Do not go gentle into that good night
– Dylan Thomas, 1914-1953

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

The Big Picture – 
By Glynn Wilson – 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – This Tuesday will be the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, lasting only 7 hours and 49 minutes, as the North Pole faces the furthest away from the Sun in its annual rotation around Earth’s life-supporting star.

In a number of human traditions, we call this the winter solstice, and it will also be the longest night of the year. A good source of information about this is the Royal Museums Greenwich, which points out that the winter solstice is an important time for cultures across the globe. Under the old Julian Calendar, the winter solstice occurred on Dec. 25. With the introduction of the Gregorian calendar the solstice slipped to the 21st.

Today, people from the UK and beyond visit the ancient site of Stonehenge to celebrate the winter and summer solstice. One reason why this is a popular site to visit is that you can glimpse the sun’s rays through the stones which are lined up with the path of the sun. Most people arrive late on the night of solstice to catch the sunrise.

“While both solstices are celebrated by modern day religions and tourists alike, the ancient civilization that first built the monument most likely did so primarily for the winter solstice, perhaps to request a good growing season in the year to come,” experts conclude.

Christians and capitalists alike are getting ready to celebrate Christmas, however, and scientists and doctors are expecting a massive spread of COVID in the busiest travel season of the year.

Here in the big woods 10 miles north of the Washington Monument, we will celebrate by watching movies and sleeping. The National Weather Service app on the iPhone says it will be the coldest day of the year so far, with a projected low of 23 degrees and a high of only 48.

Last Christmas in Knoxville, Tennessee, we experienced a White Christmas, but that is not expected here this year.

On Saturday, Dec. 25, Christmas Day, I will spend much of the day in College Park, Maryland, with friends.

We hope you have good friends and loving family to spend time with this year.

We’re working on a year-in-review column to run next week as we bring this year to a close and get ready for 2022. Obviously it will include a discussion of the end of Donald Trump’s presidency and the Capitol Insurrection, but I’m taking a break from thinking about that any more this week.

If you can’t just get enough of seeing that awful footage, HBO has a new documentary out about it called Four Hours at the Capitol.

I can’t watch this footage anymore. I’ve seen enough. I know what happened and how I feel about it.

But I will keep running stories about the investigation and document every arrest and prosecution of those involved.

I tend to agree with many of our readers and commenters on Facebook, especially in groups, who obviously think these Trump supporting insurrectionists are getting sentences that are far too short. They should be charged with insurrection, along with every public official who incited them to come to Washington and engage in such a violent attack on American democracy.

Rebellion or insurrection: 18 U.S. Code § 2383 –

“Whoever incites, sets on foot, assists, or engages in any rebellion or insurrection against the authority of the United States or the laws thereof, or gives aid or comfort thereto, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both; and shall be incapable of holding any office under the United States.”

Legal Affairs – Capitol Insurrection

I’m fighting on a daily basis to NOT go gentle into that good night, even though there are those in the traditional press and social media who wish we would go away.

I hope you are committed to staying around to fight another day too. Get vaccinated. Get your booster shot, stay away from the unvaccinated, and get some rest. Get ready to go back to work next year to stop Trump and his ilk from taking over the levers of power in this country ever again.

Like the Jeff Bezos’ Washington Post says, “Democracy dies in darkness.”

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