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The Recommentunde Newsletter

Sent on 06 October 2020 Edition

Hi you.

It’s me.

I feel like a kid stuck in the backseat of a too-long road trip. I’m hungry. I’m tired. I have to pee. The car is hot, but we’re moving too fast to open the windows. The radio is stuck on a horrifying loop of Ted Nugent songs. The driver is screaming something about the suburbs, refusing to wear a mask, and shedding coronavirus. 

This is what it feels like to be sane in the United States of America right now. We’re trapped in a car careening toward a cliff’s edge. Two tires have already blown out. We’re going down the wrong side of the road. And the driver is the president. 

Miles ago, we tried to call for help. Miles ago, we were pulled over, but the police let the driver continue and forced us to remain in the vehicle. This was after we found out the driver caused multiple fatal accidents, lacks insurance, is drunk, and never even had a license.

“Give him a chance,” some of the other passengers said. “He’ll get the hang of this driving thing.” When he plowed through a living room they said driving has “a steep learning curve.” When he sideswiped a school bus they blamed the “distracting” yellow paint. When he intentionally careened through a clearly-marked minefield they said, “Don’t be such a wuss.”

We don’t have to stay in this car or on this road. We can bring this maddening journey to an end. We outnumber the driver and his excuse-makers by a wide margin. We can pull the brake, open the doors, get in a new vehicle, and head in a new direction. We can drive away from the precipice and toward an oasis.

We can head toward a place that is more beautiful than anywhere we’ve been. We can eat and drink and rest. We can laugh again and sing our own songs that remind us why road trips can be awesome which has less to do with where we’re going than how we travel.

Make your voting plan. Study your ballot up and down. Make sure every vote is counted. When it is, this horrible trip will be over, and we can start a new journey together without Ted Nugent killing the vibe.

And now, for your regularly-scheduled content.

Early voting in 2020 is crucial. Many can do it by mail or in person. Here’s how. - Vox

This is the best single-stop voting shop I’ve found, and I’ve looked at a lot. My recommendation is this: if you are a regular, consistent voter, try to vote in person and early. If you are new to voting, vote early by mail. Make your voting plan. Vote as early as you can. Track your vote. Be prepared to make sure all votes are counted. Let’s go.

Joe Biden said he doesn’t support the Green New Deal. Here’s what his environment plan says.  - Vox

One of our greatest climate writers gives us reason to feel good about Joe Biden, not just bad about the other guy. “The GND is not a particular set of policy proposals but an idea: an ambitious effort equal to the challenge of climate change, led by the generation that will suffer most from it, free of the political dogmas and self-imposed restraints of neoliberalism and focused on equity and justice.”

Covid-19 Restrictions Bring California County Into Revolt - Bloomberg

This is a horrifying story of misinformation, mob behavior, and public health catastrophe. I’m sure Russia is happy about how dysfunctional the USA is right now. Regardless of the election, we’ll have to live with and clean up our fragmented reality made possible by the profitable business models that support such destruction.

Lenny Kravitz on COVID, Making Music & His New Book 'Let Love Rule'

I read Men’s Health for the in-depth and thoughtful articles about Lenny Kravitz and definitely not the cover photo. 

A Black Belgian Student Saw a White Fraternity as His Ticket. It Was His Death. - The New York Times

I regularly like to remind you that racism isn’t an American affair. Belgium makes great chocolates, but the cavalier attitude toward its genocidal colonial past is a problem. 

Here are Podcasts to Inform Your Vote - The New York Times

In case you missed it, my podcast was recommended in the New York Times as one of four you need to listen to on the topic of civics, democracy, and voting. While you’re reading this, check out last week’s episode. It will make you feel better. I guarantee it. 

Their Workers Kept Being Stopped by the Police, So They Decided to Help - The New York Times

A happy-but-still-sad story about a business really trying to look out for its workers. 

Listen to Masters of Scale with me. 

I got to hang out with my old friend and former boss at Fast Company, Bob Safian on the Rapid Response edition of Masters of Scale. It’s a very fun podcast where I got to integrate my thoughts on how to citizen, what justice looks like, anti-racism, and company behavior all in one Zoom session! 

Take a few seconds to chill with this very chill human

To throwback to an earlier Daily Show, this video is your moment of Zen.

SIGNING OFF

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