Biden is ahead and is going to likely end up 40-50,000 votes ahead in Pennsylvania when all remaining ballots are counted. Winning that state will put him over the 270 electoral votes he needs to win. He is slightly ahead in Georgia, that one is more up in the air because there are few outstanding ballots left to count. It’s  looking good for him in Arizona, and MSNBC reports that there will likely be an extension of Biden’s lead in Nevada reported very soon.

I’d bet the house on Biden winning—hooray!

The big issue is how will Trump respond. Fox News reported this morning that he is getting conflicting advice from his aides in the White House. Some of them want him to concede, others don’t. Last evening Trump sure looked defeated when he read from a statement full of lies and misinformation, trying to present a brave front but not looking very confident.

Massive, nonviolent, peaceful, non-adventuristic, celebratory demonstrations are what we need now to punctuate and underline the truth that Super Spreader Mafioso Don’s time is up. He should resign and head back home right now!

The multi-racial rainbow people have won; let’s defend our victory.

It’s https://protecttheresults.com time!

I’m off the fast, began working my way back to normal eating last evening, but that’s a minor story. The big story is that, as of right now, there is still a possibility that Trump could lose the Presidency, by the narrowest of margins, literally.

CNN just showed how if Biden wins Arizona, Nevada and Wisconsin, states he is now leading in, though extremely narrowly in Wisconsin, and Michigan, where he’s a good bit behind but with, CNN says, a lot of Democratic areas still to report plus mail-in ballots to count, Biden will have the 270 electoral votes he needs, with Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Georgia still to be determined.

It looks like Biden will win the popular vote similar to how Clinton won it, by 2-3%, maybe a little more when all the votes are counted.

And predictably, Trump announced an hour or so ago that he is sending his lawyers to the Supreme Court to try to get them to stop the counting of the legally cast ballots. No big surprise there.

It’s time to shift gears to protect the vote mode! Check out https://protecttheresults.com for info on hundreds of demonstrations happening around the country today, and it looks likely they’ll continue after today.

It was very depressing to go to bed at midnight with it looking like Trump had won it, but he hasn’t, which is why he’s trying to stop vote-counting. Let’s protect our democracy!

The last day! The big day! History in the making! Thank God!

Of course I’m glad that I will begin chewing food for the first time in 32 days this evening, at 8 pm after the polls close in my home state of New Jersey. I will eat a steamed white potato, a carrot and some greens, all organic.

Much, much more important will be the initial voting results that are supposed to begin coming in around that time. Based upon what I’ve heard on CNN and MSNBC, by 8 pm ET, results coming in from Florida, Georgia and North Carolina, all states that could go either way for Biden or Trump, could well tell the story of who is going to win when all the votes are counted nationally days, maybe weeks, from now.

I hope that’s true. I hope Biden wins at least one of those three states. If he does, it’s game over for Super-Spreader, Mafioso Trump. He and the most rabid of his followers, of whom there are many thousands, may make their legal, extra-legal and violent efforts to void the results, but if it is a clear win for Biden, not a very close, just-barely win in the electoral college, I don’t think even the Amy Coney Barrett-included Supreme Court conservative majority is going to side with Trump.

I remember back during the Vietnam War there was a huge Supreme Court case that my late friend, mentor and constitutional lawyer Arthur Kinoy was involved with. It was during the Nixon years, and his Justice Department, under John Mitchell, was asserting President Nixon’s right to wiretap and surveil anyone he wanted to on the grounds of overarching Executive Power. The Supreme Court’s make up was similar politically to the current court, and people on the Left were very concerned about this decision. Surprisingly, when it came down it was overwhelmingly negative for Nixon and positive for basic constitutional rights.

There are some things that even Supreme Court Republicans will think twice before doing, and I think giving Trump the power of a King is one of those. We saw that earlier this year with the 7-2 vote telling Trump he needed to turn over financial documents to a New York federal prosecutor. And I think it’s likely we would see the same thing if Trump’s lawyers tried to get them to overturn a clear electoral college victory by Biden.

I hope it doesn’t get to that point. I hope that the mass, nonviolent protectthevote.com demonstrations that are planned to begin tomorrow end up becoming celebrations of a Biden victory. Either way, I believe that there are good reasons to be hopeful on this huge, huge day. Power to the multi-racial, rainbow people!

About three weeks ago I was interviewed by Josh Fox for his show on The Young Turks network. At one point he asked me what the difference was between a hunger strike and a fast, after I had used them pretty much interchangeably. I said that a hunger strike was more political, issue-oriented; a fast had more of a spiritual dimension to it, even if it was also political.

I’ve increasingly called this “Fast to Defeat Trump” a hunger strike as it has gone on, now in its next to last day. I’ve called it that in large part because it has not been a very “spiritual” experience for me, as distinct from most of the other long fasts I’ve done. I remember, for example, while fasting in Brooklyn, NY back in the 70’s feeling a real sense of connection to other people and to other living things in what can only be described as a “spiritual” way. I really could identify with Gandhi’s statement that “fasting is the sincerest form of prayer.”

Yesterday, while making get-out-the-vote phone calls to Georgia and Florida, I spoke to someone in Georgia who choked me up and made me think about this issue. He was an elderly African American man, a military veteran. When I asked him if he had voted for Biden he said yes, and when I asked him if he was talking up voting with other people he said, yes, that he lived in a retirement community and he and others had gone on buses to do early voting, and they were always talking about the election. He went on to say, “I’ve voted and talked to people and as far as myself, all I can do is pray and put it in God’s hands.”

I sputtered my thanks and appreciation through my choked-up voice and hung up, and then shed some tears. I think in part it was an emotional release from all the anxiety and tension that it is impossible not to feel right now. But maybe it was more. If I believed in such things, I’d wonder if this man was an angel telling me to “relax, God is in charge.”

I believe in a higher power in the universe, what I call The Great, Unknown, Creative Force That Rules the Universe, or the Great Spirit in short. I very much identify with the Native American approach to spirituality. On my wall I have a sentence I once read referencing that approach: “Every step was a prayer of thanksgiving.”

It is difficult to comprehend a loving “God” foisting devil Trump upon the world for another four years as President. Of course, “God” doesn’t work like that. The Great Spirit works through human beings and all of the various mysterious and unknown processes that keep the universe evolving and the world spinning on its axis, creating and sustaining life, advancing humanity, hopefully, toward a world truly based upon love in all of its best manifestations.

The Great Mystery of life unfolds through the thoughts and actions of each of us as individuals, no other way. And it will do so no matter what the results of this critical, oh so critical, election. I pray that we, the people, the multi-racial rainbow people, will see the victory the world needs so, so much.

Personally, I’m fine. I’m being more disciplined with my consuming of fruit and veggie liquids. I’m looking forward to eating steamed potatoes and carrots tomorrow evening after the polls close and to working my way back to normal, post-Trump-presidency life.

I had a minor scare yesterday. As I was washing dishes in the early evening, I felt the need to relieve my bladder. As I went to the bathroom and began doing so I started to feel a strong pain in my lower back on the right side. It really hurt, and I started sweating. I came out of the bathroom and just lay down on the floor. Within 15 seconds my stomach started heaving and for the next few minutes threw up a good bit of clear liquid. After a particularly strong stomach contraction and upchuck, everything changed. The pain subsided, as did my body’s rising temperature, I was able to breathe normally again, and for the rest of the evening I had no problems. Same with sleeping, and I just had a morning “meal” of liquefied organic veggie soup. All my vitals–temperature, pulse and blood pressure–were and are normal.

I figure the reason for this not-fun episode was either my too-closely mixing the consumption of fruit and veggie liquids, or just having too much of them, possibly both. I need to be much more conscious going forward to avoid doing either of these.

I’ve decided I’m going to go today to the local church I’ve been attending for four years, the Brookdale Reformed Church. I haven’t been there in a month because I was too weak. Now, despite last evening’s episode, I’m definitely better since shifting to a fruit and veggie liquids diet. It’ll be nice to see the many people in the congregation who I’ve come to appreciate.

I did four hours of phone calling yesterday via the Biden/Harris website to potential voters in Georgia and Florida. Most of the time it wasn’t very easy going. It seemed like the list that I was calling from was a list of people who are not regular voters. It would make sense that, given that over 90 million people nationally have already voted and with only a few days left, this might be the list the campaign would be using.

I plan to do four more hours of calling today, and probably the same thing tomorrow. This is the work I couldn’t do when fasting on water, and I’m glad I now have the energy to do so.

Day 29 (3)

This is the beginning of the fifth week of the fast, day three of the fruit and veggie liquids part of the fast, with three and a half days to go until I begin to chew food. I’m glad to report that I have gotten my energy back thanks to the nutrients in the fruit juices and veggie liquid soups I’ve been consuming. But, surprisingly, my weight this morning was only two pounds up from the low point a few mornings ago at a 30 pound weight loss since day one. I guess that’s because much of what I’m consuming is just going through me as water; last night, for example, for probably the first time ever, I woke up every two hours, four times, needing to relieve my bladder.

However, I’m not complaining. In addition to getting my energy back, I’m also able to do the voter turnout phone calling that is so important. I spent two hours doing so last evening, and I plan to do about four hours of it today and four hours tomorrow.

I had difficulty getting the Our Revolution system to work for me last evening, so I went to Indivisible, which I used to do phone calling back in September, and I was surprised that there didn’t seem to be any way to connect with doing that work at their site. So I ended up going to the Biden/Harris site and quickly got myself connected and on the phone to voters. It was strange to be following the script and saying to everyone in Florida that I was calling that “I’m calling for the Florida Democratic Party,” given that I’m a progressive Independent, not a Democrat, but it was a tactical compromise for the greater good that I had no problem with.

Lots of nervousness all over as the big election day is just about here. Despite a number of reasons to be nervous, I continue to believe that the good guys should win, if all of us do everything we can to turn out the progressive and liberal and decent people vote. There are more of us than there are of the people taken in by Super Spreader Don, including in most of the battleground states.

My energy is returning, after 26 days without it, because I’m consuming fruit juices and liquid veggie soups for the second day. It’s very noticeable, and very welcome. Yesterday I worked pretty much straight through from 8 am to 8 pm, and I felt OK afterwards and had a good night’s sleep. And when I stepped on the scale this morning I had gained back about four of the 30 pounds I lost while on water only.

I find myself longing for solid food more than when I was on water. Without any calories or nutrition, I was of necessity focused on being aware of how I was feeling, controlling my body so that I didn’t fall or slip, and constantly reminding myself why I was putting myself through this ordeal (to defeat Trump). Now that I’m getting some nourishment, and knowing that election night, four and a half days from now, I’ll begin actually eating solid food (steamed vegetables), my orientation toward food is changing.

With my returned energy from the liquids, I really enjoyed getting on the phone last evening for an hour and a half making get out the vote calls to Minnesota through Our Revolution. It would have been two hours but I needed to stop early to work with a Democracy Now technician to record a 30-second spot for their show this morning about why I’m doing this fast. It was good to hear that on the air an hour ago. That’s about the 25^th media outlet that I know of that has carried info about this action.

Making the calls, I found that almost everyone I spoke to had already voted, so the calls ended up being, in most cases, pitches for people to keep talking up the need to vote to friends, co-workers and family, which everyone was receptive to, most already doing. I enjoy making these calls, as I did during the primaries for Bernie when it was much harder. There’s something about having direct contact with regular folks in all their variety and difference, but also their commonalities, that feels good. It’s why I like door to door canvassing, too.

One of the many striking things I saw on the news yesterday was Republican Senator Rand Paul being brought up to the stage by Trump at a rally in Arizona. Maskless, the two of them clasped hands as Paul arrived, at which point his word of greeting was “immunity,” as in “herd immunity”, as in “let millions die if necessary.” It was grotesque, and the latest reminder of how truly evil Donald Trump is, how he turns all around him into their worst. Thank God that we have a chance to bring him and all he represents down four days from now.

This is day 27 of what’s going to be 32 days without solid food, but it’s day one of six days of a liquids, not water-only, fast. Yesterday I decided, for several reasons, to go from water-only to fruit and veggie juices and all-liquid soups. Last evening I had three bowls of a really good tasting, organic vegetable soup I made myself a couple of days ago.

I was therefore surprised when I stepped on a scale this morning and saw that I had lost another pound since yesterday, now up to a 30 pound weight  loss since the beginning of the fast. In addition, I have not felt stronger with some nourishment in me, not yet, though I know that will come.

Why did I do this? One reason is the number of friends who have been supportive of me but have also told me they have been concerned about impacts on my health, especially because of my 71 years. Another is that I have noticed that, as distinct from the middle period of the fast, there’s not been much recent press interest despite my daily outreach efforts.

I’ve done OK on that front; there are at least 20 progressive and other media outlets that have interviewed me or carried stories about this action, but only a couple in the last week. So when I was watching a news story about the massive voter turnout happening Tuesday evening, the idea came to me that maybe it was time for me to switch to nourishing liquids so that I would have the energy to do what I was doing in September before the fast—phone outreach to battleground states to encourage turnout. As I thought about that idea, it just made more and more sense. Thus this change. And this evening I’ll begin that phone calling work through the group Our Revolution.

It’s important that we each do what we can in these last six days to maximize voter turnout! There are signs everywhere that this could be a big defeat for Trump and his Republican enablers; let’s not let up!