Twenty years ago this week, the United States suffered the worst terrorist attack in its history. Following the horror of that triple death-from-above assault, the country was about as united in purpose as it can be, and in agreement, mostly, about what we saw happen. Not so much now when we cannot even agree on what reality is. Our views on the events of the world have become so distorted through our siloed lenses that the current lethal attack on the country has not corralled us to a similar unifying principle. Is it because we can’t blame foreign terrorists? Without humans to directly blame for the daily mortality that is approaching the death toll from that one terrible day, some people now think that doctors are the terrorists because of their incessant need to dispense medical advice based on facts and research. It makes one despair that we will ever escape the pandemic.

So, your host has a singular message this week, with a hat tip to writer Wendy Molyneux: Get Vaccinated! Because until we get control of the pandemic, we can’t focus on the myriad of other problems we face. These issues are embodied in the threats to our democracy and personal and public safety from the radical conservative minority who would sacrifice everything the country stands for on the altar of a nihilistic definition of personal and religious freedom. As some in our community celebrate the Jewish holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, it’s worth remembering that the American political system is based on a separation of church and state and that there are many people who do not find the promise of potential rapture to be a good reason not to get a shot. And as we have also seen this week, the worsening effects of climate change are more and more evident as from coast to coast localities have been ravaged by 100-year weather conditions on a weekly basis, from hurricanes to flooding to wildfires to tornadoes. Whatever the aims of the 9/11 attackers, the subsequent twenty years have proven that left to our own devices, we can harm ourselves far more than any external threat.

On a lighter note, happy 103rd birthday to Jeannette Black!

The rants this week offer a range of gripes before taking a decided turn down COVID alley, with a brief excursion into the dialectics of Greek tragedy. Highlights include one veteran’s plea to stop saying “Thank you for your service” unless you are also going to vote for politicians who will support those who have served, a reminder that democracy is in danger in California where an entirely undemocratic recall election threatens the incumbency of Gov. Newsom, a plea for personal space, and a diatribe about the pointlessness of most news when it leaves the work of news gathering to the viewer. Also, get vaccinated.

Lewis’ latest special, Thanks For Risking Your Life is available now!

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