I needed this reminder, this morning.

Some see this country as confused, but basically good, fundamentally kind, with a potential for great things—healthcare for all, equity for all, defeating our own climate change destruction with its wildfires and drought and heat and ferocious storms and destruction. Some see this country as an exploitable opportunity for more greed, as an angry place, and want to make it more so:

“America is a good and decent place. But we’ve just seen so much noise & nonsense & distortion. And sometimes it’s hard for us to remember. I’m asking you to remember what this country can be. What it should be. What it must be. I’m asking you to believe in Joe’s ability to lead us out of these dark times.” ~ President Obama

As we see videos of some Trump supporters violently surrounding a Biden/Harris bus, intimidating the vote, forcing the cancelation of an event, we are reminded all the more—healing this partisan hate is what we must rise up for and show up for and vote away.

It’s time to vote. It’s high time to make some noise and give a care and help others: It’s not enough to post pretty photos of oneself or pretty houses or pretty travels on Instagram right now. It’s not enough to say “I don’t get into politics,” right now. On the other hand, we don’t have to join the flood of Twitter hate to be involved. We only have to care. Care about our neighbors, our town, our city, our future.

With one man seeking to undermine the foundation of democracy for all of us—a free and fair election—we’ve got to turnout and vote in overwhelming numbers. Take nothing for granted. Then, if sanity prevails, we restore voting rights and strengthen the pillars of democracy for alllll Americans, for all time. It’ll take decades to undo the partisan damage to our courts, to return the consistent rule of law and ethics and facts and science to our smoldering nation—but that’s our duty.

Vote.