Do you remember Stephen Miller’s “might makes right” declaration? It was part of a January 2026 interview on CNN – two days after the U.S. military operation that seized Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Celia Flores. His assertion could stand in for a central or organizing principle in the second Trump administration – the doctrine this government […]
Fear Not 2.0 — Placing Yourself on the Better Side of History
Fear Not 2.0 — You Might Be ‘More Protester’ than You Think
You know me well enough to identify me as “a protester.” I get the most notice for the civil disobedience arrests. But there‘s a host of other marches, rallies, boycotts, sit-ins, strikes, ‘No Kings’ protests, and even political theater. I see protest as a citizen‘s responsibility — as basic as voting (and I never miss an election, even when unexcited […]
Fear Not 2.0 – Seeing a Politician Stem the Tide
Today’s Fear Not at its core is a video of New York City’s Mayor Mamdani answering a reporter’s question. But more than that. It’s the promise that politicians can powerfully stand up to the unpromising politics of our time. Sid Rosenberg is a friend of Trump’s and the host of a morning radio show on WABC 77 in New […]
Fear Not 2.0 — Proud and Hopeful, I Bet on Us
Today is the National Shutdown — NO WORK. NO SCHOOL. NO SHOPPING. STOP FUNDING ICE — to protest the federal government’s misdeeds in Minneapolis. Amidst all the news—or perhaps because of its own internal difficulties—this National Shutdown hasn’t gotten much attention or publicity. I try to keep an eye out for these things, and I only found out when Oscar […]
Fear Not 2.0 — The Stoics’ Advice
My first son surprised himself… how impressed he was with his father (me), when he noticed I had a Critical Theory reading list on my bookshelf (back when I lived at the church): Horkheimer, Marcuse, Habermas. It was one of those, “Wait, my parent actually knows about something I think is important “ epiphanies. Ben was leading a Marxist […]
Fear Not 2.0 — Courage of the Creche, Installment 1
It sounds sort of Catholic, but maybe Mary is their guardian angel? Or that could be Gabriel? …And she’s just a companion on the same, desperate road…
Fear Not 2.O — The Church When the Nation Become Idolatrous (part 2)
When someone talks about moving abroad to get away from Trump’s America, I think of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who was studying at Union Seminary in New York City in 1930-31, and could have remained in the U.S. In fact, Union professors and other church leaders implored him to stay. But he knew he needed to return because of the gathering storm […]