January 2021

January 6th was a tragic event, but perhaps it will also be a juncture that creates new possibilities. Rather than a herald of our unraveling, it may come to be seen as the moment when the trajectory of the country changed and building a shared commitment to democratic values became possible once again.

Simply put, SARS-related coronaviruses present one of the greatest threats to future pandemics. The original SARS emerged in 2002, the related MERS coronavirus emerged in 2012, and finally, SARS-CoV-2 in 2019.

Jefferson acknowledged current affairs and the divisive partisan politics of the last four years and referred to them as “the conflicting elements of a troubled world.” Biden will do the same.

For a healthy marketplace of ideas to exist, questionable speech must remain in the mainstream where it can be considered, questioned, and refuted.

We are in the midst of the Civil War of 2021. The president is selfish and desperate. Beyond him, there is a political leadership vacuum.

Following the attack on the Capitol last week, the cowardice and short-sighted craftiness of so many of our politicians is analogous to the behavior of Weimar politicians whom Hitler held in contempt.

These camouflage-wearing, gun touting bigots, once the underbelly of our society, have been whipped up and empowered by Trump’s ire. They are a threat to our democracy and have committed violence in various other cities.

Indeed, this need not be a lengthy process. It should be short and decisive: A message to Americans that this is neither who we are nor who we aspire to be.

I look back now and cringe at my naivety and self-assured confidence that the pandemonium, violence, disorder, and corruption suffered by the citizens of these nations could never be visited on the United States.  How wrong I was.