On this Thanksgiving Day, I would like to thank you for all of your thoughtful and intelligent writing over the years. These times are so chaotic and demoralizing it becomes essential that there be reasonable voices adding perspective. I thank you so much for providing that perspective.
Oh no! I heard that they're worried of another spike starting around this time. Hopefully not another variant. Glad you've adjusted well to the disappointment!
I'm thinking of Charles Hamilton Houston, who planned to overturn the U.S. Supreme Court's "separate but equal" doctrine. He and his colleagues planned to bring cases to the Court that were clear examples of "separate but not equal." He did not live to see the success of Brown v. Board of Education, but he was the dreamer who dreamt it.
Now we are facing the brutality of the economic system under which so many of us suffer. We can plan to overcome it with something else, that we must envision. We probably won't live to see it. But truly it is written, if you don't choose your destiny, a destiny chooses you. And the ones coming at us right now are pretty ugly.
Please read Evil Geniuses. Please read, Kurt Andersen's, The Unmaking of America. (A Recent History.) Also, Fantasy Land. How America Went Haywire: A 500-Year History but I'd read the former first because it has incredibly democratic and viable solutions! Happy Holidays. . .
I listened to your Thanksgiving story this morning and it brought tears to my eyes. I worked a job with long hours and little to no job satisfaction in order to support my family. When I quit it was like getting divorced and leaving a toxic marriage. I was willing to take less money for peace of mind. Family is and personal health is more important than the job. Unfortunately, the paycheck can be the handcuff that can keep us where we don't want to be. Thank you for fighting the good fight for all of us.
Nov 24, 2022·edited Nov 24, 2022Liked by Robert Reich
"Balance" is a word so often misused, abused, co-opted in the service of lies.
We see it in "good people on both sides," when one of those sides is neo-Nazis.
We see it in deliberately deceptive false equivalencies intended to give credence and legitimacy to rhetoric and policies actually intended to injure the greatest number of people for the benefit of a privileged few.
We see it in Fox "News"s self-serving slogan.
But, in toto, "balance" is utterly subjective. It is in the eye of the beholder: the soothing balm of the saint as well as the quiver of the Huntsman who slays Bambi's mother.
In the sense that anything balancing on that edge is in constant danger of tumbling off either side.
But all of civilization constantly rests on a knife's edge, or a narrow ledge above an abyss. It takes centuries of clawing up a sheer cliff of that abyss to reach a point of relative safetly, prosperity and benignity, a ledge ruled largely by laws based on compassion and rationality and a belief by the governed that -- disputing Jefferson -- while we are actually not all created equal, we nevertheless all still have an inalienable right to equal treatment by our fellows and the state, but that it takes no more than a tiny poke in the chest by a Hitler, a Stalin or a Trump, to rock civilization back on its heels and send it tumbling back into that abyss.
That may or may not send us collectively to the very bottom of that abyss, though it's a distinct possibility in an age of thermonuclear armaments and unrestrained climate change, but wherever we land decades and centuries will pass until we can claw our way back to where we'd already been.
Family is not altruistic. If you were raised in a toxic environment then by all means try to work it out. If that’s not possible, then put up boundaries between you and your family.
The Norman Rockwell greetings that are banners over family holidays are a mockery to many of us. I don't want to rain on anyone else's holiday, but that's a fact.
Professor, it was probably a great loss to the nation to leave Clinton on his own in Washington for his second term. However, and I'm sure I speak for many, we are all very grateful to have you here with us. Happy Thanksgiving!
Thank you for your Thanksgiving message. As a person whose ancestors are indigenous people, I find it difficult to celebrate this holiday. Therefore, I am looking for a way that reframes it for my family. Your message brings to light some important concepts that I would like to adopt as we determine what works for us. Please enjoy your day with family and friends.
That is great that your Navajo friend wishes you a happy thanksgiving. I do a gratitude prayer in the morning upon waking and at night when I turn in. I also start my journaling with something I’m grateful for. So, feeling kinda DUH! I can reframe the day as a Day of Gratitude and serve something other than turkey. Thank you for your comment is was a huge help.
Thank you for your wit, your insights, your encouragement, your drawings: we count on them to get us through the day. A very good Thanksgiving to you. With love.
“Choice” is the key word here, of which so many women in this country no longer have. Distribution of wealth, distribution of labor, power and control over women’s bodies, brainwashing by advertisers, and mind numbing amassing of stuff. Who’s voices get to be heard, and who’s stories get to be told? Thank you Prof. Reich for pointing out that balance is about being able to set limits. Do you have the power and the control and the privilege to be able to set those limits? I am thankful for the abundance in this country, but the unequal distribution is disturbing. God help the homeless and good luck to the vegetarians out there today dealing with family members who righteously stand judgment over you and your food choices. as well.
Nov 24, 2022·edited Nov 24, 2022Liked by Robert Reich
I am thankful for the work you did in the Department of Labor in the 1990's. The FMLA is -- no hyperbole -- a godsend for millions of Americans. As a psychiatrist, I remember patients telling me how they were able to take time to care for a dying parent, to care for a very sick child without being terrified of losing their job, and thus their income and homes. Your work was a mitzvah that resounds through the decades that followed, and beyond. Thank you, and may you have many things to be thankful for on this day. Blessings.
You have been a wonderful person and I’m grateful for your service to our country. Thank you Robert and Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family. I missed the boat a little but not altogether. Funny how mindsets and paradigms can change life with self honesty. I have a new reality and realize my self deception which stings a bit. Taking care of oneself is not as easy as it sounds. I’m on a journey and excited and open for the next opportunity to grow and be closer to God. All the best.
You made the right decision to spend more time with your family. I wish more people would do the same. I’ve made many mistakes in my life but the worst mistakes were when I decided to do something else rather than spending more time with my family. You can’t get that time back!
On this Thanksgiving Day, I would like to thank you for all of your thoughtful and intelligent writing over the years. These times are so chaotic and demoralizing it becomes essential that there be reasonable voices adding perspective. I thank you so much for providing that perspective.
We have a lot of fun here, don't we? I know I sure do.:)
Happy Thanksgiving, Janet!
Oh no! I heard that they're worried of another spike starting around this time. Hopefully not another variant. Glad you've adjusted well to the disappointment!
Happy Thanksgiving to you Robert -- and to everyone else on this list. The election gave us all much to be thankful for. So... gobble, gobble.
I'm thinking of Charles Hamilton Houston, who planned to overturn the U.S. Supreme Court's "separate but equal" doctrine. He and his colleagues planned to bring cases to the Court that were clear examples of "separate but not equal." He did not live to see the success of Brown v. Board of Education, but he was the dreamer who dreamt it.
Now we are facing the brutality of the economic system under which so many of us suffer. We can plan to overcome it with something else, that we must envision. We probably won't live to see it. But truly it is written, if you don't choose your destiny, a destiny chooses you. And the ones coming at us right now are pretty ugly.
So let's plan.
Please read Evil Geniuses. Please read, Kurt Andersen's, The Unmaking of America. (A Recent History.) Also, Fantasy Land. How America Went Haywire: A 500-Year History but I'd read the former first because it has incredibly democratic and viable solutions! Happy Holidays. . .
I'll put those on my list, thanks.
Plus Nathan Hale it. I only have one life to give to my country.
On a reader board near where I live: "Life MUST be lived FORWARD. To UNDERSTAND it all, you
HAVE to look BACKWARDS."
Absolutely
I listened to your Thanksgiving story this morning and it brought tears to my eyes. I worked a job with long hours and little to no job satisfaction in order to support my family. When I quit it was like getting divorced and leaving a toxic marriage. I was willing to take less money for peace of mind. Family is and personal health is more important than the job. Unfortunately, the paycheck can be the handcuff that can keep us where we don't want to be. Thank you for fighting the good fight for all of us.
the Paycheck; Yes! but
there are other Employers
.
the Lack of Healthcare:
they've got us Over
the Barrel there
.
MEDICARE for ALL!
Free the Citizenry
or Bust.
"Balance" is a word so often misused, abused, co-opted in the service of lies.
We see it in "good people on both sides," when one of those sides is neo-Nazis.
We see it in deliberately deceptive false equivalencies intended to give credence and legitimacy to rhetoric and policies actually intended to injure the greatest number of people for the benefit of a privileged few.
We see it in Fox "News"s self-serving slogan.
But, in toto, "balance" is utterly subjective. It is in the eye of the beholder: the soothing balm of the saint as well as the quiver of the Huntsman who slays Bambi's mother.
Razor's edge?
In the sense that anything balancing on that edge is in constant danger of tumbling off either side.
But all of civilization constantly rests on a knife's edge, or a narrow ledge above an abyss. It takes centuries of clawing up a sheer cliff of that abyss to reach a point of relative safetly, prosperity and benignity, a ledge ruled largely by laws based on compassion and rationality and a belief by the governed that -- disputing Jefferson -- while we are actually not all created equal, we nevertheless all still have an inalienable right to equal treatment by our fellows and the state, but that it takes no more than a tiny poke in the chest by a Hitler, a Stalin or a Trump, to rock civilization back on its heels and send it tumbling back into that abyss.
That may or may not send us collectively to the very bottom of that abyss, though it's a distinct possibility in an age of thermonuclear armaments and unrestrained climate change, but wherever we land decades and centuries will pass until we can claw our way back to where we'd already been.
If you can afford to leave do it. If you can’t then remember the sacrifice is worth it.
But here’s a tip despite that: don’t let anyone or anything come between you and your family. Ever.
Dante, Your tip is fine, unless you hate your family.....just sayin’....
Family is not altruistic. If you were raised in a toxic environment then by all means try to work it out. If that’s not possible, then put up boundaries between you and your family.
Like my half-brother tRumper with whom I've had no contact since Nov. 9, 2016.
I have not talked to my sister in 20 years. I don't intend to talk to her, nor go to her funeral. She was a hell raising bitch.
John, people change with age. Perhaps it is time for you to revisit her and see how the two of you have changed.
Thanksgiving Day is always a little sad for me,my brother passed away 15 yrs. ago alone at home in Texas.He was my 'baby brother and I adored him.
I have a younger brother as well. I worry about him at this time of the year.
John, any chance she’s changed?
No, William she has not changed. She sued me and made my life miserable after my mother died.
@Elisabeth. Or even just some of them! LOL
The Norman Rockwell greetings that are banners over family holidays are a mockery to many of us. I don't want to rain on anyone else's holiday, but that's a fact.
I still love them in spite of that sad fact .
-Nate
LOL! I know what you mean!
Happy Thanksgiving, Secretary Reich. I always enjoy reading your thoughts on life.
That was absolutely beautiful, Bob. Thank you and I hope you and your family have a wonderful warm Thanksgiving.
This Substack forum and your words of wisdom are things to be thankful for. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family!
Amen,amen,amen
Professor, it was probably a great loss to the nation to leave Clinton on his own in Washington for his second term. However, and I'm sure I speak for many, we are all very grateful to have you here with us. Happy Thanksgiving!
Thank you for your Thanksgiving message. As a person whose ancestors are indigenous people, I find it difficult to celebrate this holiday. Therefore, I am looking for a way that reframes it for my family. Your message brings to light some important concepts that I would like to adopt as we determine what works for us. Please enjoy your day with family and friends.
Take a Pilgrim for lunch.
That is great that your Navajo friend wishes you a happy thanksgiving. I do a gratitude prayer in the morning upon waking and at night when I turn in. I also start my journaling with something I’m grateful for. So, feeling kinda DUH! I can reframe the day as a Day of Gratitude and serve something other than turkey. Thank you for your comment is was a huge help.
Thank you for your wit, your insights, your encouragement, your drawings: we count on them to get us through the day. A very good Thanksgiving to you. With love.
“Choice” is the key word here, of which so many women in this country no longer have. Distribution of wealth, distribution of labor, power and control over women’s bodies, brainwashing by advertisers, and mind numbing amassing of stuff. Who’s voices get to be heard, and who’s stories get to be told? Thank you Prof. Reich for pointing out that balance is about being able to set limits. Do you have the power and the control and the privilege to be able to set those limits? I am thankful for the abundance in this country, but the unequal distribution is disturbing. God help the homeless and good luck to the vegetarians out there today dealing with family members who righteously stand judgment over you and your food choices. as well.
I am thankful for the work you did in the Department of Labor in the 1990's. The FMLA is -- no hyperbole -- a godsend for millions of Americans. As a psychiatrist, I remember patients telling me how they were able to take time to care for a dying parent, to care for a very sick child without being terrified of losing their job, and thus their income and homes. Your work was a mitzvah that resounds through the decades that followed, and beyond. Thank you, and may you have many things to be thankful for on this day. Blessings.
You have been a wonderful person and I’m grateful for your service to our country. Thank you Robert and Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family. I missed the boat a little but not altogether. Funny how mindsets and paradigms can change life with self honesty. I have a new reality and realize my self deception which stings a bit. Taking care of oneself is not as easy as it sounds. I’m on a journey and excited and open for the next opportunity to grow and be closer to God. All the best.
Dear Mr. Reich,
You made the right decision to spend more time with your family. I wish more people would do the same. I’ve made many mistakes in my life but the worst mistakes were when I decided to do something else rather than spending more time with my family. You can’t get that time back!