The Moon magazine

31/07/2024

The importance of President Biden's speech on Monday proposing three specific reforms (from Joyce Vance's Civil Discourse column on Substack):

-- A Constitutional amendment revoking presidential immunity for crimes a former president committed while in office
-- 18-year term limits for Supreme Court Justices
-- A binding code of conduct for the Supreme Court

On Monday, President Biden went to Texas to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

30/07/2024

Love this:

"The last several decades have felt like we were fighting a holding action, trying to protect democracy first from an oligarchy and then from a dictator. Many Americans saw their rights being stripped away…even as they themselves were quietly becoming stronger.

"That strength showed in the Women’s March of January 2017, and it continued to grow—quietly under Donald Trump and more openly under the protections of the Biden administration. People began to organize in school boards and state legislatures and Congress. They also began to organize over TikTok and Instagram and Facebook and newsletters and Zoom calls.

"And then something set them ablaze. The 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision stripped away from the American people a constitutional right they had enjoyed for almost fifty years, and made it clear that a small minority intended to destroy democracy and replace it with a dictatorship based in Christian nationalism.

"When President Joe Biden announced just a week ago that he would not accept the Democratic nomination for president, he did not pass the torch to Vice President Kamala Harris.

"He passed it to us."

Just a week ago, it seems, a new America began.

29/07/2024

Wanna make history? Join the call today at 4:00 pm PDT!

NEW DATE: To accommodate the unprecedented demand, we are now moving the Sunday call to Monday, July 29th at 7:00 PM ET. We are committed to ensuring that all women can be a part of this moment. It is clear that we are fired up and ready to elect Kamala! We will see you Monday for a call with specia...

29/07/2024

For years I've wondered why it has been so difficult to replace Postmaster Louis DeJoy, who has tried to scuttle the USPS at every turn. This article helps to explain the process. (Excerpted)

"Joe Biden nominated former Florida Congresswoman Val Demings to the U.S. Postal Service’s (USPS) Board of Governors. He also nominated Republican businessman William Zollars.

"The USPS Board of Governors consists of eleven people, nine of whom are nominated by the President and must be confirmed by the Senate before taking office. The Board is rounded out by the Postmaster General and the Deputy Postmaster General. In March, President Biden appointed former Labor Secretary and Democratic mayor of Boston Marty Walsh. All three of the recent nominees are still pending Senate confirmation. Governors serve seven-year terms.

"The good news is that this is an essential stop towards replacing Louis DeJoy, Trump’s Postmaster General, who is still in place. DeJoy put measures in place that he claimed were designed to cut costs but that, in practice, seriously impaired mail delivery. In one notorious move, he dismantled sorting machines. This resulted in massive backlogs and serious delivery delays. It just so happened that led to major slowdowns in swing states just ahead of the 2020 election that resulted in tens of thousands of ballots arriving too late to be counted.

"It’s frustrating that DeJoy is still in place as Biden’s term in office comes to a close. In part, that’s because procedures around the appointment of Board of Governors members are meant to preserve the essential non-political status of the postal service. But they boomeranged here. The Postmaster is selected by the Board, and that appointment is not subject to Senate confirmation. Only the Board can remove the Postmaster. The seven-year terms mean that it has taken this long for Biden to have sufficient openings to change the balance on the Board.

"DeJoy has continued to try to cut costs and failed to restore smooth functioning in the Post Office. Poultry farmers, like yours truly, won’t forget that his chaotic slowdown resulted in the death of thousands of day-old chicks in 2020, although they are routinely sent quite safely through the U.S. Mail. Now, delays and the risk of suffering chicks have put me off of doing this.) And Americans who rely on the Post Office for delivery of their prescriptions won’t forget what DeJoy’s mismanagement put them through.
Improving the Postal Service would be an immediate benefit to every American. Doing it ahead of the election and ensuring DeJoy can’t play games again is essential. Once confirmed, these most recent appointments should make it possible to replace DeJoy. It can’t happen soon enough."

July 28, 2024

28/07/2024

These 10 principles could create a cross-partisan alliance and help the Harris campaign

Last week, I participated in the Anti-Autocracy Conference. I was joined by a bipartisan assortment of academics, activists, whistleblowers from the Trump administration, lawyers, journalists, civil society leaders, and current and former elected officials, plus a lively audience, all to discuss the looming threat to pluralistic democracy

“Project 2025 is a recipe for mass chaos, abuses of power, and dysfunction in government. It aligns not only with the agendas of present foreign autocracies, especially the Hungary of Viktor Orban … but also with the policies of past dictatorships.”

Later, I ran through some of Project 2025’s elements: deporting 11 million people, dismantling the Federal Reserve’s independence, replacing 50,000 government workers with Trump sycophants, outlawing Mifepristone and enforcing the Comstock Act, refashioning the Justice Department as an arm of presidential power, slashing Medicaid, abolishing the Education Department and slapping 10 percent tariffs on imports. Project 2025 also reveals the degree to which MAGA leaders expect the government to enforce the precepts of White Christian nationalism.

“We have seen throughout the world that authoritarian attempts are defeated when those with ideological and policy differences nonetheless believe that the precondition for their own long-term interests is a stable democracy in which the rule of law is respected,” Michael Podhorzer, a conference participant and former political director of the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations, told me. “We saw that in 2020, when the Chamber of Commerce and the AFL-CIO, who agree on almost nothing else, stood strong and together against all efforts to reverse the results of the election.”

Norm Eisen, co-founder of State Democracy Defenders Action✓ — which hosted the conference together with conservative group Principles First and advocacy group Democracy Forward — told me, “There is much more that unites us as Americans than divides us.” He laid out 10 principles at the conference that “define what a long-term right, left and center coalition would look like to unify the vast majority of Americans against Trump’s authoritarianism and ensure that the American democratic tradition continues — and that Trump-led autocracy is permanently banished from the American political scene.” These principles boil down to:

1. Democracies rest on rule of law; someone who denies the sanctity of the Constitution and serially violates our laws cannot be president.
2. Democracy cannot survive without truth, facts, science and evidence.
3. Free and fair elections are the essence of democracy, where power resides in the people.
4. Civil discourse must be the means to resolve differences; compromise is essential to governance.
5. A democratic government cannot operate without an independent, nonpartisan civil service, and subject matter expertise is essential to good government.
6. An ethical government free from corruption and self-interest is essential to our democracy.
7. The United States is the indispensable nation for international stability, economic prosperity and democracy. Our military takes an oath to the Constitution, not to a single leader.
8. Democracies require and ensure widespread prosperity. Democracies that deliver economically for citizens require a domestic calm, commitment to the rule of law and opposition to cronyism.
9. A vibrant, independent press is vital to democracy.
10. Equality and civil rights (“All men [and women] are created …”) are foundational to our American creed.
The good news: These ideas might provide the glue to hold together the anti-autocracy coalition if they can gather support across the ideological spectrum."

These 10 principles could create a cross-partisan alliance and help the Harris campaign.

26/07/2024

"Another significant endorsement for Harris came yesterday from Geoff Duncan, the Republican former lieutenant governor of Georgia, who wrote on social media: “I’m committed to beating Donald Trump. The only vehicle left for me to do that with is the Democratic Party. If that requires me to vote for, speak for, or endorse [Kamala Harris] then count me in!"

And this: "Republican commentator Meghan McCain noted that Vance’s “comments are activating women across all sides, including my most conservative Trump-supporting friends. These comments have caused real pain and are just innately unchristian.”

25/07/2024

https://joycevance.substack.com/p/hope

Around 1861, Emily Dickinson wrote: “‘Hope’ is the thing with feathers- That perches in the soul-”

24/07/2024

Thank you, Heather Cox Richardson.

23/07/2024

Love you too, Trae!
https://www.facebook.com/share/r/DVh9vcQ33XYv83qR/?mibextid=0VwfS7

23/07/2024

https://substack.com/home/post/p-146865930

Let's help her defeat Trump and Neutralize Project 2025

23/07/2024

I've become a paid subscriber to Rob Brezny's newsletter in appreciation for his stepped-up activism against theocratic fascism and in defense of democracy. I'll be sharing his posts and resources regularly. Sign here if you'd like to be on board too:

Horoscopes, tender rants, and lyrical excitements. Click to read Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter, a Substack publication with tens of thousands of subscribers.

23/07/2024

Let's do this!

22/07/2024

Thank you, Mr. President.

"In a time of dictators, Trump tried to overthrow the results of the 2020 presidential election and install himself in power against the wishes of the people. President Joe Biden voluntarily turned away from reelection in order to give the people a better shot at preserving our democracy.

"He demonstrated what it means to put the country first."

15/05/2024

Thank you, Bernie. I couldn't agree more.

Clearly, our job is not just to re-elect Biden. It’s much more than that

01/03/2024

"The Doctrine of Recovery" continues to make its way in the world and will be part of a three-part social justice program in Traverse City, Michigan, this month. Thank you to Rachel Starkenburg and all of the partnering sponsors!

28/02/2024

If you want to be inspired, watch "The Greatest Night in Pop" on Netflix. The trailer doesn't do it justice!

Premiering January 29th, the untold story of how the global hit “We are the World” almost didn’t happen! 46 of the biggest pop music stars had only one night...

19/02/2024

Happy birthday, Julia!

i tell people all the time that the success of what i was able to accomplish on, in, and with Luna was directly connected to my incredible ground and media support team as well as others who supported in various ways over the years (as well as Luna too of course. ) Every single person on a team is vital to the success of a team.

Whatever you do, do it with great love, determination, integrity, and commitment.

On a team, it isn't about competing with one another. It is about cooperation and realizing that you all are like pieces in a puzzle and without each one of you the picture is not complete.

i am forever humbled and grateful for the team who formed around and with me to make the Luna tree sit the incredible success that reached the hearts and minds of people around the world.

Each and everyone of us matters. Each and every one of us is important. Each and every one of us is needed. Each and every one of us has unique gifts and skills on the team. 🙏💚💚

14/01/2024

Thank you, Kathleen, for your thoughtful comment on The Braided Way's reprint of The MOON's interview with Spencer Martin.
"Thank you for sharing this interview. I cannot say anything else right now because I am overwhelmed & need to process what I have just read. Overwhelmed in the sense that I have just discovered something that moves me forward into myself. So many emotions to name. It probably sounds like gibberish, but I don’t know how to explain it any other way.
Again thank you."

Spencer Martin is creative director of the documentary, "The Spirit of the Salmon," about returning to our stewardship role with creation for the healing of the Earth and the people. Martin spoke with Leslee Goodman, publisher and editor of a deeply illuminating publication, The MOON Magazine. Lesle...

12/12/2023

The Sun magazine's December interview is especially good, and the interviewee reminded me so much of you, Anna Marie Alkin.

Askey: How do you think we will look back on our current treatment of people with dementia? Harper: I think we will see how incomplete our approach was: The

14/08/2023

We must recognize that we’ve largely lost quiet, even in our most pristine, natural places. But we can still choose to value quiet more as a culture.

04/08/2023

The Ministry for the Future is a climate fiction ("cli-fi") novel by American science fiction writer Kim Stanley Robinson published in 2020. Set in the near future, the novel follows a subsidiary body, established under the Paris Agreement, whose mission is to act as an advocate for the world's futu...

18/04/2023

THE U.S. AND THE HOLOCAUST is a three-part, six hour series directed by Ken Burns, Lynn Novick and Sarah Botstein, that examines America’s response to one of the greatest humanitarian crises of the twentieth century. Full series now streaming.

22/10/2022

Video essay of the day.

“ voting blue is your only moral choice.”

09/12/2021

In honor of Elder Malidoma Some, who left his body today and continues on his interdimensional travels, I repost his interview. Thank you for sharing your ancestral wisdom with us, Malidoma. I miss you already.

http://moonmagazine.org/malidoma-some-once-upon-a-time-the-west-too-was-indigenous-2013-01-16/

03/07/2021

Adventure-loving MOON readers, check out Bill Arnott's latest and greatest!

https://rmbooks.com/book/gone-viking-ii/ #0

26/05/2021

Sky-watchers will get a special opportunity to witness the two innermost planets (Mercury and Venus) in a very close approach just after sunset on Thursday, May 27. Brilliant star-like Venus should grab your attention first when looking low toward the southwest. Look closely to its upper left, and you’ll notice a much fainter little star, which is Mercury. The two worlds appear just half a degree apart—a separation less than the width of one full moon disk in the sky. Both planets will easily fit into the same view of not only binoculars, but also telescopes. Then on Sunday and Monday at dawn, look toward the southern sky for Jupiter, and next to it the bit fainter, yellow-colored Saturn, perched above the waning gibbous moon (pictured above). Train your telescope on the gas giant and bring its famous rings into view. — Andrew Fazekas, National Geographic

02/04/2021

"Then, and now, we live in a hunting culture that pretty much requires vilifying grizzlies. We don’t kill them for food, so we have to justify killing them indiscriminately. We create an image of them as fearsome beasts, and we glorify people who kill them as some kind of hero. I came to see the whole situation as tragic."

Read the interview with Charlie Russell, and then please DONATE to support the making of "Beyond Fear: A Place for Grizzlies." (https://aplaceforgrizzlies.com/) Thank you for your support!

http://moonmagazine.org/charlie-russell-life-among-grizzlies-2013-09-01/

30/03/2021

Help us meet our match and make this film!

The co-founder of the Global Nonviolent Film Festival viewed our trailer and had this to say: "I watched your new trailer and I am very happy that you continue to make movies. It is well-done and the scenery is amazing. I think it can be very successful. Can’t wait to consider it for our Festival and maybe distribution too."

Help us make this movie! Please click on the link to view the trailer and make a donation!

https://aplaceforgrizzlies.com/