Lift Up Your Hearts!

I feel as if I could sleep for a week.  And not write another word for a month.  Neither is going to happen.

I won't deny that I'm relieved by many of the election results so far. Perhaps the most unexpected was the fate of Florida's most controversial proposed state constitutional amendments, one having to do with marijuana and the other with abortion. From all that I heard, they seemed certain to pass. But apparently enough voters, even if they agreed with the overall sentiments of the amendments, realized that both were over-reaching and dangerous. I'm not going to argue either point here; I'm just very pleasantly surprised. Florida's constitution is far too easy to amend, and I'm glad we escaped this. The same issues are likely to come up again as legislation, which is where they should be addressed.

As for the presidential race, I'm cautiously optimistic. And especially grateful for the Amish, who got 'way out of their comfort zones and voted, and for the people of western North Carolina, who quite literally went through hell and high water to exercise their rightful franchise.

Most of all, it is time to remember, as we should after every presidential election, that approximately half of our fellow-countrymen—our neighbors, co-workers, friends, and families—are genuinely saddened, frightened, and maybe deeply depressed by the results. This is not some football game; it is our country, our world, and our future. Celebrating a well-earned victory is appropriate; exulting in the streets, or otherwise gloating—anywhere other than among similarly-minded friends—is unkind. Whatever one may believe the essential battle for the health of America may be, it can only be won in human hearts; kindness and sympathy for those who are feeling disenfranchised might be a great place to begin.

Heroes are flawed, often deeply. Wounded. Maybe broken.

What if that's what it takes to make someone into the kind of person who can become a hero?

What if the person you'd never consider inviting to your dinner party turns out to be the one with the skills and the personality to save your life one day?

Bear with me here. The following diversion is relevant.

If there were no other reason for trying to save the endangered species of our planet, consider how many of our best healing medicines have come from nature. What if the habitat we wipe out is the source of the microorganism that will eventually cure cancer? Billions of people in the tropics owe their lives and health to a drug developed from a microorganism found in a soil sample taken from a Japanese golf course!

Discovered in the late-1970s, the pioneering drug ivermectin, a dihydro derivative of avermectin—originating solely from a single microorganism isolated at the Kitasato Intitute, Tokyo, Japan from Japanese soil—has had an immeasurably beneficial impact in improving the lives and welfare of billions of people throughout the world. [Here's the link, for the record, but it's a long and technical paper.]

What if the personality traits we're trying to eliminate turn out to be exactly what's needed to face a crisis we can't even see coming? If there were no other reason for respecting those who don't fit into our own insular social groups, consider that they may be the very people we need when the floodwaters rise.

What if the energy, the aggression, and the "toxic masculinity" we're trying so hard to breed out of our boys turns out to be part and parcel of what gives them the strength and the will to take on a hero's work?

I'm sure the men of the "Bikes and Beards" podcast (of which I know nothing beyond what you can see here) did not set out to be heroes. But when Hurricane Helene hit Appalacia, they stepped into that role as if they had been prepared for it. Maybe they had been.

Bikers? With beards and tattoos? Country folk, with guns? Who would you rather come to your rescue? A Hollywood celebrity? A college professor? A Supreme Court justice?

And yet heroes come in all shapes, sizes, and guises. I wouldn't expect Elon Musk to drive a truck full of supplies on mountain roads, but his Starlink system provides essential communication for devastated areas, from Appalacia to the Ukraine.

We need "all sorts and conditions of men." For selfish reasons, if nothing else.

I'm done with expecting heroes to be perfect. But let them be heroic!

I love the Amish people. It was an Amish Supreme Court decision (Wisconsin v. Yoder) that became the backbone of home education today. Our family has deep personal ties to a court case that brought the Amish of Western Pennsylvania into downtown Pittsburgh to show their support in a situation that threatened their own way of life. The Amish are a very private people who just want to be left alone to live their traditional lives, but they will rise up and make themselves heard when their very existence is at stake. Several of our grandchildren were born in Amish Country. I'm not Amish, and I don't even know personally any Amish people, but I admire them greatly.

The following video is from Nick Johnson, about whom I know nothing else; it showed up as one of those YouTube suggestions after I watched something else. I found it delightful on many levels, from the scenery, to the simple, innocent, and very shrewd wisdom of the Amish people, to their solid values, to their delightful accents. (Did you know that their language is still understandable by modern-day speakers of Swiss German?) There's also an interview with Amos Miller, who is at the forefront of the fight for food freedom in Pennsylvania; we have some of his great meat in our freezer even now.

If you've ever met an Amish buggy on the road, you'll know how surprising this image is.

Traditionally, the Amish do not participate in civic matters. They do not vote. But this year, they see an opportunity to speak up for their way of life, the very existence of their farming and small business based culture, which is being crushed by heavy-handed governmental regulations that favor large corporations. They are voting this year, and in large numbers. For a look into a beautiful part of American culture that we rarely see, enjoy this 30-minute video.

Amos Miller is excited about the team that is gathering around Donald Trump.

They know the importance of farmers, they know the importance of food freedom, and I'm hoping that Trump will get that same perspective so we the farmers can do our duty that we've liked to do for many years. Farmers are going out of business like flies. We have lost probably 50% of our farmers within the last 20 years. We like to be farmers, we love to be farmers, but the rules and regulations that have been forced upon us for the last 30 years are terrible. We can't make a living, the food system is monopolized, the corporations want to run the government—so we're looking for someone to push government back, so we can be the true farmers that we love to be. Our culture loves to be farmers. The work ethic is still here; that can be lost in a very short period of time if we can't be farmers.

Yogi Berra was right. And so was whoever said "It's not over till the gravitationally-challenged, socially-important, assigned-female-at-birth person sings." Or you can look back a few millennia to Aesop and his chickens.

As long as there have been elections, people have been trying to anticipate the results.

I find polls moderately interesting, even the disturbing but legal election betting markets, but I try to be neither elated nor depressed by them. I'm going to refer you to my Poll Results post from early August. Better yet, I'll reprint it below. Complacency is a dangerous enemy. So is believing that the ends justify the means.

Here's a question I'd like to ask of political pollsters:

What is the ideal position for a political candidate in the polls, at various times before an election?

Clearly, to be leading in the polls on Election Day (or whatever passes for Election Day in these days of early voting and mail-in ballots) is a good thing. But what about earlier? To be doing well at any point feels great, and can boost support due to the "to him who has, more will be given" effect. People like to be on the winning team, and tend to flee people they feel can't win.

I think there's more to it than that. The following excerpt is from Robert A. Heinlein's Citizen of the Galaxy; it has haunted me since I first read it in elementary school.

Weemsby stood up and looked happy. "In my own person, I vote one share. By proxies delivered to me and now with the Secretary I vote—" Thorby did not listen; he was looking for his hat.

"The tally being complete, I declare—" the Secretary began.

"No!"

Leda was on her feet. "I'm here myself. This is my first meeting and I'm going to vote!"

Her stepfather said hastily, "That's all right, Leda—mustn't interrupt." He turned to the Secretary. "It doesn't affect the result."

"But it does! I cast one thousand eight hundred and eighty votes for Thor, Rudbek of Rudbek!"

Weemsby stared. "Leda Weemsby!"

She retorted crisply, "My legal name is Leda Rudbek."

Bruder was shouting, "Illegal! The vote has been recorded. It's too—"

"Oh, nonsense!" shouted Leda. "I'm here and I'm voting. Anyhow, I cancelled that proxy—I registered it in the post office in this very building and saw it delivered and signed for at the 'principal offices of this corporation'—that's the right phrase, isn't it, Judge?—ten minutes before the meeting was called to order. If you don't believe me, send down for it. But what of it?—I'm here. Touch me." Then she turned and smiled at Thorby.

Thorby tried to smile back, and whispered savagely to Garsch, "Why did you keep this a secret?"

"And let 'Honest John' find out that he had to beg, borrow, or buy some more votes? He might have won. She kept him happy, just as I told her to."

A really commanding lead can discourage competitors from pouring money and effort into a losing cause. But somewhere in between that kind of lead and the bottom of the heap there's a point—I'm going to call it the Garsch Point—where a lead is dangerous. Two terrible things can come into play:

• A candidate's own supporters can become complacent, let down their guard, and like the overconfident hare, risk losing to the lagging but persistent tortoise.
• A zealous opponent, who would rather win honestly, may be tempted to resort to nefarious means of helping himself to victory. After all, when you're fighting infidels, it's okay to lie, cheat, steal, and even kill, right? Well, no, it's not. But the temptation can be great if you think the contest is critical and you might get away with it.

Beware the Garsch Point. It's okay to be happy to be leading in the polls, but it ought to be less a time for celebrating than a time for doubling down on honest and honorable effort. And maybe for not letting your enemy know your full strength.

 

Dear Grace,

Please stop trying to distract me from politics by getting hurt.

Love,
Grandma

From Heather this morning:

Sometime recently, Grace fell off a wooden block that she was using as a stool. I thought she had twisted her ankle. She would complain on and off, but still often insist on walking. Then Sunday, Noah came to me and asked, "Did you know that Grace's foot is crooked?"

So we decided it was time to see an orthopedist. Monday, she got X-rays and lo, and behold, a bending fracture in her left fibula. (Imagine a green twig that just started to crack, but released before it broke.) They do not cast this kind of break and said to follow her lead about how much she walks. However, she has such a high pain tolerance that I think we need to restrain her a bit more. She was limping more yesterday.

We have messages in to her other doctors, to discuss the effects of steroids and also NF1 on her bones.

Please pray for healing and wisdom and that I will not worry about future fractures.

She's not kidding about Grace's high pain tolerance. When the doctor was gently pressing on places on her leg, beginning with her toes, she did not react at all until he reached the exact place where the x-ray indicated the break, and then she only flinched.

Young children's bones are amazing when it comes to healing; if I broke my fibula no doctor would casually say to me, "Do what you feel like, but no bouncing on a trampoline, and stay away from the playground for a few days." Maybe Grace takes after her great-grandfather, who followed his doctor's advice as to restrictions when he went home after surgery: "Just do what you feel like doing, but I'd avoid chopping wood for a while." Apparently the doctor didn't anticipate that he would feel well enough to go bowling, and he ended up back in the hospital.

Young children's bones are remarkable, but what makes this a special matter for prayer is that one of the many possible complications that can occur with NF1 is bone problems. Grace has shown no other symptoms than the big one (JMML), and there's every possibility that this event is just the result of (temporary) long-term steroid use and being an active toddler. But something more serious is not off the table.

Are you nervous about what might happen on and after Election Day? Do you fear the coming year? Do you awaken in the middle of the night from nightmares in which you find yourself surrounded by bonfires and people chanting, "Remember, remember the Fifth of November"?

Have I got a deal for you.

Actually, it's Amazon that has the deal. C. S. Lewis's George MacDonald: An Anthology is currently on sale for $1.99.

It's impossible to overstate the influence MacDonald had on Lewis, and this collection of 365 excerpts from his writings is a great introduction.

I HIGHLY recommend it, whatever your political leanings.  (For more on George MacDonald, see my post "All Is Gift - A Legacy from C. S. Lewis.")

Here are a few quotes from an Epoch Times article called "Small Actions to Save the World."

A consensus seems to be emerging. Civilization as we knew it only a few years ago appears to be decaying. ... You probably agree and would like to do something about it. But what?

The expectations and connotations of the word change have flipped. Whatever it is, you can predict that the change will be toward something worse, more degraded, more debased, and so on.

Being surrounded by that reality casts a kind of pall over daily events and choices and affects how we look at the world. It determines whether we expect the dawn or the darkness, and this outlook tends to be self-fulfilling in one way or another.

If we don’t speak out in small ways ... the decline will surely continue without any pushback. If there is going to be pushback, someone has to do it.

At the same time, I started to appreciate anew the institutions that are upholding values consistent with the good life: good service, decorum in manners and dress, attention to quality, genuine commitment to excellence, and so on. When you run into examples of this, it is something you can do to point it out and praise it.

Above all,

Rather than giving into the attitude of decline and fully expecting the darkness of night to be the next step, we can proceed through life with a determination to make sure that it does not happen. We can all do something, even if it’s very small, but those actions might make a big difference.

Once you start paying attention to the signs of those who are trying to improve the world rather than tear it down, you will find them everywhere. Sometimes, a little voicing of support is all that is necessary to make sure it continues. Reward the good and stand up against the bad: Everyone can do this in small ways.

Yes, we need much bigger changes to save the world. Above all else, we need a new respect for freedom and rights, and that requires dramatic political change. But we cannot count on that, and, in addition, big changes are downstream from the small ones. There are features of life we do control, and here is where everyone can be part of the change.

This post is written from a Christian perspective, but much of it could be appropriate for anyone.

How do we pray for an election?  Is it right to pray for our people to win?  If God thinks we need to have the other guys in office, who are we to presume otherwise?  That's a much bigger question than just about an election, and much better people than I have wrestled with it over the ages. The best I can do is paraphrase they way I remember C. S. Lewis dealing with it: If you can work for a candidate's success, if you can contribute to his campaign, if you can vote for him—it's certainly something appropriate to pray for.

Nonetheless, as much as I want Donald Trump to return to the Oval Office, I was for a long time reluctant to pray for his victory.  After all, what if I'm wrong?  What if America actual needs Kamala Harris as our leader?  I'm not omniscient, much less perfectly wise.  What if I do that, and God answers my prayer—and I regret it?  Certainly it sometimes happens that he gives us what we beg for—and then makes good come out of what could have been better.  But again, better folks have written on all these questions.

It was taking another look at Christ's prayer in the Garden of Gesthemane that made sense of it for me.  "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death." ... "Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me.  Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done." ... And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. [My condensation]

Jesus knew well beforehand that his Father's plans for him included an agonizing death.  He knew it well and had already told his disciples that it was necessary for the accomplishment of what he had come to earth to accomplish. But he was terrified, and didn't hesitate to pray for some way out of it.  If Jesus Christ can pray desperately to avoid something he sees no good way out of, I guess I can pray for election results.  The trick comes in how he always ended these prayers: with "Not my will, but yours be done."

So this is, roughly, how I pray for this election.

• That it would be free and fair,
• That the candidates and causes I care about will be victorious, and most especially that
• God will work out his will in and through the election—let's be real here; he knows better than I do.

And one more thing: Win or lose, that we face the next four years with the same attitude I witnessed in New York City, less than two weeks after the 2016 election that put Donald Trump in office the first time.  As I wrote previously, 

Coming so soon after the election, it was delightful to find everyone so polite, considerate, and going out of their way to be friendly and helpful.  Even a multi-racial discussion about the election itself, which we overheard in a local restaurant, was calm, reasoned, and willing to give others the benefit of the doubt. Willing to give Donald Trump a chance.

We need more of that, whoever wins this election.

It's easy to focus on the dark side as we approach this election, which is why I ardently hope that you will take half an hour to listen to what Jordan Peterson and Dave Rubin have to say in the following video. It occurred during the pre-show activities of the Rescue the Republic Rally, and illustrates the positive side of this remarkable movement, which supports President Trump but is much bigger, broader, and better than a single person or election. If you catch me humming Patrick Doyle's "Non Nobis, Domine" from Henry V, this might explain why.

Peterson: One of the things to walk away from this event with is renewed conviction that you have something to do that's your responsibility and your adventure, and that's crucially important and that if you don't do it then you leave a hole in the world that won't be filled by anyone else. And so one of the things I hope that makes the movement that we're all trying to produce here potentially different from the typical top-down globalist utopian solutions is that it's your responsibility and your adventure and if we do that properly—and you Americans have done a fantastic job of that for 200 years—then you can renew your country and the whole world.

Rubin: One of the things that I'm most excited about and I suspect every single one of you is most excited about for being here is that this alliance of people, politically, could have never happened five years ago: the idea that Russell Brand and RFK and Tulsi—and I see a lot of MAGA hats out there—this thing that is happening right now it absolutely transcends politics. We're coming together over health, over caring deeply about this country, our founding documents, our founding fathers, all of the beautiful monuments that are here right now. What do you make of this realignment that we're seeing right now? Because it really has the potential to save the country; I don't know that anything else can.

Peterson: Well, I’m very optimistic about it, and also I would say very surprised about it, in exactly the way you just described. I mean first of all we have this strange spectacle on the Republican side at the moment of a very influential group of people who are heading up the Republican movement, all of whom were essentially Democrats, and so that's remarkable. Now they're disaffected Democrats, and that even includes Trump to some large degree. It's certainly the case with Musk and Tulsi Gabbard and Robert F. Kennedy, and so that's a remarkable thing to see. And I also think the Trump administration, the Trump presidential campaign, has a real opportunity here. You know one of the things that has concerned Americans who are doubtful about Trump over the last few years, despite the fact that his presidency was marked by a remarkable peace—and thank God for that—was his capacity to put together a stellar team, and to be more than merely Trump himself—not that he isn't a force to be reckoned with—and now he has aligned with him these people who are truly remarkable.

Peterson: You have in this team that's generated itself around Trump very, very fervent advocates for free speech, and you know that's another thing that America has to offer the world in terms of model. Because of all the countries there are in the world—including my own country which is failing dismally on the Free Speech front, and the UK which is also in the same boat—there's nothing that you Americans have brought to the world that's more compelling and necessary than the primacy of freedom of thought and speech.

Peterson: Another thing that's very much worth concentrating on—this is something Musk has been trying to bring to the forefront of public attention; it’s going to become a vast issue—is that the birth rate across the United States and the West in general is cataclysmically low.  It's a terrible thing, and you know many, many young people are without intimate relationships, many without children, no multigenerational continuity, and no concentration on the family. And for the vast majority of people, especially sensible people, sensible, sane hopeful, forward-looking people, there isn't anything more vital and meaningful and necessary than their family. Dave was talking about the problems that beset us, and Musk has pointed this out too, there's a profoundly anti-human sentiment that drives the more pathological end, say of the green movement—and there's reasons to be environmentally concerned, don't get me wrong—but telling people that you shouldn't have children because it's bad for the planet—I can't think of anything more malevolent, almost nothing more malevolent than that. That's an appalling sentiment! And young people obviously are sufficiently demoralized so that they're not having relationships or children, and any society that doesn't put, let's say, mother and child first and foremost as something approximating a sacred image is doomed.

Peterson: I'll mention one more issue that I think is relevant too. There is one thing that the Left and the Right agree on. You know it's a strange thing, and the commonality here is not often pointed out, but you know the Left is very skeptical of big corporations—or at least used to be—and the right is very skeptical of big government, and it doesn't take a real genius to point out the fact that both sides are skeptical of BIG.

As I've been preaching for ages, the Republican Party needs to reorganize and rebrand itself as the party of human-scale life.

Peterson: The fundamental ground under our feet is as firm and rock-solid as it could possibly be, and if we could advance into the future with a faithful, courageous optimism, rather than a naive optimism, there's absolutely no limit to what we can do.

I have been following Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying's DarkHorse Podcast faithfully for over two years. They are life-long, quintessential West Coast academic liberals, who reluctantly but inevitably found themselves feeling betrayed by their own Democratic Party. (Part of the fun of following their show is watching the evolution of their views.) They would vote for Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. if they thought he had a fighting chance to win, but he doesn't, and himself became part of the Trump team. Here, Bret makes the case that Kennedy enthusiasts and other classical liberals need to vote for Donald Trump. The link takes you to a post from 2022 in which I introduced Bret and Heather; for those who are new to reading this blog and want to know who these people are whose opinions I deeply respect, that would be a good place to start. I have listened to Bret and Heather, and read their book, and followed Heather's Substack) long enough to realize how often their facts have been correct and their advice wise. Not always, for sure—but their track record is very impressive.

The relevant part of this video runs from about 00:21:01 (where it should start) to 1:40:25.

(Here's the YouTube link for those who can't see Rumble. The start and stop times are a bit different, but the link should start at the correct place.)

Grace's third birthday started normally enough. We enjoyed a video chat, watching her come to grips with the fact that the answer to "How old are you?" had changed dramatically!

However, her very busy day ended with a trip to the Dartmouth emergency room because a key part of her central line broke during the routine evening flush.

After a night and a morning filled with what would have been a comedy of errors if there had been anything funny about it, she had surgery to remove the entire central line. This major milestone was intended to be reached two weeks later, rather than on an emergency basis, but she did well, and the job is done! I've copied the following directly from Heather's post, so you can see the pictures.

Line removal surgery was successful. She did great for the IV.

She came out of anesthesia quickly and they were home by 4:30. It is strange to her to have her line out. But next week she'll be able to have her first bath in a year! She is excited about that. 

After she got home, Grace opened her birthday joy jar.

Heather's note on the Joy Jar:

NEGU Never Ever Give Up. This organization was founded by a girl who had a terminal brain tumor. She wanted to spread joy to her fellows and give a Joy Jar full of goodies to every child diagnosed with cancer. The organization has now grown so that they give Joy Jar subscriptions to the children and their families. Every month, Grace gets a jar with a book, crayons, coloring book, stuffed animal, and other toys. She loves her Joy Jars and is so excited when a new one comes. They also have given us all t-shirts, a beach towel, a blanket, a popcorn bowl with popcorn, and numerous other goodies. One month, they included the book Jessie's dad wrote about her life, which was powerful. I certainly cried hard, but it has such a hopeful theme even while dealing with all the hard questions of life, death, and terminal illness in a child. negu.org

Porter, having lived in the Netherlands for four years in the 1960's, was hit hard when he saw this ad—especially when the man bares his arm. Their next-door neighbor, and friend, had just such a mark on his arm, and had also lost family under Hitler's rule. The video is less than two minutes long, and very powerful. Here's the YouTube link for those of you who can't reach Rumble.

Good news: Grace is getting her central line removed! The procedure was scheduled for two weeks from now, but it's coming out as an unexpected birthday present.

Bad news: The present came wrapped in less-pleasant circumstances: one of her lines broke during the routine flush. They were able to clamp it off, but Grace and Jon are now headed to Dartmouth to get her started on antibiotics, in case the line was contaminated. They will probably do the removal procedure tomorrow.

Prayer request (from Heather's blog post): Please pray for safe travel and no infections and a successful procedure.