23 Comments
Nov 1Liked by Susan Bordo

yes, we are in an ellipse state. we are in a dot.dot.dot state; you are so right. Watching Kamala and Michele everything feels suddenly clean and clear; the crowd, the cheers, the hope, the good-hearted faces. It is known to be very hard for traumatized people to bear hope; it so often led to disappointment, and worse -- agony and despair. This election week and the lead-up have put me in a tsunami of anticipatory anxiety and despair. One of my beloved dogs is likely dying. I watch his breathing, I administer fluids daily (renal failure), I try specially cooked fresh meats to stimulate his waning appetite. Will America survive? Can magic or hard work be injected? I know people knocking on doors in swing states. They say 95% of the people, clearly at home, don't answer. I know people writing out postcards. I know people avoiding the topic altogether. I know people canceling newspaper subscriptions. I know people in that "frozen state" we've labeled sitting on couches under blankets endlessly bingeing junk tv. I know that Kamala and Tim and Michele and others will never give up. There is a "wanting to know." There is desire for relief. My "healthy" dog is eating less in solidarity. I try gratitude exercises and it's like scratching at a concrete wall. We're all just so tired and disappointed. Kamala remains a shining, vivid avatar, a place-holder. For some reason I think ahead to Thanksgiving. Will we know anything? Will blood have been shed, uselessly? My family has dwindled; some are far away. I have decided to deliver uncooked turkeys to wherever I can, or hand out meals. After several days of nightmares, I had a dream this morning in which I was suddenly incredibly powerful. There were at least a dozen people in my therapy office. I had more than double-booked! But I turned it around. I turned it into group therapy. People advised each other. I facilitated, organized people into pairs, and calmed down the arrogant, tall man. I used comedy and empathy. I was unstoppable. It was a great dream.

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The anxiety is so layered for you—in some ways that only you and I know about but the feeling of which comes through in this comment, which is a beautiful small essay in itself. I love your dream—the personal wish for community and healing and power is also our hopes for a Kamala-America. You “merge” with her in the dream. I wonder who the arrogant tall man is?

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Dear Ms. Klein, Retired psychologist here. Your Substack response to Susan Bordo resonated with me. Especially, your emotions and your concerns about your dogs. BTW, my mother's maiden name was Klein. Please write back if and when interested. With your permission, perhaps we could discuss your fascinating dream?

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happy for resonance. you had thoughts about the dream?

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Oh yes. 12 people in the office. Turning individual sessions into dyads and small groups within a larger group. You facilitate while groups reframe issues with and for each other. Irvin Yallom. These images represent your way to conceptualize and reconstruct life's adversities within your coping style. Very positive.

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Binnie is my sister and an enormously talented therapist (in addition to being a writer, songwriter, and anchor for a radio music show!) and “Klein” was our father’s name. Julius (“Yosh”) Klein. He himself was born in the U.S., but his parents came here from Russia by way of England, where I’m told there are still relatives.

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I don't have a positive coping style, but I appreciate the idea. I'm more "go down to the depths and come up with a little something to take forward"

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Great writing. The sentences recalling your parents genuinely moved me. Your style and voice elevate political reportage to literature. It's warm and human, visceral and compelling; touching my heart as well as my mind. Such immence talent. I wish I had it.

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Thank you so much! I’d be so appreciative if you’d put your description of my “style and voice” on Substack notes. I try to offer something different than the reportage that we get from so much election-focused commentary. It means a lot to me that you get that.

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Excellent piece. I love the precision with which your carved out what it is that makes Kamala so exceptional. She's risen through a patriarchal system without compromising her ability to care deeply (and fight) for others.

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Thank you!

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The day that I finish a piece, I collapse with mindless cable series, so had no energy for anything but a “thank you.” Having gotten some sleep, I want to add an extra thanks for “getting it.” This was a piece written with my brain and heart focused on Kamala and what the media—even the positive supporters—miss about her.

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I loved this line of yours about the ellipse: "We are standing in the middle of those dots. How will the sentence end? We used to know after the votes were counted. We can’t even be sure of that any more."

Whether or not the word 'fascist' is misused, there's little doubt that the US is frighteningly close to a 1933 moment, with all the dangers that implies. Here's my take, published today: https://3quarksdaily.com/3quarksdaily/2024/11/reality-checks.html

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I also happen to love that sentence!! It came directly from my unconscious—unusual for me, as I tend to overthink things. I was looking at the definitions of “ellipse” and the words just opened up for me. Writing about this time is hard, but that was a magical moment. I look forward to reading your piece—as soon as I finish responding to these comments!

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Read your piece, and here’s the comment I posted on the site: “My first reaction to your essay was to the first two paragraphs: It was “nailed it!” There’s been so much speculation and commentary about how Trump has managed to retain so many followers among “ordinary” people (as opposed to the GOP politicians, who simply want power.) You answered it in your first two paragraphs: For a reality-challenged country, Trump, along with his rallies, the incoherent “weaves,” the brutish comments—and the dangers called out by the opposition—is still just a television show. They don’t believe in the reality of the present situation any more than they recognize the lessons of history. He got his foot in because people believed he really WAS the astute businessman of the television show, and even though they know by now that he is not, they don’t care, because they remain entertained, unable to recognize the reality of the dangers he poses anymore than they care about the manipulations behind the “reality” of other “reality” shows on television.

Yes, the warnings about fascism are appropriate—but meaningless to them.

Thanks for this piece. What fabulous houses, by the way!!!”

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A wonderful expressed statement that I read to mean Mrs Harris has all that is necessary to understand the nature of power over others and to be very careful - as it is the essence of leadership .

It also adds a astute intellectual treatise on the subject hardly expressed elsewhere

A pleasure

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Thank you! I brought both my heart and my brain to this one. Not every subject tugs on both of them the way Kamala Harris does. It’s been painful to watch as the media reduces her to talking points!

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Nov 1Liked by Susan Bordo

Fantastic, once again, Susan. But I think you mean Dobbs (not Dodds)! 😊

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Thank you Pamela. I corrected it. I can’t imagine why the auto-function had turned “Dobbs” into “Dodds”, but I totally didn’t notice.

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Well done, Susan! I’ve been furious with Anderson too and you put it into words with clear precision.

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Thank you Shelley. I had originally planned to write a separate stack about that town hall, but then I came across a podcast that demolished Anderson so brilliantly, I set it aside. Was glad to have a chance to tell him off my own way in this one!

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I loved every word of this!

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The shadow part of her personality. Or perhaps the collective shadow of all our personalities. She'll recognize the shadow archetype from Carl Jung's psychology.

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