If anyone in the US is interested in how we’re coping with Trump overseas, today one of my colleagues who specialises in European policy just emailed me with the opener of ‘Hi Hannah, hope you’re doing well despite Trump’. So there’s that.
(NO, PHILIPPE. NO, I AM NOT DOING WELL DESPITE TRUMP.)
my reaction whenever anyone asks me how I’m feeling about Trump’s continued existence
Pour one out for Philippe: who just published a fairly standard article about European rearmament in the face of the Ukraine war last week, then presumably saw the shitshow between Trump and Zelensky on Friday, the European summit over the weekend, and the cutting off of US military aid on Tuesday, and then presumably screamed into a pillow and sat down to write a whole other fucking article all over again.
Godspeed, Philippe. Godspeed. As someone who literally also started trying to write a lengthy and detailed policy/briefing document about Ukraine yesterday, after the past 48 hours had already happened and before whatever the godforsaken fuck happens in the next 48, I deeply feel his pain.
This is how I’m picturing Phillipe:
except. you know. French.
Hey, hey, hey, I know we’re all striving for a feeling of European fraternity and unity and all that, but I cannot in all good conscience allow poor Philippe to be misrepresented like this.
Oh sorry? you think someone wanted to go up and measure that thing with a fucking yardstick??? just roll on up to the boar the size of a fucking car with some handily-dandily measuring tape? to get an accurate reading on it in fucking centimeters???
“I have a message for people who say, ‘Oh there’s no point in calling my Republican representative. He doesn’t listen, so it doesn’t matter.’ For the first few years that I was in office, Republicans flooded my phones. Do you think they really thought they were going to change my mind? No. But they constantly and consistently. Republicans flood the phones far more than people who are not Republicans flood the phones. And it does have an effect, because you really start to understand the strength and the scale of what you are up against. Republicans need to get that message too, because it skews our whole environment to the right when the constant pressure come from one place. Like, I’m sorry to burst your bubble, but people who watch Fox News all day and right-wing media all day call their members of Congress, and they tend to call members far more, and far more consistently and regularly than everybody else does. And that really matters because phone calls are one of the biggest ways that members measure, not just it’s not just numbers, it’s how they measure enthusiasm, it’s how they measure how people how much they are mobilizing around a certain issue and the more they see them mobilizing the more careful they will be in terms of not making those people more upset. And they will get pressured into acting, or hedging, what have you. So hop on 5 Calls, even the score, because this needs to be regular.”
5 Calls is an app on Android and Apple that allows you to quickly choose a topic and know (based on your zip code) which reps to call. Here’s what the screen looks like:
Given how many people are calling, a lot of voicemail boxes are full. You can Google the rep and find other numbers for them though. My senators have multiple offices and I’ve always been able to find one with space.
Here’s the script I’m adjusting to the topics I am calling about:
I’ve been leaving voicemail after hours rather than calling when they’re open because I get phone anxiety.
In order to not be repetitive and to be more effective I’ve made sure to search news on actions my Democrat reps are taking and thank them specifically for what they’ve done as I encourage them to do more.
It let’s them know I’m paying real attention and provides some moral support against the death threats the fascists are sending them.
just overheard my wife spelling something on the phone and i shit you not saying the words “E as in Eeyore” i am on my hands and knees wailing screaming crying pleading and begging people to learn the NATO phonetic alphabet
like the reason this exists is because none of the words sound like each other, which means that even with a terrible signal both parties should be able to clearly understand the words being spelled
i am dead serious that i believe this should be taught in school
saw an inspiring video that said you need to have 4 hobbies.
create, consume, cavort, commune
create: bring something to life consume: appreciate the art of another cavort: move your body daily commune: have a community to socialize with
end image description.
I think you need hobbies that do all four things but the number of hobbies needed to cover all these needs may vary. Some hobbies pull double/triple duty. Some hobbies can cause repetitive stress injuries so it’s good to have a few different ones that fulfill the same need so you can rotate to get the fulfillment without the carpal tunnel.
Tumblr really is aging.
This is true tho.
Misread this as ‘you need to have 4 hobbits’
also true! there’s a really famous three-volume self-help guide about that!
unless all you’re doing is liberating a single mountain from a dragon, in which case you can probably get by with just one, so long as you also have a lot of dwarves.
amhrancas 