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I feel your pain. I live in a close suburb of Minneapolis, which seems to be in some competition for "Most Insane City". Many here are from Portland or have close ties to Portland. I’m on NextDoor, where I can see the postings of the residents of some nearby Minneapolis neighborhoods. Since late 2020 my NextDoor feed is increasingly filled with victims lamenting the crimes that were perpetrated against them. Whether complaining about missing catalytic converters or stolen cars or having been carjacked or robbed at gunpoint, the postings are similar: the person complains of the state of our society, then expresses wonderment that such a thing could happen, and finally expresses great frustration.

Then come the comments, which consist (in order of descending popularity) of:

• expressions of sympathy for the victim,

• statements about how to be more careful to avoid criminals and crimes,

• statements rationalizing the behaviors of criminals (and sympathizing with them),

• folks saying, “what is our society coming to?”,

• statements about how residents are getting what they voted for,

• and critics reviling those who say that residents are getting what they voted for.

I know these sorts of people because I’ve lived among them and now I live near them. They’re the ones with Black Lives Matter signs still in their yards, folks who empathize ad nauseam with anyone claiming to champion any “social justice” cause, folks who vote Democrat without even knowing who or what is on the ballot. By and large they know little of elections or candidates, but they do know enough to vote for whoever is endorsed by their favorite party. In other words, they’re people who will never get the connection.

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David: I am making a series about living behind enemy lines. So far, I have published to "tales" both about Portland because most of my contacts are from there and/or still live there. I have two more "tales" rough drafted BUT are both about Portland. I want to use your tale about Minneapolis, to be published in about two weeks. Your permission? I will send you the rough draft before I publish. Diane

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I answered your email.

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I have had the priviledge of getting to know Jo (and her nice family) after they moved to TN. They are good people. It's hard to explain what is going on in Portland and elsewhere, but IMO the roots of it are: 1) these people are devoid of critical thinking skills, and 2) they have lost touch with God.

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Elaine has been asked to be the Chair for BHRW. So she is considering doing that. Luckily for us our neighbors are all great. But we are investigating moving out of Portland metro area. Into some more rural place like Newberg.

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Elaine my wife told me you were part of BHRW ( Republican Women)sorry to hear the tolerant (sarc) liberals drove you out.

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John: Oh, say hello to Elaine! Such a delightful lady! Yes, we could no longer live with the hatred surrounding us. Call us overly sensitive, AND our tax dollars being used to abuse little kids (transgendering) and police being forced to allow BLM riots to terrorize our neighborhood. I had to kowtow to the Marxists who ran the Oregon State Bar for so long, once I retired I determined to be my own person again. I am still a BHRW member, but also joined North Coast RW which meets at the Astoria Country Club. We live 45 miles north of there, in Oysterville, WA. Did you read "Living Behind Enemy Lines, Tale #1" published two weeks ago and the one about Portland suburbs & homelessness published this week? You will have a pretty good idea what it was like living in West Linn in recent years. Diane

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More on Portland, amazingly from even before the BLM/Antifa terror: https://youtu.be/aSw79yRnDVs?si=AfLkGP-StlemqSLC

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Thank you, Diane! One cannot truly appreciate the level of insanity in places such as Portland until you get out of the bubble and live elsewhere for awhile. With so many close friends and family still living in Portland, our family will always be inextricably linked to the city - for better or worse. I often wonder, what do these same neighbors of mine think about the state of black lives in the city now, after allll the BLM fuss? Are they more safe or more educated? Of course not! With all of the extreme TDS, why no BDS? Are they really not aware of the validity of Hunter's laptop and Joe Biden's influence peddling, among so many other disastrous policies wreaking havoc on our country?! There are so many examples I could write a book. I swear, we're living in a world where there are those who are informed, and those who think they are informed. The difference lies in whether a person can think critically and independently, and let go of misplaced trust in authority and institutions - they have betrayed us!

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Yes, Americans have been betrayed FOR DECADES and we are just now starting to wake up. THAT is why Biden & Company has unleashed their Gestapo on parents, Christians, out-spoken Americans, etc. Are you in contact with any of your old neighbors? Have ANY of them admitted they were wrong to support the rioting?

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Easy answer Diane, ZERO.

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These people still think Trump could be a Russian asset - the media blackout on this and so many other stories, is part of the problem.

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Ha! Ha! Ha! Liberals' stupidity knows no bounds. Our little beach community has a weekly newspaper owned by a corporation HQ'd in Salem. They publish Letters to the Editor whining about how Russia got Trump elected, BUT no Letters about $$$$$ Biden has received from Russia, China, etc, nor about 2020 election fraud.

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