“First they came for the Communists, and I did not speak out because I was not a Communist.

Then they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for…..……”  —Marton Neimöller, 1946.

These infamous words illustrate the essence of Edward Burke’s warning that the only thing needed for evil to rise is for good people to do nothing. However, history suggests to me a contemporary take on Neimòller’s warning. I submit: 

“First he came for the undocumented immigrants and I spoke out even though I am not an undocumented immigrant.

Then he came for the Muslims and I spoke out even though I am not Muslim.

Then he came for LBGTQ+ people and I spoke out even though I am not lesbian, bisexual, gay or trans. 

Then he came for those who had spoken or worked against him and I spoke out because I have spoken against him. 

Then he came for me, and I will never stop speaking out against him, not ever, even if there is no-one left so speak for me. — Andrew J Bernhard, 2025. 

And one more famous quote: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” – George Santayana.

With the rise of Donald T****’s pretensions of dictatorship, we must believe Burke’s wisdom, take heed of Santayana’s warning and rise above Neimöller’s weakness; there is only one way to synthesize these three quotations. Only one way to protect and preserve the freedoms our Founding Fathers so hopefully bequeathed to us. Only One Path Forward.

STAND UP     SPEAK OUT     RESIST

#OnePath Forward

#1PathForward

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thebernhardperspective.com

President Donald T****’s attempt to blame last week’s midair collision of a passenger jet with a military helicopter on diversity hiring illustrates how he views virtually everything through his own political filter.

That’s why, without a hint of decency or conscience, he attempts to turn disasters like hurricanes, fires and  aviation tragedies to his advantage. In truth, the president didn’t know squat about why the disaster occurred, but following his usual playbook, he turned a catastrophe into a political hit piece. 

But more than that, this was a calculated decision to distract the press and the public from his own administration’s failings. Thus, his utterly stupid assertion that he knew just hours after the crash that DEI hiring, and by extension Joe Biden, was the cause, and that he knew that because he was so damn smart.Of course, he knew he was full of it. 

In reality, the president didn’t want to be asked tough questions like, why did he let Elon Musk attack the FAA administrator, causing him to resign? Not wanting to be asked questions about his own policies and the actions of his own people, he endeavored to control the narrative by having everybody chase him down a rabbit hole with DEI allegations made, of course, without a shred of evidence.

Such diversionary tactics should not have been entirely unexpected. Indeed, for Donald T****, this evasiveness comes naturally. They are time-honored traditions and practices of shuck-and-jive grifters and con artists like him. In the immortal words of W. C. Fields, “If you can’t dazzle them with brilliance, baffle them with bullshit.” 

And T****, of course, is full of it. 

#1PathForward

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On Friday, January 31, T**** administration officials began releasing water from two dams in California in a move that is  intended to take political advantage of a disaster.

Claiming that California has access to great amounts of water from the Pacific Northwest and Canada,T**** has repeatedly insisted that the Los Angeles fires could have been extinguished had California Governor Gavin Newsom released more water from the north. 

That is a lie. Californias has no access to water in other states or nations, and there are no pipelines or viaducts to bring it into the state even if it did.

T**** has also claimed that the governor could have solved water shortages with the turn of a valve if California were less concerned about endangered fish species. That, too, is a lie.

The releases have sent water not to Los Angeles, but into low-lying farmland in the Central Valley. None of it will reach Southern California. Boasting that he had “just entered the Great State of California and, “under Emergency Powers, TURNED ON THE WATER,” T*** has claimed “victory,”

Experts expressed both surprise and dismay, saying that releasing water now, in the middle of winter, served little use for its intended recipients, farmers who will need it in the spring

Once again, T**** tells lies in order to create a fantasy situation that doesn’t exist. Then he makes divisive pronouncements and takes needles and dangerous actions which wouldn’t help even if he wasn’t lying. Then, with smug satisfaction, he proclaims himself a genius, a savior and a victor. 

However, Donald T**** is neither savior nor genius nor victor. He is a lying, stupid idiot. 

#1!PathForward

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One of the MAGA myths about American foreign aid in general and the the war in Europe in particular is that the U.S. can’t afford to keep sending weapons and money overseas. But the fact is that foreign aid is not for the most part simply America tax dollars being sent abroad. 

A significant portion of American foreign aid is “tied aid,” meaning it must be spent on American-made goods or services. This practice benefits the U.S. economy while providing foreign economic assistance. Some 75%` of American foreign aid consists, as in the case of virtually all military aid, of goods made in America by American workers in American factories.

The remaining 25% of foreign aid, loosely categorized as “Humanitarian Assistance,” is channeled through U.S.-based agencies which then work with a mix of nonprofits and local organizations to implement specific projects. Most of this work is done in American as well.

True, there are cash disbursements. This occurs when a direct cash transfer is the most efficient manner of providing the assistance called for. Such disbursements are not the norm and are scrutinized and monitored closely.

Thus, T****’s isolationist, “America First” policies would have a negative impact on the American economy in general and the workingclass in particular. Also, It’s important to note that foreign aid spending accounts for about 1% of the U.S. Federal budget, significantly less than many Americans believe.

No country exists in isolation. America is the richest, most powerful and influential country in the world. In truth, our economic and political realities are tightly woven into the fabric of the rest of the world’s.

Those who support T****s America First mantra are led to believe the opposite, and that our taxpayer dollars need to remain here. But the overwhelming majority of our foreign aid dollars do remain here, and benefit both the American economy, the nations who receive our aid, and demonstrate our standing as the world’s leader and moral compass. But because of T****’s lying brand of isolationist populism preaches a different tune, they don’t know any of this. 

Or perhaps they just don’t want to know. 

#OnePathForward

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Donald T****’s cruel and unusual treatment of the children of undocumented immigrants during his first administration has been well-documented. Who, except the Republicans who refused to look, can forget images of helpless children locked in cages, sitting on cold floors with only plastic blankets for warmth and comfort? Or of children denied basic medical care? Or of children dying in our names while in American custody?

All these things and more happened.

The worst of these depravities had been halted by a court order put in place just two years ago, establishing a system for protecting the health of children detained at the border. Now, however, Donald T****  has an opportunity to continue his previous inhumane treatment of immigrant children without court interference and without lifting a finger.

The system, part of a legal settlement between the government and lawyers representing migrant children in custody, detailed protocols for detaining minors at Border Protection facilities. It required agents to provide them with access to regular and emergency medical care and basic hygiene items. It forbade agents to separate children from their parents for extended periods of time.

The court order that created this system is set to expire nine days after T**** takes office. And under the hateful eye of Tom Homan, T****’s crass and heartless “border czar,” all those crimes against innocent children that happened before will happen again.

All it needs is for T**** to do nothing. 

RESIST

#OnePathForward

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Robert Kennedy Jr., Donald J. Trump’s picks for Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), has a history of making false and misleading statements about childhood vaccines. Kennedy’s opposition to vaccines is a core part of his health-related agenda. But while millions of people support his anti-science nonsense, few are discussing the diseases they prevent. 

The most targeted of these is POLIO, which was virtually wiped out in America decades ago. Today, there are virtually no memories of children walking with crutches or living entombed in an iron lung. Up to 10 out of 100 people who have paralysis from poliovirus infection die.

Other diseases whose life-saving vaccines are under Kennedy’s gun include but are not limited to:

MEASLES, a viral illness with effects including encephalitis, meningitis, and blindness. In severe cases, measles can lead to hospitalization and death. 

MUMPS, with common complications include swelling of the testicles, ovaries, or pancreas as well as viral meningitis. 1 in 100 cases leads to encephalitis which can cause death.

HEPATITIS B, which attacks the liver and can lead to cirrhosis, liver cancer and liver failure, both of which can lead to death. 

INFLUENZA, which can lead to pneumonia and the worsening of chronic medical conditions such a, asthma and diabetes congestive heart failure and death. Adults over 65 and children younger than 5 are more susceptible to severe flu-related complications.

RUBELLA, also know as the German Measles, carries substantial risks during pregnancy. Congenital Rubella Syndrome (CRS) in infants can cause hearing impairments, eye hearing and and cardiac defects, growth delays, mental development issues, autism, diabetes mellitus, thyroid dysfunction, congenital deformity and death. 

And of course, COVID. Kennedy has called these vaccines “a crime against humanity,” and claimed children did not need them. This indifference would hardly assuage the grief of the families of the some 1000 COVID-related deaths among individuals aged 0 to 19 in the United States, or the 17,000 worldwide. 

Many of the inoculations against these diseases became routine in the United States over 50 years ago. The experience and horrors of these illnesses existing in society has been largely erased from public memory. 

Kennedy and T**** are obviously in favor of again plaguing America with the horrors of these wholly preventable diseases, and are ghoulishly OK with seeing hundreds of thousands of Americans suffer and die needlessly.

There is only one way to stop this impending medical catastrophe. Only one way to protect the lives of innocent men, women and children from idiots like Kennedy and  T**** putting right-wing political and conspiratorial insanity before medical science. Only one path forward.

RESIST.

#1nePathForward

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thepernhardperspective.com

Today is the day we celebrated the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King. But do not believe for a minute that, despite their speeches and pithy tributes, neither Donald T**** or his MAGA’s are concerned with Dr. King or his legacy. For example: 

In Red states throughout the South and Mid-West, MAGA-controlled statehouses have either diluted the Black vote through redistricting, or have simply gerrymandered them out of existence. 

They have made it more difficult for voters to register by requiring multiple documents including but not limited to proof of citizenship such as passports or birth certificates, the last four digits of a social security number, current, valid state-issued photo identification, (in Texas, a student-in -residence’s ID is invalid but anyone’s hunting license is), current utility bills, bank statements, Social Security or government paychecks, or other government documents showing name and address.

Other have implemented programs for “scrubbing” voter registrations lists, removing thousands of otherwise qualified voters from the rolls. This includes, but is not limited to older citizens who no longer have or can easily obtain birth documents. It can also include others who have not voted continuously in previous elections. 

Some scrubbing programs target voters whose addresses are not current. This especially impacts poor and underclass (ie: Black and Brown) citizens, the majority of whom are renters and move more often than middle and upper-class (White) citizens who live more permanently in houses they own. 

And then there is Georgia. There, targeted by some of the restrictive laws already mentioned, Black voters have been further burdened by requirements such as limited numbers of ballot drop-off boxes and voting places. This has ensured that in large, predominant Black inner-city districts, voters must wait in line for hours to vote, while white voters in smaller towns and rural districts don’t. And in Georgia it is against the law to provide food or water to voters waiting in line.

The purpose of all these laws is to negatively impact the ability of Black, Brown and poor American citizens from exercising their Constitutional right to vote.. They are are blatant and unashamedly racist in intent and design. 

So do not believe for a moment that T**** and his MAGA’s give a rat’s ass about the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King’. If they had their way, they would erase it completely. 

They are trying. 

#1nePathForward

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Thanks to President Joe Biden, Donald T*** is inheriting an economy that is the envy of the world. Unemployment is low, we are pumping more oil than any time in history and domestic energy production is higher than it’s ever been. Jobs and wages are rising and the economy is growing. 

So for the second time, Donald T**** assumes the presidency with a healthy, robust economy, courtesy of a Democratic president. And just as he did the first time, he will most likely again take full credit for something he didn’t create. 

T**** created the myth of his great economic miracle by evoking  President Obama’s strong economy which  continuing on through his first three years in office. He tanked that economy in 2020, yet for the next four years he preached to his minions of “his” economic wonderland, reminding them how good things were going thanks to 8 years of Obama’s hard work. And all the while shamelessly decrying Biden’s economic disaster which was, in fact, his own. 

But T**** isn’t in the clear on this economy business because he still doesn’t know squat about any of it. His continued insistence that foreign countries will pay his tariffs is a prime example. Nor will the lickspittle toadies with whom he has surrounded himself likely tell him either “no” or the truth, even if they know it. T**** lives in his own fantasy world, they just kiss the ring. 

So it is reasonable to presume that Donald T**** will tank Biden’s stupendous economic recovery the same way he tanked Barak Obama’s ongoing success. And if he’s around past 2028, he’ll blame it all on whomever comes after him. It’s in the cards.

 After all, he is an idiot. And a liar. 

#OnePathForward

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From the farewell speech of President Joe Biden:

“I want to warn the country of some things that give me great concern: the dangerous concentration of power in the hands of a very few ultra-wealthy group of people and the dangerous consequences if their abuse is left unchecked. Today, an oligarchy is taking shape in America that literally threatens our democracy, our basic rights, our freedoms.” Biden was alluding to the number of billionaires that will comprise the Cabinet of his successor Donald Trump’s administration, as well as those outside with tremendous influence, like Tesla CEO Elon Musk

He continued, “The free press is crumbling, social media is giving up fact-checking, the truth is being smothered by lies. We must hold social platforms accountable to protect our children and our democracy.” 

Biden also raised alarms about a “tech-industrial complex,” including artificial intelligence and the rise of misinformation and lies on social media.

Well-spoken, Mr. President. Well-spoken indeed.

Thanks to President Joe Biden, Donald T*** is inheriting an economy that is the envy of the world. Unemployment is as low as it was before Covid, we are pumping more oil than any time in history and the domestic energy production is higher than it’s ever been. Jobs are up, wages are rising and the economy is growing. So for the second time, Donald T**** assumes the presidency with a healthy, robust economy, courtesy of a Democratic president. And just as he did the first time, he will most likely take full credit for something he didn’t create. 

Because in fact, it was President Obama’s strong economy continuing on through T****’s first three years in office that created the illusion that Donald knew anything about running a country. He tanked that economy big-time in 2020, yet for the next four years he preached to his minions of his economic wonderland. Thus T**** created the myth of his great economic miracle, and all the while shamelessly decrying Biden’s economic disaster.

But T**** isn’t in the clear on this economy business because he still doesn’t know squat about any of it. Still insisting that foreign countries pay the tariffs, all he knows to do is to slap one on anything or everything, creating havoc in American industry and causing already inflated prices to rise even further. The lickspittle toadies with whom he has surrounded himself aren’t likely to tell him either “no” or the truth, even if they know it; T**** lives in his own fantasy world. 

It is easy to presume that Donald T**** will tank Biden’s stupendous economic recovery the same way he tanked Barak Obama’s. And if he’s around past 2028, he’ll blame that all on whomever comes after him. It’s in the cards.

 After all, he is an idiot. 

#OnePathForward

#Progressive-commentary