Simple But Not Easy

The term “Simple But Not Easy” is one that I borrowed from the title of fine Substack blog by Congressman Jake Auchincloss (D-MA)

I think the phrase perfectly describes what is before Democrats in the coming months.

The opportunities to repair a lot of damage to the nation and the world are substantial. So are the risks of wasting those opportunities by making the wrong choices in victory.

All the polls indicate a yellow brick road made possible by likely high wins for the midterms. Whether those victories will be put to good use in building a better America and increasing Democratic prospects for 2028, or whether wrong turns will lead to a political dumpster remains to be seen. I am, as usual, hopeful but not always optimistic.

Four Goals To Hit The Rainbow

There are many, many things that need to go right, but for me it seems that four goals are determinate. Get these right and better days are ahead. Miss on these and voters will bring out the pitchforks and torches.

Treat the Big Tent as Real
Democrats have long described themselves as a big tent, a party with room for lots of variety among its members and leaders. That needs to be lived up to for the coming days. There has been a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth in the media about the risk of a civil war among Democrats.

There are concerns that “older, institutional Democrats” will cling to power, to the exclusion of younger, more progressive Democrats. Similarly, there are those (especially those who are in or sympathetic to Democratic Socialists) who think their time has come and it is time for everyone else to step aside.

Either conclusion would be a fatal mistake. If the primaries have proven anything, it is that what wins in Iowa or Texas, would lose in New York or California, and vice versa. Forcing the entire party to choose one element or the other is a sure-fire formula for defeat. The next two goals address how best to make a healthy mix work for the party and the country. We need not make a choice; we need to make a blend.

Interestingly enough, there is a lot of hand wringing going on in blogs and columns about a potential divide, but so far all around the country competing candidates who lost in primaries have quickly and almost universally got busy supporting the winners. A good sign.

New Leadership, Broadly Based
There seems to be a growing consensus that new leadership is in order for Democratic congressional leaders. That may or may not prove to be the case for the Speaker of the House, but it seems at least possible, and nearly a sure thing for the Senate Majority Leader. There are several more leadership spots as well that the public does not hear much about.

A smart move would be to ensure the full leadership teams look like the makeup of the Congress – a mix of new leaders and experienced members, centrists and leftists.
In the end, everyone should feel they have a seat at the leadership table and no faction should be able to take it all.

There will be a lot of issues and strategies to work out in the months ahead. Have the debates and hash it out, respecting the mix that makes up the new Congress. Prove that everyone does not have to agree on everything to get important things done.

Focus On No More Than 6 (4, Even Better) Key Issues
Something of a mini-platform, showing EXACTLY what Democrats would deliver and reform given the power in 2028, is needed. Hammer these very few themes home, over and over, at every echelon. Listen to what people want and deliver. There is a long list of what needs to be done, and many of them can be worked, but build the dialogue with the people around a very few key topics and phrases that people get.

Lots of possibilities for that short list. I would include in that list some topics that Republican voters gravitated to last time, reminding them that the Republicans failed to deliver. Immigration might be a useful such topic. I suspect corruption and fair taxation could make the cut, and decent medical care for all might finally be ready for primetime.

Investigations for Accountability, Not Revenge
A LOT has been done by this administration that is illegal, immoral, poorly executed, and stupid. But not all of it can be solved at once. Make investigations substantive but no more of a public attention driver than good legislation. And just to show this is not a revenge tour, give credit where it is deserved, rare though that may be.

Trump went about it all wrong, but one could make the case that his calls for Europe to do more in defense was justified. On smaller scales, give the credit for getting rid of the penny or for making medical experimentation with micro-doses of hallucinogens a good thing to try.

Look for a few opportunities to say a few things were done right and they will continue to be supported. Otherwise, the Democrats will look like mirror images of Trump, automatically damning anything and everything done by the previous administration.

Look for some opportunities to get what passes for a moderate Republicans to sign on to some initiatives. Even if Democrats win control of the Senate, they will not get 60 seats, so some cooperation is needed to accomplish anything, as opposed to just stopping some things or some nominees.

What If The Democrats Fail At These Four Goals?

Candidates for the 2028 elections will begin to emerge and gain ground immediately following the midterms. They could help with focusing on these four goals, and much more. If the Democrats fail to hit the mark on these four goals, they will find the public sour on them again and the chance to win it all in 2028 badly damaged.

Democrats gained a lot of power following Watergate, producing remarkably effective Congresses and solid legislation for years. Time to do that again.

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts (https://agentsofreason.substack.com)

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Let’s grow our circle.

What Does Consciousness Even Mean?

It turns out that “consciousness” and the somewhat parallel term “sentience” are not as well defined as one may think. Here is a fairly standard definition of consciousness:

A sense of one’s personal or collective identity, including the attitudes, beliefs, and sensitivities held by or considered characteristic of an individual or group. Special awareness or sensitivity. Alertness to or concern for a particular issue or situation.

A bit more precise definition perhaps: Consciousness is the state of being aware of something internal or external to oneself. The term has different philosophical and scientific interpretations.

How about Sentience? The faculty through which the external world is apprehended.

Not exactly clear definitions, are they? And when reading about this general subject, one finds lots of exceptions and status levels called out, and variations based on science, religion, philosophy and other domains that offer filters in their definitions.

Turns out that we who consider ourselves conscious have some challenge in defining just what that state of being means.

So, Who or What Is Conscious?

This is a question that was not generally asked when most of us were growing up. The thinking was that humans alone are sentient, are the only known entities capable of consciousness.

Of course, we all know personally human beings who seem to fall out of this category, including some in high office – but that is another conversation for another time (say, the first Tuesday of next November). For today, let’s stick to the science and philosophy of such a question.

There have long been philosophical and religious thoughts that much of nature is far more conscious that humanity gives credit for; now science is beginning to provide data that says that is indeed the right conclusion. We now know, for example, that crows use tools and remember people they do not like. We know that chimpanzees and other mammals have complex family and social structure. We are learning that whales have remarkably complex language capabilities.

We know that porpoises and killer whales have complex social structures and devise team strategies. We know that elephants mourn and even have rituals to denote mourning at the death of one of their own, even marking the anniversaries of such losses.

We have learned that an octopus has eight “extra” brains, one for each arm, making each arm capable of analysis, decisions, and independent action. There is compelling evidence that whole forests share information and take actions to protect each other and the most vulnerable members of that forest.

All this makes us almost embarrassingly aware of how little we know about consciousness. How many creatures have levels of consciousness that we never imagined? And all that is just on our planet.

Some Pretty Far Out There Concepts

Speaking of our planet, there are two more interesting theories, both born in philosophy but possible to someday be proven (or disproven) by science.

One is the theory of Gaia. This is the idea that the entire planet Earth is an integrated entity, with a shared consciousness. This is rooted in ancient philosophies and religions but has many followers today. One hears, for example, that much of the extreme weather, earthquakes, and active volcanoes we experience of late may be in part due to climate problems caused by man but are also the Earth striking back at those who damage the environment as badly as we do.

Another, even broader concept, says that the entire universe is conscious at some level we do not yet understand, but it is all connected in a profound manner. There is even a branch of this concept that says humanity may be an important component of that universal consciousness, that we are part of the Universe’s mind.

Seems far out there as a concept, but no less a great thinker and philosopher than Mahatma Gandi thought this might be the truth. To paraphrase Gandi, he communicated that he did not believe in a god or multiple gods, but felt intuitively that the entire Universe was connected, and that this connection included a universal consciousness. He could not understand or articulate it, but he felt is presence was genuinely all around us.

What Does All This Mean for Humanity?

That is a big question to ask, considering how little we understand and that we are just beginning to get some grasp as a species on consciousness within ourselves and way beyond us. Might we proceed with three steps?

- Responsibility: We know that we have a decent level of consciousness as a species and this is part of why we have such a dominant role on this planet. Going forward, a higher sense of responsibility as a species does not seem too much to ask.

- Humility: I have said often in this space that we are going to be amazed when we break the language barrier with other species just how sentient they are. And I think we will come to be ashamed of much of our behavior as a species. Having a good sized helping of humility in learning about others and facing our own culpability seems to me a reasonable foundation going forward.

- Curiosity: If we have any mindset going forward, curiosity about what else we do not know should be a driving motivator for us all, individually and collectively. We know at some level that we have perceived and understood so little about life and the Universe. So much is out there awaiting discovery. We should hunger for it, forever.

See You Next Week

We likely will return to political and social issues next week, after a bit of a break this week. Given our discussion today, let’s just close with “May the Force be with you” and “Live long and prosper.”

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts.

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Let’s grow our circle.

Agents of Reason

Agents of Reason is about American dialogue, challenges, and solutions.

By Bill Clontz

I Keep Hearing About Drones in Ukraine. Why Should I Be Interested?

Drones are becoming a major factor in many, many places besides Ukraine, and in countless more uses than in war. This is a topic that should be of interest to all of us, for several reasons.

First, as we will briefly discuss, drones are changing warfare in dramatic ways and doing so quickly. How secure our own defenses are and how wisely we spend our resources are greatly influenced by drones.

Second, drones are having major impacts in numerous areas besides the military, some of which could affect all of us someday, good or bad. Public security, emergency assistance, disaster analysis, product delivery – all are changing with drones.

Third, like any developing technology, drones can offer both great benefits and real damages. It is useful to pay attention to who uses them and how they use them.

Something Old, Something New, Something Really New

Military systems and dynamics are always in a state of development and advancement. This results in changes in employment and in counter measures. Gun powder changed everything. So did rifles and machine guns. Artillery and radios, too. Aircraft, helicopters, and tanks all changed the battlefield. Drones are, therefore, part of a long process inherent in warfare. This is an old, timeless story that never ends.

Drones have been a developing technology for some time now but still are rather new. People hear a lot about military drones in aviation, but they are rapidly developing and changing battlefields in ground applications, as well as on (and under) water as well.

What is most new is the development and integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into drones. This is dramatically enhancing the power and flexibility of these systems.

War as a Symphony

It is difficult to explain with any clarity to someone who has not experienced warfare up close and personal what it is like. I have found a useful analogy to be a symphony. At even the lowest echelons, military commanders in combat have dozens of variables, options, risks to evaluate and act upon, on a 24/7 timeline.

Drones, AI, robots and so much more add dramatically to that complexity, to those opportunities to win, and to those risks to your forces. In some cases, drones are new elements controlled by specialists, new people to join the team. But in some cases, drones are added to the list of resources that small combat unit leaders must control and integrate directly. One more thing to juggle.

So, imagine a symphony that suddenly has a whole new section, one that affects all the others. It is not hard from that perspective to understand the challenge in making the right choices to use and to defend against drones. The blog Next Draft summed it up nicely in a headline from the NY Times: AI Drones Are Coming. We Are Not Ready.

The New York Times recently ran that fine article noted in Next Draft; it helps one understand what dramatic changes all this brings to a battlefield. Here is a free link to the article:

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/20/world/europe/ukraine-russia-war-robots-drones.html?unlocked_article_code=1.5VA.lS-1.9gQklwlxNaCe&smid=url-share

Here is an excerpt from that article:

“The robots charged into battle through a valley in eastern Ukraine, driving over grass toward a Russian position. Essentially little green wagons, they looked like something you might buy at a garden store to move bags of soil around. But each carried 66 pounds of explosives.

As the remotely controlled vehicles approached the enemy soldiers, an aerial drone flew in and dropped a bomb to help clear a path. One of the robots then rushed in and blew itself up, while the others held back, monitoring the position.

A sheet of cardboard appeared above a trench. ‘We want to surrender,’ it read.”

A Large Range of Costs and Capabilities

Not all drones are created equally. The US (of course) has some that are as large as airplanes, that can fly high and stay aloft for hours and cost a fortune. Many of these were used in the Obama administration, both for intelligence and for attacks. Having a system like that greatly increases the odds of finding and striking the right target, minimizing the risk to others.

We also have remarkably small camera drones, some no larger than a small bird. One of the most difficult forms of combat is urban warfare. Imagine you are part of a small force in an urban conflict, and your team enters a two story building. The first story is cleared – time to go upstairs. This is dangerous – an enemy knows you are coming and knows exactly where you will enter the zone. But there might be just innocent civilians up there.

What a gift a small, hovering drone is. It can go upstairs first and send back clear videos of what it finds. A somewhat larger version of such a drone, this one armed, was what Israel used to find and kill the opposing force leader in Gaza when the current conflict there began.

Ukraine Sets The Example

Ukraine is leading the way with innovation and force integration. They make small but highly effective drones, sometimes made from scrap wood or cardboard. Low cost and almost no radar signature. They can produce hundreds of these every few days.

They also have very long range armed drones that have brought the war home deep into Russia. They have used armed surface and underwater drones, along with aerial drones, to make the Black Sea prohibitively dangerous for the Russian fleet. Now Russia is using drones to attack cargo ships carrying grain to the world from Ukraine.

Mass is an important aspect in many drone dominated conflicts. The idea is to launch a swarm so large and dense that it cannot be defended against. All countries interested in drones are developing capabilities along these lines. How many drones? Taiwan already has a high production rate, built quickly based on the experience of Ukraine. Taiwan hopes to produce 1,000,000 drones a year no later than 2030, for their defense and to sell to others.

What Is Next?

Integration of ever more powerful AI is the question of promise and concern. AI is already built into some drones, but in due course we may find drones bordering on consciousness, assessing what it should do to complete a mission – and deciding if something or someone is a justifiable target. Scary stuff, but potentially exceptionally useful as well, making it possible for a Ukraine to raise the price of continuing a war too high for a Russia.

Nonmilitary Uses Galore

We have not talked about all the nonmilitary uses of drones. They are invaluable in doing immediate assessments of remote disaster areas. They can deliver medicine to almost unreachable areas. They can look for lost people, day and night. They can deliver time sensitive medical supplies, ranging from vaccinations to transplant organs. They can intercept a police chase and keep track of a violent person without risking a high speed chase.

Of course, they can also be used for oppressive surveillance or inappropriate snooping by private operators. They have already been flown by private operators close to airports, for no good reason and at great safety risks.

Like any developing technology, we need thoughtful rules and regulations, and regular oversight as capacities grow. As with AI, it seems we are a bit behind as the technology and the number of entities using it spreads exponentially.

Promise and risk – hand in hand. We live in interesting times.

A Special Thank you Note: A good many of you have chosen to sign on as paid subscribers to this blog. Thank you for the vote of confidence, and for adding to the gift of your time reading, your contribution. As noted earlier, a small slice of your subscription goes to Substack, which makes all this possible. The rest, I round up and donate it equally to Common Cause, ACLU, and Humane World for Animals. In subscribing, you are also contributing to some fine causes. Thank you.

See you next week.

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts (https://agentsofreason.substack.com).

(3) You are welcome to share this post with anyone. It is easy to pass on via email, of course, but also on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google Plus, or Reddit.

Let’s grow our circle.

Still Some Serious Stuff

To be sure, we still have important things to talk about, but less volume on each. We could all use a lighter load every so often. We are still talking about politics, technology, human relations, religion, and more – but in smaller doses.

Politics

- The Republican House passed a bill on members of Congress owning stock. They claim they have taken the lead on this issue of transparency and anticorruption. This is, to use a technical term, BS. The bill they passed exempts what they all own now, has no improved standards for accountability, and no enforcement mechanisms.

There are Democrats who are on the wrong side of this issue as well, but the party, especially a number who look to be elected for the first time this Fall, that are serious about this terrible conflict of interest. Let’s hold everyone to a solid standard of no individual stocks and any investments go into a genuine blind trust.

- Trump and his “anti-woke” obsession crew have been frustrated over their inability to control the content of Smithsonian Institution museums, even though they have some of their folks on the various boards. So, they are planning to use the National Park Service to put signs on the grounds in front of museums, saying museum content is inaccurate and Unamerican.

Hoping this can be legally stopped but in either way, I urge everyone to support the Smithsonian. Letters of support to the Smithsonian and local media, and join the Smithsonian (https://si.edu)

- Congress is looking close to finally deciding on Daylight Savings Time. It is a legitimate issue, but they are making the wrong choice. The bill calls for making DST our standard time, rather than regular time. Medical experts universally say that is a bad idea.

Not only that, but the rest of world does also not use DST, so we would be out of synch with everyone else. Here we go again, just like metrics – for no good reason we are off as the oddball case, on our own.

- Two really interesting thoughts: Keep an eye out for these two issues. One, a growing number of commentators think Trump may resign and go away if he looses big this Fall and Congress actually starts doing oversight and accountability.

Two, corruption and excessive power by the rich may turn out to be THE issue for the coming years. This surely is the energy now among many new candidates and populist sentiment on the left and at the center of politics.

Human Relations and Spirituality

-Too Scared for Sex: OK, now that the title has your attention…. This article is a fascinating look at loneliness and isolation in America, not just sexuality. I knew of some of this, post-pandemic, but the author makes a good case that a lot more is causing problems with people connecting in almost any way they try. This has real impacts for our society, and I suspect in other countries as well.

https://www.theatlantic.com/family/2026/07/eroticism-esther-perel-the-invite/687872/?gift=aECDUYecYE62myvFkoWQug5zfxT9DlQMn4fXbAldkC4&utm_source=copy-link&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=share

- Come, Let Us Reason Together. Mary Trump joined members of Congress, national secular leaders and advocates last week at Capitol Hill for the third annual Congressional Reason Reception (link here if interested - https://ffrf.org/news/releases/ffrf-co-hosts-secular-gathering-on-capitol-hill/?mc_cid=d7fbf4d988&mc_eid=84c1e2c464 .

This is a fairly new secular foil to the National Prayer Breakfast, that old line abomination mixing government and religion. The Reason Reception celebrated the Congressional Freethought Caucus (a small but growing group), reason, constitutional democracy and the growing visibility of nonreligious Americans in public life. Good on them.

Foreign Engagements

- The State Department has quietly restored a measure of the Global Health Aid that was killed off by DOGE and other Administration actions. A series of pretty good size aid commitments have been made. The amount is still far below what the U.S. spent previously on humanitarian and health aid, (thousands have already died or gotten ill because of the sudden cuts), but this new action resumes the flow of some money for key efforts to fight malnutrition and disease.

I see 3 reasons this was done- politics with China, which has reaped a ton of good will replacing out cuts; some marginal recognition of the risks of disease spread, thus risking US security, and morality finally rang a bell with some in the Administration (this last one is most unlikely).

- A clear look at the Strait of Hormuz: A friend shared this graph (Thanks, Jerry) that really makes clear just how blocked the Strait of Hormuz is today. The mixed band of colored lines shows average daily ship traffic over the previous 5 years – about 110 ships a day. The red line at the bottom is the current traffic – about 2 ships a day. Totally foreseeable, totally not planned for by Trump and his Defense Secretary, in spite of warnings about this.

America at 250. Now What?

I am attaching a link to an article reflecting on where America goes from here. The article was shared by another friend (Thanks, Dale); it is about as good as I have read on the subject of late. Perhaps this is a call for a new mainstream party, dedicated to the goals and principles mentioned herein. This is an article worth contemplation and serious attention, one that addresses the challenges operationally and morally. https://ltamerica.org/is-there-an-answer-to-american-decline/

Good Information and Thinking Sources

- I would like to share with you three good news and thinking sources I have come to read regularly of late; I recommend both.

Ground News (https://ground.news)- It draws on 50,000+ sources, inviting you to compare coverage side by side of a given story, see political bias, check who owns the sources you’re reading and how reliable they are, and see how framing can change a story. See how the left and right cover the same story, what each side emphasizes or leaves out, and discover overlooked stories in the Blindspot Feed, which calls out coverage disproportionately reported by either side.

Blinkist (https://www.blinkist.com) is sort of a modern version of cliff notes. They have over 9,000 titles on hand at any given moment, in a large array of topics. You tell them what areas interest you (a list you can change at any time) and they suggest titles that match your focus areas. They provide short overviews and information on articles, then take you to short but (so far, in my experience) very useful overview notes on these publications.

I have been impressed that some books I read here I disagree with conclusions or views of the author but still find the books useful. The summaries are not so general as to dilute the power of the book. Most summaries only take 15-20 minutes to read, and you can always go to other sources to read the original textbooks anytime you wish. I find Blinkist provides an opportunity to expand your exposure to authors you might otherwise miss and provides an efficient way to read in subjects you might not otherwise have time to explore.

You need Facebook access for this last one, but it is worth doing so. Sully Dog is a former Republican who does a magnificent job of using stacks of plastic cups to illustrate economic and political facts. He covers a very wide range of topics, sticks to proven facts, and lays out decisions and outcomes in ways anyone could understand. Check him out. Go onto Facebook and in the search window, enter Sully Dog.

See You Next Week

We will see where current events take us next week, but as of now I am working on some new material on Artificial Intelligence and some reflections on modern warfare that most people have no exposure to and likely will find surprising.

In the meantime, elections are around the corner. Assume nothing. Check your voter registration and have a plan to vote, in person and early if you can.

Parting Thoughts

“No one man can terrorize a whole nation unless we are all his accomplices.”
- Edward R. Murrow

“Better to wear out than rust out.” - Catherine R. Seeley

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts.

(3) You are welcome to share this post with anyone. It is easy to pass on via email, of course, but also on Facebook, Blue Sky, LinkedIn, Reddit, or other social media.

Let’s grow our circle.

Agents of Reason

Agents of Reason is about American dialogue, challenges, and solutions.

By Bill Clontz

Let Us Count The Ways

This Administration has put us at serious risks in so many ways, while taking zero steps to improve security. Hegseth is a clown as a cabinet official, but this one is not funny. He puts our country, and our troops, in real danger. Other members of this Administration only make it worse. Let’s look at some of the evidence.

International

Russia: Russia is hurting in its war with Ukraine, but is unlikely to give up anytime soon, in part because Trump is again the US president who is always ready to help Putin. The situation for Russia is getting critical. Putin could decide to try using weapons of mass destruction, or to attack another country as a distraction for NATO.

Putin attacked in the first place because he believed Trump had damaged NATO enough to keep it from supporting Ukraine and the US would sit it out. Biden proved him spectacularly wrong last time. Still, he may be tempted to test NATO resolve again in a major offense.

China: China looks better and stronger on every way when compared to the US, thanks to Trump. The fact that the US is remarkably isolated and distrusted gives China high incentives to increase the offense in military matters, especially in the Pacific region, in economics, and in diplomacy. In about a year, Trump has advanced China’s strengths at least a decade’s worth of progress.

Taiwan: The number one threat that China could decide to execute soon. The aforementioned US isolation is a factor. Other factors include US military actions and engagements now in a hot condition around the world, the gutting of senior military leadership by Hegseth, and critical shortages of important weapons and munitions that will take years to rebuild. Add to that having Trump in the White House for now and one has a tempting list for China’s consideration.

NATO: Trump did his worst in trying to destroy NATO in his first term, for all the wrong reasons. I was impressed how well Biden and his team rebuilt the damage done and restored US leadership and confidence in the US. Now that is all gone again, and it is most unlikely to ever come back to previous levels.

All this is made worse by Trump’s unilateral withdrawals of US units and equipment, with not a word of coordination with the Congress or our erstwhile allies. Trump has done irreparable damage to the golden goose of our national security. Those who wish us ill will work to keep the US in its self-inflicted isolation.

Iran: The country of Iran has some very serious problems over and above our current conflict. However, they have shown themselves prepared to take a lot of punishment over the long haul. They effectively control the Strait of Hormuz now, have enough weapons and supplies left to threaten a wide range, and are demonstrating daily that being a regional partner with the US comes with a price and high risks.

They are playing Trump and his amateur negotiating team like violins. How much longer does this go on before sleeper terrorist cells in the US are activated? We don’t know; instead of this sort of threat, the FBI is being used for grudge investigations.

Amateur Negotiations: In both his terms, Trump gutted the professional diplomatic corps, with many being summarily dismissed, others being put into meaningless positions, others quitting in disgust.

Who are our key negotiators around the world now? Trump’s son-in-law and a real estate buddy. Both have zero relevant experience, obvious conflicts of interest, and zero accountability.

Internal to the Department of Defense

Uniformed Leaders Fired: Hegseth has summarily dismissed about two dozen of our most senior military leaders. Most got zero notice – one was told she had to vacate her residence on a military post within 24 hours. No rationale has been given for even one of these dismissals.

The only pattern visible is that most are women and/or minorities, some had their last appointment under Biden, which apparently is grounds for firing. We have stripped our military of some of our best leaders, at a time we are in fights and high potential threats around the globe. The message to those still in uniform is clear – political and personal loyalty are all that count.

Promotions Interference: Similar to dismissals, Hegseth has arbitrarily overruled promotion boards in all services, taking women and minorities off the promotion list for no rational reasons. I am not convinced he has the legal authority to do that, but have heard of no legal challenge as yet.

The message is clear – white men only are considered leadership material by this troglodyte. Once again, the military is being gutted of solid leaders that mirror the people of the armed forces.

Flu/Testosterone: Remember just a few weeks ago that Hegseth said military people should have freedom of their bodies to turn down flu shots? That lasted only a few days before the first outbreaks on military bases broke out, causing a reversal of how we have viewed inoculations as a force protection matter literally going back to the time of George Washington.

But now all of a sudden, no such privacy right is recognized; everyone, women included, are going to be tested for testosterone levels! I have to admit, when I first heard this, I thought it was a spoof. A singularly stupid, pointless, costly and invasive bit of nonsense. If only we had a Congress that actually did oversight.

Discipline: Hegseth wavered three (that I know of – could be more) illegal, unsafe flybys by military jets and helicopters. He overruled uniformed leaders and suspended the safety and disciplinary investigations before any conclusions were reached. This is particularly dangerous and foolish.

Former military pilots have expressed anger and disappointment in this cavalier kick in the teeth to discipline and safety. Count me in that group. The armed services involved were correctly investigating and considering punishment until Hegseth gave the offenders a pass.

Christian Nationalism: Hegseth has essentially told about 1/3 of our forces that they don’t count – he deleted their religious affiliations from the list of those recognized by DoD. Almost 200 denominations and belief systems were deleted. In addition, he has invited extreme Christian Nationalists to speak to captive audiences in the Pentagon and he himself is a follower of one of the most extreme such persons, one he quotes often.

Isolating Upcoming Leaders from Americas Academic Elites: In a temper tantrum over “wokeness,” Hegseth cancelled programs that put military officers into elite universities and think tanks. For many such officers, this would be a singular opportunity to interact with many of America’s best thinkers and it was an opportunity for these institutions to interact on a personal level with those who carry the burden of service to the nation.

I admit to some likely bias on this, as I took part in my day in such programs at Harvard and at the Brookings Institution. It is an incredibly foolish thing to cut these connections.

Unsecure Communications: Remember Signal Gate? Early in his term Hegseth hosted an unsecure conference call on US strikes overseas while the strikes were ongoing. That should have been punished by dismissal and perhaps prison time. Anyone bet they are not still doing this kind of thing?

Media Access: No press briefs while at war, unreporting attacks, casualties in the war with Iran. Extreme limits on media access to Pentagon staff. Attempted to get all press releases on the Pentagon to be preapproved by Hegseth and friends. These people are hiding truth from Americans.

Extreme Wastefulness

Billions Wasted on Semantics: No one really knows how much money has been spent trying to improperly rename the Department of Defense into the Department of War. I understand somewhere along the line they finally submitted something on this to Congress, but the money has already been spent.

Huge Wastes On Makeup Room, Gourmet Food, Etc.: A ton of our tax money has been wasted on a make-up room for Hegseth’s few public appearances. And early in Hegseth’s tour, there were reports of massive buys of lobster, gourmet steaks, etc. for executive dining. None of that went to the troops.

Air Force One: Jets were sent out to do formation flights with Trump’s Air Force One, just to generate photos. And how about having to send an old Air Force One to Turkey to replace the unfinished, unsafe new Air Force One that was rolled out for service before it was adequately modified?

Strategic Failures

Shortages Of Critical Supplies And Systems. We have consumed a stunning amount of key weapons and related supplies. There is no get well plan. Our enemies have taken note.

Continued Reliance on China for Rare Earth Minerals: Biden had started a fix on this problem, but that is likely stalled now. Once again, no get well plan. China has already flexed its muscle in that area this year.

Stupid, Expensive High Risk Exposure: of calling all senior leaders into one vulnerable mass- to tell them he does not like facial hair or fat. An insult to the real leaders, a huge cost incurred, and a completely unnecessary risk in putting so many leaders in one place that could actually be attacked from the nearby Interstate highway and surrounding unsecure areas.

Whose Fault Is All This?

Blame goes four ways:

· Voters: If you voted for Trump or sat out the election for president last time around, you own this mess. We all are at risk because of your decisions.

· Trump: The man who has the attention span of a 3 year old child, the judgement of someone with no history of good judgment, and appointer of the worst cabinet in US history.

· Hegseth: In a cabinet singularly unqualified and unsuitable for their positions, this man is the worst of the worst. More than any other person in the Administration (except Trump), he has put us at genuine risk and is working hard to destroy the military culture that has served us so well.

· Congress: Another “first place winner.” By far, the most ineffective, nonproductive Congress in US history. What little they have done has been devoted to rubber stamping whatever Trump wants. Back to voters: If you voted for a Republican member of Congress, you own this one, too. Now, do the right thing this Fall and help us get a functioning Congress.

How Does This Get Made Right?

There is no easy fix for any of this, but first and foremost in importance is getting a functioning Congress that legislates, does oversight, and requires sworn testimony. Without this, we will continue to weaken and become increasingly vulnerable.

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts.

(3) You are welcome to share this post with anyone. It is easy to pass on via email, of course, but also on Facebook, Blue Sky, LinkedIn, Reddit, or other social media.

Let’s grow our circle.

Agents of Reason

Agents of Reason is about American dialogue, challenges, and solutions.

By Bill Clontz

Understanding the Difference Between Competition and Theft

Politics has always been a contact sport, as it should be. Much is at stake in elections and so we expect all sides to fight hard. But that is not what we have this time around. Trump and his cohorts know with a high degree of certainty that they will likely lose the upcoming elections in big margins, at many levels. It should be the beginning of the end of the Trump travesty.

Knowing this, the Trumpsters are not putting their efforts into better voting results. They are clearly and specifically focused on lowering voter turnout, through a host of mechanisms, casting public doubt on elections, and trying to devise ways to cancel or invalidate the elections all together.

This election is not about competition. It is about keeping a valid democracy running.

Some Saw It Coming, Some Found It Hard to Imagine

A comparative handful of observers saw this coming at least a few years back. Based on the conduct of Trump’s first administration, based on Plan 2025, and based on who Trump put in authority around the government, a few prescient observers saw this coming and started sounding the alarm years ago.

Most of us could not really grasp such a thing. What is being done now has been seen repeatedly in other countries, in failed democracies, but not here. Surely that is not possible here. Turns out much of what seemed impossible was based in customs, standards, and ethics. Not exactly a brick wall for people like Trump. At least by now, pretty much everyone who gives a damn recognizes the danger now working to ruin this country.

So, What Is The Evidence?

What concrete actions and statements lead to the inevitable conclusion that a theft is underway:

• Trump fired everyone on the Federal Election Commission. The primary federal body created to provide voter support and oversight no longer exists.

• Trump fired everyone on the Election Assistance Commission (EAC), an independent body formed to help states with voting support like picking voting machines (these firings follow the recent Supreme Court ruling that gives him a blank check to fire about anyone, overturning 90 years of legal precedent). No independent Federal help to deal with questions about voting machines, etc.

• Earlier firing of Inspector Generals and Military Lawyers throughout the government. Few internal whistle blowers left standing.

• Test runs already made of putting ICE and National Guard troops at polling places. This is patently illegal, but they got away with a test run in Louisiana during the primaries. Expect to see this tried in many places this Fall, in an effort to intimidate and discourage voters.

• Threatening states with no US mail at all and cutting counter terrorism funds to states unless they hand over all their voting data to the Trump administration. Threats include jail state-level election officials who won’t hand over voter rolls or do his election-related bidding. Trumps completely unqualified but fiercely loyal Homeland Security Secretary is threatening state and local officials with prosecution if ANYONE seems to have voted illegally in their areas.

• Constant lies about voter fraud, illegal alien voting, etc. Building the mind set to sow doubt in all elections, except those that Trump wins. We saw Trump yet again beat these drums on his recent Thursday evening speech, which was pathetic and watched by few, believed by even fewer.

• Constant push to pass the “Save America” voter suppression act. None of this legislation makes any sense, nor solves any actual problem. It is clearly designed to make voting harder, to reduce voter turnout.

• Test balloons floated, talking about declaring a national election emergency. The more that is slapped down by leaders, law enforcement, judges, et al, the better.

• Clearing out Senior Military Officers, Active and Reserve. Hegseth, the worst of cabinet officers (and that is saying a lot), has fired about two dozen of our most senior officers and arbitrarily denied promotions to others. Much more on this later, but for now, know that military leadership is being replaced, Trumpsters hope, with people who will keep silent on issues and take orders, legal or not.

So, Not Competition, But Theft and Voter Suppression

Trump knows his party is set to loose in a big way this Fall. He and his minions will do anything and everything they can to steal and discredit elections to avoid what is coming. The list just noted in this blog is not even close to a complete list, but enough to get the point – these folks are planning to steal, because they cannot win, and power is all that counts for them.

How to Defeat This?

Resistance is not enough. Victory is required, or loose it all. This is not a single threat, but one of many threads. Defeating it likewise recalls more than one form of action and organizing. The title of the blog by US Representative Jake Auchincloss comes to mind: Simple But Not Easy. He, by the way, has one of the better blogs out there today. Highly recommended reading: https://jakeauch.substack.com

It seems to me that we need no less than 7 levels of effort, all required:

· Individual Voters: All of us need to precheck our registration, vote early, vote in person if we can, and do not take No for an answer. If gangs, ICE, or others are in your voting area, summon the courage of those Black children who faced angry mobs as they attended the first integrated classes.

This is your right to vote as an American, your duty as a citizen. Vote. If challenged procedurally, ask the site judge to weigh in. If that does not work, insist on a provisional ballot and follow up. Don’t be intimidated, don’t give up. If we are not willing to go the distance on this, democracy is gone.

· Mass Voting: Nothing makes it harder to cast doubt than a massive turnout. Consider it a sin to drive to vote with empty seats in your car. Find those who may have mobility or other issues and help them vote, in person or absentee. Ensure you know all the details on absentee voting in your area if that is how someone wishes to vote. Be legal, be through. All of us continue angry and persistent citizen actions, protests, calls, letters, etc.

· Honest and Courageous Local Law Enforcement/Voting Authorities: I am actually pretty optimistic on this one. In the last couple of elections we saw numerous state and local officials, of both parties and independent, doing the right thing in the face of enormous pressure, even threats. The word is out about the pending effort to steal. I think most people involved in elections will seek to do the right thing. Not all, but most.

· Law Enforcement and Military Commanders: I never thought in my worst dreams years ago that I would ever have to reflect on this. We are in a time wherein law enforcement and military (Active and especially Reserve) have a high probability of receiving illegal orders. The American military especially is ingrained with the power to use force being decided by civilian authorities. We are in a time where that standard is likely to fail in some places. Leaders need to stand up for the constitution and for their troops – do the right thing.

· Judges and Grand Juries: This has already proven to be the front line to stop these abuses. Not always, but more often than not. We all need to thank and recognize those who stand up for law and justice, encourage them, and ensure others know where the nation stands. We need so many court and grand jury failures that not even this not-so-Supreme Court gets that the time for blank checks to Trump is over.

· Media: This one has been a mixed bag so far, not even counting those owned by right wing biased leadership (an increasing trend). We need what is left of honest media to stop pulling punches and clearly state when Trump lies, every time he lies, and constantly recap the number and specifics of such lies. Stop trying to be “balanced,” stop whitewashing what is going on, including on Trump’s medical and mental issues.

Most importantly, confront him, politely but firmly, in person when he says something wrong or inappropriate. This most needs to be done in press conferences, informal or otherwise. A group of reporters should all take the opportunity to challenge name calling and abuse of colleauges, and clear lies or exaggerations.

· Alliances: Those who see this as the threat it is should team up with others they might not agree with on other issues. The more proposals and laws that can be drafted on bipartisan or multipartisan basis, the better. Some days it seems like all the Republicans with independent morals could all fit into a single minivan, but there actually are a lot people out there of various persuasions ready to partner up in doing the right things. Start building those teams now and get a head start on a better America after the midterms and after the 2028 elections.

State and local officials with courage and integrity, courts that quickly and firmly squash moves to kill democracy, angry and persistent citizen actions, protests, calls, letters, etc.

This Is It

Loose this one to the crooks and there is no clear way back to democracy or valid elections. Think that could not happen here? Think again.

Let’s get this done.

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts.

(3) You are welcome to share this post with anyone. It is easy to pass on via email, of course, but also on Facebook, Blue Sky, LinkedIn, Reddit, or other social media.

Let’s grow our circle.

The Death/Rumored Death of Two US Senators

The unforeseen death of Lindsey Graham from a burst artery and the inaccurate rumors that Mitch McConnell was dead, or at least brain dead, brought out some unusual reactions that were instructive. In my view, much of what was said by thoughtful commentators was correct.

There were, of course, the expected reactions. Some mourned the loss of both men. More, it seemed, rather welcomed both losses, which I certainly understand. Both could be expected reactions. But there was another category that I thought got it right.

A number of serious commentators chose not to celebrate anyone’s death but also did not pull any punches in noting that both men sold their personal integrity for pitiful reasons. The fact that they died or might have died did not change the choices they made and the consequences we all bore because of them.

Graham was a man of some potential. As the sidekick with John McCain he grew as a Senator. Years ago he was part of the Gang of Eight, senators who formulated a pretty good and comprehensive solution to America’s immigration problems. And to the end he was a strong supporter of Ukraine, a foe of Putin.

But he did everything he could to become one of Trump’s lapdogs. He spoke endless and damaging nonsense on one issue after another, including personal praise of Trump, all so he could play golf with the President. His failure to defend the late Senator McCain from Trumps filth told me all I needed to know about this man.

Perhaps he thought he could help moderate Trump on key issues, but there is little evidence that had much effect. In the end, personal proximity to power seemed to outweigh everything; he sacrificed everything to hang on Trump’s coat tails.

It was a sad and wasteful, shallow life he chose, and others suffered because of it. Those who called this out in recent days were right to do so. What a meaningless life he chose, for the shallowest of reasons and personal insecurity.

The same goes for McConnell. Had he done the right thing in either of Trump’s two (so far) impeachment votes and told his senators to vote their own conscience, we would be having none of the conversations today that plague our country.

His outright theft of a Supreme Court nomination, followed by a rush job approval of another one, did serious damage to constitutional norms and gave us the worst Supreme Court in generations, for which America suffers mightily.

For McConnell, it has been painfully obvious that all he valued was political power. Morals, ethics, the constitution – all speed bumps he blithely ran over. He still breathes, for a while anyway, but recent days showed what the obituaries will be like.

A shallow, mean-spirited man who failed his role in history repeatedly. We are less of a country because of him. If there is a hell, surely there is a reservation awaiting him.

An Overlooked Lesson from the Platner Campaign Unraveling in Maine

Graham Platner’s campaign collapse mercifully happened pretty quickly. He was always a mixed bag. An articulate campaigner with the common touch and a solid platform. He connected with a lot of people in a big way. There were warning signs all along, but Maine voters decided to take a chance. I thought so, too, with fingers crossed.

Unfortunately, the bet did not pay off. There were always concerns that he could be another John Fetterman. Turned out that was the case. There are a number of candidates for the slot that have similar political positions, so a Democratic win is at least possible. It will be interesting to see who is nominated and if they can finally retire Susan Collins. Fingers crossed.

Now, here is the overlooked lesson.

Platner did not just rise up from the oyster beds like some mythical creature. He was found and fostered by Bernie Sander’s group. They liked what they saw, felt no need to coordinate with the Maine Democratic Party, and started a populist movement to make Platner the candidate.

Not atypical of Sanders. He is not himself a Democrat and while he certainly calls for a lot of good initiatives, he has had remarkably little to show for his time in Congress. The man is not good at, or inclined to, work with others who do not agree with him fully. Sound like anyone else we know?

Sander’s group did not (and I suspect has not in other cases) do any serious opposition research on the potential candidate. Real political parties know how to do that. It is also part of their mentoring and screening process, for good reasons.

Yes, political parties can be maddening, but when you run a system without strong parties at national and local levels, you get maneuvering space for the worst of the worst. The Republican party, or what used to be a party, got overrun and hopelessly infected by the worst people imaginable in place of a system inclined to grow leaders.

Walk away from parties, say you don’t like parties so you are independent, and sorry to say, you are part of the problem. Unless a party is completely immoral and/or not in alignment with any of your priorities, work to make that party more of what you want it to be.

Walk away and you invite the school yard bullies and wealthy elites to take over your political system and the national culture.

See You Next Week

Unless events dictate otherwise, we are going to talk about the risks of stolen elections and how to combat that menace. About 100 days until early voting begns, folks.

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts (https://agentsofreason.substack.com)

(3) You are welcome to share this post with anyone. It is easy to pass on via email, on Facebook, Blue Sky, LinkedIn, Reddit, or other social media.

Let’s grow our circle.

Agents of Reason

Agents of Reason is about American dialogue, challenges, and solutions.

By Bill Clontz

(Happy Bastille Day, America! Best wishes to the French nation.)

Education in America

The history of education in America is one of the sometimes overlooked keys to our success as a nation. Even in the earliest days, there were calls for universal free education in many states and in national forums. The public education system today shape early-mid 1800’s.

Today, the system serves approximately 83% (45 million) of enrolled K-12 students across over 98,000 schools. The remainder attend private schools or non-district public schools such as charters, or are homeschooled.

State governments determine curriculum and academic standards, while local school boards and districts typically manage implementation—selecting materials, pacing guides, and lesson structures.

For the 2023-24 school year, spending on K-12 public education was around $17,700 per student, totaling roughly $880B. Local property taxes is the single most common financing source for schools, followed by state revenue, and very few (especially with this administration) federal grants.

State, Local, and Federal Roles

School policies, budgets, etc. are almost exclusively local matters, which is both a good thing and a bad thing. The first public education law in the American Colonies was created to prevent Satan’s influence on children- some districts still want heavily religious influence, but happily, in recent years there has been real pushback on extremism in local school boards and similar bodies.

The trend is a healthy one, but no one should ever assume the coast is clear on this sort of thing.

While the federal government’s role is traditionally small, it can have major impact. The GI bill is a sterling example: it was a singularly important element in creating the American middle class of the post WW II era. Things like Pell Grants also have profound effect on people’s lives and prospects.

Something of a debate goes on now about college, given the near prohibitive costs, especially as conservative state legislatures cut funding for higher education, pushing more of the burden onto tuitions. As of 2025, annual tuition alone ranges from around $10K for an in-state, four-year public university to almost $40K for private institutions.

The total price tag—when including living expenses, fees, and other costs—for a bachelor’s degree in the US can now exceed $100K for public institutions, leaving thousands of young people or their families in heavy debt. Inflation-adjusted average tuition and fees have more than tripled since 1970.

My own state is an example of how this can go wrong. When I was growing up, NC was a leader among Southern states in education scores and public investments. Now, even with some very slight improvements in this year’s budget, we move from 48^th place to 46^th. What a wasted opportunity for society.

How Are We Doing Comparatively?

Badly.

Almost every other advanced country makes education, including college and trade schools free or nearly so. They did so for obvious reasons. Education is key to progress, individual and societal. Better that young people start out not burdened with debt and they can use their income in other ways much better for the economy than debt service.

Sometimes we are slow learners, us Americans. Would that one of these days we figure out that smarter course on education. Perhaps one reason we have not done well is all that local control we mentioned earlier. Sometimes smaller bodies are easier to manipulate.

We have among us people who are not so much interested in education as they are indoctrination. They want to ensure everyone’s kids can only read the lessons and the books some groups like. By any stretch of imagination, that is not education and certainly is not teaching anyone how to think.

Even worse is the movement in a number of states to take state education funds and give them to parents to have their kids attend private or religious schools, many of which have no standards or certfications. James Talarico rose to national prominence fighting this kind of abuse in the Texas state legislature (and hopefully will be a US Senator shortly).

What to Do About Education?

Like so many areas, we know what works. We just need to elect officials that will make it happen and do what we can to ensure our fellow citizens figure this out. A few suggestions:

- No public funds to private or religious schools. That is a personal choice, not one a taxpayer should fund. Put the money and effort into public schools.

- Get real with state budgets and fund education like the spark plug for life it is. Build in escalation clauses in those budgets. One benefit of that will be your state attracts more desirable businesses.

- More of us should attend gatherings like school board meetings and speak up with extremists try to distort education.

- Offer a program to dramatically offset up to four years of higher education/ trade school in return for two years of public service. Extra credits for those who choose military service or other challenging positions. This one change would have beneficial effects beyond imagination in so many ways.

Medical Policy News – Good News, Bad News, Good Source of Thought

The legislation that Trump and the Republican Congress passed (with zero Democratic votes) is now starting to impact communities dramatically. People are losing health insurance, clinics and hospitals are closing, sickness and mortality numbers are rising.

A lot of people who griped about “big government and creeping socialism” without much of an idea of what that may mean are now seeing that what we are doing is not working. The bad news is that people are dying needlessly and other lives are degraded.

It just might be possible after the next presidential election to get back on track to a decent healthcare system. Pretty well every other advanced country is doing better than we are. Spending less money, getting better health results, and wider access to preventive care.

No system is perfect; each one has some downsides, but we are singularly in last place here and it need not be so. Perhaps a good first step would be a first rate blue ribbon, nonpartisan panel with a reasonably short timeline to survey what everyone else is doing and from that study, set up a model that works for us. That is exactly what Taiwan did and they built a well-focused system that works by every measure.

If you are interested in learning some really useful aspects of all that goes into such a discussion, I highly recommend, if you are on Facebook, signing up for the posts of Slice of Life, MD. She is a practicing physician who has also done an exceptional job of explaining EVERYTHING in our system and in others. Solid information well presented. I am learning a ton on this one. On Facebook at :https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61586770643203 or just search on Facebook for Slice of Life MD.

Speaking of healthcare, we can have another discussion about this but note that in recent months we had a Republican member of Congress disappear for almost 4 months on mysterious medical grounds (turned out to be depression), a Senator (Mitch McConnell) who has not been seen for 2-3 weeks and is reported by unconfirmed sources to be brain dead (no jokes on that, brain dead comment, please….).

Trump clearly is not well, mentally or physically. Biden clearly declined more that anyone knew in the last year of his term. This is not a new problem.

One is not entitled to much privacy when in public office and citizens need to know if they have people in office or not. We really need a system of independent medical evaluations and a requirement to keep the public informed.

See You Next Week

Unless circumstances dictate otherwise, next week will talk about a couple of pretty simple framing questions we might all use as the elections approach. How shall we talk with each other and how shall we evaluate what politicians and others offer?

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts (https://agentsofreason.subtack.com)

(3) You are welcome to share this post with anyone. It is easy to pass on via email, of course, but also on Facebook, Blue Sky, LinkedIn, Reddit, or other social media.

Let’s grow our circle.

Bill Clontz, pondering theses issues

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Now, let’s get going on today’s discussion.

First, a Farewell to One Who Gave Us So Much Pleasure

James Burrows, a master of the TV sitcom who helped create “Cheers” and directed more than 1,000 episodes of other shows including “Taxi,” “Frasier,” “Will and Grace,”2 Broke Girls, NewsRadio,” “Friends,” “The Bob Newhart Show,” and more; e won 11 Emmy awards. Burrows died recently at 85. What gifts he gave us!

Burrows was on the level of Carl Reiner, Mel Brooks, and Sid Caeser – a genius at his art. And he certainly had a playful side. Real fans noted that often in those credits that roll down the screen at the end of the broadcast he would slip in things like “We had a better script for this episode, but a cranky dragon burned it up.” Once you saw something like that, you tended to read the credits regularly. Maybe that was his intent.

Thanks, James. We will miss you.

The World on Fire?

Somedays it seems like everything is burning down, at least politically, all around the world. Let’s look at a few such matters and see what we think.

What Do The Recent Primaries Mean?

We are largely through the primaries now and so we can see what is up for the elections this Fall. It is, to say the least, an interesting mix.

On the Republican side, three interesting trends:

One, Trump still carries a lot of influence with his core, with many of his endorsed candidates winning primaries. But in many of these contests, the turnout was really low, even for primaries. A very small number of people selected some very extreme candidates.

Two, where voting was broader, Trump’s endorsement did not carry the day, further evidence of a wider range of people figuring out that following Trump is not a good idea.

Three, those Trump endorsed that did win appear to be much weaker candidates for a general election, with Democrats and Independents voting. Trump’s wins may translate directly into Republican losses. The Texas senate race (Talarico vs Paxton) is the clearest example of this effect.

On the Democratic side, also three interesting trends. These are actually a bit harder to analyze what they may mean in the Fall:

One, out with the old is a core theme we saw over and over. People want changes and they do not have confidence the current power structure will give it to them. New candidates received a number of votes, I suspect, as much because they were new as anything else.

Two, clearly the left of center/social democratic elements had some big wins. The mayor of NY is now officially a king maker and power broker, as one example. The Republicans are already trying to milk this, shouting Socialist! Communist! Until they are horse.

I don’t think that will carry the day for them. Capitalism has gotten so badly distorted in our current society, that people of a wide range are hungry for something – anything – that might do better. In addition, many young voters have not seen classical communism or state socialism up close, so the boogey man shouts will not register with them. To the extent they do, explaining the differences between socialism and democratic socialism, with concrete examples, should temper concerns.

Three, huge numbers of minority and youth voters are turning out now, groups that largely took a pass last time, or even voted for Trump. All indications are that this group knows they were fooled and used and they intend to get it right this time.

All in all, the Democrats have a really interesting mix riding to the top. Arguing left of center vs right of center is a losing proposition. Should the Democrats engage in a civil war on these grounds, they could squander a once in a generation opportunity to gain power and do some serious good. What will work is a simple, clean platform on key issues, a leader who arises pretty soon after the November elections, and well-coordinated positions and statements that members of a big tent party can say together.

What Happens To Israel Now?

Damned if I know what happens there now. The Middle East has always been a mess and is perhaps more so than I have ever seen it. The massacres in Israel, continued Israeli excesses in Gaza and the West Bank, Netanyahu’s and Trump’s war – all mean turmoil and lack of clear paths for years to come.

The one bright hope I see is that Israel must have elections in October and they may finally mean the end of Netanyahu and his extremists cabinet. Not a moment too soon.

Israel is a special case. The world owes the jews of the world a measure of justice and security following the Holocaust and all that came before and after that. But there can be no blank check of support. What Israel has become under Netanyahu is beyond imagination.

That they are now isolated and hated around the world, that US political candidates are losing because they are seen as too pro-Israel (take donations from AIPAC and expect to lose votes) is something previously unimaginable. This is not the same as antisemitism, but it feeds that curse globally. I worry about Israel’s future.

The UK In Political Turmoil

I have said more than once that I sometimes envy parliamentary systems and their ability to change out governments quickly. But there is a downside to that factor. Israel is one such example of constant elections and unstable governments. Now The United Kingdom is joining those ranks.

Six Prime Ministers have resigned since the Brexit vote, in 2016. As the New Republic reports, Brexit was a shot in the foot by the UK. Ten years after that vote, the UK economy is 8% smaller than it most likely would be in the Market. Yet, no one can obtain a solid majority, and the same sort of racism and anti-immigrant campaigns fester in the UK as they do here.

Europe is very much a mixed bag today. Some good news (stronger defense, backing Ukraine, working around the absence of US leadership) and some bad news (political instability, weakened economies, repeated national disasters). The next decade or so may be historic, one way or the other.

Two Quick US Notes

Hegseth is Destroying The US Military and damaging our alliances. That is the simple, overwhelmingly obvious truth. I see some obscure examples of the outcome of this: The National Guard has been deployed to “protect” Trump’s green algae farm in DC and, in a test run for the elections in the Fall, have been deployed to polling places in Louisiana. More troops and ICE will be next. National Guard leadership at the national and state level failed morally and legally on both of these missions. Leaders should have refused both missions and offered to resign rather than complying. Russia and China must be delighted. New Congress - hearings, please.

The housing bill that Trump tripped over: That Trump decided at the last moment not to sign the amazingly popular (and actually pretty decent, overall) legislation to begin addressing the housing crisis (the one Kamala Harris first pointed out on the national stage) to hold it hostage to his voter suppression bill (pushed no doubt by Stephen Millar) is amazingly stupid.

As of this writing, the housing bill becomes law 10 days after passage unless Trump vetoes it, an act he likely does not have the votes to sustain. His temper tantrum on this is a disservice to the country, a political gift to Democrats. Trump statement that “I know housing – I made billions at it” should make a lot of campaign ads.

See You Next Week

We are going through a unique July 4 this time around. Whether this is the low point of an aberration, the death surge of an ugly past, or the beginning of the end of the American experiment is pretty much up to us. History calls.

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

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Agents of Reason

Agents of Reason is about American dialogue, challenges, and solutions.

By Bill Clontz

First, Two Reaches Back Into History

In thinking about and reading current thinking on our national day, I ran across an interesting linguistic footnote. The author mentioned that the term Semiquincentennial comes from Latin. In some translations, it literally translates to 250^th birthday or anniversary. But in some translations, it means halfway to 500.

I like the latter version – it is a nice reminder that time is a long line and the part we experience is but a very short part of that long line.

Much happened before, much more will happen after us. Our time is important, and we have responsibilities in our share of the timeline, but it all is about much more than just us and just now. Saddle up for the long haul, America.

The other reach into history I found useful for this past weekend to reflect upon was a presentation by the scholar Robert Watson, Distinguished Professor of American History at Lynn University, online to the Smithsonian Associates. His presentation was Declaration: The Untold Stories Behind America’s Founding Document.

This was all about the personalities, politics, and other very human elements that were important to the creation and signing of the Declaration of Independence. Many of the things we grouse about today were present then. All in all, it seems a miracle that the thing was done at all. That we had such talent and intellectual depth available to us was remarkable. That those who made it happen literally risked everything (and many paid a terrible price for doing so) and still, they did the right thing – is humbling to consider. That we are still working to live up to it should not be a surprise.

By the way, the Associates is a wonderful organization with many great programs online. Check them out at https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/.

The Three Expected Ways Americans Engaged for July 4 This Year

Some (very few, it seems) celebrated full throated joy at who and where we are. They felt Trump was leading us to a better America. That anyone still thinks that boggles the mind, but they do exist.

Others felt so ashamed of this government and so depressed by what is happening that they decided to let the birthday pass without any personal participation. Nothing felt worthy of celebration. I surely get that, and leaned that way myself until I thought more about it and went with Option 3.

Option 3 was about celebrating the nation, its people, and our history, while fully acknowledging the checkered past of both our history and our present. The mindset here is that this is our country and we will not let those who seem so antithetical to America’s core beliefs take ownership of July 4^th or our country as a whole.

Those who will support whatever Trump and company say or do are the follow-on generation of “my country, right or wrong.” That is not love of country, that is narrow minded fanaticism, a cult fixation. Real love means accepting the whole truth – acknowledging our failures and sins as well as celebrating our successes and committing to keep working on getting this whole thing right.

Not surprisingly, Helen Cox Richardson (Letters from an American) reflected well on what all this means for us today:

Letters from an American: https://substack.com/@hrichardson/note/p-205008037?r=8068jv&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web

A Surprising Fourth Option

I should note at this point that I really am not a fan of what we call soccer and the rest of the world calls football (Why we insist on the odd name makes no sense. We should call it football like everyone else, distinct from American football. And while we are at it, could we get on with adapting the metric system? Sorry, I digress).

I do not follow the sport, have always found it too slow and the fake injury performances too funny. But I have been watching a lot of clips during the World Cup and have to admit there is much to admire in the sport.

The interesting thing I note is that how the World Cup has played out in America (and no doubt in Canada and Mexico as well) has called out the best of what we think of as American. Communities have turned themselves inside out to welcome foreign visitors. Visitors are often quoted as saying they have been blown away by how welcoming everyone is.

The World Cup is often cited as the most unifying event on the planet, a time when people and countries put aside their disagreements and tensions. We very much joined in that feeling this year (even as our government screwed with visas for some players and visitors).

Foreigners fell in love with American pop culture. There are love stories being told about ranch dressing, about Waffle House and Texas Roadhouse, about being called “buddy” by people they just met. Enthusiasm about the joys of American food, both for uniqueness and quantities. Amazement about the size and beauty of the country. Many visitors expected moody, xenophobic Americans. They found the opposite for the most part.

For a while, America has lived some of its values of welcoming the stranger and sharing with others. Nice. Something of an Alternate Fourth of July. May we keep it going.

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do four things:

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Agents of Reason

Agents of Reason is about American dialogue, challenges, and solutions.

By Bill Clontz

Two Lessons Missed From Trump Round 1

Lesson 1: I remember vividly when Trump was impeached the first and second times in his previous term of office. One of the key challenges in an impeachment, much like an indictment in court, is deciding what charges should be filed. Lots of factors go into what the charges will be and how to write them up.

I was, to put it mildly, disappointed that charges were not filled for corruption and profiteering, in violation of the emolument clauses of the constitution. The language on this is pretty clear: Article 1, Section 9, Paragraph 8:

No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.

And article II, Section 1, paragraph 7

The President shall, at stated Times, receive for his Services, a Compensation, which shall neither be increased nor diminished during the Period for which he shall have been elected, and he shall not receive within that Period any other Emolument from the United States, or any of them.

I remember thinking at that time that failure to impeach and convict on such corruption was an invitation to more corruption; should Trump ever return to office we could expect mind boggling levels of corruption. And yes indeed, here we are.

Lesson 2: I like to think that I am not given to overstatements and breathless exclamations, but I said during the first Trump administration that Steven Millar was, to his core, an evil soul. If he escaped investigation and prosecution from the first Trump administration, we could expect to see him back again, more powerful and even more evil than ever. Today is he Vice Chief of Staff and the key person fostering the cruelest forms of treatment of immigrants and others. He has made it clear he finds laws, social norms, and the constitution as minor impediments. Countless people have suffered and more than a few have died because of this guy.

I told you so. Twice.

On Other Fronts:

Anyone Learn Anything on the War with Iran?

Among the senior members of this administration, it appears not. They went in blind and stupid and still sound the same today. Everything that has happened was completely predictable to anyone who understood this theater of war and Iran as a culture, but this administration foresaw none of it.

Once in, no good outcome was going to happen. Surely senior military leaders (those not already fired by Hegseth) warned of all this. If so, no one listened and I bet Trump heard no such warnings directly – he only heard what he wanted to hear through filters and screens designed to please him.

And why is this not a treaty but a memorandum? You will remember that team Trump kept calling this everything but a war, saying they therefore did not need congressional authorization. Then the “cease fire” stopped the clock from ticking. Now we have a memorandum, not a treaty. Treaties need Senate ratification, memos do not. Will this Congress ever stand up and do its job?

Trump Not Making It For A Full Term? Rumors Are Out There

I pretty well shrugged off such hopeful concepts earlier, but I am beginning to wonder if this might be a genuine prospect. He clearly has medical, mental, and emotional problems. He is not enjoying himself and feels unfairly criticized (imagine that!). His grip on the Republican party is still strong but weakening. Foreign governments have written him off and are increasingly just working around him.

He apparently has a real fear of being impeached again, and some fear of being convicted this time. Really doubtful, but he could elect to resign at some point. Would not be the first time this has been done (Thanks, Dick Nixon).

I have zero doubt that Trump and friends are hard at work planning how to steal the midterm elections. Should they fail, and I think/hope that is likely, I am beginning to think that the odds of Trump quitting go up above 50%. That would sure be something.

One could run some fascinating scenarios as to how this would look and work with the VP moving up. The VP has some truly dark characters behind him who would have their own ideas about what to do next. Not unimportantly, the current VP is a terrible communicator and politician. His ability to inspire and mobilize is pretty close to zero, so not a sure bet for the candidacy in 2028.

Desecration of Monuments

The staged fight on the White House lawn was bad enough. Reminds one of the Romans using violent entertainment to distract people. It was just plain tacky, and a misuse of an important national property. And yet another thing Trump made money off of personally.

But they managed to make it still worse. Staging the entrance phase of this spectacle out of the Lincoln memorial really was soiling what comes as close as we do to sacred ground in the nation’s capital. And forcing the armed forces to provide honor guards for the procession? I wanted to throw up.

At least the reflecting pool got revenge. This is another one that actual experts said would end badly. It is a metaphor for this entire administration.

Think It Is Impossible to Bury a National Party And Start A New One?

A lot of us have declared the Republican party too far gone, too corrupted, too ruined to be repaired. We need a solid center right party, but this is not it. Some think it is impossible to allow a national party to die off and replace it with something better.

That is indeed a difficult task, for political and legal reasons, but decidedly not undoable. Remember the Whigs and the Know Nothing parties? The country decided they were no longer part of the solutions we needed and they faded into the dust bin of history. Time to do that again. Come on, serious adult Republicans, past and present: step up and offer your people something better.

Social Security Crash Is Looming. Solutions Are Clear And Easy

Robert Reich did a really fine layout of this issue and the solutions recently. You will find the link to that article at the end of this discussion. It is a short read, well worth your time to absorb.

A short, extract of the article: Back in 1983, the cap was set so that the Social Security payroll tax would hit 90% of total income in America. That 90 percent fix was built into the recommendations of the Greenspan commission. They assumed that, as the cap rose with inflation, the Social Security payroll tax would continue to hit 90 percent of total income. Too bad they did not put that into specific legislation

Today the Social Security payroll tax hits only about 83% of total income. It went from 90 percent to 83 percent because a steadily larger portion of the nation’s total income has gone to the top. In 1983, the richest 1 percent of Americans got 11.6 percent of total income. Today, the top 1 percent takes in more than 20 percent.

Logically, then, to get back to 90 percent, the ceiling on income subject to the Social Security payroll tax has to be raised.

If all income in excess of $400,000 were subject to the Social Security payroll tax, Social Security’s solvency would be guaranteed forever. We could also expand Social Security benefits.

Here is the full article link:

Robert Reich

They don't want you to know the REAL reason Social Security is in trouble

Friends…

Read more

3 months ago · 6120 likes · 369 comments · Robert Reich

See you next week

We just finished the July 4^th, our 250^th birthday as a nation. Think how different the 251^st birthday could look, how different America could look, a year from now. This time around midterm elections carry epoch impact in so many ways going into that next birthday. May we be up to it.

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts (

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Let’s grow our circle.

Agents of Reason

Agents of Reason is about American dialogue, challenges, and solutions.

By Bill Clontz

Reflections From Father’s Day

This past weekend, the nation celebrated Father’s Day. For me, that brought to mind the role of mentors and role modeling in life. It would be difficult to overstate the importance of such rolls, for individuals and for societies. It has always been so and always will be so.

I count myself as a remarkably fortunate person in this domain. Throughout a long miliary career and a pretty long business career, I had the immeasurable benefit of good mentors. What they taught be over the years was priceless. Sometimes it was by teaching, other times it was in leading by example.

I expect there were many times I was not even aware that I was being mentored – it just seemed a natural process of osmosis, absorbing the good stuff. One overwhelmingly important lesson I absorbed was how important it was for me, in my turn, to focus on that role of being a mentor.

Among the most pleasant memories I carry has been running into people who were in one of my commands years ago and they would say something along the lines of “I paid attention to all that you taught me. It made me a better leader and now I am trying to be a mentor like you were to me.”

It does not get any better than that. I invested a lot of time an energy with young soldiers who were 10, 15, 20 years earlier in their career than I was. I tried to discern who among them might well be in my position someday; I was always on the lookout for ways to help them get ready for those responsibilities. Of all the roles I have filled in life, none were more important than mentoring and leading by example.

So, What Makes A Good Mentor?

There are lots of variables, of course, depending on circumstances and other variables, but for me the following qualities are what one looks for in a mentor. This is my top 10 list, in no particular order:

1. Curiosity: Be curious about why things happen, about what is possible, about what is just ahead but not yet in sight. A mind missing this itch that needs to be scratched is a dull leader that will miss both opportunities and warnings.

2. Courage: Both physical and moral. Never trust anyone who is fearless – they are dangerous and not fully cognizant. Go with the leader who understands danger and risk and is willing to face them for the right reasons.

3. Humility: Someone who cannot face their own shortcomings, who takes every criticism as a challenge is a weak and insecure person. They will lead others into failure and unnecessary risk. Remind you of anyone on the national scene?

4. Willingness To Change, Admit Error: Closely related to humility, but a step further. The best leaders I have known considered their own errors and shortfalls as being among the best lessons they learned. They also shared those experiences and observations with those they mentored. If you conclude you are always right, you either are only dealing with easy topics or you are lying to yourself. Be clear headed enough to know when doing more of the same is not going to work; admit the shortfall and develop Plan B.

5. Sense Of Humor: This may surprise some of you as a valued trait of a mentor, but I assure you it is of supreme importance. A leader with a good sense of humor can help diffuse tension and can use that humor as a teaching tool to introduce some hard lessons. Every first-rate leader I have known were wise and could laugh at the irony, frustration, or whatever else had confronted them when such a humorous view enhanced what came next.

What Else?

6. Empathy: I find it not surprising that people like Trump and Musk see empathy as a weakness. They are clueless on this count, a fatal shortfall in a would-be leader. The great leaders I have known understood the power of “walking in the other fellow’s shoes,” whether that applied to their own leaders, to those they led, or to those they were fighting. Lacking in empathy makes for a shallow person, and one likely to underestimate those they are fighting.

7. Controlled Anger: There is a philosophical position, often one held by deeply religious people, that anger should be banished in one’s life. I respectfully disagree. Anger certainly can be toxic and in too high a volume, uncontrolled, can be powerfully destructive. Again, look at Trump as an example. But I think there is an appropriate place for justified anger in many situations. Anger that calls upon moral principles, that focuses efforts, that helps one find the courage to act even at personal risk, is not a bad thing. Good leaders understand this.

8. Ability To Stand On The Balcony: Good leaders naturally connect with those they lead in a deeply personal and profound way. But they also remember that their obligations as leaders and mentors require them to detach a bit from time to time, to stand back with a bit of mental and emotional detachment and look back at their people and organization rationally, asking themselves if there are changes that need to be made within that team or within themselves. The really good ones know how to detach and are equally ready to bond. Finding the right balance is a special skill.

9. Leader AND Follower: This is one that leaders sometimes miss – those you are mentoring need to see not only how you lead, but how you follow, demonstrating the need to fulfill different roles as needed. As a senior officer in paratroop units, I was usually the first jumper out the door, but if we had designated a young sergeant as the jump master for that jump, I took my directions from him or her. We had empowered them with important responsibilities; that meant we honored the authority that gave them and those who normally lead were comfortable in being a follower. It was a lesson those being mentored needed to learn.

10. Leading by Example: Nothing new here, but as timeless as always. Really good leaders try hard not to ask of anyone something they could not accept themselves had they been so tasked. Great leaders take this to heart, those who work for them know that their leaders, their mentors already have done a task like the one before them, or may even have the opportunity to see the leader do their thing through leading by example. The mentoring lesson is that good leaders build trust by their subordinates in large measure in leading by example.

What About You?

If you have been a leader over the years, I hope these attributes were on your list of qualities to enhance, making you a better mentor.

What about on the receiving end? Were you fortunate enough to have some good mentors along the way? Hopefully, you thanked them for that gift, and then paid it forward.

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts ( https://agentsofreason.substack.com )

(3) You are welcome to share this post with anyone. It is easy to pass on via email, of course, but also on Facebook, Blue Sky, LinkedIn, Reddit, or other social media.

Let’s grow our circle.

Agents of Reason

Agents of Reason is about American dialogue, challenges, and solutions.

By Bill Clontz

Tis The Season

The Spring and early Summer round of primaries is pretty well behind us now, which means we are in the ramp up stage for the midterm elections, starting with early voting in October and ending with final vote counts in November. We now know who the candidates will be in those races.

If I may be so bold, allow me to offer a bit of advice to voters as we move into high gear of election season.

Two Features Are Almost Universal

There are, of course, a number of seriously flawed candidates and those with whom one may simply disagree with on matters of policy. But there are also a lot of very good candidates. I am impressed by a lot of candidates at all levels that I am seeing among Democrats this year. The list of those who could be more than credible candidates for president, and who likely could do that job quite well, is a longer list than one sees in many presidential elections.

But keep in mind that these are human beings. They may well, like the illustration at the opening of this blog posting, have halos of good will, good ideas, and character. Bravo. Much here to celebrate.

Being human beings, most of them, perhaps all of them, also have feet of clay. They are not perfect human beings. Don’t be surprised and don’t expect perfection. Some have personal traits or backgrounds that might make them less than ideal candidates in today’s America.

If a candidate for president is a woman, a minority, gay, or a billionaire, a lot of potential voters are going to write them off. Such a harsh conclusion does NOT mean they are lesser human beings – it just means they have political baggage that must be dealt with by the rest of us.

Having said all that, I personally would not give up on such candidates. If someone told you a few years ago that a first term Black senator from the Midwest would win a presidential election, you likely would have thought they were nuts. Know what is possible but know also what makes some candidacies more challenging. From my perspective, give them a chance to compete for voters and see how they do. Someone may surprise us all.

About Those Feet of Clay

What does make for some real challenges are personal history that may have some real speed bumps in them. Voters so far seem to be pretty solid in their approach to such candidates. They weigh whether or not a candidate with a problematic past has faced that history, apologized credibly, and is on a path of redemption.

Voters also seem to be taking into consideration if said candidate has positions they generally agree with (does not have to be the case on all issues) and do they think that candidate can credibly expect to win. If the answer to those questions is Yes, then voters seem inclined to accept human imperfection and take a chance on such a candidate.

All in all, that seems to me a pretty mature voter perspective. This cannot be an excuse for a terrible person that is backed only because they can win, but it does give a foundation of realistic expectations and hope for human beings in all their glory and faults.

Probably the most prominent example of this voter review now is Graham Platner, Maine Democratic Senate candidate to take on Senator Collins. Voters looked hard at this one and decided they liked his policies and personality enough to forgive (not overlook) elements in his past. He won his primary by a healthy margin. As always with such an outcome, now everyone holds their breath to see if he is up to the challenge or if this becomes another John Fetterman millstone around the party’s neck. Time will tell.

Remember What This Is All About

This is about getting a better Congress in place, now, and laying the groundwork for the next presidential race. It is not about choosing someone to spend your life with on a desert island. It is not about approving someone for your child to date. It is about picking the best person possible to govern, to support good policies, to set an example in politics and life, and to be a leader.

We have every right to expect high standards, to include character and personal responsibility. We also have an obligation to recognize that no one is perfect. Standards are reasonable to expect. It is also our obligation to look at each candidate and ask, Compared to whom? Someone is going to be elected for all these positions. To simply say I don’t like anyone and will sit it out is a blank check given to the worst candidates.

Let’s not do that.

See You Next Week

We will be talking about character again next week, unless events bump out the planned discussion, but in a very different framework.

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts ( https://agentsofreason.substack.com )

(3) You are welcome to share this post with anyone. It is easy to pass on via email, of course, but also on Facebook, Blue Sky, LinkedIn, Reddit, or other social media.

Let’s grow our circle.

Agents of Reason

Agents of Reason is about American dialogue, challenges, and solutions.

By Bill Clontz

First, an Administrative Tip

As readers know, this blog recently migrated to Substack. The transition has been pretty smooth and almost all our readers made the transition with us. Thank you! And thanks to the new readers coming on board since the changeover.

One thing about new technologies is sometimes we miss new capabilities that come with the transitions. I myself did not know that when you open one of these posts, you have an option to have it read to you as an audio post. A rather nice voice delivers the blog as an audio, should you so desire. I did not know it until a reader (also known as my wife) commented on it!

If you open a posting on a computer, you should see three dots at the upper right corner of your screen. Clip on that to find a PLAY AUDIO choice. On a phone, you most likely will see, just below the title, an arrow to LISTEN.

Now, back to today’s discussion.

Still Lots of Bad News But….

There is certainly no shortage of news coming out every day of the Trump people and their supporters in Congress continuing to operate on the basis of Their 3 Cs Foundation- Corruption, Cluelessness, and Cruelty. They will continue to do so at every opportunity until their last day.

But the foundation is – finally - beginning to show some cracks. Take a look at a few hopeful signs now happening.

ICE Prisons

Communities all over the country, including in deep Red areas, are making it clear they do not want ICE detention centers (a polite term for prisons) in their communities. They are passing laws, pressuring businesses not to support ICE, and lobbying officials.

Congressional visits are being pushed, with fierce ICE resistance.

But not all good news here, of course. Congress is passing legislation that gives ICE essentially a bottomless pit of funds through the rest of Trump’s term, not just this year. A blank check with no controls and no accountability. Beware of Trump trying to use ICE as his Brown Shirts Army during the midterms.

What is happening to DACA people is still unconscionable. They were promised protection by the US government to become identified as DACA. Trump is breaking our word as a country and locking up and deporting these people, too. And let us not forget that dozens of people have died in ICE detention just this year. People generally hate ICE and how they operate, but the fight is far from over.

TSA Gold+

TSA has been a political football in every shut down conflict. The employees suffer, passengers are frustrated, security is weakened. In a trail effort to get this off the table, the government is trying out what they call TSA Gold+ in selected cities. What is that? Contractors!

I have to laugh. When we first started getting focused on airport security post 9/11, the work was done with contractors. There were, naturally, some early screw ups and problems, but it could have been solved. Instead, the government decided to make this entire operation one of a government agency and government employees. I thought at the time this was a premature change that likely would be cumbersome, expensive, and subject to political mistreatment. And so it has. This is a mission that good contractors with the right contracts and oversight could do quite well. Let’s hope the beating Trump and company have taken over TSA will lead to more contractor based operations.

Cabinet Secretaries

In a bit of a surprise, Congressional Republicans let Trump know that Pulte would be completely unacceptable as Director of National Security and so he pulled the nomination. The bad news is that he still plans to use him as Acting Secretary, a position he could hold, without Congressional approval, for the rest of this calendar year. There are serious concerns that he will do mass firings in the intelligence community, as Trump has made it clear he wants, doing major damage to our security for decades to come. Let’s hope the Congress makes it known they will raise Trump’s pain if he sticks with Pulte. While they are at it, let him know appointing his personal criminal lawyer as Attorney General is also unacceptable, even to Republican members of Congress.

Votes in Congress

In recent days, one house or the other in Congress has passed increased Russian sanctions, more aid to Ukraine, limits on continued conflict with Iran, killing funding for Trump’s ballroom and his slush fund for felons, and more. Are some Republicans finding some anatomical parts, finally ( a spine or something lower, in a pair)? Maybe. There are now more than a few Republicans who lost their reelection bids or decided to quit because of Trump, others who now see him as a killer for their races in competitive districts. The guy who covers my area in the House of Representatives has been a reliable Trump lapdog; in recent days, all references to and photos of Trump have disappeared off his main web site. Tells you something.

This slight shift has real potential. The plan all along has been to win one or both houses of Congress and stop Trump’s excesses from there. That is still a valid plan, but there might be just enough Republicans in Congress now willing to do the right thing (for various reasons) that could stop some of the excesses now. That weakens Trump further and further calls out those still willing to do his bidding. Really useful work could be accomplished between now and the midterms, not just starting next year. Game on!

Judges Show Up

Results in court cases trying to stop the sins of Trump and company are a mixed bag, with the Supreme Court still being a major failure of judicial functioning, but a lot of courts all over the country are stepping up and doing the right thing.

The judge reopening the Trump IRS suit to answer questions of illegality and failure of government officials to do their job is terrific news. Forcing the removal of Trump’s name from the Kennedy Center is a small but satisfying thing. It actually could be a big thing, as Trump keeps messing with Washington real estate (reflecting pool, White House and grounds, his arch project, etc.) Getting his overextended hands slapped is a good thing. Hope to see more of it.

Voter Turnout

Voting patterns in special elections and primaries has been impressive this year. Most significantly, Democratic voters are turning out in record numbers everywhere. So too are independent voters, many of which tend to vote Democratic, and large numbers of people who voted in significant numbers for Trump last time, but this time are making it known they think they made a mistake last time (Latinos, farmers, and others). Add to that some pretty impressive candidates the Democrats are fielding (not all of them of course, but many) and the trend has psychological effect now, power implications in due course.

Other Items of Note

Two other notes not related to today’s post overall, but worth a moment to address:

So-called Secretary Hegseth arbitrarily decided that about 180 of the 200+ religions recognized by the military for individual service members to self-identify are not worth documenting, lumping them all into “Other.” You will not read a blog by anyone less religious than me, but this step is wrong on so many counts. Such arrogance is yet one more reason this guy is my Number 1 cabinet member to be fired – not another day with this SOB, please.

On a lighter note, someone is floating a dream idea for media. Put together a package that includes ALL the 60 Minutes crew + Colbert and put them on PBS (which gets no federal funds anymore) into a new and credible program, a 60 Minutes, Part II.

Love it. I would pay a serious subscription fee to help that happen.

See You Next Week

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts. ( https://agentsofreason.substack.com )

(3) You are welcome to share this post with anyone. It is easy to pass on via email, of course, but also on Facebook, Blue Sky, LinkedIn, Reddit, or other social media.

Let’s grow our circle.

Agents of Reason

Agents of Reason is about American dialogue, challenges, and solutions.

By Bill Clontz

The Amateur Hour Meets Attention Deficit Disorder

As of this writing, no arrangement of any form is in place with Iran and the US, other than a pitiful little version of a ceasefire. Something may come about shortly, but it seems that whenever it comes close, Trump goes bonkers on social media at 2am in the morning and things get set back once again.

What is happening now is so natural when you have an administration that does not understand the difference between military victory and strategic victory (more on that in a future post – knowing the difference is as important as it gets) and one uses amateurs to negotiate. US foreign policy is generally run by Trump’s real estate buddy and Trumps son-in-law. We have seen before how well that goes.

How To Assess Whatever Does Come Out of These Talks

I expect what will come out will be some amended form of the cease fire and a structure to continue talks on the major issues. Such talks likely will drag on much longer than this Administration calls for.

The Iranians will look to run out the clock on Trump, who in any case has lost interest in his war. He is more focused on ball rooms, making money out of the presidency, and further trying to cripple the US Government.

We do have a pretty good comparison tool- the treaty negotiated by the Obama administration in 2015. It will be interesting to see how the major criteria stack up in comparing these two end-states. One could start with a checklist something like this:

1. Did the Administration meet the goals it set for the negotiations?

- The Obama agreement did, in every major area.

- Has Team Trump met ANY of the various and changing objectives it set?

(Regime change, open Strait, oil, nuclear threat, Abraham Accords)

2. What are the effects on our critical weapons stockpiles?

- Not an issue with the 2015 accords.

- We have exhausted major stockpiles of key and expensive weapons, some of which will require a decade to replace, some of which the manufacturer no longer exists. Serious strategic impact. Was it worth it?

3. How have Russia and China viewed the accords?

- They likely did not have strong feelings either way on the 2015 accords and
likely gave Obama credit for getting it done.

- China clearly dislikes the interruption of oil flow they need; Russia got a boost in oil sales, thanks to Trump’s permission. Both surely see the US as weaker and more isolated now. Both likely see possible advantages for themselves, in Ukraine and in Taiwan.

4. Is the US stronger as a world leader or weaker, more isolated?

- Likely a marginal increase in US standing in 2015, but not a major boost.

- On every possible count and by every commentary, the US is weaker, more isolated, and with less standing just about everywhere out of the Iran conflict.

5. Was good military advice sought and listened to by senior officials?
- Second hand information would indicate this was the case in 2015. No doubt
senior military leaders spoke to the risks and challenges with the Straight and in
a war with Iran.

- If Team Trump got such advice, they clearly ignored it. And they may well have
not received anywhere near as much as they should have, since Hegseth has
fired almost two dozen of our most experienced and senior military leaders
perhaps a coincidence that almost all were female and/or minorities…).

6. Effects on US and world economies (especially allies, but opponents, too)?
- The US has roaring inflation that continues to grow and spread. The risk of
falling into stagflation is significant. All this has led to ominous trends in the
bond market, where we finance our debt.

- The world economy has been knocked on its butt due to shortages of oil,
fertilizer and other essentials, along with the continued uncertainties in all this.

7. Was there a Plan B?

- I don’t know if there was a Plan B for the 2015 agreement, but given that they
used professional, regionally experienced diplomats and consulted fully with the
military, it would be surprising if they did not have options and varied scenarios
fully developed.

- Clearly Trump had no Plan B, and still does not have one. Netanyahu convinced
him of the mission. Trump, in a truly, seriously odd conclusion, decided this would
be just like Venezuela. It would be difficult to imagine two more different
missions, theaters of operation, or opposing forces.

You Get The Idea

Time will tell what comes of all this and what sort of accords are developed, but the trends and odds do not look good for the US in any area of analysis and outcomes. Trump has done serious damage with all of this, with the full concurrence of the Republican Congress.

I am reminded of a humorous rewrite of a famous quote:

“Those who do not know history are doomed to repeat it. Those who know it are doomed to watch them repeat it.”

See you next week.

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts ( agentsofreason.substack.com )

(3) You are welcome to share this post with anyone. It is easy to pass on via email, of course, but also on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google Plus, Reddit, or other social media.

Let’s grow our circle.

Agents of Reason

Agents of Reason is about American dialogue, challenges, and solutions.

By Bill Clontz

A Slush Fund For Criminals

So, Trump as an individual sued the IRS, which he now runs, for $10 billion dollars. He settled with himself by calling off the suit (before a judge ruled such a suit unacceptable on so many grounds) in return for almost $1.8 billion in a slush fund to “compensate” those who were investigated, indicted, and/or convicted during the Biden administration.

Trump would appoint all but one member of a “board” to pass out the funds and he retains the authority to fire any and all board members. No funds have been allocated by Congress for this fiasco. The administration claims that they can use funds set aside for other purposes clearly does not pass the commonsense test., not to mention the smell test.

We are talking about using taxpayer money to reward those who broke the law and attacked police officers at Trump’s urging. He already pardoned them. Now he wants to give them a bonus. Sure would help in recruiting another Brown Shirt milia for the 2028 elections, perhaps even for the midterms this year.

The Fund Is Not The Worst Part

But as bad as all that is with the funds, that is not the worst part. Included in this process is a commitment by the IRS to stop all audits of Trump and to commit to never auditing any of his actions or that of his family, forever. Think about that. Why would any agency actually meeting its obligations even consider such a blanket authorization to cheat on taxes forever. Trump has managed to make the IRS a personal scam machine, just as he did the Justice department.

Almost surely a court will strike down the no audits forever clause and may well strike down the slush fund as well. If only they do so before the money is passed out.

Stock Purchases

Pretty well everyone who has even casually looked at the evidence agrees that this is, by a wide margin, the most corrupt administration in history. Note all the reports over just the last month of large stock purchases Trump made in his personal accounts of several companies, just days or hours before government decisions were announced that enhanced stock values. He also purchased a number of stocks and then went on the air to talk up what great companies these are and everyone should buy their stocks now. That is insider trading, pure and simple. We will talk about the emoluments clause in a moment.

The Ball Room, Big Arch, and Reflecting Pool

And let us not forget the various bogus construction projects underway.

We have all read about the ridiculous ball room plan. It is so bad and so corrupt that even this Congress appears ready to strip funding for it in the pending budget legislation. This little project went from zero tax dollars to a proposed billion of our dollars. My hope is that the darn thing will never be built and the next administration will endeavor to make right as possible the damage that has been done.

Work has already begun on Trumps arch program, which would be an immense eyesore overseeing Arlington National Cemetery. None of the reviews required have been done, no funds have been properly allocated, but soil is being moved.

The effort with the Reflecting Pool in front of the Lincoln memorial is a perfect example of all that is wrong with Trump’s edifice complex. The company chosen to do the work got the contract in a no bid award. They have never done a project like this, have never done a federal project. But hey, they did some pool work for Trump in Florida, so there we are.

The Pool is a surprisingly complex and difficult thing to maintain. It has had problems for years and likely does need major rebuilding. Instead what it is getting is a poor quality paint and sealant application, which is not going well. Oh, and a footnote. The price has gone up over eight times the original quote and is likely to get still costlier. Something almost sacred is being done up in a tacky and useless manner.

In My Own State, Republicans Rushes To Complete Ruining NC

But Mr. Trump is not alone. Republican legislators and governors around the country are happily joining him in efforts to restrict voting and to undermine local governance. My own state of NC has two such examples working their way through the process to get on the ballot in November.

One of these fixes the tax rate in the state constitution. Future legislatures would have no power to raise taxes, no matter the need, no matter whatever crisis arises. The second proposal takes away from local governments the ability to set property taxes, reserving that power only to the state legislature – a body that is one of the worst national examples of gerrymandering.

I grew up in NC. For many years, it was a model state in investing in education, infrastructure, and other key areas. It did so mostly under Democrat governors, but not exclusively, and much got done with bipartisan support. For years, NC lead the region in education investment. Today, after several years of Republican super majorities through gerrymandering, the state now ranks dead last in education investment.

We have seen the results of efforts like locked in tax rates, lack of local control over finances, and moves to continuously cut business taxes. We saw all this years ago when Californians, wooed by the promise of lower taxes, passed Proposition 10. What followed was over a decade of decline, budget crisis, and service cuts. Let us hope NC voters are smart enough to reject such things, keeping taxation as an ongoing responsibility and trusting local communities to decide their own local tax rates.

The Midterms Are The Crossroads

As everyone knows, the coming midterm elections are important like none before. Changing who runs one or both houses of Congress can put the brakes on the worst actions, shine light on what is wrong, and ensure all know who, including legislators, are responsible for all this.

Know that Trump and company will do anything and everything to outright steal the election. Let us hope we are up to the challenge. If not, any restoration of America seems unlikely in the foreseeable future. It is all on the table for this one.

Thinking The Unthinkable

Two efforts to impeach Trump failed to win convictions and it is difficult to imagine a different outcome should a third try come about. My own instinct is to acknowledge that this is close to a useless tool – no one has ever been convicted in impeachment. But looking at Trumps excesses, his corruption, and his clear mental and psychological problems, it might actually come about that another impeachment comes about and this time succeeds. I doubt it, but we are in a Neverland now. Almost anything seems possible.

See you next week.

I wrote this posting as we came into Memorial Day. Those who made the ultimate sacrifice did not do so for what our country is now. We all deserve better. Those we would honor for service and sacrifice deserve better from us in defending our values, in serving the values they represent so fully.

So, ensure your registration to vote is in order, remind others what this Congress has wrought, and hang in there for the long fight.

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts ( agentsofreason.substack.com )

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(Steps image on this blog today created by AI)

What Next, America?

I would suggest that three sets of steps can deliver the America that should be – or at least get us on the right path forward. Each set of steps have lots more internal steps, of course, but overall just 3, 6, and 2 major steps equip us to be a better country.

Three Steps to a Worthy, Working Government

The upcoming mid-term elections look really good for Democrats almost everywhere, although that is by no means a guarantee (more on that in a moment). But even then, Trump still occupies the White House and the Supreme Court is as bad as ever. Once the midterms are in, we have two more years until a presidential election. If the Democrats are smart, they will use the time from now until the first Tuesday of November 2028 carrying out the following three steps.

1. Don’t let the elections be rigged or stolen: The threat here is not overblown. Trump and a bunch of others clearly intend to do anything and everything not to win elections, but to outright steal them. The shameful round of gerrymandering now underway, with full Supreme Court encouragement, is already in place and likely to grow still more. Leading up to midterms, ensure the people know the specifics of how they have been abused and mocked, all made possible by their Republican “representatives“ in Congress.

There are over 30,000 local election officials in the country. Our job is to support the good ones, call out the partisan crooks, and be visible every day, on watch. If the election is honest, a corner is turned. If it is stolen, it is hard to see a better day ever coming around.

2. Use the power to control Congress smartly: Start with detailed, sworn testimony hearings on abuses, lies, and potential crimes. Use the January 6 Joint Committee as a role model. Ensure people know exactly how their tax money has been stolen and misused, how the Administration has failed to deliver almost anything it promised.

Of singular importance, call out the Republican Congress that underwrote all the bad news, refusing even once to put the country first. No crimes documented will be prosecuted by this Administration, but some may be referred to states and likely all will be within the statutes of limitation to prosecute after the next national election.

3. Legislate as though the government was in good hands: Pass very specific legislation that will right the wrongs of the Trump administration and the Republican congress. If Republicans vote against such bills, call them out by name in their districts, illustrating how that hurts citizens. If a bill cannot pass because of the Senate 60 vote rule, call them out and target them with a vengeance for their next election.

If Trump vetoes such a bill, which he will, ensure people know what they lose because of Trump and his congressional backers. Show people that if given back the presidency and the Congress, this is specifically what Democrats will make into law.

In short, given control of at least one house of Congress, use the time and power to call out misdeeds and show the legislation that a Democratic government would make happen.

Six Priorities for Loyalty, in Order

We all remember from high school psychology Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (food, water, safety, etc.). I would posit that in the same sort of framework every government official or elected member of a legislative body carries a hierarchy of loyalty and obligation to serve. More times than not, these 6 elements of loyalty do not conflict, and which is most important could vary in a case by case basis. But where they do conflict, we have a right to expect loyalty to go to the right place. In my view, here is the loyalty hierarchy:

· Constitution

· Country

· Constituents (for elected officials)

· Institution (Congress, etc.)

· Party

· Self

If someone wants to be elected, I want a pledge from them to honor this order of priority and I would cite specific examples over the last two years (cabinet appointments, budget votes, etc.) where the priority was clearly Party and Self over all others. That should be a ticket to unemployment or denial of election for those who hesitate to get it right.

Two Lessons from the Beijing Summit

We still do not know much of what transpired during the Trump trip to China. It appears that it may not have been as bad as it could have been, but time will tell. It is apparent that not much substantive happened (let’s see how much soybean and how many airplanes are actually sold). But two lessons do seem clear that we should keep in mind going forward:

One, China played Trump like a violin. There were many obvious and subtle elements of disrespect toward Trump and the US. Trump caught none of it. The Chinese must have been amused, to say the least. The Chinese join the Russians and others who know that Trump is incapable and easy to manipulate, that the current Congress will offer no corrections, and that America is weaker now.

Two, Trump waivered enough on Taiwan to make me nervous, and the Taiwanese as well, I expect. This is a major issue with China, beyond reason in the importance they give the issue. The US does well to not pick a fight as best we can, but Trump’s rather wobbly response to the issue, coupled with the exhaustion of key weapons and assets in Iran, could encourage China to move on Taiwan sooner rather than later.

America is no longer, at least for now, a reliable partner. Take a look at American Heather’s blog the day after the summit for an excellent layout of just how weak Trump was, and made the US look. A sad read, but spot on:

Ending today on a (semi) joke from Borowitz:

See You Next Week

It appears some lively days are ahead. Much of the corruption in this administration is finally coming to light (truly, this is the worst our country has ever experienced and we only know of a fraction of it so far). Some Republican members of Congress are actually worried enough about defense decisions in Europe to call out what passes for defense leadership these days. And we are still six months from the midterms. What a year this will be.

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts (

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By Bill Clontz

).

(3) You are welcome to share this post with anyone. It is easy to pass on via email, of course, but also on Facebook, Blue Sky, LinkedIn, Reddit, or other social media.

Let’s grow our circle.

The title for today’s blog comes from a poem by William Congreve, written in 1697. His phasing borrowed from ancient Greek writings. We have all known, since time immemorial, how music is so intertwined with art, emotions, community, and so much more that is the human experience.

Long time readers of this blog may remember that some time back I included a short video clip of someone who plays music for animals. Music seems to have similar effects on them. Truly a universal experience. If you missed that earlier link, here is a short sample of his playing for several different species. Enjoy!

In Search of American Music

Last week, we went on something of a double adventure. First, we signed up for our initial tour with Road Scholars, a group that caters to senior travelers. A fine experience all the way around.

But the whole point in doing this trip was to learn more about American music. We spent a week between Nashville and Memphis, learning about the roots, the development, the world that is American music. By the end of the week, we were in awe of it all.

We knew there would be much to learn and experience, but we had in the beginning no idea of how little we knew and how much was available for those who seek the experience.

American Music?

All music, it seems, has complicated and ancient roots and so calling something just American Music is a bit inaccurate, but still, there is a broad range of music that is fairly associated with our country.

This tour was advertised as focusing mainly on Country & Western and Blues, and so it did. We have never been much into the former but we thought it worth learning more about. Blues has always been a big one for me, but I knew there was more to learn.

“More to learn” was quite an understatement. We thought we would focus on the two aforementioned types of music, but quickly learned there were important, distinctive variations and spin offs that stand as identifiable forms of music. By my count, we delved into 16 major forms of music. What a buffet we had walked into!

Major Lessons Learned

• While there are those many identifiable forms of music, they all blend and mix in infinite variety. Those in the music communities honor and safeguard their “sound,” but readily welcome the chance to mix in the other strains of music.

• Tradition counts – a lot. The sense of reverence for those who came before the current crop of musicians is palpable and profound. One example is the primary performance circle on the Grand Old Opry stage. The circle is made of wood from the Ryman auditorium, the original home of the Opry. Stars and aspirants have stoon on those boards for almost 100 years.
  
  You can hear the emotion in performers’ voices when they talk about what it feels like to stand in that spot (shown in this photo)– they feel the presence of those who preceded them. They often refer to the classic song, “Will the circle be unbroken?”.

And everywhere we listened to lectures, had conversations, or listened to music, people spoke constantly and specifically about those who inspired them, with the old music still played regularly. I thought it great that those who write the music or the lyrics are as honored as the musicians.

• Music is also big business, and big bucks. Case in point: we attended the Opry on a Tuesday night, in the Spring, with no real big stars on the stage. All 4,400 seats were filled, at an average ticket cost of around $100 each. They fill the auditorium like that every night, all year. Do the math – serious money is the norm.

• Apparently, just about everyone in Nashville and Memphis are aspiring musicians, song writers, or both. Every waiter, tour guide, etc. we met were there to start their own music careers. For most, it is like professional sports – only 1 in 1,000 will make it, but the search will still enrich their lives.

• Music is nonstop in these cities. We heard bands going full volume in multiple places as early as 10 am in the morning on weekdays, with the music going on at night. One of my favorite signs for such a bar advised that they closed the front doors at 3:30 am every day.

• People in the music business really like outrageous, customized cars.

• Elvis was pretty important as something of a bridge from country to spiritual to black to rock music.

Any Lessons Besides Music?

Yes, indeed. Some important lessons were gifts from this trip.

• We have a bit of a family connection to all this. In the early years, Nashville was growing quite the reputation as a Sin City, with lots of bars, partying, etc. Town leaders thought that was OK, but they were taken to task by a nationally known evangelist by the name of Sam Jones. Sam came to one of his revival meetings in Nashville and one of the business leaders went to that service to confront him.
  
  Instead, he was converted and in gratitude built a large tabernacle for Sam to use. When that civic leader died, Sam insisted that the tabernacle be named after him and it became Ryman Hall. Over time, the building also became the home of the Grand Old Opry for many decades. Preacher Sam was the uncle to my wife’s maternal grandmother.

• The music world became the early example of how people of different races can work together for the common good. They did so in music and became early leaders in civil rights and other social drives to make America what it aspires to be. An inspirational model, one that often partnered with Black churches to challenge people to stand up for what is right.

• While Eastern NC still reigns as the Kingdom of BBQ in my book, I must acknowledge that TN in general, and Memphis in particular, do justice to BBQ ribs. As good as I have had the pleasure to consume.

• The two cities we visited were quite different. Nashville felt to us like a modern city on the move, with lots of new construction, many large scale renovations, and striking architecture. All this accompanied by bars and bands centered around Broadway Street. Lots of businesspeople working in diverse domains to make the Next Big Deal. Country Music dominated.
  
  Memphis had more of a New Orleans feel, centered on Beale Street. The Blues rule here. More of a small town feel, but every bit as lively as Nashville.

A Timely Closing Note

One stop on our tour was a long visit to the National Civil Rights museum, built out of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, where Dr. King was assassinated. The museum, like many of its counterparts around the country, was powerful and thought provoking. It was worth the trip just to make this visit.

We look around today and it is easy to get discouraged, as racism and abuses like gerrymandering seem rampant again. The sculpture they have in the entryway to this museum reminds us that getting to justice and being the country we seek to be is a long struggle, by many generations, taking much time by many people and not a straight line to the end.

That journey, as the sculpture depicts, has slowdowns and setbacks, but if people hang on and dig in, eventually we get there. And along the way, a lot of good, courageous people are still doing good things, every day. Comforting thoughts, and inspirational. Those who preceded us sacrificed much - some sacrificed everything - to make progress. Let’s not let them down.

Now, I am off to get some good ribs and an adult beverage, while listening to BB King and reflecting on how to build on what others made possible for us all.

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts ( agentsofreason.substack.com)

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(3) You are welcome to share this post with anyone. It is easy to pass on via email, of course, but also on Facebook, Bluesky, LinkedIn, Reddit, or other social media.

Let’s grow our circle.

There Are Meals That Fill Our Memory Banks

There are meals, snacks, drinks, and similar items, that fill our memory banks throughout life. Most of those memories are good, some not so much so, but they all really stick with us. The combinations of sight, smell, and taste tap big memory triggers for us all.

This Idea Got Us Talking, Yielding A List of Fine Memories

We got to thinking about all that the other day and that led us to come up with our Top 10 list. Take a little memory tour with us now, and I bet this will trigger similar memories for you.

We had the good fortune of living in France for a few years, so naturally a good number of these memories come from there. The French take their food – and wine – seriously and we were glad to join in with them.

But as you will see on the discussion that follows, some of these great memories come from much more local, even humble, settings.

Enjoy! And share your food/dining memories in the chat.

Wine

This one came from visitors we had early in our time living in France. Some distant relatives came to visit and we worked at giving them a great experience in France. They asked if we could have dinner somewhere right on the Champs Elysee. We said sure, warning them that such an experience would be pricey and that they would also see a lot of tourists mixed in. They were still eager for that experience, so off we went to Brasserie Fouquet, a classic restaurant that had been there since 1899.

Once there, one of our visitors declared that he wanted me to order a bottle of wine for the ages, one that they likely would never experience anything similar again. I was up to the challenge but reminded him he might need a cosigner for the wine bill. Do it, he said. I sadly have forgotten the exact choice, but remember it was a wonderful, old Bourdeaux.

I knew we had chosen well when the wine steward himself brought it to the table, a dusty bottle cradled in a wooden case. He carefully decanted it and we enjoyed the magic. It was such a big deal wine that we had extra attentive service all night. I can still taste that wine.

Bread

One of my great weaknesses is bread. We have enjoyed it all over the world; our two samples here come from the American West.

For about a year, we lived in Mineral Wells, Texas, a fairly small and somewhat remote community about 100 miles from Fort Worth (a community hit with bad tornados just last week). It was once a resort town, but now was a small, remote community – a perfect place to train new Army helicopter pilots like me.

There was a very casual diner there that featured things like country fried steak, but their real claim to fame was delicious yeast rolls. A fresh, hot plate of them was placed on your table as soon as you sat down, with the basket refilled as often as desired. I think I began losing the battle of the waist then and there. All that butter contributed to the effect.

The second bread winner was in California. We had just gotten off the plane from Hawaii and went over to Oakland to pick up our car at the dock, which we had shipped from Hawaii. We drove over to San Francisco and stopped at a local deli to get a few supplies before starting our drive up the length of Highway 1 through the Red Woods. In the store we found a rack of sourdough, still warm from the oven – maybe the most perfect food on Earth. We got a large round of hot sourdough, butter, and bottled water, consuming it all the way to the Oregon border.
Food of the gods!

Fish

Two entries here, both American, both out West.

We were making a cross country drive and were in a really remote part of Colorado. Out of nowhere appeared a restaurant right next to a mountain stream. We had probably the best trout we have ever eaten. Bet the fish we ate was swimming by that place a couple of hours prior. As a bonus, we had a cold Coors beer with lunch – this was back in the day when Coors was not available in most of the country – and before their politics got unpleasant.

The other fish story was on another trip, at the time just outside Seattle. We enjoyed for the first time salmon smoked on a rack, Native American style. They were smoked right there in the restaurant. I can still smell that smoke and savor that wonderful flavor.

Settings

Some places are as memorable for their setting as for their food.

Top of that list for us is Train Bleu, in the Gard de Lyon train station in Paris. It was elegant beyond description. We always asked to sit along the outer edge, overlooking the trains and platforms. One halfway expected to see Humphrey Bogart in the crowd.

Meals Overall

Good things are not always fancy.

We used to favor a small restaurant in Carmel, CA that was justly famous for delicious chicken croquets – we still use their recipe. And they came in second place on our list in the yeast rolls category.

Going back to Paris memories, we found early on a wonderful place that has been around for decades, but a bit off the beaten path and not well known to tourists and expats. This was Chez l’Ami Louis, in the Marais district. They are still in business, but known to all now, with crowds and prices ascendent.

We loved their lamb (see the photo). Carved at table side by waiters who had been there for years, served with perfectly prepared and matched vegetables, and excellent wine at reasonable prices. Pretty much a perfect meal every time.

One much less fancy setting - some years ago we were living in Boston and had ourselves on a rigorous diet. For New Year’s eve, we wandered around several sites offering entertainment. At a plaza in the historic district, we came across a vendor with a cart, selling sausages with peppers and onions on steamed buns. We purred in that cool night air, convinced we were eating the best meal possible on planet Earth at that moment.

Surprises

One of our “event meals” in Paris was to have Duck at Tour D’Argent, right down the River Seine from Notre Dame. They have been serving here, with duck as the specialty, since the Middle Ages. Gorgeous place, great menu, elegant service. Only drawback – my wife got a mild case of food poisoning from it!

Just to prove you never know where something good will pop up in an unexpected place. When we lived in Monterey, CA we were surprised to find some of the best country ham we have ever enjoyed at a Holiday Inn on the beach. The breakfast menu had about a paragraph explaining to people what country ham is and preparing them for that unique, salty taste. Never did find out where they got the ham, but it was a blue ribbon winner.

Let’s end this saga back in Paris. We were on a holiday trip in the Burgundy wine region, spending the night at what we would think of as a bed and breakfast, right in the middle of a vineyard. For dinner, our hostess gave a long description of their special for the evening, Trois Amusants (roughly translates to 3 amusing things). My French was pretty decent by that point, but her speed and accent lost me. I was too proud to admit that and she seemed so proud of the disk, that I ordered it.

My wife ordered a beautiful, generous plate of buttered chicken. My amusants were 3 little items, each about the size of half your thumb. I don’t even remember what it was made of, but looking at the size of this entrée, I thought to myself, “Well, I am not amused.” I certainly looked forward to a full breakfast the next morning.

What About You?

I hope this little tour brought out some good memories for you of memorable eating. Feel free to share with the rest of us.

Bill Clontz

If you find this blog worthy of your time and curiosity, I invite you to do three things:

(1) Join the conversation. Your voice counts here.

(2) Share the word about this post with friends and colleagues. Share a link in your emails and social media posts ( https://agentsofreason.substack.com ).

(3) You are welcome to share this post with anyone. It is easy to pass on via email, of course, but also on Facebook, Blue Sky, LinkedIn, Reddit, or any other social media.

Let’s grow our circle.

So Many Advancements. So Many More To Go

We talked about this in Part I, two weeks ago, that have we not made as much progress as one might expect, primarily in science and technology. This week we will pick up where we left off, starting with medical advances, then moving on to a more amorphous collection, not all of them technology related but still relevant for civilizational progress.

Let’s see what is next.

MEDICINE

“Engine Check Light” For The Body: One might reasonably have expected that by now we would have some sort of monitoring and warning system in various parts of the human body, a system that could sound an alarm or an advisory if something was failing or under attack, before symptoms were obvious. Think what an amazing advance that would be, isolating problems before they were a danger. It could be a message that goes to one’s smart phone, for example. For those adverse to technology, maybe just a red light on the forehead that lights up when activated (OK, kidding on that last one.).

Medical Nanobots: Connected with the above mentioned monitoring system, we could have remarkably small nanobots that could go anywhere in the body, programmed to go to the correct area and repair or destroy something. There actually are, as I understand it, some prototypes already in existence. These are unimaginably tiny things that can be quite “smart,” and flexible. At the end of their task they could go inactive and standby for the next commands, reproduce, or self-destroy. I think we are close to having this technology deployed. What a game changer this could be.

End of Cancer: When I was growing up, cancer was often referred to as “the C word.” People were so frightened of it that they would not even say the word. We came to understand that cancer is actually a plethora of diseases, amazingly complex, varied, and adaptive. We actually have made great progress on many fronts; having cancer is no longer automatically a death sentence. But it is still widespread in its many forms and still kills so many people. Maybe those nanobots will help us in the fight, and the “engine check light” will enable us to catch it much sooner.

Organic Replacement Organs: We have some very rudimentary abilities to grow cells, but not yet full organs. I can imagine a time when a sample of your personal DNA can be programmed to grow you a new liver or lung or eyeball in a fairly short time. Think of how many people die every year will awaiting a donor organ. This is death not because of a lack of medical capacity so much as it is a supply problem.

But the ability to grow tailored, personal organs would solve that problem and make transplants remarkably easier to execute successfully. In the meantime, you can help out – if you are not already a designated organ donor, become one and get it noted on your driver’s license. Think what a gift that could be, your last one and perhaps your greatest one.

Alzheimer’s Cured: No reason to expect we would have Alzheimer’s and other dementias cured by now, but one might hope we could be closer. A lot of research is going on, but there is not much to arrest the disease, less more cure it or minimize it. At this point, we really do not understand what it really is and how it works. For current generations, this is the one to fear, as cancer was to earlier generations.

Addictions Eliminated: There has been some good progress in understanding exactly how addictions work in the brain, and some very promising work with micro-dosing of hallucinogens to overcome addiction, but we are still not there and have not even begun to address some addictions. My hunch is we will get some breakthroughs sooner rather than later; what a game changer that could be for so many people.

Longer Dog Lives: How is it that parrots can live 70 years, turtles for 200+ years, but our beloved dogs and cats generally only have 12-20 years with us? Probably an unbreakable puzzle, but boy, what would we all give to have another decade or decades with our beloved pets.

OTHER AREAS

Star Trek Replicators: One of everyone’s favorite Star Trek fantasies, just tell the replicator what you want and it fabricates it on the spot. Probably not in our lifetime, but fun to think about. What would you want fabricated on demand?

Mostly 3D Printing Construction: I really expected we would be much further along on this one than we are now. There are isolated examples of such construction spreading around the globe. It is a remarkable, workable technology. The old way of building structures is about like the aforementioned highway paving process. We should be way more into 3D printing for construction, especially for affordable housing. The darn stuff works! Let’s get to it.

Metric System & 24 hour Clock: - You know, like the rest of the world. On the metric system, this is a mysterious failure of the Carter Administration – he stopped the transition just after the effort began and never gave a really good reason why. It drove the business community nuts, and I agree with them. Exactly three countries do not use the metric system: the US, Liberia, and Myanmar. Fine company we are keeping.

On continuing to use the 12 hour vs the 24 hour clock, we are one of only 18 countries still doing this, with we and India being the large ones. Every one of the remaining 195 countries on earth long ago saw the logic and clarity of using a 24 hour clock. I embedded the 24 clock long ago, as the US military uses it. To you it may be 2 pm; to me it is 1400 hours. Maybe if we called it Trump Time, someone would dictate the change!

Less Racism: This one is not about technology. If you told me 30 years ago, that we would be where we are in dealing with racism today, I would have been skeptical. Surely by now, following the peak of the Civil Rights era, we would have left much of this ugliness behind us. Sadly, not even close. Not a technology issue on this one, but a failure of the human heart and mind. We should be better than this, but this American curse lingers far too deeply and wide. Sigh.

OK, What Is On Your List?

This is just one man’s ruminations on where I thought we could be by now. How about you? Anything on our two-part list ring a bell for you or do any of these seem really dumb to even think about? What is on your list not covered here? Share your thoughts with us.

See you next week.

Bill Clontz

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