become a memory,
my architectural work has been pared back, (I have even turned down some jobs)
and days can come and go and I haven't even left the house. But in some ways I have never been more
mentally and emotionally engaged on concerns and priorities outside my personal
world of family and work. A sense of urgency and purpose has taken root, and
the sobering call to rise from a slumber and to stand up for the fight to shape
the future of this country as well as this planet has become impossible to
ignore. That the collective voice of
millions of others who hear this same sound is actually penetrating into my
being through this computer screen and some of the progressive radio airwaves
is a phenomenon that never fails to amaze, comfort and energize me. (I'm not
that young, and I was a reluctant techie.)
I am profoundly grateful for this newfound network, and for the hope
that it gives me to see through the dark clouds, and keep pushing forward every
day.
There is a short vignette I'd like to share: On the dreaded January 20, my husband and I went to our first
ever protest demonstration in our small city in upstate NY. (My husband had a raging fever and flu but
went anyway, I'm proud to say). It was
freezing cold (in the 20’s) and it had rained the night before, so all the
sidewalks were coated with 2 inches of solid ice. Literally, you could not walk without skating, and I clung to my
husband's arm the whole block walk from the car to the demonstration area. Upon
arrival, I was immediately impressed with the diversity of the
protestors--every age group was represented. Then something caught my attention
that I will never forget. It was the
sight of a very old man--mid to late 80’s if a day, walking up and down with
his sign in one hand and leaning on a cane with the other, bravely venturing forth
in slow, deliberate steps over the treacherous ice. I wondered how many of his family and friends cautioned him
against going out in those conditions to do this, and yet he resisted them all.
My heart leaps every time I think of him.
We know what is right. We know
what is true. We know what we have to
do. Joining hands to get it done is older than history. Some good songs would help. But for me, that image of the old man with
the cane is hard to top. Heroes can be
anywhere, and finding them is a treasure.
Thank you for all you are doing--it is heard, and it is huge.
All the best,
Cynthia
Upstate
New York