I don't have any answers. I wish. I'm in an odd state of mind, half migrained half stoned, and just had to get that out.

And the way to combat that is to make sure our kids, the next generation, are educated. To make sure they understand the value of education, and the cost of a poorly educated populace.

We can't afford to think that authoritarianism could never find a foothold in this country.

It already has.

Just look at Alberta, at Maple MAGA. Look at the green to conservative pipeline.

I hope you got a raincheck! I used to dive when my ME was mild & undiagnosed. I always felt better 20–30 feet under water.

"In the 20th century alone, it is estimated that governments with a monopoly on the instruments of force slaughtered over 200 million largely unarmed and defenseless people."

"But should the government forget this basic principle, the people maintain the practical power that comes with being armed for their own defense. The threat of tyranny and oppression is very real, even today.*

"A well-armed citizenry acts as a major check on the ability of would-be tyrants, enabling the people to forcibly resist oppression. In the [US], our constitutional system is premised on the theory that, in a truly free society, ultimate power lies with the people and not with the government."