L. Big Issue Number 50

This is the fiftieth issue of The Porcupine, and may be the most important I have ever written. What began as a casual extension of my decade-old book on leadership has become a weekly forum of sharing some of my intellectual curiosity about life and an urgent call to do better and be better. I very much appreciate you sharing the ride with me.

We are only a matter of days from the finale of this presidential election. On my journey, this is national election number ten as a voter. It has included meeting four presidents, many hopeful contenders, and attending one national convention.

But this election is the most important of all of them.

Trumpism has laid bare the fault lines in our national character. Politics mixed with religion. Masculinity defined by thugs. Professionals who value profit over the country.

Trumpism has allowed the defaming of soldiers, the dead, the disabled, women, child-bearing mothers, people of other faiths, true Christianity, marriage, journalists, public institutions that protect the most vulnerable, single people, innocent cats and dogs, non-whites, and Jews.

When so many and so much is a target, it’s no longer about choosing sides.

It’s about choosing country.

The Trump method has been transparent for almost a decade now. Exploit and discard allies when convenient, weaponize voters' anger against perceived internal enemies, hijack Jesus for retribution, foster division rather than unity, and lie until the truth becomes so unrecognizable, that it becomes a laughing sport.

Trumpism gives voters cover to embrace a demagogue rather than accept leadership from a woman, let alone a black one. It is a pattern of amplifying individual grievances, real or not until public institutions succumb to authoritarian control. It is the exact same model that Chávez, Mussolini, Orban, Putin, and Hitler all used in their rise to power.

Trumpism has supported attempts to undermine the integrity of our elections, attacks on the free press, outright lies about cities and populations, and the politicization of justice. These are not the actions of a leader committed to the ideals of a "more perfect union," but the machinations of one who views power as an end in itself.

That’s why when I vote, I vote for our youth, not just the ones I’m responsible for in my home. I vote for my black and Hispanic neighbors who continue to face different standards of acceptance. I vote for my gay and transgender friends, many who suffer in silence. I vote for a Christian model that blesses the meek instead of being a shield for hypocrites. I vote for the women in my life to have the same protections for their bodies that I have for mine. I vote for preserving the American Dream's promise of mobility for the next generation, ensuring it isn't only reserved for those born with silver spoons. I vote for the courage of conservatives like Mike Pence, Liz Cheney, and Adam Kinzinger, who chose constitutional protection over partisan loyalty—while rejecting Trump enablers like Stephen Miller and Steve Bannon, whose politics of grievance would be unwelcome and uninvited in any home of decency. I vote for the senior citizens disabled by age and the injured soldiers at home, no longer necessary in an economic model that values wealth over social contract. I vote for a level playing field over tech monopolies. I vote for Ukraine and democracy over Putin and Russia. I vote for telling the truth over rewarding a chronic liar.

That is why this election is beyond policy disagreements. It isn’t grocery shopping or gas in the tank. It’s not about losing a package in the mail or the cost of your haircut. That dumbs down the immense dedication it takes to keep and run a nation like ours.

This election is about who we are when we look in the mirror.

It is truly about what our constitution expects us to be. The choice before us is not between left and right, it is to protect the model built over 250 years to serve us and the world.

The fatigue factor is real and purposeful. We cannot become accustomed to perpetual crises, where each new outrage is quickly forgotten in the face of the next. Normalizing the abnormal leads to the slow death of democratic norms and values.

That’s how Nazism, and now Trumpism, works.

There is a palpable sense of violence permeating our society, not always physical, but often emotional and psychological. It manifests in the harsh rhetoric of our political discourse, in the willingness to demonize those with whom we disagree, and in the erosion of civility in public life. This perception is not accidental. Trumpism has cultivated and exploited it.

In times of purposeful unrest, it makes it easier to look outward for solutions, to demand that our leaders or institutions solve the problems we don’t tackle in ourselves, or as Trump likes to do, point to that person over there, and say, he is your problem. She is the enemy. Lock her up. She’s crazy.

It is time to heed the words we all know:

"Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country."

This moment calls for more than reflection – it requires action. This isn’t the election we wanted, but it may be the one we need. Apathy will kill democracy. Cynicism will breed contempt. Self-delusion will fuel false gods.

Get deranged. There’s work to do, and there is still time.

• Connect with one neighbor, friend, or relative. That’s all. Wake up one person.

• Take a day from work and devote it to reaching out to others.

• Contribute to a campaign, either local or national.

• Use your social media for good. Explain your vote. Engage with others. Use facts. Don’t give in and don’t give up.

• Talk to your fellow church members. If you hear Trumpism from the pulpit, speak up.

• Wave a sign and wear a T-shirt.

• Talk to your kids.

• Offer a ride to those in your neighborhood that need one.

• Volunteer for last-minute phone banking or text banking campaigns.

• Participate in door-to-door canvassing or leave a note or a letter for someone you know.

• Demand your local media not to waffle on this moment in time.

We need a big win. We cannot afford to be numb to Trumpism and the criticism of democracy; each outrage demands more action. As we vote, let’s remember that the future of our democracy rests in our hands.

The choice is ours.

We truly know better.

Go and make good trouble.

• Think TikTok’s only threat is being a Chinese-owned company? Think again.

• Creativity is often a way of dealing with stress. Here’s Project 2025 in comic book form.

• 10,000 books were banned this year. Tired of this shit yet?

If you want to study leadership, read this. Leadership does not equate to position. The position does not automatically make you a leader. Sometimes position makes one a terrible leader, while other times it can “wake up” the person to become the leader they are meant to be.

This is good reporting and anyone who uses their personal journey to instruct others is a leader. What is being portrayed as leadership and public service today is many times simply a confederacy of followers. There is strength and comfort in such followings but everything about education and true religion is meant to wake you out of such an existence.

You rarely see a piece like this, so it’s important to take note. The whole pushback on diversity is a red herring. There’s no data to back it and it is primarily to get to the core of ancient human identity: tribalism. Diversity is a great strength, and the author includes data to make his case. We are currently third in the number of STEM students in the world, typically the students who will create businesses that make the world go around. The constant drumbeat that immigration and diversity are bad is detrimental to our long-term security. Read this piece.

This is a quick read I bring attention to so you understand the struggle in the transitional movement from a burning-based economic system to one more local and sustainable. Carbon offsets will be a part of the solution across the world and in every state at some point. If your state is rich in particular types of wood and forests, it could be credentialed as a carbon offset location. This allows companies to “offset” bad habits until they get to a level where polluting is by itself cost-prohibitive. This is an immensely good thing. It could even be a multiplier effect by planting millions of more trees to improve communities with shade and aesthetics that also suck up a lot of carbon.

The problem is what constitutes carbon capture and sequestration and how much is it worth. The correct answer depends upon research and data, or else it is simple window-dressing. Much of what passes for leadership today is window-dressing, so if you can come to understand the pros and cons of carbon offsets to fight climate change, it should also make you better at spotting leaders who are wolves bespectacled in flags and ad hominem.

Every government probably has some kind of underground bunker in case of catastrophe. While I am fascinated by the mindset and money that goes into such operations, what I want you to consider is how much decision-making is done based on perceived fears. There’s some assumption here that if a threat so severe hits the country that a secret bunker would need to house elected decision-makers, and whatever happens up top would remain in a state of being governed. If anyone has watched the new Fallout series on Prime, lots of questions like this pop up, of course, in a stylized, sometimes juvenile way. Again, learn and be cognizant of decisions that can be made based upon fears, and not necessarily realities.

Fear costs a lot of money.

Take a moment to consider the amount of plastic we use daily that is specifically a throwaway product. I love this kind of thinking. Public policy may have to help create the market for this, but that would not be a precedent.

This year, Navalny passed away, but it hasn't received much attention because of ongoing wars. Most people aren't asked to show such strong dedication to a greater cause of freedom, but one should always be ready. Autocratic leaders gain power when good people do nothing or support them. In the US, we have systems that have managed to keep such leaders in check.

So far.

In Russia, change will need to come from within until something sparks it. Kara-Murza, who like Navalny, purposely returned to his home country to fight for democracy, was recently set free in a prisoner exchange. Navalny didn’t make it. Kara-Murza will no doubt continue the fight, representing the idea that freedoms are only valuable when they are defended.

I had a conversation with a conservation officer a while back. It was heartening to hear his approach to gun safety, recognizing that we will never keep up without better public policy. The steps here are reasonable and long overdue. One can still have access to keep and bear arms if they are law-abiding citizens. And if you’ve followed the issue, you’ll know that a lot of the gun-running that occurs is from purchases made at gun shows in the South and bootlegged to the North. This is good and purposeful leadership. It recognizes a problem and offers solutions.

The Guardian continues to be one of the largest independent purveyors of good journalism, including this beautiful little piece. If you need a respite from politics, watch this short documentary on co-existence. The battle between old economics and sustainable economics, between self vs. diversity, is a little microcosm of the world. Support leaders who see the bigger picture.

It’s not just about us.

In my area, the former decades-long home of the local newspaper was sold and converted into a storage unit, symbolizing a shift in priorities from daily learning to piling up shit.

This situation with Google reminded me of that. The distribution of knowledge continues to evolve. Everyone must pay attention. True leadership involves questioning how one would handle such circumstances. While I admire technological advancements and take pride in the achievements of the US, the disproportionate influence of tech companies on the delivery of news is unsustainable. There’s too much money and too much fabrication. Only good public policy will fix this.

I would hope that high school teachers across the nation have taken advantage of the opportunity with this election. It would be a dereliction of public service duty if they haven’t. There is much to learn and at least some of the problem continues to be what is called “low-information voters” and the gobbling up of fabricated news. There are generational divides in the discernment of information now, and it may take a young generation to set things right.

And Now….

Hope to see you next time. Keep reading, be grateful that we live in a place that people want to come to, and remember: Be a good human.