Tonight, as I listened to Ruth Ben-Ghiat and Jared Yates Sexton interview each other about the things that matter most about the threats to our democracy, Sexton said something very important.
The community that gathers together for events like theirs is the community that is informed, that seeks knowledge and truth. And, he said, that makes us the empathetic ones.
As I am building the Bette Dangerous community with you, it is becoming very evident to me, that we are the empathetic ones - we seek knowledge, answers, salvation, to be helpful, to help others. Those are beautiful qualities.
If we come from a place of empathy, we can walk through anything.
Tonight, at our Bette Dangerous ‘Speakeasy’, our special guest was Wes Clark Jr., and he is one of the most empathetic humans I have had the pleasure of meeting.
When he speaks of those who are not informed about the fact that America is facing the biggest intelligence breach in history, calling into question the legitimacy of the Trump election, and the very foundation of our democracy - he does so with compassion.
He understands that most days, people are just trying to survive. He also thinks that even those sucked into Trumpism are not beyond salvation, and can come around with some gentle and persistent nudging. I have seen the evidence of that.
I have now watched Melissa Jo Peltier’s film, The Game Is Up: Disillusioned Trump Voters Tell Their Stories, three times. Peltier tells the stories of former Trump supporters and reveals how each came to their own conclusions about him and ultimately rejected him. The movie is so powerful because Peltier stays out of their way, and just lets them speak their truth.
In the film, we learn of a rising star among teen Republicans, Batya Goldberg, who supported Trump all the way up until Charlottesville, when she heard him say that white supremacists “were very fine people.”
“How could the president of the United States say there were fine people on the side of racists and white supremacists?” she asked, reflecting on how her family lost 40 members in the Holocaust. Her parents grew up under Soviet Union totalitarianism and for Batya, the lightbulb came on. She realized he only had good relationships with dictators, not our European allies.
She rebuked Trumpism entirely, and uses her voice to warn others. Her former colleagues have become “Trump bots,” harassing her on Facebook. She said it doesn’t bother her.
“Once you see the harm that Trump is doing to our country, you can’t unsee it. I hope more Trump supporters will see it,” she said.
A religious couple in the film, Ron and Cyndi Hawthorne, whose pastor told them to vote for Trump because “we need to get certain judges in there” and that “God uses wicked people,” are the heart of the film. Ron said when he cast his vote, he felt dirty, and he had to compartmentalize it. He said when he was questioned at work on why he would want to be a Christian when they support such a horrible human being, it was “like a knife going right through the heart.”
He turned to the bible and realized that Trump is “the exact opposite of who Christ was.” He said he and his wife have lost a lot of friends as they speak out against Trump. “Their fangs are coming out, their claws are coming out,” he said. But he is at peace with his decision. And they both marched in the street to celebrate when Biden won.
Conservative talk show host, Joe Walsh - who ran against Trump in Iowa - interviewed 40 people in line at a Trump rally, and asked them only one question. “Did Trump ever lie?” And each said, “No.”
So that is our work ahead. We have a couple years to head off fascism brought on by Trumpism.
Lastly, RadPod interviewed author Craig Unger today, and it is a brilliant interview with the investigative journalist who brought us American Kompromat and House of Trump, House of Putin. Look for that to drop tomorrow.
In a conversation we had before filming, regarding the unfolding spy story, Unger said:
“I’m not surprised that the FBI may have been compromised by Russia given the extraordinary conflicts of interest the Bureau has had: William Sessions representing Semion Mogilevich, Louis Freeh representing Prevezon, James Kallstrom’s (head of NYO for the FBI) friendship with Trump, Giuliani's acolytes in the New York Office, the Bureau's cozy ties to Felix Sater, etc.
“Imagine for just one moment being an FBI agent doing counterintelligence investigations into Russia, Trump, etc while your colleagues are raking it in from oligarchs, Russian mobsters, and Trump. And now it turns out the guy in charge of counterintelligence—Charles McGonigal—is actually on the payroll of one of the richest and most powerful oligarchs, Oleg Deripaska.
“Deripaska is McGonigal’s patron. In Ukraine, at Putin’s behest, Deripaska had paid millions to political consultant Paul Manafort to help install Putin-backed Viktor Yanukovych as president. Next, Putin and Deripaska began doing similar operations in the US with Manafort as Trump’s campaign manager. And it now looks like Deripaska took special measures to make sure the FBI would not run interference.
“All of which speaks to the FBI’s colossal failure to deal with Trump-Russia in terms of counterintelligence and as a threat to national security. Much of my reporting came from FBI files, so I think the Bureau should be aware that the Russian mafia laundered vast sums through Trump real estate, that funds for his franchised developments sometimes came through investment vehicles with ties to Russian intelligence, that he was cultivated as an asset by the KGB dating back to the Eighties, and much more. The Russians own Trump. But you wouldn’t know it from the FBI.”
Mic drop.
Okay, so this is how we build nerd immunity - immunity against bullshittery. We stay close to the experts, mine their knowledge, and go out into our communities with empathetic hearts, as we bring people back from the edge of unreality, one at a time, with knowledge and great compassion.
We are living through the greatest crime against our country in modern history - the ongoing cognitive warfare is the fallout. We have each other. We push on.
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Bette Dangerous is a reader-funded magazine. Thank you to all monthly, annual, and founding members. Thank you as well to all those who support my work with coffee tips and who buy my books! In a review of my latest, the erotic novella Fox Undercover, I’ve been called “The punk rock Anaïs Nin.”
Information on how to view Melissa Jo Peltier’s film here: YouTube; Tubi; or Amazon.
Thank you, Heidi! I hope this will inspire more people to watch the film…and show it to their not quite ultra MAGA relatives.
Interesting read on Substack at the Freedom Academy Asha Rangappa about the SAC’s McGonigal, Deripaska and what should be a huge story on the quivering orange jello mold of oleaginous sewage’s Russian election involvement.
Thanks for your explanation to fact, and the continued threats we face with fascism, your voice/thoughts are exceptional!