VOTE!!

VOTE!!
The President, his associates and Russia are deliberately chipping away at America’s long standing, democratic pillars: form of government; respect for the law; rich mix of ethnicities and nationalities; freedoms—free and independent press and religious practice; the intelligence community; and leadership built on a foundation of solid ethics, morals, values and principles.
Daily deception, incompetence and lies certainly undermine the traditional values of this country; and are certainly indicative of a President and associates who twist and distort the truth for personal benefit and financial rewards for personal wealth building. An environment of no leadership and deepening political warfare shine light on political gain in lieu of ethical-moral responsibility, objectivity and service to Americans served. James Comey, former Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, in A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies, and Leadership, captures the reality of today’s America quite well:
Donald Trump’s presidency threatens much of what is good in this nation…this president is unethical, and untethered to truth and institutional values…transactional, ego driven, and about personal loyalty…Whatever your politics, it is wrong to dismiss the damage to the norms and traditions that have guided the presidency and our public life for decades or, in many cases, since the republic was founded…Policies come and go. Supreme Court justices come and go. But the core of our nation is our commitment to a set of shared values that began with George Washington—to restraint and integrity and balance and transparency and truth…Thoughtful people are staring at the vicious partisanship that has grown all around us. Far from creating a new norm where lying is widely accepted, the Trump presidency has ignited a focus on truth and ethics. Parents are talking to their children about truth-telling, about respect for all people, about rejecting prejudice and hate. Schools and religious institutions are talking about values-driven leadership…The next president, no matter the party, will surely emphasize values—truth, integrity, respect, and tolerance—in ways an American leader hasn’t needed to for more than forty years.
Great leaders and leadership uncover goodness and practice goodness; and the art of goodness includes being truthful, authentic, caring and courageous. These attributes constitute integrity: coupling intentions, promises and commitments with actions. Quite simply: walk the talk and model the way as a person, in relations and when helping and supporting others. A mutual challenge is to frequently chat with the kids, the grandkids, spouses, friends, loved ones, teachers and religious and spiritual leaders about the crying demand for awakening, growing and nurturing quality leadership, ethics and morals. As Tolsty reminds, “…it’s impossible to describe a man (woman), but it is possible to describe the effect he (she) has on me.” Coupling that with the wisdom of Shinichi Suzuki, “Living is dying…try to die well,” leaves us with a wise formula: join diverse groups; be a good leader and follower; commit to 100% responsibility (Life happens because of me and not to me!) to protect American democracy; and VOTE.
Resources

• Collusion: Secret Meetings, Dirty Money, and How Russia Helped Donald Trump Win (Harding, Random House, 11-16-2017)
• Demagogue: The Fight to Save Democracy from Its Worst Enemies (Singer, Macmillan, 2-3-2009)
• Democracy In Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right’s Stealth Plan for America (MacLean, Penguin, 6-13-17)
• Facts and Fears: Hard Truths from a Life in Intelligence (Clapper & Brown, Penguin, 5-22-18)
• Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House (Wolff, Macmillan, 1-5-2018)
• How Democracies Die (Levitsky & Ziblatt, Random House, 1-16-2018)
• It’s Even Worse Than You Think: What the Trump Administration Is Doing to America (Johnston, Simon & Schuster, January 16, 2018)
• Putin’s Kleptocracy: Who Owns Russia (Dawisha, Random House, 9-30-2014)
• Red Notice: A True Story of High Finance, Murder, and One Man’s Fight (Browder, Simon & Schuster, 3-15-2015)
• Russian Roulette: The Inside Story of Putin’s War on America and the Election of Donald Trump (Michael Isikoff & David Corn, Hachette, 3-13-18)
• Sovereign Duty (Hall, Kindle, 8-25, 2014)
• Trump and Post-Truth World (Wilber, Random House, 11-8-2017)
• Trumpocracy: The Corruption of the American Republic (Frum, Harper Collins, 1-16-2018)
• Washington Rules: America’s Path to Permanent War [American Empire Project] (Bracevich, Macmillan, 8-3-2010)
• What Happened (Clinton, Simon & Schuster, 9-20-2017)
• 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos (Peterson, Random House, 1-23-2018)