Rollie Williams
patreon
One Week Down
🕑 Added 2024-11-14 15:55:05 +0000 UTCDear Patreon,
There's two ways about it, the election didn't go the way I was hoping. If the past week of political appointments and posturing is any indication, the next few years are going to be pretty rough at the federal level.
To everyone who went out and canvassed and knocked on doors and talked to their friends and voted, thank you very much for the effort. I'm sorry it wasn't enough this time around.
I'm not sure where you're at emotionally, but a few people have messaged me about feeling mad or scared or lost (or some delightful gumbo of the three) and wondering if there was anything to do about it. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, my recommendation is to try getting involved in your local community. You can sign up with a mutual aid program for food or clothing, you can be an education volunteer, you can get involved in a local organizing campaign, the list goes on. Have a little google and see what's out there. And you don't have to commit to anything, just try one out and move to another one if you're not feeling it. This sounds like (and sometimes is) a pain in the ass to get started, but I swear it's worth it.
Not much is going to get done in Washington, but at the local level you can personally put a dent in real problems that affect your neighbors and fellow citizens. The Internet has done a lot to connect people, but it has also been a major force in isolating us. Many of our fellow Americans are convinced that trying to lift some people up is a threat to them, and getting out into your community is a great way to sidestep that particular bullshit. There will be new bullshit (there always is), but you're strong. You can deal. I really hope you give it a try.
See you out there,
Rollie and the Climate Town team
P.S. We're not going anywhere.
Comments
Marilyn Stanwood
Just seeing this. I was wondering what kind of message Climate Town had about the elections. Personally I got so angry, got lots of anxiety and sadness. Had to disconnect from the news and the Internet. Now I'm slowly assimilating what happened. I do volunteer a lot, the main message I got from my volunteering groups is to continue our work but it definitely seems more hopeless. Los Buenos Somos Mas
Dawn Brooks
Awesome advice, I volunteer at a dog shelter! Can we also all come together and only refer to Elon as "president Musk." I really like that it pisses off Republicans. I also think a very public Elon/Trump breakup would be not only hilarious, but also get that guy out of Whitehouse. Our best chance for the next 4 years is there will be so much infighting they don't have a chance to actually do anything.
Nick Geeslin
It’s not exactly political—I will take the advice and look into organized activism—but i have made a habit of volunteering in the local forest preserves. It’s a wholly satisfying activity. If youre in chicago and interested in joining, let me know!
Ronan O'Donnachu
This is such good advice. Thank you Rollie & hope you guys on the other side of the pond are doing ok. 🙏🌍🌱
Jess C
It's good to hear from you. I'm going to volunteer for my local climate friendly politicians race next year. I've never done it before, but I guess it's time. I'm glad to have networks of podcasts on patreon to know lots of us are feeling...lots of things.
Stefen C
Keep strong. Remember Republicans built this up by gaining control at the local levels. So do that. Find people locally and elect them. Dont just focus on who the president, the governor, mayor is. Every elected civil servant matters. School boards, trash, whatever. Find your strong towns and other community groups and be present. But also be present for yourself - you can't do everything at once and if you are worn out.
Eric Carlson
Trump committed insurrection and is Constitutionally ineligible to be President. Why aren't we talking about this more?
Mitchell Mudd
If you have a local strong towns you should join it! It’s great to be involved in something that’s moving the needle without all the partisan politics :) This message brought to you from Strong Towns Holland 🫡💛
Rob
We need Community Centers that are also political. Give benefits to people and clearly say to the community "democrats did this for you" as you are helping them.
marci
just re-upped membership to the ACLU, the first membership of many, for me, i expect!!
Jerry Tinianow
Rollie, a suggestion for an uplifting future episode: The smart voters in Washington State just passed, by a decisive margin, a ballot initiative to keep Gov. Inslee's remarkable carbon tax and investment program in place. It's an interesting story with many twists and turns, including some notable bad guys, but for once we got not only a happy ending but a best practice what other states should look at. We need some happy endings right now.
JL3
Thanks for the kind words, fam. Keep your heads up too, we'll hold down the fort over here
