One Day More
it's the end of the beginning, rather than an ending altogether.
Hi. It’s been a while.
Before I proceed, for those of you who don’t know me - intimately or otherwise - I’m just somebody whom you might know from The Internet™.
I’ll cut to the chase: I am a person with mental illness who struggles with crippling feelings of self-doubt and on bad days, utter contempt for myself. Perhaps you’re like this, too. If so, I am sorry. The upshot of all this is that I spiral into self-loathing and paralysis. After decades of this, my brain is terrifyingly, excruciatingly adept at taking any stimulus — say, a one-word response to a text message — and turning it into a referendum on my own worth as a person (you are shit, and shit is all you’ll ever be, so good luck, motherfucker!ˆ). Maybe you’re familiar with this; hopefully, not. On top of that, I’ve both been swamped at work, and dealing with a non-Covid-19 illness.
All that to say: I haven’t sent this newsletter in a long time because I tell myself that I don’t have any ideas, and that even when I do have ideas, they aren’t worth sharing. I imagine you opening this email and reading these words with disgust. I see a mass unsubscribing, an inevitable and total rejection.
Is this rational? Not at all. But it is the reality of how my brain works in the best of circumstances; and as we all know, these are pretty much the worst of circumstances. But here’s the thing: that isn’t fair to me, and it isn’t fair to you, folks. It’s not fair to ascribe the worst of motives to you; it’s not fair to use you to engage in my self-hatred.
I read this comic by Sarah Mirk on Instagram, and it really hit home for me:
We are mired in anger and despair and grief and exhaustion and frustration and it feels like we’re going nowhere fast and let me tell you, it is fucking corrosive. There’s going to be at least one generation — if not more — dealing with the psychological aftermath of these hellish years. It’s been nearly 20 years since I went to war, and I still toss, turn, shout, and launch myself awake after nightmares. I’m not exaggerating when I say that the pervasive dread, the looming sense of inevitable mortality we’ve felt in this pandemic year is the closest I’ve come since then to what war felt like.
Anyway: I’m not fishing for compliments. But I do have things I want to say, things I need to get off my chest, and I hope you’re around to listen and read, if nothing else.
Election Day’s tomorrow. I’ve spent the past few weeks and months donating money, doing text banks, helping out with logistical stuff, and otherwise trying to do my part.
First, voter protection. Go ahead and grab this photo. Share it. It’s absolutely vile that the Republican Party is trying to steal the election by trying to toss out valid votes in various ways, whether by voter intimidation or bogus lawsuits. Look, I’m a staunch leftist, and I believe that every vote should count. If you’re voting tomorrow, Godspeed and good luck. If you get hassled, call 1-866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683). The Democratic Party hotline is 833-DEM-VOTE (833-336-8683). Those are the national hotlines; other assistance hotlines are below in the photo.
OK, so you’ve voted. It’s time for you to pitch in - if you haven’t already - and get out the vote (GOTV). You can join Powered by People in calling Texas voters here: https://poweredxpeople.org/calling-texas/.
My friend Peter is involved with a grassroots organizing group (Water for Grassroots), and he shares the following:
Get on the phones, stay on the phones!
From 9am-9pm, join this all-day phonebank on Tuesday with community organizing groups in Florida, Pennsylvania, Arizona and other key states. Join every hour, on the hour, and stay as long as you can. Newcomers welcome! A training session is available at the start of each hour.
You’ll choose the state you want to call, and there’ll be chances to debrief & unwind with others calling the same state. Make calls any time on Tuesday with Pennsylvania Stands Up, New Florida Majority, LUCHA in Arizona, Mijente in North Carolina & Georgia, and more. Hosted by our sister group Seed The Vote. Options to make calls in Spanish all day long.
Don’t want to wait ‘til Tuesday? You can make calls Monday with New Florida Majority at 11am, 3:30, or 5:30pm; with PA Stands Up from 10am to 8pm; with Durham For All in North Carolina from 9am to 9pm; with LUCHA in Arizona from 9pm to midnight. On Mobilization Monday, on Turnout Tuesday, you’re needed on the phones!
If you speak Spanish (like me), you can be part of that movement-based effort: join New Florida Majority, Mijente and others in Spanish-language phonebanking in Florida & other states.
OK, so polls have closed. You can either fret and fuss over watching the returns, or you can choose to try to zen out. If it’s the latter, click here for the NYT Election Distractor.
If, instead, you want to follow the returns this is a comprehensive for when to expect election results in every state — plus, whether to expect a blue or red shift based on when results are reported in each state.
Finally, I hate that we have to do this, but: Contrapoints on voting — Natalie takes on some common leftist critiques of voting for Biden, or voting in general. Voting is the absolute fucking minimum level of solidarity we should expect from each other.
Anyway: I love you, and hopefully we get through this.