The Shadow Vine

“Elizabeth Ann is the first cloned black-footed ferret and first-ever cloned U.S. endangered species. She was created from the frozen cells of “Willa,” a black-footed ferret that lived more than 30 years ago.“ 

So, why is this a big deal? Because, “All living black-footed ferrets are descended from 7 individuals, resulting in unique genetic challenges to recovering the species.” Willa died 30 yrs ago, but she wasn’t one of the 7. Her genome represents an important revival of genetic diversity.

you:

build community & involve yourself locally

learn self sustainability skills

choose kindness

protect others & yourself

join or build a mutual aid group and/or network

If you can’t leave due to certain reasons, or choose to remain behind for yourself or your loved ones, sheltering in place might seem like a better option. Fortify the lesser lived-in areas of your home into a hideout, bunker, or safe room. Become more self-sustainable, and grow your own vegetable garden and fruit trees, and learn to can and preserve them in the months ahead. Learn to cook and bake goods from scratch. Stock up on as much medication as you can in the case that the Medicare, Medicaid, and the ACA Act are demolished; and also stock up on freeze-dried emergency food. If you’re a woman, track your menstrual cycles on a calendar instead of an app… big brother might be watching! In the case that Project 2025 keeps its promise to go after political enemies, refrain from saying anything negative about the government (I know this’ll be a hard one) in public or on social media. Use a diary to vent and keep it in a safe place, or if you’re communicating with a loved one via text message or so, devise secret codes.

There’s also the option of forming an underground resistance, but be extremely careful when doing so. Carefully calculate your next moves, instead of relying on rash decisions you may regret later.

RFK Jr is very likely to be in charge of public health policy come January and he has been very open with his radically antivax agenda. And Trump has said he “is open to” banning vaccines outright in the US. So if you need or want a:

• Covid Booster

• Flu shot

• Tetanus Booster

• HPV

•Meningococcal Meningitis

I hope the non-voters are happy. Legitimately. I hope the Green Party is happy. For real. I hope this outcome brings them the joy they hoped it would. I hope they don’t come to regret the next 2-4 years. I hope they’re at peace.

I hope Europe isn’t forced to change their stance on Ukraine like many Prime Ministers have warned they would. I hope there are Palestinians left in Gaza to liberate after Trump “finishes the job” and gets his real estate property. I hope the number of queer folk killed, whether individually or systematically, in the coming years is minimal. I hope the number of women killed by inaccessibility to medical care is minimal. I hope the number of disabled people who face financial hard times is minimal. I hope we genuinely can cruise through these next 4 years. I hope I’m still around to try and fix this in 2-4 years.

I hope the message the non-voters and Green Party sent is actually received. I hope they didn’t send the message to Democrats that conservatism is the way to win and what we should be embracing.

I hope that nothing in Project 2025 is completed. I hope we win at least one branch to throw a stick in the gears of fascism. I hope Trump bombs his second term so poorly that 2026 wipes the GOP out of the House and Senate.

I hope there’s still a global superpower to fix in 4 years. I hope that the corruption we’ve allowed to thrive tonight doesn’t infect our neighbors across the Atlantic like they fear it will.

Every time I hear someone say this, I think of this picture:

This is the San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus. The ones in white are the members who survived the AIDS epidemic. The rest did not.

I was a teenager when Trump was elected in 2016. I was 16 years old, just beginning to question my sexuality while also supporting my best friend who had come out as trans. The only adult I could trust to talk to about it was my geography teacher. After Trump was elected, corporations had the greenlight to price gouge every imaginable necessity, including the insulin my teacher relied on. He couldn't afford all the payments even with insurance so he started rationing. The last day of school before winter break, I wished him happy holidays, gave him a Christmas card, and never saw him again.

I know you mean well, but I say this in the nicest way possible: you are speaking from a place of luck. Just because you haven't lost anyone or anything as a result of the past Trump administration does not mean everyone had the same experience. I know my experience is not a unique one. I could cite the widely available statistics about abortion restrictions and maternal mortality, or gender-affirming care bans and trans suicides, or the pandemic, anything else we've been seeing when conservatives take power.