There's no need to wonder anymore what you'd do if America faced a historic threat—whatever you're doing right now is what you'd do. As an attorney and author, I wrote a book that reveals Trump's plot against America. That's what I did and I'm proud of it. https://www.amazon.com/dp/1250272998?tag=macsupaduinstalpa-20

1/ I teach communications at UNH, and what I teach students is that an effective public communications practice arises from everything you are: your knowledge bases, skill-sets, passions, obsessions. Everything.

Everyone must find something to do that is founded in who they are.

2/ If you're young and energetic and sociable, activism that sees you moving about and interacting with folks is what you should be into now. If you are a great writer, you should be writing something that matters. If you're a great speaker, find any way to make your voice heard.

3/ If you have money, figure out how to use that money. If you have influence, figure out how to use that influence. If people trust you, use that trust to persuade the people you care about to take actions they otherwise might not take to help defend America in its time of need.

4/ If you have knowledge that's vital, spread that knowledge. If you have an audience but don't know what to say, pass on key things others have said. If you're an artist, make art with mass appeal that's virally persuasive. If you are good at organizing people, organize people.

5/ If you're an idiosyncratic person who uses a unique poetics—the unreplicable way you relate to your culture, self-identity, genre of communication, and language—to gain the attention of a crowd, gather that crowd and then at the key moment tell them what you need them to hear.

6/ If you're physically limited in your capabilities, figure out what you can safely do within those limitations. Affix a stamp, put up a sign in your yard, call friends who might not be likely to vote otherwise, make a plan to vote early, make calls to elected representatives.

7/ If you feel you need more knowledge than you have to be persuasive in any task you intend to take on, read books about what's happening as you prepare your strategy to help. If you're scared by what's happening, figure out how your fear can be turned into something productive.

8/ The most important thing is to be creative, because honestly with very few exceptions no one else can tell you what the most effective thing you can do is—as the most effective thing you can do is probably something tailored to your particular skills and knowledge and context.

9/ It's also important to start considering what you'd do at various points in the future. What would it take to get you to do X or Y or Z to defend your country lawfully and peacefully? And then ask yourself, very seriously, whether those tripwires haven't already been crossed.

10/ Take stock of your resources—and I don't just mean money. Is there some way in which other assets you have can be leveraged to help defend America from the historic threat it faces? Is there someone who needs the use of your car? Books you have that others could be reading?

11/ Do not expect the answers to come quickly or easily. These are hard questions. Figuring out what you can do to help is a process that has to be happening right now but that also is going to take you a few days of real processing to come to a conclusion about. But start *now*.

12/ Many of those reading this are already in positions of authority or influence. The question that *you* need to be asking is whether you've totally rearranged how you organize your affairs in order to maximize the impact you have. Business as usual will almost never be enough.

13/ Some of you will read all the above and still feel that it's not enough guidance. For those of you in that category, quite honestly you should spend the next few hours on Google searching for every opportunity to volunteer and every article on what people can do in your area.

14/ For all of us—and I include myself—perhaps the greatest challenge in the next 40 days is going to be *cutting out the BS*. If you're engaging in empty snark on social media, you're part of the problem. If you're telling people nothing can be done, you're part of the problem.

15/ By the same token, if you're spreading information that you're not sure is correct, you're part of the problem. If you're failing to pass on or retweet valuable content on social media because you're distracted by frivolous content on social media, you're part of the problem.

16/ Right now all of us must reassess the media we're exposing ourselves to—that means considering what channels/shows we're watching and which ones we should avoid, what social media feeds matter in a national crisis and which are run by those with no clue we're in an emergency.

17/ The emotional and psychological stress many of us will be under over the next 40 days will be extraordinary—which means everyone also needs a philosophy and protocol for self-care that reminds you to take a step back when you're no longer being as effective as you need to be.

18/ When all else fails, consider whether there are things that you currently do that you could *stop* doing which by *stopping* you somehow create positive change. Should certain things or people or practices be boycotted in this key moment? It's something to seriously consider.

19/ This is also a time to be as generous as possible with other people, not only because it drains us to get involved in needless conflict, but because it's draining to others as well, and we can't know the projects others are working on that may be helpful to defending America.

20/ Finally, we all must stay alert, safe, informed, hopeful, prepared, open-minded, flexible, self-conscious, and brave to the very best of our abilities. Most of us have never lived through a historical moment as momentous and fraught as this one—and may never do so again. /end

PS/ I don't want to forget to mention the power of curation—which in the context of a Twitter feed often means the power of *recommendation*. If you did nothing but recommend to the people you know live and online which books, feeds, and programs you recommend, it'd be a service.