I sincerely believe what is causing repetitive, systemic failure in our political system is the systemtemic bilaterality. Compare this to typical team sports like football or any and all others. We won’t recover from the consequences until we stop ruling America as a competitive game. We need to stop boxing and start governing like we want win-win for everyone all at once.
This is an incredibly well-argued and emotionally intelligent piece and I’m grateful for the clarity it brings to how power has shapeshifted into persecution.
That said, there are two places where I’d like to offer additional insight—not to challenge the heart of the piece, but to deepen two of its threads.
First: the point about Obama.
“By 2015, after two Obama terms failed to deliver anything meaningful to the American people, America was primed for Donald Trump—a man who understood how to turn grievance into gospel.”
This is partly true, depending on where you’re standing. Obama inspired massive hope and did deliver significant progress—on healthcare, global diplomacy, and pulling the country back from economic collapse. But he wasn’t a revolutionary. To some, he was too institutional. To others, he was blocked at every turn. Both views can hold weight.
What’s also true is that the space between his promise and people’s lived reality became a vacuum. And Trump didn’t fill that vacuum with policy—he filled it with performance. He weaponized disappointment and turned grievance into identity.
And into that space—where so many already felt the system was rigged—he injected something even more corrosive: the idea that elections themselves were illegitimate unless he won them. Whether or not the elections were actually rigged (and there’s no credible evidence they were, yet), the belief that they probably were became gospel to his base. That belief didn’t just erode trust—it invited a kind of moral collapse, where lies became loyalty and power no longer had to answer to principle.
Second: the point about generational comfort.
The piece argues that the new generation “didn’t inherit comfort.” I’d suggest a different lens.
Gen Z and older Millennials didn’t inherit comfort—what they inherited was political neglect. After the upheaval of the 60s and 70s, many in my generation (I’m a parent to two sons in their 30s) came of age during the Reagan years—a time when civic engagement was steadily replaced by consumerism and privatization. Democracy, for many, became background noise. We assumed it would run itself.
That’s the world we raised our children in. Not deliberately—but passively. Voting wasn’t modeled. Protest wasn’t encouraged. Politics was seen as divisive or unnecessary unless it touched your wallet.
So yes, today’s youth inherited uncertainty, but they were shaped by a culture that confused detachment with peace, and apathy with civility. They weren’t raised to vote—they were raised to assume someone else would.
Now we’re being asked to save what we all neglected to maintain.
Thank you for the insightful comment. Appreciate the points. To a large degree I agree. When it comes to Obama, when I say anything meaningful, I mean to the American people. Many people had very high hopes, and regardless of the reasons, yes the Republicans blocked him, as they did with Biden, but the public doesn't care about reasons. The Democrats are horrible on communication and messaging, they never fight, and opt for bipartisanship, not wrong, but not in a time when the American people wanted politicians to fight for them, not for the corporations. He had all branches of government and could've pushed for healthcare for all, for codifying the legislative wins into law, like Roe, and gay marriage, fix student loans, and many other wins he could've done. But he was waling a tight line as the first black president, and want to appease the Republicans, but ended up just giving them ammo to point at. So I guess we both have valid points, I'm more focused about the perception that led to the rise of Trump rather than anything else.
As for the new generation comments, I hear you, it's very interesting take. At the same time, their exposure is far better and their future is far more threatened by climate change, the perforation of guns, AI destroying prospects of the future, this is forcing them to care, not about politics or voting as a duty, but as an requirements for survival. Plus the brazen nature of the corrupt right wing is conflicting with their view of the world. So I hear your point, and add my point to it :)
Really appreciate your thoughtful take. Totally agree—Democrats’ failure to message or fight effectively has cost us deeply. It’s a real pain point for me. Trump embraced strategy—divisive and destructive as it was—and used it relentlessly.
What I keep coming back to is this: Where is our think tank? Our coalition? Our brain bank? The right has all of it—media machines, legal networks, billionaires funding the narrative. Wish deeply for coordination, strategy, a pro-democracy war room that doesn’t wait for permission.
I loved your insights on Obama—nuanced, honest, and necessary.
We need no kings if we want to win for everyone.
I sincerely believe what is causing repetitive, systemic failure in our political system is the systemtemic bilaterality. Compare this to typical team sports like football or any and all others. We won’t recover from the consequences until we stop ruling America as a competitive game. We need to stop boxing and start governing like we want win-win for everyone all at once.
This is an incredibly well-argued and emotionally intelligent piece and I’m grateful for the clarity it brings to how power has shapeshifted into persecution.
That said, there are two places where I’d like to offer additional insight—not to challenge the heart of the piece, but to deepen two of its threads.
First: the point about Obama.
“By 2015, after two Obama terms failed to deliver anything meaningful to the American people, America was primed for Donald Trump—a man who understood how to turn grievance into gospel.”
This is partly true, depending on where you’re standing. Obama inspired massive hope and did deliver significant progress—on healthcare, global diplomacy, and pulling the country back from economic collapse. But he wasn’t a revolutionary. To some, he was too institutional. To others, he was blocked at every turn. Both views can hold weight.
What’s also true is that the space between his promise and people’s lived reality became a vacuum. And Trump didn’t fill that vacuum with policy—he filled it with performance. He weaponized disappointment and turned grievance into identity.
And into that space—where so many already felt the system was rigged—he injected something even more corrosive: the idea that elections themselves were illegitimate unless he won them. Whether or not the elections were actually rigged (and there’s no credible evidence they were, yet), the belief that they probably were became gospel to his base. That belief didn’t just erode trust—it invited a kind of moral collapse, where lies became loyalty and power no longer had to answer to principle.
Second: the point about generational comfort.
The piece argues that the new generation “didn’t inherit comfort.” I’d suggest a different lens.
Gen Z and older Millennials didn’t inherit comfort—what they inherited was political neglect. After the upheaval of the 60s and 70s, many in my generation (I’m a parent to two sons in their 30s) came of age during the Reagan years—a time when civic engagement was steadily replaced by consumerism and privatization. Democracy, for many, became background noise. We assumed it would run itself.
That’s the world we raised our children in. Not deliberately—but passively. Voting wasn’t modeled. Protest wasn’t encouraged. Politics was seen as divisive or unnecessary unless it touched your wallet.
So yes, today’s youth inherited uncertainty, but they were shaped by a culture that confused detachment with peace, and apathy with civility. They weren’t raised to vote—they were raised to assume someone else would.
Now we’re being asked to save what we all neglected to maintain.
✌️
Thank you for the insightful comment. Appreciate the points. To a large degree I agree. When it comes to Obama, when I say anything meaningful, I mean to the American people. Many people had very high hopes, and regardless of the reasons, yes the Republicans blocked him, as they did with Biden, but the public doesn't care about reasons. The Democrats are horrible on communication and messaging, they never fight, and opt for bipartisanship, not wrong, but not in a time when the American people wanted politicians to fight for them, not for the corporations. He had all branches of government and could've pushed for healthcare for all, for codifying the legislative wins into law, like Roe, and gay marriage, fix student loans, and many other wins he could've done. But he was waling a tight line as the first black president, and want to appease the Republicans, but ended up just giving them ammo to point at. So I guess we both have valid points, I'm more focused about the perception that led to the rise of Trump rather than anything else.
As for the new generation comments, I hear you, it's very interesting take. At the same time, their exposure is far better and their future is far more threatened by climate change, the perforation of guns, AI destroying prospects of the future, this is forcing them to care, not about politics or voting as a duty, but as an requirements for survival. Plus the brazen nature of the corrupt right wing is conflicting with their view of the world. So I hear your point, and add my point to it :)
Thanks again for the thoughtful comment.
Really appreciate your thoughtful take. Totally agree—Democrats’ failure to message or fight effectively has cost us deeply. It’s a real pain point for me. Trump embraced strategy—divisive and destructive as it was—and used it relentlessly.
What I keep coming back to is this: Where is our think tank? Our coalition? Our brain bank? The right has all of it—media machines, legal networks, billionaires funding the narrative. Wish deeply for coordination, strategy, a pro-democracy war room that doesn’t wait for permission.
I loved your insights on Obama—nuanced, honest, and necessary.
Thanks again for engaging.