I may not agree with everything Charles Eisenstein says in this column, but I totally agree with his conclusion:

The mindset that demonizes one’s political opponent is the same one that demonizes a foreign enemy to make war, or that demonizes a population to facilitate ethnic cleansing. Left unchecked, it will erupt into civil unrest, violence, and then tyranny. It may even lead to World War Three. I speak here as an American, but the same dynamics are rampant across the West. My country is not exempt from what it has sown in the world. The fate of Libya, of Iraq, of Venezuela, of Ukraine, of Syria, of Yugoslavia, of Lebanon, of Gaza could easily become our own.

What allows political authorities to commit heinous crimes against humanity? They are not, after all, superhuman. They don’t have special powers like Magneto or Darth Vader. So they must turn the population into willing accomplices in their own oppression. They instigate wave after wave of fear and hate, and ride each to new heights of power. As the Nazi Hermann Goering put it, “Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the peacemakers for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country.”

There’s always a bogeyman. The insane escalation in Ukraine requires the bogeyman of Vladimir Putin leading the resurrected corpse of the Evil Empire (the Soviet Union). The wave of surveillance and censorship and persecution of dissidents in the West requires the bogeyman of “MAGA extremists” or “Russian agents” or “domestic terrorists” or “spreaders of dangerous anti-vax misinformation.” The razing of Gaza and slaughter of its people requires the bogeyman of implacable hate-crazed enemies of Israel thirsty for the blood of Jews.

Every hateful word, every dehumanizing smear, every note of mockery and contempt, every denunciation and condemnation that we put into the public square feeds the powers that would manipulate us into war, genocide, and fascism. And so, politicians and media set the example of hate for us to follow. It isn’t even deliberate — that’s the thing. It is just the way things are done. I don’t mean here to set up politicians and media as the new evil. “Forgive them Lord, for they know not what they do.” But that is what they do. They divide us. They teach us to hate each other.

Don’t fall for it. That’s my request. Don’t fall for it. Instead, enter the political sphere with the questions that come from compassion and lead to love. That is the only revolution worth having.

One last fun bit about solstice: all the ash from the fires yesterday will be sprinkled onto the garden in the spring.

Closing out the day with a campfire, the flame of which traces back to the spark struck this morning. It’s been a full but unhurried day, my favorite kind. Plenty of time to reflect on the year and consider the one upcoming. Plenty to be grateful for.

Goat kebabs. No local farmer had ground goat available but one did have shoulder steaks. Me and a cleaver got it most of the way there and then a blender did the rest. Goat is associated with Yule, for reasons that aren’t very clear. We also have straw Yule goats we’ll be throwing onto the fire.

Rune Hjarnø Rasmussen’s speech on renewing relationship with fire, given before the Yule fire ceremony he’s been working to re-establish. This is the guy who inspired me to light today’s fire with flint and steel.

(Looks like I’m live blogging Yule. 🤷‍♂️)

Dang, that chili was good. The recipe called for two pounds of ground beef, which felt excessive. We swapped one pound of ground beef for another pound of kidney beans. Perfect. Since we get our beef from a local farmer, it’s expensive—which in turn makes us a bit more sensitive to its overuse.

Chili is cooking over the coals. We went with chili because it’s easy to cook outside—which was more important to us than what we actually cooked. I used Kent Rollins’ recipe; Rachel has her own chili recipe but we went with this one because we’ve been enjoying Kent’s stuff lately.

First act of the solstice: light the Yule fire from flint and steel. I wanted to use that method because it is more bodily and patient than striking a match. This candle will be used to light all the other candles and the cooking fire today.

Darcy works at Bath and Body Works and she reports that–five days before Christmas–there is an influx of men who clearly know nothing about their wives and are looking for the sales clerks to tell them what to buy for the women they have sworn to love and honor for the rest of their lives.