longer.blue

A simple truth from Heather Cox Richardson. Richardson emphasizes a simple truth. Institutions are not separate from citizens. Democracies are not self-repairing machines. They depend on participation and engagement. When people step back and assume stability is automatic, erosion begins quietly. Societies rarely collapse in one dramatic explosion. More often, they weaken gradually. Trust thins. Standards shift. Fatigue sets in. Small acts of disengagement accumulate until the damage is undeniable. Yet the future is not written in advance. Unlike those who lived through past crises, we have the benefit of hindsight. We can see where earlier generations hesitated. We can identify moments when different choices might have altered the outcome. That knowledge does not guarantee safety, but it gives us clarity. Inevitability applies only to events that have already occurred. The present is still open. Each era reaches moments that feel uncertain. The difference lies in whether people retreat into the comfort of someone will fix it, or recognize that the system depends on them. History is not a prophecy. It is a record. It shows how societies falter and how they endure. The real question is not whether change is possible. The real question is whether enough people decide to take responsibility for it. ______________________________________________________________________ Are you willing to take responsibility? Are you willing to resist and reject this current administration?