Part 2 – What and Who Do I follow
It’s 2021 already and I have been in planning and review mode just like most people do for a new year. I realized that I was not able to accomplish my goals this last year – mostly due to one situation. Politics. I never considered myself to be a political person and had often failed in the past at workplace politics due to how messy it sometimes was with the need to please the power people. I realized that during most of 2020 I was following and reading a lot of political news and that most of my digital feeds included reference to what was going on in government politics and what was going on related to the president and the drama he created.
When I discovered and started following Heather Cox Richardson I started to feel more balanced and more in control of my life. Heather Cox Richardson is a political historian who uses facts and history to make observations about contemporary American politics. Her new book is How the South Won the Civil War: Oligarchy, Democracy, and the Continuing Fight for the Soul of America. I was being consumed by all the drama and the whip lash related to trying to keep up with the news.
I deleted a lot of the feed notices that were clogging up my news feed and making me feel uncomfortable. I turned off notices from several channels and news and stopped subscriptions to cut down on “fake news” and drama that did not directly affect my life as it is now. I could read her posts and get a professional summary of the news in a style and manner that I trusted. I got tired of trying to figure out what was fake and what was just click bait.
I wish I could have the same dedication to write/journal every day like she does but I am getting better at it.
In September 2019, Richardson began writing a daily synopsis of political events surrounding the impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump. Originally posted late every evening or in the early hours of the next day on her Facebook page, Richardson later moved to add a newsletter format, titled “Letters from an American”, published via Substack. She also presents hour-long talks live on Facebook on Tuesdays and Thursdays, discussing current events in the light of history.
Her facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson