“These are dark times, there is no denying. Our world has, perhaps, faced no greater threat than it does today,” The Minister of Magic, Rufus Scrimgeour, from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1.
Not sure why, but Scrimgeour’s words, or should I say, J.K. Rowling’s words, have been ringing in my ear for days. Perhaps because we are moving swiftly toward Standard Time when night will overtake day or because the very consequential mid-term elections are almost here, and “As of August 28th, 170 billionaire families have spent over $1.7 billion to influence the outcome of the 2026 federal midterm elections. 17 of these families—who collectively gave $363 million this cycle—had direct personal or professional connections with convicted pedophile Jeffery Epstein” (Americans for Tax Fairness Action Fund). Maybe it’s because a comedian’s loose tongue gets more media coverage than Trump’s lies. Regardless, everyone everywhere is in agreement that these are dark times, and I for one am desperate to find some happiness, not simply in a hedonistic sense of the word, but in our Founding Father’s notion of creating a sense of wellbeing for our families and communities and country which is a far cry from an illegal war, an inept government, and a bought Congress who is taking down our unalienable Rights.
In 1776 Thomas Jefferson and other founders crafted the Declaration of Independence, stating, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” I have no real notion if an entire US government has ever leaned so far away from delivering those truths, but it certainly appears to be. Voldemort [Trump], his Death Eaters [MAGA], actually all of those on the Dark Side [follow their money trail] are scurrying about in our Capital, working solely to restrict our ability to live our lives, and in doing so, blanketing all hope for citizen’s happiness or liberty. These morally corrupt so-called leaders have lost sight of what actually matters, what our country is built on, what every person is working toward: the very happiness we each dream. J.K. Rowling reminds us, “That which Voldemort does not value, he takes no trouble to comprehend. Of house-elves and children’s tales, of love, loyalty, and innocence, Voldemort knows and understands nothing. Nothing. That they all have a power beyond his own, a power beyond the reach of any magic, is a truth he has never grasped.” Let those words ring about in your head for a moment. Does the working person or the innocent among us even enter into the conversation held in Washington? I see no evidence that the current occupant of the White House or his sycophants are concerned with anything beyond tearing down what our ancestors laid down their lives to safeguard.
Awwww, I love when wisdom comes from the YA section: “We are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided. Lord Voldemort’s gift for spreading discord and enmity is very great. We can fight it only by showing an equally strong bond of friendship and trust. Differences of habit and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts are open,” Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.
All of us house-elves and children, those of us desperate for a country that grants loyalty to its citizens, must bring back what we know to be possible. Sirius Black reminds us in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, “The world isn’t split into good people and Death Eaters. We’ve all got both light and dark inside us. What matters is the part we choose to act on. That’s who we really are.” Time for us all to remember that a return to civility is available at any moment. We can all stop calling women who like to bare their butts a derogatory insult, just like we can stop letting coaches insult male athletes by calling them girls, and we can all stop allowing our racist government to detain or murder another brown or black human being without consequence. Choose to act with an open heart. Do your own research. Vote your whole ballot. Vote for a big beautiful blue wave.
