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Bill Alstrom (MA/Maine/MA)'s avatar

I believe it starts very, very early. A kid is either exposed to openness of thought, critical thinking and a questioning mind - or not. My folks were not highly educated. But they would read and read and read. Dad was a Civil War buff. Mom shared each chapter of her latest book with us at dinner. It was like having an audio book with a meal!

A mind is either cultivated to be curious or trained to obey.

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Stewart Whisenant's avatar

Keeping the focus on the transformative alternatives to Trump and company’s insanity is a great balm for the pain of frustration that ensues every time these hate-based bastards do something stupid and fascist. Thank you for these salubrious information injections Rx Dr. Alstrom.

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Bill Alstrom (MA/Maine/MA)'s avatar

Better than bleach!

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Carol T Cox (NJ to VA to FL)'s avatar

Bill, I love that you always look at the big picture! You did it well for us today. Yes, we are all earthlings and the sooner we realize that we all share the same world, the better it will be for our planet.

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Bill Alstrom (MA/Maine/MA)'s avatar

Thanks Carol,

Imagine if we acted like a species instead of a bunch of warring tribes.

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Carol T Cox (NJ to VA to FL)'s avatar

My favorite song:

"Imagine all the people living life in peace. You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one. I hope someday you'll join us and the world will be as one."

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Bill Alstrom (MA/Maine/MA)'s avatar

Me too!

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Kathleen Weber's avatar

Bill, thanks for the shout out! Sam Matey does an exceptional job on environmental news. 1 Quibble: Does the United States have a higher poverty rate than Chad, Burkina Faso, or Haiti? What is the source for the American Exceptionalist flag?

Please join in subscribing to Sam Matey and my own As Time Goes By, https://kathleenweber.substack.com/p/how-to-fight-trump-part-one.

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Bill Alstrom (MA/Maine/MA)'s avatar

My inbox is exploding. But I always read your posts. And now Sam is there, too. What a terrific newsletter. Thanks again for the referral.

The flag was just a random Google image search. There's a another one that drops the highest poverty rate phrase here:

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/manifest-delusion-debunki_b_5590800

But thank you for the observation. Without context, the flag was wrong. I have edited the post to reflect the origin of the flag. It compares the U.S. to other "peer" countries - the 100 members of the OECD. We stink when compared to other developed nations.

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Slartibartfast42's avatar

Vastly curious that a large portion of US society finds reward in believing their worldview is accurate, and are not curious to question their beliefs. Certain of correctness.

With five senses, vision overrides the others. The overlords control with propaganda images, it seems. Media consolidation…

Bill, thank you for helping toward a better reality.

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Joan Wolstenholme's avatar

Thank you, thank you, thank you. Nailed it and you made it clear and understood.

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Bill Alstrom (MA/Maine/MA)'s avatar

Thank you for the kind words, Joan.

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Blue Citizen 77's avatar

Brilliantly written, Bill!

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Bill Alstrom (MA/Maine/MA)'s avatar

Thanks "77" :)

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Dave Conant - MO's avatar

Great piece Bill, and the detailed discussion of sustainable energy generation is wonderfully helpful. I'd subscribe to Sam's page if I thought I'd have time to read it.

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