Fight or Flight?

As we come close to the final vote tally in this presidential election, it becomes clear that Trump actually won by a very narrow popular vote count that rivals the Bush v Gore race. It doesn’t discount the fact that nearly half the nation voted for a despicable human being who shows no regard for our Constitution, the rule of law, or the plight of others. Beyond staying out of prison or seeking revenge on those who tried to hold him accountable for his criminal actions, his desire is to dominate and enrich himself by subjugating others and outright fraud is on full display. As a nation, we witnessed his cruelty, his mob-like behavior, his constant lying and childish insults and yet many still voted for him. His recent cabinet picks are just further evidence that his loyalty lies not with improving the country for its citizens, but with obtaining more power through loyal misfits, sycophants, conspiracy theorists, selfish billionaires, and unethical characters. There is plenty of blame to go around for how we got here, but now is the time to build our personal fortresses to protect ourselves from the mayhem that is about to occur. After that, we must decide whether to fight or flee.

I mentioned last week that we must prepare now to protect the reproductive choice and health of the young women in our lives. Red states are not safe for women of childbearing age as OBGYNs either have their hands tied or are fleeing those states. Red states are becoming maternal health care desserts with dire consequences. In addition, more babies are dying shortly after birth and others will have lifelong severe disabilities as a result of their heartbeat policies. Beyond stocking up on contraception, morning after pills, and abortion medication, those of us in states that protect maternal health can open our doors to young family members and friends who need help or a safer place for pregnancy and delivery. Being willing and able to help financially is also an act of empathy and kindness that can save a young woman’s life and future. Of course, women of childbearing age should have a passport in case a nationwide abortion ban goes into effect.

In addition to protecting the reproductive health of the young women in our lives, we must also pay attention to our finances. Retailers like Walmart have already announced that their prices will rise as a result of the impending tariffs. Companies are stocking up on supplies to ward off price increases. Our response has been to make our major purchases now. We did some renovations, purchased a new sofa and a new television. We are stocking up on everyday goods in anticipation of these price increases to stretch our money further. I even expanded our pantry to accommodate many more staples, and I filled shelves to the brim with unperishable items. I moved money to safer havens with easier access in anticipation of a market drop or a need for ready cash without paying additional taxes or penalties. In the new fiscal year, I will do more of the same prior to Trump taking office. Our goal is to avoid paying the consequences for his unpredictable and unwise fiscal policies.

We plan to be thoughtful about where we spend our money. We created a list of Trump-supporting stores that we will not patronize which includes Walmart, Hobby Lobby, Ross, and Chic fil a. We will patronize minority owned businesses and businesses in our small city before going elsewhere. And we will patronize the movie industry, live theater, visual artists, restaurants, and musicians by spending our dollars on creatives who improve our mental health and advocate for humanity. We won’t be buying anything that Elon Musk or Trump sells. In fact, we won’t even listen to their speeches or interviews. They each get on my nerves.

Protecting my peace of mind in the coming years is paramount. I won’t be watching corporate news any longer. I’ll limit my time and my viewing to local and publicly funded news sources. I’ll keep my New York Times subscription because I value investigative journalism. Instead of just stressing out over the impending bad news, I’m planning to carefully pick organizations actively defending our civil rights and advocating for vulnerable people and donate to them. As for social media, I’ve joined the new platform, Bluesky, and I am already enjoying the science, K-pop, gardening, and art content I requested. I’ve unfriended a number of people on Facebook who supported Trump, and I’ll continue to post my thoughts as an outlet, paying no attention to the number of views or likes I get. I won’t argue morality with morons anymore. I understand that Facebook and Instagram limit political content and I imagine it will only get worse with Trump in the White House issuing threats.

I’m planning to do more gardening, expanding my vegetable garden for more organic produce since prices are going to skyrocket when there are too few farm laborers left to harvest crops after Trump’s mass deportations. And who knows what will be in the food after deregulation for profits and there too few food inspectors empowered to inspect the food. There really is cause for concern and it’s distressing when you spend a lot of time thinking about it. My nerves will need far more mental breaks.

I relax when I’m knitting and crocheting, so I’ll do more of that and donate items to our local seniors, shelters, and newborn hospital wards. I plan to read more fiction rather than non-fiction this coming year. I plan to connect with family and friends in more meaningful ways. I pray and meditate during my daily walks, so that will continue. And I’ll keep listening to music while I cook, garden, craft, and do chores. I’ll spend time watching K-pop content on YouTube because their music videos are amazing. I’ll also enjoy K-dramas and a few U.S. dramas as well. I plan to utilize my dozens of cookbooks more often to discover new recipes this year. And of course, I plan to take care of my health by eating well, sleeping well, grooming well, and exercising.

In conclusion, I am basically choosing flight with a small amount of fight. My fight will be in my blog, social media post, donations to frontline organizations, and in letter to lawmakers. But the actual fighting belongs to white folks. They remain the majority who decided this election, and so they must decide among themselves whether this will be an inclusive multicultural democracy or a Taliban-like white-suprematist theocracy. In either case, I will do what I need to do to provide an ark for my family’s safety and well-being.