thank you for this thoughtful response.

i hope you don't mind, i'm pasting my response to jessica's piece because i'm honestly looking for suggestions re: how to make a difference prior prior to the '24 election.

post-covid greed and thuggery wiped me out and i've decided not to stay in this country for lots of reasons... but i'm compelled to do SOMETHING towards saving it before i go.

thanks,

a

i'm fixing to go on a cross-country road trip from california to new york then back to california before leaving for japan and from there... destination europe... for good.

while there's more than one goal to accomplish over the course of my interstate travel specifically—my main goal is to #DoMyPartToSaveOurCountry before the 2024 election—an election i fear will be the beginning of THE END of the America i thought i knew and will always love.

i'm a registered democrat yet at the age of 63 and in light of what i've experienced these last 5 years, specifically, i'm honestly not sure whether encouraging and/or registering my fellow americans to vote democrat is the right action for me to take at this time in our history.

it's what i once believed was right action yet i've recently concluded may be naive at best and worse, just plain ignorant.

this makes me sad, vexed, and angry.

yet it's a quest i'm determined to endeavor.

i'm leaving the country where i was born in upstate new york after 50+ years of life and family in california because i've lost my faith in the system.

i still believe in democratic principles—yet capitalism without putting values and principles into action for ALL THE PEOPLE is nothing more than a pyramid scheme, followed by a superbowl-winners-mindset as far as i'm concerned.

i'm writing this here and now because if anyone out there, including you ms. wildfire... a writer i've come to appreciate for helping me SEE why Act III for me won't take place in the country where i was born and raised.

and i'm determined to DO SOMETHING helpful, kind, and productive before i go.

i would be mighty grateful for any actionable goal towards changing the trajectory of the next 2 years in light of the two-party bind we seem to be in.... at least through the next round of elections.

don't freak out when i ask this cuz i simply can't resist... but WWJD?

respectfully :-),

<3