On January 7th, 2026, Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old US citizen, was fatally shot by a United States ICE officer in Minneapolis, MN.
While this event is serving as a wake-up call for many Americans, the reckless and unconstitutional actions of aspiring tyrant Donald Trump have been on full display since the Capitol insurrection of January 6th, 2021. Sadly, our nation still seems more divided than ever as we trade critical thinking for confirmation bias (if you have read this far, your position on this topic is probably already decided).
Throughout his political journey, Trump has continually stoked fear and hatred of "others" to divide and inflame the American people. Historically, fear induced by violence or the threat of violence has been used to control populations in authoritarian and totalitarian regimes. This ideology is underpinned by the idea that might makes right. Compassion is seen as weak and wrong.
Nevertheless, in these dark days, hope is rising up in the form of peaceful protests across America. Now more than ever, it is essential that we recognize our common humanity, and cultivate loving kindness for our fellow human beings. We are all imperfect humans, bad incentives exist, and power tends to corrupt our morality. Some of us handle power more responsibly than others, but absolute power corrupts absolutely.
As Plato reminds us, the tyrant is "the most unjust and most miserable of men." Even Trump deserves compassion, and we must not let anyone pull us so low as to hate them. As civil rights leaders throughout history have affirmed, love is the only force powerful enough to drive out hate and fear. Love upholds the spirit of our American project, with its essential promise of liberty and justice for all.
Unfortunately, the current administration may be no more than a symptom of an America plagued by shortsighted and dysfunctional incentives, rewarding behavior that escalates divisive rhetoric. Money and power are worshipped and hoarded in fearful greed, while our children learn to mimic our behavior.
In times like these, it is essential to remember that violence ceases not with violence, hatred ceases not with hatred, and fear ceases not with fear. A narrow path lies before us, inviting us to move toward our true potential as human beings. This is the path of clear-eyed compassion, forgiveness, and love for all of our neighbors.
"Ultimately a great nation is a compassionate nation. No individual or nation can be great if it does not have a concern for ‘the least of these'." Martin Luther King Jr.
Love always,
David & Kassidy
