How to have hope for American democracy | Sharon McMahon | TEDxBillings

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  • Опубликовано: 16 янв 2025

Комментарии • 150

  • @gingerstyrsky
    @gingerstyrsky 2 месяца назад +32

    This came out at the perfect time. Thanks for the history lesson and the encouragement.

  • @salutationsearthling9031
    @salutationsearthling9031 Месяц назад +5

    Wow, it is very empowering to view hope as an action versus a feeling. Thank you for this perspective. My mind feels lighter, better, and calmer.

  • @terrymusch9581
    @terrymusch9581 Месяц назад +4

    Brilliant Sharon, Thank you. 🙏🇺🇸

  • @storytimewithauntiekatie
    @storytimewithauntiekatie 2 месяца назад +31

    Hope filled and hopeful. Thank you Sharon for inspiring change by choosing to see the good in others, instead of othering others. Thank you for elevating the power of choosing hope, and how it is a power we can all claim. Thank you!

  • @donnavalentine
    @donnavalentine 2 месяца назад +20

    I did not know these things. It was fascinating to hear about Guevenor Morris. I have your audiobook The Small and the Mighty. It’s THE most inspiring book I’ve read in a long time! I felt impassioned and inspired to believe I can make a difference! Fave story was about Daniel Inouye (whom the Honolulu airport is named after).
    iBooks got the sound right. Ted needs a de-esser and lower 12hz and boost some lows. It’s very mid-heavy.

  • @cculler52
    @cculler52 Месяц назад +2

    All of our feelings are a choice that flow from our thoughts. Hope is a feeling and a choice.

  • @cgoodson2010
    @cgoodson2010 2 месяца назад +6

    Thank you for this. It's what I needed to hear!

  • @garybarr1045
    @garybarr1045 Месяц назад

    Thank you, thank you, thank you. I was in need of a lift of optimism for America after the November 5th debacle of anti-democracy voting, and you provided it. I have a slight smile on my face and a little mental comfort now. Again, thank you!!!!!🙂

  • @lindasteger7207
    @lindasteger7207 2 месяца назад +28

    We still do not know if this is going to work out Nov 5 2024 12:10 pm cst Hope is a choice. To actualize it requires mutual respect, actual facts, and pure of heart.

    • @potato9832
      @potato9832 2 месяца назад

      I'm from the future. It in fact, did not work out. Putin won the election.

  • @sandrinemolinard1792
    @sandrinemolinard1792 Месяц назад

    I'd like to say how great a story teller she is... she had me just like I was a small child listening to stories.

  • @sparrowgeiller9360
    @sparrowgeiller9360 2 месяца назад +6

    Brava! Inspiring talk.

  • @CarlBoccadoro
    @CarlBoccadoro 13 дней назад

    Best History lecture what American is and our US Constitution I ever experienced

  • @lilygdsn
    @lilygdsn 2 месяца назад +3

    Awesome talk (and also shoutout Billings!!)

  • @istiana8127
    @istiana8127 17 дней назад

    What a great storyteller she is!

  • @vcello6450
    @vcello6450 2 месяца назад +17

    I could use some hope, as long as it's realistic.

    • @markkallstrom7398
      @markkallstrom7398 2 месяца назад

      @@vcello6450 hope is found in the God of the Bible

    • @vcello6450
      @vcello6450 2 месяца назад +2

      @ nope.

    • @darlalathan6143
      @darlalathan6143 Месяц назад +1

      @@markkallstrom7398 Religion doesn't own hope! Secular hope comes from realistic planning.

    • @markkallstrom7398
      @markkallstrom7398 Месяц назад

      @ ok

  • @stayhappylittlemermaid
    @stayhappylittlemermaid 2 месяца назад +14

    You only get one life. It's actually your duty to live it as fully as possible

  • @sarahdavis682
    @sarahdavis682 Месяц назад +4

    Wow, who is this woman's audience?
    At 5:28 she compares the Consitutional Convention to a stinky room full of people who are doing... a volunteer group project. The very idea of voluntarily working on a document with other people stuns her, and is unimaginable to her audience.
    As someone who loves writing, this is foreign to me.

    • @UXtatic
      @UXtatic Месяц назад

      It wasn't just writing. It was planning a country's future domestically, globally (if the UK tried to reclaim again), economic, social, governance structures, and more. All of this with people all along the belief spectrum, personalities and economic standing. That's not a writing assignment that you can do in your personal space.

  • @ChristyLuisDostoevskyinSpace
    @ChristyLuisDostoevskyinSpace 2 месяца назад +2

    And working with your enemies might result in you learning something from them. As you said in the Armchair Expert interview, nobody has a monopoly on truth 😄

  • @Mtnnaturegal
    @Mtnnaturegal 2 месяца назад +4

  • @andrewe2643
    @andrewe2643 2 месяца назад +8

    Sounds like a church sermon and mildly triggering for an ex evangelical. The whispering, the vocal loudness changes, the metaphors. Was half expecting a slow piano segue into an altar call to be saved at the end.

  • @towritemichelle210
    @towritemichelle210 2 месяца назад +13

    I thought this was excellent

  • @bradcogley8146
    @bradcogley8146 2 месяца назад +4

    “How to have hope for American democracy” change it🤔

  • @mr.obsidian8009
    @mr.obsidian8009 2 месяца назад +3

    "no State shall be at liberty to form any other than a Republican Government"- james madison
    Article IV, Section 4:
    The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic Violence.

    • @kkpenney444
      @kkpenney444 Месяц назад

      You actually think this means something.

  • @Phlucious
    @Phlucious 2 месяца назад +8

    Sharon, you’re amazing. I love this message. You do great work.
    But please… stop whispering when you do public speaking. It’s why I can’t do your podcast. When your voice gets normal like at 5:36 you are great. You sound normal. I even love your sarcastic voice like at 6:57. But the first five minutes you’re like wispy and whispering and you’re going to lose a lot of people with that voice texture.
    Maybe I’m just not your audience, idk. But you are a voice for healing for all of America, and you are a powerful, influential woman. Please show America’s men that her women are powerful.

    • @ashleyedelen314
      @ashleyedelen314 17 дней назад

      You’re just not her audience. It’s ok.

  • @timetowakeup6302
    @timetowakeup6302 2 месяца назад +58

    “If voting made any difference they wouldn’t let you do it.”

    • @janetslicer3637
      @janetslicer3637 2 месяца назад +11

      Whose quote is that? And why would you repeat it? Just wondering.

    • @timetowakeup6302
      @timetowakeup6302 2 месяца назад

      @
      Mark Twain.

    • @janetslicer3637
      @janetslicer3637 2 месяца назад +1

      ​@@timetowakeup6302Thank you, I appreciate it.

    • @Нина-э3р
      @Нина-э3р 2 месяца назад

    • @joeldheath
      @joeldheath 2 месяца назад

      That's the thing though, in red states, they go out of their way to prevent people from voting.

  • @harrypearle9781
    @harrypearle9781 2 месяца назад +4

    DUMP TRUMP?
    Flip this insanity, around, whatever it takes.... TNX MCH

  • @ragnar1019
    @ragnar1019 2 месяца назад +2

    We The People
    America is a Immigrant Nation,
    America is a Nation of Immigrants.
    America, Gods of All Nations.

  • @BirdManUnlimitedLove
    @BirdManUnlimitedLove Месяц назад +1

    Hope only sows the seeds of disappointment.

  • @bbhalstead
    @bbhalstead Месяц назад

    Yes, all you need to do is shave your head and join the 4b movement

  • @737ngJR
    @737ngJR 2 месяца назад +7

    With that voice she should be making asmr videos

    • @sendtothisone
      @sendtothisone 2 месяца назад

      She has a podcast and an audiobook, so you could start there 😅

  • @pennyrichards8019
    @pennyrichards8019 2 месяца назад +6

    We are a democracy???

    • @caitk.1258
      @caitk.1258 2 месяца назад +8

      Yes we are.

    • @leodouskyron5671
      @leodouskyron5671 2 месяца назад +4

      We were a representative democracy- just not any more.

    • @sendtothisone
      @sendtothisone 2 месяца назад

      ​@@z-man1980that's a type of democracy

    • @h.neubert8770
      @h.neubert8770 2 месяца назад +1

      @@z-man1980 thats a representative democracy

    • @johnbland1422
      @johnbland1422 Месяц назад

      For a democracy, research The French Revolution's Reign of Terror.

  • @shivershins3730
    @shivershins3730 2 месяца назад +4

    Happy Election Day USA

  • @urbanzmb
    @urbanzmb 2 месяца назад +7

    lol was this like for a joke?

  • @edwarddebone402
    @edwarddebone402 2 месяца назад +1

    Just because it’s a TED talk….

  • @vcello6450
    @vcello6450 2 месяца назад +11

    This totally missed the mark.

    • @steffrenzl8544
      @steffrenzl8544 Месяц назад

      Hi! I'm curious why you feel this missed the mark. Would you be willing to share your thoughts? Thanks

  • @Ninja9JKD
    @Ninja9JKD 2 месяца назад +8

    Why do you keep using that word democracy? 1. The USA is a constitutional republic 2 democracy essentially means mon rule, which then often turns into dictatorship.

    • @ethancoster1324
      @ethancoster1324 2 месяца назад +4

      I guess they're referring to the democratic process of voting for candidates.

    • @caitk.1258
      @caitk.1258 2 месяца назад +16

      Sharon has a fantastic explainer on why this is inaccurate, actually. We are a democracy.

    • @Ninja9JKD
      @Ninja9JKD 2 месяца назад +2

      @@caitk.1258 Have you read the constitution? Do you know what a republic is?

    • @Ninja9JKD
      @Ninja9JKD 2 месяца назад

      @@ethancoster1324 But we don't, we are in a republic, that is the structure as we don't directly vote for the president. The Electoral College is part of what makes the USA a REPUBLIC.

    • @jeffyeager9168
      @jeffyeager9168 2 месяца назад +14

      They're not mutually exclusive. Yes, we live in a constitutional republic. And yes, we live in a democracy.

  • @Boxagami
    @Boxagami 2 месяца назад +6

    It's a REPUBLIC. Get educated!

    • @chicana415
      @chicana415 2 месяца назад +12

      The U.S. has never been a republic, so read a history book.

    • @Boxagami
      @Boxagami 2 месяца назад

      @@chicana415 It's a REPUBLIC! Your elected officials are representatives of the Republic. You democrats are uneducated. It's in your HISTORY BOOK. lol

    • @marnieolson6084
      @marnieolson6084 2 месяца назад +11

      A Republic IS a democracy. It's a representative democracy.

    • @Boxagami
      @Boxagami 2 месяца назад

      @@marnieolson6084 I stated that is a representative republic. My message was of course censored or deleted! The two words Republic and Democracy and the reason I say it's a Republic is because you elect Representatives to represent YOU. You do NOT have direct voting of bills. Your representative has that ability and they can choose to vote for or against a bill not matter what you ask them to do. In the situation of a a TRUE 100% democracy, you would have the choice of writing the bills and also voting for them directly as a citizen, but you do not have that option. The only option you have is to encourage your representative to vote for or against a bill and if they choose they can ignore your request. To me, that's NOT a democracy! It becomes a democracy, when you choose to re-elect or elect another representative official to represent you again. I won't get into the fact that 2 constitutions exist and the title was changed. However, you can read the book about it on Amazon written by constitutional lawyers. Neither of our offcials are following the constitution period.

    • @gailboos
      @gailboos 2 месяца назад +2

      We are constitutional republic that uses representative democracy. We elect either directly (basically all of our government leaders except the president). We do not have a lot of direct democracy but we do have some.

  • @giftedgreen2152
    @giftedgreen2152 2 месяца назад +8

    Put a fork in TedX.
    No one is buying this propaganda.

  • @jacobhertl1398
    @jacobhertl1398 2 месяца назад +8

    How to say nothing for 20 minutes. No offense but this was terrible.

  • @allisonm.2660
    @allisonm.2660 Месяц назад

    Worst Ted Talk ever. Shrill, know-it-all delivery, for one. But also an overlooking of the clear fact that there is no clear path forward through division and hate. Keep dreaming, Ms. McMahon.

  • @markkallstrom7398
    @markkallstrom7398 2 месяца назад +3

    I did not finish listening to, do not like the tone of here voice

  • @a91170
    @a91170 2 месяца назад +2

    VOTE TRUMP

    • @homeshows
      @homeshows 2 месяца назад

      You are voting for and agreeing to a plutocracy. Everything will be geared solely to the influence and whims of the ultra rich. If you think any of their riches will trickle down to you; enjoy your fantasy. Musk has shown his disdain for his own workforce and highlighted his own addiction to power. He is the first lady now and his goals and dreams will supersede all. He has no problem trashing this planet because he has his eyes on another but if you think you will be invited along you are very mistaken. The plutocrats dangle boggie men in front of you to give you something to hate or be distracted by while they pick your pockets and insulate themselves with ever increasing money and power.

    • @darlalathan6143
      @darlalathan6143 Месяц назад +1

      That's been done twice! Didn't work out the first time!

  • @deepakghosh6169
    @deepakghosh6169 2 месяца назад +10

    The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter.
    - Winston Churchill

    • @bcooke1000
      @bcooke1000 2 месяца назад +5

      Ask India about Modi creeping upon them. Ever lived under a dictatorship?

    • @deepakghosh6169
      @deepakghosh6169 2 месяца назад

      @bcooke1000 socialism is dictatorship
      "Democracy is indispensable to socialism." - Lenin
      it is interconnected
      "The goal of socialism is communism." - Vladimir Lenin

    • @dkarras
      @dkarras 2 месяца назад +3

      … democracy is the worst form of Government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.
      - Sir Winston Churchill

    • @deepakghosh6169
      @deepakghosh6169 2 месяца назад

      @@dkarras Democracy gives every man the right to be his own oppressor.
      - James Russell Lowell

    • @deepakghosh6169
      @deepakghosh6169 2 месяца назад +2

      @@dkarras Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch.
      - Benjamin Franklin

  • @deepakghosh6169
    @deepakghosh6169 2 месяца назад +8

    'Democratic’ in its original meaning [refers to] unlimited majority rule … a social system in which one’s work, one’s property, one’s mind, and one’s life are at the mercy of any gang that may muster the vote of a majority at any moment for any purpose.
    - Ayn Rand

    • @theNoogler88
      @theNoogler88 2 месяца назад +2

      Any Rand suffered PTSD from trauma after a childhood under early Communist Russia. Instead of receiving therapy she wrote her trauma into her books, then rose to fame through the second red scare and even took part in the HUAC trials. She is not an authority on democratic principles, and this quote of hers is grossly disingenuous at best.

    • @JaneaDahl
      @JaneaDahl 2 месяца назад

      Well said! ​@@theNoogler88

  • @deepakghosh6169
    @deepakghosh6169 2 месяца назад +4

    Democracy is the art and science of running the circus from the monkey cage.
    - H.L. Mencken