Thank you to everyone who noticed that Dinner: A Love Story was down all day Friday. It was frustrating, but the sheer number of “I can’t log on!” messages I received through social media channels warmed my heart. (They read me! They really do!) In addition to the nightmarishly long phone conversations I had to have with my web host, I was forced to scrap my weekly round-up (“the reading & eating” series) even though it was all ready to go. I would just run that round-up today, but given the events of the weekend, I think you probably know that I can’t bring myself to head straight into cheese graters and Super Bowl menus. Like many of you, I’m disgusted by the Muslim Ban, an executive order that has diminished this country and all we stand for with the stroke of a pen. The outpouring of action — spontaneous rallies, heroic judges and volunteer lawyers, boycotts, marches, postcard-writing mania — has been inspiring, but I fear we have a long road ahead of us. So before I get back to regularly scheduled programming, I’d like to follow the lead of two of my favorite food writers, Luisa Weiss and Julia Turshen by giving away free books* to the first ten people who donate $100 or more to the ACLU. (Forward your receipt to jenny AT dinneralovestory DOT com and tell me which book you’d like. *You can choose not just mine, but Luisa’s, Julia’s or the book of any other author or blogger who would like to join forces with us.)
I’ll post the weekly round-up in the next few days, but please take a minute to read this story “A Clarifying Moment in American History,” written by a prominent conservative, paying careful attention to the line about educating our children.
UPDATE: You guys are amazing. The ten books (fourteen actually, it was too close to call) are spoken for. But please continue to donate and forward me your ACLU receipts, if only so my faith in the goodness of this country stays strong. Thank you Katharine, Rachael, Rebecca O, Jay, Victoria, Margaret, Suzette, Jennifer, Rebecca C., Erica, Marian, Elise, Kim, and Tiffany.
NOTE
I want to acknowledge the readers who have told me in no uncertain terms that they come to this blog for recipes and dinner strategies and resent the fact that from time to time I use Dinner: A Love Story as a political platform. I hear you on that, and I understand the frustration. But I’d like to point out that if you click on the “About” section on the top of my home page, it’s been clear from the beginning that I envisioned this space as not only a forum to discuss what’s for dinner, but also as a place to discuss what’s happening around the dinner table. In the past seven years, I’ve posted too many chicken recipes to count, but I’ve also written about how to have meaningful conversations over a shared meal; how to raise compassionate kids; how to raise girls with healthy body images; how technology affects our childrens’ development; how to teach them about empathy and gratitude; where we are traveling; what music we are listening to; and close to a hundred posts about what books we are loving — fiction, nonfiction, kids, YA, adult — which, you might be surprised to hear, are perennially the most popular/most shared/most visited posts on DALS. (More popular than even Pork Ragu!) Do politics fit in with this list? You might not think so. A year ago, I wouldn’t have thought so. But I hope you understand, given the extraordinary circumstances of this administration, that it has started to feel disingenuous, almost irresponsible to write only about pork chops and apple pies without acknowledging a conversation that started 18 months ago at our dinner table (overlapping with many of the topics I hit on above) and shows no sign of stopping.
Lastly, I hope I’m not naive in believing that we are in a unique position on this blog. I think it’s fair to assume every person reading Dinner: A Love Story wants what is best for their families and their childrens’ futures. Let’s remember that we have more in common than we don’t, and try to prove my tagline correct as we head into the next few tumultuous years: It all begins at the family table.
Reminder: I welcome reactions from every side here, but the same rule applies as always: If you strongly disagree with me, know that I strongly respect your right to disagree, but you must pretend you are at my dinner table sitting across from me when you post your comment. This corner of the Internet is not the Wild West. I will not approve comments that are flagrantly mean-spirited or that do not advance the conversation in a constructive way.
Yes! Yes! There is no way to ignore what is happening in our country today. And frankly I think it would be irresponsible of bloggers today to not use their platform to speak up when they see wrong. Please keep it up!
You inspire me at the stove, the dinner table, and beyond! Thank you for acknowledging what many of us are feeling about this country right now.
And this post so perfectly illustrates why I (and so many others!) love your blog. Thank you, and keep on keeping on!
This may not be the place to ask, so feel free to delete, but is there a place to go and read the actual orders that have been signed? With both sides so hyped, I’d like to know what it says for myself.
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions
Jenny, it’s your blog. Write about whatever you want to. We all have our own freedom to stay or go. xo!
Thank you! Keep doing what you’re doing. If ever there was a time for politics at the dinner table, it’s now!
I wholeheartedly embrace the views of others but have begun to feel that Democrats are willing to respect and value the beliefs of everyone but conservatives. It’s a scary time to be a Republican and I’d like to ask people to consider that the reasons that you did not vote for Trump are not necessarily the reasons that others did. Most Republicans that I know are being routinely disparaged and it’s disappointing that the love and tolerance that has been espoused by Democrats does not extend to everyone. I’d like to reach across the dining table and extend a hand and a commitment to be open to learning about why you stand where you do in exchange for sharing the same with you.
The embodiment of tolerance may not be the defense of beliefs of people around the world, but the defense of your next door Republican.
Thank you Kimberly! Yours is a fair criticism. Please know that I at least am very interested in reaching a hand back.
So glad you commented, Kimberly. I agree that Democrats can sometimes be hypocritically intolerant — though I’m wary of generalizing too much there — and I know that there are Republicans who voted for Trump because they believe he will bring back jobs, revive depressed factory-towns, improve the economy and not because they are OK with his racist, misogynist, xenophobic platform. But here’s the thing: Now is the time for those Republicans to say, hey, Congress, I voted for Trump because of x, y, and z, but he’s going to have to stop thinking he is above the law; stop threatening journalists who don’t say what he wants them to say; stop openly violating the emoluments clause of the constitution; stop supporting and praising a Russian dictator who, among many other things, undermined and intervened in our election process; stop perpetuating the myth that it’s only the media that cares about him releasing his tax returns so we can be sure he is behaving in the interests of America and not the Trump Organization; stop spouting flagrant lies to our country; stop having his press secretary release official flagrant lies to our country; stop belittling and discrediting the intelligence agencies in this country that keep us safe. None of these issues are ideological or partisan or political. I am talking about protecting the fundamental principles that keep a democracy stable and secure. (At least, that’s all I’m talking about for now.) Don’t these violations seem like something every American should be outraged about together? Thank you again for commenting.
I completely agree with you. I’m a Libertarian at heart (social liberal/fiscal conservative) and dream of the day when a third party is truly viable. I am NOT a fan of Trump but voted for him because I believe that a strong economy ultimately rights a lot of ills- unemployment, education issues, etc and enables people to give to the social causes of their choice. I had (have?) hopes that the checks and balance system of our government would be enough to hold Trump in check. Thus far, I’ve been wrong but am working with Republican legislators at the State and Federal level to make my view heard.
Thank you all for creating a forum for respectful discourse. The exchange and consideration of ideas is to the betterment of all.
That is awesome, Kimberly. If you’re not totally exhausted by this conversation, I’d love to hear more about how you are working with Republican legislators. Thanks so much.
Sorry for the delay in responding. It’s been a busy work week. Much of what I’ve done has been emailing state and federal legislators to express my point of view. Additionally, I have a number of relationships with lobbyists and have had several conversations, sharing perspectives and gaining insights from them. Frankly, many of them seem to be more plugged in than the elected officials. I’m also participating with The Republican Party of Texas in hopes of helping to reshape the party platform. Many, many Republicans are horrified at the way things are going and there are tremors of change beginning.
On a personal level, I’ve found it very helpful to read articles from a number of sources to gain a better grasp of what’s truly happening. I try to balance conservative sites with more liberal ones and always include an international source. That’s not something that I routinely did until this election and it’s been fascinating/disappointing to see how the same event is played out (or not even mentioned) by the different media sources. Finally, I’m intentionally throwing myself into conversations with many people with differing views (not difficult to do since I live in Austin). This has been the most frustrating thing that I have done. The majority of the people that I talk to are so angry that they’ve been unwilling to share what they stand for and are more focused on expressing their outrage. I think that has to change. It’s tough to get people to understand or adopt your view when all that you’re doing is telling them why their stance is wrong. Probably the succinct way to put it is “If you’re going to talk politics at the dinner table, be polite!” You’ve done a great job of accomplishing that here. It just needs to filter out to the rest of the country.
We set up a monthly donation to ACLU this weekend, and went out to protest. In the snow. In Indiana. And there were lots of people there! So, I just want to let you know, that people in the Rust Belt, in the flyover part of the country are just as appalled as you.
Thank you. I am as guilty as anyone of running away from the disagreements. I just can’t bring myself to listen to the other side – it’s so painful. Simply hearing some of the views expressed leaves me feeling nauseated, and I’d rather do anything else. And yet, I know that the only way forward is to listen to one another, so we can find common ground. So thank you for opening up your “dinner table” as a forum to help us get there. Let’s all be brave and show up for the hard discussions.
Thank you Jenny! Very well put!
Thank you for posting this. I am a regular reader of DALS and other cooking sites, but since the new administration came in, I have actually been unable to read any of the ones that make no reference to events outside the kitchen. It’s wrong to act like nothing is happening, and I thank you for acknowledging it. Plus Superbowl sandwhiches!
Wonderful post, thank you for speaking out. It’s becoming jarring when my favourite blogs aren’t referencing the situation in the US, and if nothing else it would be totally weird if you just didn’t mention it. It’s going to be a long road – togetherness is more important than ever, and thats what you have always been about.
Thank you for speaking up!
Just wanted to say “You rock!” That is all.
I completely agree with you. Thank you for the great work you do producing such a varied and interesting blog.
I read your blog precisely because the recipes are spiced with real life. Thanks for this post on the Muslim ban. A fun thing for food bloggers to do in the next week (here’s a challenge) would be to feature some recipes from historically Muslim cultures. (You could contact me privately if you want a suggestion about a possible guest blogger, although of course you could also include your own recipe for turnip pickles or whatever.)
I love this idea!
Love this idea as well!
Thank you for your post!! Its no longer about politics, its about standing up for who we are!! Thanks again for the post.
Yes! I’m still here, all these years later, because you speak up and speak out AND give us great recipes. Keep at it.
I noticed your site was down on Friday, too! I recently found your play date chocolate chip recipe and after giving it to a friend who asked about it (after devouring some we made for a dinner party) on Thursday I was so bummed that I couldn’t instantly access it on Friday. Wah! Patience paid off- and we baked a batch on Saturday. We brought them to a friend’s birthday party and again- they were devoured! I have to share a secret that I think makes them extra irresistible for adults…mini chocolate chips! Oh my gosh—- so perfect. Anyway, this post was masterful. Thank you so much for writing it. Empathy and listening to one another will serve us all well in these tumultuous times.
Another long time reader, first time commenter. Thank you for speaking up, and speaking up so eloquently (not to mention being my absolute #1 go-to resource for recipes). I have long read your blog for the conversation as much as anything else. As others have said, the current political landscape is so horrific that I find myself wondering about those bloggers who *aren’t* using their platform to speak out–I feel like I can’t in good conscience read the blogs of people who seem to be going blithely about as though it is business as usual.
Jenny, I am actually aligned with your political beliefs 100%, but I feel like your comment to Kimberly went a little bit overboard. We should thank her for her thoughts/comments without making a laundry list of all of her Presidential pick’s faults. No party even has standing as of yet to make an constitutional claim regarding the emoluments clause. I feel sometimes we as liberals cry Constitutional violation when we really just dislike Trump’s personal traits or his poor policy choices. A poor policy or poor practice does not always equal a violation of the Constitution.
Yeah maybe. It’s been a rough thirteen days.
saying on the internet what you would say across a dinner table is a great rule!
<3 <3 <3
Thank you so so much for this post! I know I’m not the only one who has a hard time adjusting to this administration – and we’re not even two full weeks in. Staying informed has never been so infuriating and upsetting… and I’m already so sick of the name calling, animosity and the shift in the way people are speaking to each other. This post is so honest and respectful, while still standing up for what is right. Makes me love you and this blog even more!
xoxo,
Lauren
http://www.lakeshorelady.com/
THANK YOU for speaking up. I appreciate it. I’m struggling to continue following bloggers who do not acknowledge the insanity of the current political situation and speak up against the horrible things that are happening. Please continue speaking up.