Personal Reflections of a Middle-Aged Man

My apologies as I know I’m about to put a huge burden on the women of the country. I do so because I don’t trust that the majority of men will step up in the way needed to protect our daughters, granddaughters, aunts, cousins, sisters, and moms in the way needed. If I’m being truly transparent, I’m not entirely sure if the women, who are threatened the most by the Trumpist-Republicans, Ultra Christian Right, and Christo-nationalists are paying enough attention to what is happening around them that does, and will, directly affect them at some point in their lives.

The reason I want to make sure women (and yes, I do expect men to be in this dogfight as well) are awake is because of some things the rich and powerful, or just powerful who kow-tow to rich people are doing and planning. Things like:

• Senator Katie Britt (TR-AL) announced this week she is co-sponsoring a bill with Senator Mark Rubio (TR-FL) and Senator Kevin Cramer (TR-ND) to creating the misleadingly named More Opportunities for Moms to Succeed Act (MOMs Act). This law would require the creation of Pregnancy.gov, a national website in which through a series of questions, obtains data on women who may be pregnant, planning on becoming pregnant, or may have questions about pregnancy. At first glance, what a wonderful idea! Upon further thought, why is it needed when any web search will turn up unlimited information? Because this website would steer you towards certain entities that align solely with the Trumpist-Republican (TR) ideals; it would be anything but non-partisan. Plus, once you’ve registered, the government, and who really knows who else, will have a list of women who at the most extreme, and we are basically at this point, can be tracked to ensure, if living in certain areas of the country, don’t move towards seeking certain reproductive health decisions.
• Certain jurisdictions are now, or planning on, prohibiting women seeking to terminate pregnancy, for any reason, from traveling through their boundaries. To do so a woman faces fines and/or arrest.
• Trumpist-Republicans, as outlined in Project 2025, have stated they will outright ban abortion, and most likely contraception, if Trump is re-elected as president in 2024. (Project 2025 outlines many minority groups that will be targeted and lose many hard fought freedoms.)
• Many states have lost medical clinics that provided basic and reproductive health care that mainly assisted women.
• Newly enacted laws limiting when a woman may terminate pregnancy have been passed that makes women carry non-viable fetuses until term, even when the health of the woman is at great risk, and even when all medical knowledge indicates the fetus will die shortly after birth.
• Laws to outlaw marriage by minors under the age of 18 are failing to pass across the country. In essence, these laws allow an adult man to marry an underage girl (rarely do underage males get married to an adult woman), often without need of parental permission.

These are just a small sampling of what is happening around us. Just these, that make the news, is enough to make a sensible person cringe. For those of us who have girls and women in our lives, it is downright terrifying. Are there really that many men (mainly) and women across the country who truly believe these draconian measures will make their lives better? Are there really that many men (again mainly), who care so little for their wives, their daughters, their sisters, their granddaughters, their co-workers, that they will stand by silently and allow those things mentioned above to continue? Do these men want to control their loved ones and those around them so badly they will vote in support of the politicians (and the billionaire class who fund them)?

What a truly horrifying thought to think so many may want to digress so deeply into the past where women were chattel with no say whatsoever in how they lead their lives!

If you, like so many of us, are just trying to make a somewhat decent life and not paying attention to the news, I’m going to strongly suggest to at least check-in with one or two places for current news each week (this is for men and women alike), to find out how, and to whom, you risk losing many of your freedoms. Some places where I get my updates (mostly from Twitter and books) include:

Twitter:

• Politics Girl (@IAmPoliticsGirl)
• Tristan Snell (@TristanSnell)
• Lindy Li (@lindyli)
• Molly Jong-Fast (@MollyJongFast)
• Jess Piper (@piper4missouri)
• GaslitNation (@gaslitnation)
• Elie Mystal (@ElieNYC)
• Danielle Moodie (@DeeTwoCents)

Authors (and Twitter)

• Sarah Kendzior (@sarahkendzior)
• Timothy Snyder (@TimothyDSnyder)
• David Pepper (@DavidPepper)

As I always say, time to get boots on the ground and vote. Primary season is almost over. Most of us know who the candidates are in our states. We know who talk about being true conservatives, family values, and similar rhetoric so we might be wary of them.

The future belongs to the 99% if we vote not in the way the rich works to manipulate us to vote by causing infighting, but in the way that is truly what is right for EVERYONE. That we vote. against the billionaire class whose main goal is to control, pillage, and mine us and the country until there is nothing left to give.

Vote. Vote Blue. Vote for every democrat up and down the ballot. Join me in taking back our country and bringing back common sense and civility.

Yes, we have that power. Let’s use it!