Once
a government becomes a dictatorship, the regime has a full range of
repressive instruments at its disposal, including the police, the
courts, the military, and domestic intelligence services, among others.
All of these institutions act in the name of the state and its leaders,
and ordinary citizens resist them at their peril.
But aspiring authoritarians,
those who are still trying to cow the public and consolidate their
power over other movements in society, sometimes rely on
volunteers—thugs willing to do violence while denying any link to
politicians. Such people are useful in creating a sense of ongoing
threat while the actual leaders they support can pretend to deplore
their activities.
In You Are WHY You Eat,
food becomes a digestible metaphor. If you are gorging and numbing
yourself with food, are you doing the same thing in life? Instead of
trying to please others all the time, what would happen if you listened
to your inner voice?
What if you could find a way to stop eating, stop working at a bad job,
stop a bad relationship before you walk down the aisle—stop anything
when you are full? Understanding WHY you eat can lead to real and
lasting change--both in your weight loss and all other areas of your
life.
You Are WHY You Eat
teaches readers to take back control in their lives. Dr. Ramani takes
an iconoclastic, brave, edgy, and witty approach to self-help. She
teaches you to unearth that inner voice, and let it be heard. She turns
all of your childhood teachings upside down and forces you to take
responsibility for your choices in life. Through real-life anecdotes and
exercises, she gives you the tools you need to live on your terms, not
those of the stakeholders that surround you. It will help you trust
yourself and act from the gut, while making that gut smaller at the same
time. And in so doing, it will help people live lives that are braver,
more authentic, and less riddled with regret. You can change your food
attitude and change your life!
[excerpt]
"Start by asking yourself one simple, but significant question: Does your life look the way you
want it to look? Sadly, most of us are living in a script written by
other people, and as a result, many of us learned long ago to stop
trusting our own instincts. If we can't listen to our bodies and do
something as simple as push away a plate of food when we are full, how
can we listen to ourselves when it comes to the rest of our lives?"
“Relationships, like all human experiences, are transient; they
change every day and are meant to be enjoyed in the present. When I hear
people say you need to "work" at a relationship, what that often really
means is just seeing through the day-to-day; listening to another
person, listening to yourself, not getting stuck on hurts from the past,
and not getting lost in what might come. To be in a relationship with
someone you respect, care about and value is a gift, and when you take
that in the day-to-day, you honor yourself and your partner each day.
Eating is no different in that you can honor yourself at each meal. So
much time in relationships is spent hashing the past, and arguing about
things that haven't yet happened. A relationship cannot be "hoarded",
just like a meal cannot be prolonged by taking home the leftovers.”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
You Are WHY You Eat: Change Your Food Attitude, Change Your Life
“The fact is, many people do not know how treat themselves and are
experts at putting themselves down. In fact, if most of us were in a
relationship with ourselves, we would break up with us, given how badly
we treat ourselves.”
“When relationships have outlived their shelf life, people often
realize that at some level, they are sticking it out because they once
thought in the light of their divine love that the other person would
change.
Sorry for breaking the poetic hope here, but that doesn't
happen.
People are like rubber bands. They may be able to stretch from
time to time and do some amazing things, but in general they are who
they are.
If manipulation and machinations on your side get them to
behave the way you want, I will set my clock on the fact that they will
return to their previous way of behaving, or they will keep faking it.
To be in a relationship with someone who is not really there doesn't
make sense.
People who aren't cooperating feel like a project to us,
like something for us to rescue or fix.
Rescuing is the province of
firefighters and fairy tales, but it's not real life. The stance of
sticking it out in hopes of redemption is an old story and one that has
wasted many lives.”
“The narcissist is like a bucket with a hole in the bottom: No
matter how much you put in, you can never fill it up. The phrase “I
never feel like I am enough” is the mantra of the person in the
narcissistic relationship. That’s because to your narcissistic partner,
you are not. No one is. Nothing is.”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
Should I Stay or Should I Go?: Surviving a Relationship with a Narcissist
“The emptiness of the narcissist often means that they are only
focused on whatever is useful or interesting to them at the moment. If
at that moment it is interesting for them to tell you they love you,
they do. It’s not really a long game to them, and when the next
interesting issue comes up, they attend to that. The objectification of
others—viewing other people as objects useful to his needs—can also play
a role. When you are the only thing in the room, or the most
interesting thing in the room, then the narcissist’s charisma and charm
can leave you convinced that you are his everything. The problem is that
this is typically superficial regard, and that superficiality results
in inconsistency, and emotions for the narcissistic person range from
intense to detached on a regular basis. This vacillation between
intensity and detachment can be observed in the narcissist’s
relationships with people (acquaintances, friends, family, and
partners), work, and experiences. A healthy relationship should feel
like a safe harbor in your life. Life throws us enough curve balls in
the shape of money problems, work issues, medical issues, household
issues, and even the weather. Sadly, a relationship with a narcissist
can be one more source of chaos in your life, rather than a place of
comfort and consistency.”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
Should I Stay or Should I Go?: Surviving a Relationship with a Narcissist
“When an accusation is thrown at you that does not fit you, when
it doesn’t capture what you know to be true about yourself or your
behavior, mentally flip it back on your partner. He is likely accusing
you of what he is doing or feeling. Accusations can be about the
narcissist’s own vulnerabilities and weaknesses (accusing you of being
overly ambitious when he is ambitious, criticizing you for being
unsuccessful or not making enough money when he is not feeling
successful in that space)”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
Should I Stay or Should I Go?: Surviving a Relationship with a Narcissist
“The emotionally cold or distant trait also rears its head during
arguments when one person is experiencing and expressing significant
emotion and the narcissistic person just checks out and does not
respond—or does so in a cold and clipped manner. At such times you may
find yourself spinning—and actually feeling as though you are “going
crazy”—because the coldness of the response makes it even more difficult
to regulate yourself in that moment. The emotional coldness can be
confusing for you and may result in attempts to jump through hoops to
generate warmth and connection with your partner. I have observed people
wearing themselves out over decades, trying to create a fire where
there was no possibility.”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
Should I Stay or Should I Go?: Surviving a Relationship with a Narcissist
“Narcissists are precisely that: careless. They barrel through
life, using relationships and people as objects, tools, and folly. While
they often seem as if they are cruel or harsh, that is in fact giving
them too much credit. They are simply careless. And they do expect other
people to clean up their messes. But carelessness is cruel. Frankly,
the motivation for their behavior does not matter; what matters is the
outcome. And that outcome is damage to other people’s well-being, hopes,
aspirations, and lives. Carelessness captures it, but it is not an
excuse.”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
Should I Stay or Should I Go?: Surviving a Relationship with a Narcissist
“Many people in narcissistic relationships find that they start
becoming more anxious and even less able to regulate their own moods,
because they feel as though they are living in chaos—and there was
nothing they could do about it, because they were unable to soothe,
comfort, or cheer up their partner. Interestingly, because of the
narcissist’s tendency to blame other people for their difficulties and
engage in projection, they will often blame you for being unreliable and
inconsistent, when it is in fact their moods that are all over the
map.”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
Should I Stay or Should I Go?: Surviving a Relationship with a Narcissist
“Gaslighting qualifies as a form of emotional abuse that involves
denying a person’s experience and making statements, such as “that never
happened,” “you’re too sensitive,” or “this isn’t that big a deal.”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
Should I Stay or Should I Go?: Surviving a Relationship with a Narcissist
“You were flexible enough to make this work, but the dark side is
that this expectation or your ability to show up like everything is
“fine” means that even the good people around you often have no idea how
bad it was or is for you.”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
It's Not You: Identifying and Healing from Narcissistic People
“Narcissists have poorly regulated self-esteem, so they are
chronically vulnerable. If they are vulnerable then there is the threat
that they may get found out, so they often maintain a grandiose
exterior. Because they always measure themselves by other people, they
also measure themselves against other people. They are chronically
reliant on the opinions of others to form their own sense of self and
are always comparing themselves, their status, their possessions and
their lives to other people to determine their sense of worth and
self-esteem (in a way, narcissists outsource their sense of self).”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
Should I Stay or Should I Go?: Surviving a Relationship with a Narcissist
“Breaking childhood teachings is never easy, and in essence, they
are like white noise that can sometimes stop us from listening to
ourselves, or having to listen to ourselves.”
―
Ramani Durvasula
“A scorpion sat on the shores of a river one day, needing to get
to the other side, but the river was too wide, and there were not enough
stones to jump across. He begged the various water birds—mallards and
geese and herons—if he could catch a ride, but they pragmatically turned
him down, knowing too well his cunning and his sting. He caught sight
of the lovely swan making her way down the river and charmingly pleaded
to her attributes. “Please, beautiful Swan, take me across the river. I
couldn’t imagine harming something as beautiful as you, and it is not in
my interest to do so. I simply want to get to the other side of the
river.” The swan hesitated, but the scorpion was so charming and
convincing. He was close enough to sting her right now, and yet he did
not do it. What could go wrong? The trip across the river would take
only a few minutes. She agreed to help him. As they traversed the river,
the scorpion expressed his gratitude and continued to offer his
compliments about her loveliness and kindness compared to all of the
other negligent river birds. As they arrived at the other riverbank, he
prepared to jump off. And right before he jumped off of her back, he
lifted his tail and stung her. Crying and injured, the swan couldn’t
understand why he’d done this, after all the promises, all the flattery,
the logical explanations. “Why did you sting me?” she asked. He looked
at her from the river bank and said, “I’m a scorpion. It’s who I am.”
♦♦♦”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
Should I Stay or Should I Go?: Surviving a Relationship with a Narcissist
“Love never dies a natural death. It dies because we don’t know
how to replenish its source. It dies of blindness and errors and
betrayals. It dies of illness and wounds; it dies of weariness, of
witherings, of tarnishings.”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
Should I Stay or Should I Go?: Surviving a Relationship with a Narcissist
“The only thing you need to understand about narcissism is that in
almost all cases this personality pattern was there before you came
into the narcissistic person’s life and it will be there after you
leave.”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
It's Not You: Identifying and Healing from Narcissistic People
“I am tired of people calling those of us who get stuck in these
cycles "codependent" or "addicted" to the narcissistic relationship.
It's not that. If you have any empathy, have normal cognitive
functioning, and were shaped by societal and cultural norms and
realities, it is not surprising that you would get stuck. The
narcissistic relationship is like a riptide that pulls you back in even
as you try to swim away. The intensity, attentiveness, and highs and
lows are why you swim out to where the riptide is. The abusive behavior
makes you want to swim away from the riptide, but the guilt and fear of
leaving, the practical issues raised by leaving (financial, safety,
cultural, family), as well as the natural drive toward attachment,
connection, and love are what keep you stuck in the riptide's pull.”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
It's Not You: Identifying and Healing from Narcissistic People
“Narcissists do not tolerate anything that feels like abandonment.
The reaction to narcissistic injury is typically narcissistic rage and
revenge. Many people who endure a narcissistic breakup will say that
they had to start anew— and learned who their real friends were. Because
they engage in projection (taking what they are feeling and projecting
it onto someone else), and because they do not take responsibility for
anything or anyone, they blame. Meet his behavior with dignified
silence.”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
Should I Stay or Should I Go?: Surviving a Relationship with a Narcissist
“Entrusting your dreams or aspirations to the wrong person could
be a critical mistake, lest they mistreat or neglect them. We are not
nearly as careful with our dreams as we should be.”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
You Are WHY You Eat: Change Your Food Attitude, Change Your Life
“One of the great traps of the narcissistic relationship is that
the narcissistic folks actually believe they are nice people. They
really do. It’s part of their system of delusional grandiosity,
self-righteousness, and moral rectitude.”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
It's Not You: Identifying and Healing from Narcissistic People
“The democratization of media means that anyone with a phone can
become a celebrity. Our short-sighted focus on self-esteem in children
means that everyone gets a trophy, universities and education are
“brands” instead of places of learning, standardized tests are used
to assess wisdom, and grade inflation is rampant. The tribe has been
replaced with followers and likes. Our economy, our bodies, our health,
our children, and frankly our psyches are in big trouble.”
―
Ramani Durvasula,
Should I Stay or Should I Go?: Surviving a Relationship with a Narcissist
From
clinical psychologist and expert in narcissistic relationships Dr.
Ramani Durvasula, a guide to protecting and healing yourself from the
daily harms of narcissism It’s
not always easy to tell when you’re dealing with a narcissistic person.
One day they draw you in with their charm and charisma, the next they
gaslight you, wreck your self-esteem, and leave you wondering, What should I have done differently? As Dr. Ramani explains in It’s Not You, the answer is: absolutely nothing.
Just
as a tiger can’t change its stripes, a narcissist will not stop
manipulating and invalidating you, no matter how much you try to appease
them. The first step toward healing from their toxic influence—and to
protect yourself from future harm—is to accept that you are not to blame
for their behavior.
Drawing on more than two decades of studying
the landscape of narcissism and working with survivors, Dr. Ramani
explores how narcissists hijack our well-being and offers a healing path
forward. Unpacking the oft-misunderstood personality, she reveals the
telltale behavioral patterns that indicate you may be dealing with a
narcissist. Along the way, you’ll learn how to become gaslight
resistant, chip away at the trauma bonds that keep you stuck in the
cycle, grieve the loss of these painful relationships, create and
maintain realistic boundaries, discern unhelpful behaviors from
narcissistic behaviors, and recover your sense of self after constant
invalidation.
Thriving after, or even during, a narcissistic relationship can be challenging, but It’s Not You
shows you it is possible. Dr. Ramani invites you to stop blaming
yourself and trying to change the narcissistic person, and to start
giving yourself permission to let go of their hold on you and finally
embrace your true self.
A man from Mauritania and a woman from Senegal
describe what’s at stake as the Trump administration targets immigrants
for deportation. “We are not criminals,” the woman said. “We are not bad
people.”
At the Refugee Dream Center in Providence, a refugee who says he escaped slavery in Mauritania cradled his head in his hands. John Tlumacki/Globe Staff
PROVIDENCE — He escaped slavery in Mauritania. She escaped female genital mutilation in Senegal.
Both
managed to make their way separately to the United States, pursuing the
American dream, viewing it as a land of freedom and safety.
But now, everything they’ve worked for and sacrificed for is at risk.
“I
fled there because I was going to be killed,” the man from Mauritania,
whom the Globe agreed not to identify by name, said in an interview.
“Now, if I’m taken back there, that means I know what is going to happen
to me: I will be killed.”
A refugee at the Refugee Dream Center who says he escaped slavery in Mauitania fears revealing his identity. John Tlumacki/Globe Staff
Mauritania, a country of 5.2 million people in northwest Africa, has been described as “slavery’s last stronghold.”
In 1981, Mauritania became the last country in the world to officially
abolish slavery. But, the man said: “The reality is the slavery still
exists. A lot of people that were protesting that condition got killed.”
He said he was enslaved, and when he protested against slavery, he was tortured.
The man, whose native language is Pulaar, spoke to the Globe through a translator, Omar Bah, the cofounder of the Refugee Dream Center who is a refugee himself, having fled Gambia.
The
man from Mauritania said that when he and other educated people
protested against slavery, hoping to draw the world’s attention,
government forces opened fire on them. While the government claimed they
used blanks, the soldiers actually used live ammunition, and people
died, he said.
“They
put all of us on the back of a truck, like in layers, and the soldiers
sat on top of us,” he said. “They threw us in jail. They refused to give
us food.”
He said he was lucky to have escaped the country, but he had to leave his wife and their young child behind.
From
Mauritania, he began a perilous journey that led him through Turkey,
Colombia, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico, and
eventually, the United States.
“I
know America is a country of democracy and where people feel safe and
equal,” he said. “I thought of no other place to go to for safety and to
rebuild my life.”
He arrived in Rhode Island about nine months ago and, after sleeping on the streets, he found the Refugee Dream Center.
The center connected him with a lawyer, who has helped him apply for
asylum, and he has secured authorization to work as a caregiver.
“I take care of people who cannot take care of themselves,” he said.
He
said President Trump’s rhetoric and policies on immigrants are sparking
a lot of anxiety and fear among people who came to the United States to
escape suffering and brutality.
“We
are not here to cause any trouble,” he said. “We just want to be safe.
We are people — good people who came in to look for help and support and
safety."
After taking office on Jan. 20, Trump immediately paused refugee resettlement,
calling for the secretary of homeland security and secretary of state
to submit a report within 90 days to determine if it should be
restarted, and his administration cut off funding for resettlement
programs.
On Tuesday, a federal judge in Seattle blocked Trump’s suspension
of the refugee admissions system, saying that while the president has
broad authority over who comes into the country, he cannot nullify the
law passed by Congress establishing the program. The Justice Department indicated it would appeal.
Meanwhile,
the funding cut forced the Refugee Dream Center in Providence to let go
of five staff members devoted to refugee resettlement, bringing the
center’s total staffing down to 14, executive director Teddi Jallow said. But she said the center will continue its mission.
Teddi Jallow, executive director of the Refugee Dream Center, chatted with women at a meeting at the center in Providence.John Tlumacki/Globe Staff
“No
matter how hard it is, we are going to work with them, and we will help
them to be self-sufficient,” Jallow told the Globe. “That is what we
are going to do, no matter what message we get from D.C.”
She said volunteers are reaching out to help the center and making donations.
Many
refugees remain frightened, Jallow said. Students are afraid to come to
the center’s English classes, and about half as many refugees are showing up for a weekly food pantry.
The woman from Senegal, whom the Globe also agreed not to identify by name, said she is worried that she might get deported.
“It was all OK until Trump came,” she said. “Everything started to change.”
If she were deported, the woman said she would face female genital mutilation, or circumcision, which remains common in her home country.
She
said she came to the United States on a visitor visa and decided to
stay afterward. She managed to learn English, have two children, land a
job, and begin paying taxes.
“It
was the American dream,” she said. “I know it’s a free land. They
welcome people. And if I’m here, I don’t have to be worried.”
But
now, she sometimes cannot sleep because she is worried the immigration
officials will knock on her door and separate her from her children.
“What I’m going through now — I don’t wish any parent to go through
that," she said.
She
said her children are seeing things on TikTok that scare them. They
worry that immigration officials will come to their school and ask how
many people live at their house and if their parents immigrated legally.
“Sometimes
the younger one will be like, ‘I don’t want to go to school because I
don’t want to be apart from you. I will die from that,‘” she said.
“That’s emotional. Imagine your kids saying that.”
She
said she agrees that undocumented immigrants who commit serious crimes
should be deported. But she said Trump should consider that many more
immigrants are working and obeying the law.
“We are not criminals,” she said. “We are not bad people.”
Born in 1893 in Berlin, Fritz Perls lived under crushing parental expectations.
His father called him a "good-for-nothing."
However, this early struggle later fueled his revolutionary ideas about self-acceptance and authenticity.
The trauma shaped his entire philosophy.
1933: Hitler rises to power. As a Jewish intellectual, Perls faced a devastating choice: • Stay and face death • Flee and lose everything He escaped to South Africa with his wife Laura, carrying only their ideas and determination.
After earning his medical degree in 1926, Perls trained under the giants of psychoanalysis. But he grew frustrated with Freud's rigid methods. He saw patients as whole beings, not just walking problems to be analyzed. This radical view would change therapy forever.
In exile, Perls made a shocking discovery: Most therapy was treating symptoms, not people. He developed a revolutionary approach called Gestalt Therapy
In 1946, Perls moved to New York City. He established the first Gestalt Institute, teaching a radical new idea: You don't need to understand why you're struggling to heal. You need to fully experience where you are right now. His most powerful tool was the "empty chair" technique: Patients would speak to an empty chair, imagining someone sitting there. This simple method revealed deep patterns and led to breakthrough insights. Modern therapists still use it today.
Use the empty chair: When struggling with a relationship or decision: • Set up an empty chair • Speak to it as if the person/issue is there • Switch seats and respond • Notice insights that emerge Truth emerges through dialogue, even with yourself.
Practice the "now" technique: Every hour, ask yourself: • What am I feeling right now? • What am I avoiding right now? • What do I want right now? This simple practice builds awareness and breaks patterns of anxiety about past/future.
Turn your "shoulds" into "wants": Replace "I should exercise" with "Do I want to exercise?" Replace "I should call them" with "Do I want to call them?" This shifts you from external pressure to internal motivation. Watch how it changes everything. . Stop explaining and start experiencing.
Living in your head keeps you stuck. Notice when you're overthinking and bring attention to your body sensations. Your wisdom lies in direct experience, not endless analysis.
Our dependency makes slaves out of us, especially if this dependency is a dependency of our self-esteem. If you need encouragement, praise, pats on the back from everybody, then you make everybody your judge. Fritz Perls via Lorwen C Nagle, PhD @LORWEN108
Together, we must fight for our long-held values and work with people around the world who share them
For
250 years, the United States has held itself up as a symbol of
democracy – an example of freedom and self-governance to which the rest
of the world could aspire. People have long looked to our declaration of
independence and constitution as blueprints for how to guarantee those
human rights and freedoms.
Tragically, all of that is changing. As Donald Trump
moves this country towards authoritarianism, he is aligning himself
with dictators and despots who share his disdain for democracy and the
rule of law.
This week, in a radical departure from longstanding US policy, the Trump administration voted against a United Nations
resolution which clearly stated that Russia began the horrific war with
Ukraine. That resolution also called on Russia to withdraw its forces
from occupied Ukraine, in line with international law. The resolution
was brought forward by our closest allies, including the United Kingdom,
Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and dozens more democratic
nations. And 93 countries voted “yes”.
Rather
than side with our longstanding allies to preserve democracy and uphold
international law, the president voted with authoritarian countries such
as Russia,
North Korea, Iran and Belarus to oppose the resolution. Many of the
other opponents of that resolution are undemocratic nations propped up
by Russian military aid.
Let’s be clear: this
was not just another UN vote. This was the president of the United
States turning his back on 250 years of our history and openly aligning
himself with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin. This was the president of the United States undermining the independence of Ukraine.
And
let us not forget who Putin is. He is the man who crushed Russia’s
movement towards democracy after the end of the cold war. He steals
elections, murders political dissidents and crushes freedom of the
press. He has maintained control in Russia by offering the oligarchs
there a simple deal: if you give me absolute power, I will let you steal
as much as you want from the Russian people. He sparked the bloodiest
war in Europe since the second world war.
It has been three years since Russia’s brutal, unprovoked, full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
More than 1 million people have been killed or injured because of
Putin’s aggression. Every single day, Russia rains down hundreds of
missiles and drones on Ukrainian cities. Putin’s forces have massacred
civilians and kidnapped thousands of Ukrainian children, bringing them
back to Russian “re-education” camps. These atrocities led the
international criminal court to issue an arrest warrant for Putin in
2023 as a war criminal.
Not only is Trump
aligning himself with Putin’s Russia, he is prepared to extort Ukraine
for its natural resources. While a proud nation desperately fights for
its life, Trump is focused on helping his billionaire friends make a
fortune excavating rare earths and other minerals.
But Trump’s turn toward authoritarianism and rejection of international law goes well beyond Ukraine.
The
president sees the world’s dictators as his friends, our democratic
allies as his enemies and the use of military force as the way to
achieve his goals. Disgracefully, he wants to push 2.2 million Palestinians out of their homeland in order to build a billionaire’s playground in Gaza. He talks openly about annexing Greenland from Denmark. He says the United States should take back the Panama canal. And he ruptures our friendship with our Canadian neighbors by telling them they should become the 51st state in the union.
Alongside
his fellow oligarchs in Russia, Saudi Arabia and around the globe,
Trump wants a world ruled by authoritarians in which might makes right,
and where democracy and moral values cease to exist.
Just
over a century ago, a handful of monarchs, emperors and tsars ruled
most of the world. Sitting in extreme opulence, they claimed that
absolute power was their “divine right”. But ordinary people disagreed.
Slowly and painfully, in countries throughout the world, they clawed their way toward democracy and rejected colonialism.
At
our best, the US has played a key role in the movement toward freedom.
From Gettysburg to Normandy, millions of Americans have fought – and
many have died – to defend democracy, often alongside brave men and
women from other nations.
This is a turning
point – a moment of enormous consequence in world history. Do we go
forward toward a more democratic, just and humane world? Or do we
retreat back into oligarchy, authoritarianism, colonialism and the
rejection of international law?
As Americans,
we cannot stay quiet as Trump abandons centuries of our commitment to
democracy. Together, we must fight for our long-held values and work
with people around the world who share them.
Bernie Sanders is a US senator and a ranking
member of the health, education, labor and pensions committee. He
represents the state of Vermont and is the longest-serving independent
in the history of Congress
ShareMarty Baron, a highly regarded former editor of the Washington Post, has said that Jeff Bezos’s announcement
that the newspaper’s opinion section would narrow its editorial focus
was a “betrayal of the very idea of free expression” that had left him
“appalled”.
In an interview with the Guardian,
Baron also said: “I don’t think that [Bezos] wants an editorial page
that’s regularly going after Donald Trump.”
On Wednesday, the billionaire newspaper owner and Amazon founder sent an email to Post staffers
announcing that the newspaper’s editorial section would shift its
editorial focus and that only opinions that support and defend “personal
liberties” and “free markets” would be welcome, and other viewpoints
“will be left to be published by others”.
Bezos’s announcement was met with criticism and resulted in
the departure of the newspaper’s opinions editor, David Shipley. Baron,
who was executive editor of the Washington Post from 2012 until 2021
and is one of the most esteemed figures in American journalism, blasted
Bezos’s decision.
“There’s been a long
tradition at the Post of having a variety of opinions on the opinion
pages and that’s part of its heritage,” Baron said. “Bezos supported
that since he acquired the paper, he advocated for that internally, but
his most recent decision represents a real betrayal of the heritage of
the Post and a betrayal of the very idea of free expression.”
Baron
said that news organizations including the Post have traditionally
honored the principle of free expression by allowing a wide variety of
views on the opinion pages, but that Bezos’s decision on Wednesday “does
exactly the opposite” and “dishonors free expression, which is the most
fundamental personal liberty of American citizens”.
During his own time as executive editor, Baron noted that Bezos, who purchased the Washington Post
in 2013, was “minimally involved in the editorial page”, communicating
with the editorial page editor maybe “once every couple of weeks”.
Marty Baron interviews Jeff Bezos in Washington DC on 18 May 2016. Photograph: Linda Davidson/The Washington Post via Getty Images
At
the time, Baron said, Bezos believed in having a “wide variety of
opinions on the op-ed page” and in having the opinion pages “reflect the
kind of debate that we see in the country every day”, which Baron said
was something that most readers valued.
“But
now he’s retreated from that, and not just retreated, he has said quite
clearly that alternative opinions won’t even be allowed there,” Baron
said.
The former executive editor noted that if
Bezos wants “more conservative or libertarian views representing the
Post’s opinion section, that’s fine, but making room for one set of
opinions does not require banning a different set of opinions”.
Bezos’s
decision, Baron argued, contradicted the Post’s mission statement –
“Democracy Dies in Darkness” – by stifling public debate.
“If
you’re trying to advance the cause of democracy, then you allow for
public debate, which is what democracy is all about,” Baron said, adding
that Bezos is sending a message that is “anything but democratic”.
“He’s
saying that other opinions should never see the light of day, wherever
and whenever he’s in control of the space,” Baron said. “To me, that
message is one of disdain and disregard, and I would say disrespect for
other people’s views.”
Baron believes that Bezos is “fearful of reprisals” from Trump and his administration. This fear, Baron said, is what he believes led to the announcement last year that the newspaper’s editorial board would not endorse a presidential candidate for the first time in 30 years.
At the time, Baron condemned the move, calling it “cowardice, with democracy as its casualty” and suggested Trump would see it as “an invitation to further intimidate” Bezos.
On
Thursday, Baron remarked that “all the signs were that Trump would take
vengeance on his perceived political enemies” and noted that Bezos had
always been perceived as one largely due to the Washington Post’s
coverage. As a result, Baron said, the Amazon founder was “seeking to
repair his relations with the administration”.
Baron also highlighted other efforts made by Bezos or his companies to improve relations with Trump, including Amazon’s $1m donation to Trump’s inaugural fund, a recent $40m deal for Amazon Prime to license a documentary about Melania Trump, and Bezos’s visit to Mar-a-Lago and his attendance at the inauguration.
“All of those were signs of efforts to repair his relationship with Donald Trump,” Baron said.
Additionally,
Baron believes that Bezos wants the Washington Post to differentiate
from the New York Times and to have an opinion page more akin to the
Wall Street Journal, which adopts more conservative stances, but aimed
at a broader audience.
In terms of what the
future holds, Baron said that Bezos has “indicated that he’s going to be
very involved” in the paper’s opinion coverage.
“I
don’t know how they’re going to make it an interesting opinion page
when all the opinions are the same, but I would predict that readership
of the opinion page is likely to drop off dramatically,” Baron said.
“Nobody’s going to say anything different, so it’s going to be
exceptionally dull.”
Right now, Baron said, he
hand’t seen any evidence of Bezos interfering with the newspaper’s news
coverage, “and I hope he never does”.
Baron went on to praise the Post’s news coverage.
“There’s
been an enormous amount of damage inflicted on the Post from the top,
but there’s a lot of good being done by people who work at the Post, and
the newsroom has delivered what I consider to be truly admirable and
revelatory coverage of the Trump administration,” Baron said. “I am so impressed by the work that they’re doing.”
Baron
expressed that he would like to see Bezos publicly thank the
newspaper’s reporters and editors “for the incredible work that they’re
doing” especially given the current difficult political climate and the
administration’s attacks on the press.
If Bezos
“values his personal liberties, as he says he does, then I would like
to hear him speak up about this president’s abuse of power and about
this president’s attacks on the press”, Baron said.
“He
used to do that when I was there,” Baron said. “He did it eloquently,
it was totally admirable, and it really showed a lot of courage when he
did.
“But now he barely has a word to say about it. All that courage seems to have evaporated,” he added.
Planetary parade: Mercury falls into line for rare seven-planet alignment
The seven will appear to form a straight line in the night sky in display that won’t be seen again until 2040
Guardian staff and agencies
Thu 27 Feb 2025 21.18 EST
Share Seven planets will appear to align in the night sky on the last day of February in what is known as a planetary parade.
These planetary hangouts happen when several planets appear to line up in the night sky at once.
“A
planetary parade is a moment when multiple planets are visible in the
sky at the same time,” said Dr Greg Brown, an astronomer at the Royal
Observatory Greenwich, told PA Media. “How impressive a parade it is
will depend on how many planets are in it and how visible they are.”
This week, all seven planets are technically visible in the sky at once, though they are not all equally easy to spot.
“Mercury,
Neptune and Saturn are all very close to the horizon in the early
evening and, particularly in the case of Neptune and Saturn, will
struggle to be seen in the twilight,” Brown said. “In addition, Uranus,
like Neptune, is very faint, making it almost impossible to find without
a pair of binoculars or a telescope.
“Venus, Jupiter and Mars, however, are all very easy to see with the unaided eye.”
A parade of four or five planets visible to the naked eye happens every few years, according to Nasa.
The sun lighting the sides of Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. Photograph: Alamy/PA
“Groups
of three, four or even five planets being visible aren’t uncommon,
regularly appearing throughout each year,” Brown said. “But the more
planets are involved, the more things need to be aligned to be visible
at once. This makes full seven-planet parades fairly rare.”
The seven planets will next align in 2040.
A
similar parade took place last June, but only two planets could be seen
without any special equipment. Six planets were visible in January –
four to the naked eye – and now a dim Mercury joins the gang.
This
month, Venus, Mars and Jupiter are visible to the naked eye. A faint
Saturn and Mercury are close to the horizon, making them hard to spot.
Uranus and Neptune can be glimpsed with binoculars and telescopes.
“Planetary
alignments occur because the planets in our solar system orbit the Sun
within roughly the same plane, known as the ecliptic plane,” Dr Shyam
Balaji, a researcher in astroparticle physics and cosmology at King’s College London,
said. “As they orbit at different speeds and distances from the Sun,
there are moments when they appear to line up from Earth’s perspective.”
Balaji
said the best time to see the alignment in the UK was 28 February,
“shortly after sunset, when the planets will be positioned above the
western horizon”. The same is true in Australia, where stargazers should
look north after sunset, and the US, with experts suggesting those
hoping to see the celestial show should head out about 30 minutes after
sunset and stay away from bright lights.
Stargazing apps can help people find out where to look just after sunset around the world.
To
find the planets with a telescope, look for moon shapes, Brown said.
“Using a telescope, try looking for the moons of Jupiter or the shape of
the illuminated part of Venus’s surface – like a tiny crescent moon.”
The planets will slowly make their exit through the spring.
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