EP #68: More Hygge, PLEASE!

A #1 ranking may be great for a college football team but a number one ranking in corruption and telling the most verifiable lies is not a ranking any human being or political party should be proud of. Here we are heading to November 3 where polls indicate most Americans are unhappy with their quality of life under the Liar in Chief and his sycophants in Congress and may just vote the Republican party out of power. Of course, Trump and his MAGA acolytes refuse to believe the polls so here we go again. . . the conspiracy theories and the lies are ramping up along with Trump’s threats to permanently defeat his opposition “once and for all.” As former Republican operative Steve Schmidt has stated in his “THE WARNING” Substack newsletter: “Dangerous hours and days lie ahead.”

College Football season is in full swing, and fans are taking sides in their support of their favorite college team. Loyalty comes in many forms and as election season is now in full swing, loyalty to democracy is on the ballot now more than ever. In the last month, a few greatly beloved cultural icons have passed. While here on earth, their support of democracy and every human’s need to be free to pursue their happiness and their best life, to flourish without judgement, continues through the work they did and the examples they set for us all. In their honor and as a fan of democracy, have a plan in place as to where, when, and how you will vote and show your loyalty for democracy!

Have you ever felt up a creek without a paddle? Metaphorically speaking, Mama B feels the United States is up a creek without a paddle and lets listeners know one of the reasons why: “The fastest growing religious movement in this country has little use for religious pluralism, individual rights, or constitutional democracy. It considers itself an Army of God with a holy mission to claim the earth for God’s kingdom.” This army of believers is greatly imbedded within the Trump Administration. They are working very hard to get rid of what they perceive is Satan’s influence everywhere. While at the same time, they believe they are following God’s command to take over our country and culture through their Seven Mountains Mandate. Don’t get labelled by them as being demon possessed, or they may come after you!

In this stressful and uncertain time, where does one go to find a place to be made whole again? The answer may be found in why the Nordic countries have the highest levels of happiness, equality, and well-being in the world due in part to the concept of hygge, an Old Norse word that meant “protected from the outside world.” Mama B is a blue mom living in a red state and she says, “More Hygge, please!” Especially since this is the time of year when the US celebrates both Juneteenth and Pride Month while Tennessee leads the vanguard in the marginalization and othering of those belonging to these two communities.

In a Special Legislative Session called by the Governor of Tennessee the first week in May, the Republican supermajority in the Tennessee statehouse dismantled the only majority-minority Democratic Congressional District in the state. The goal was said out loud on the Tennessee House Floor by one MAGA Republican: To hand Trump all congressional seats in the state of Tennessee come the November mid-term elections and for elections to come. Mama B was at the capitol in Nashville to see regressive history unfold. She does not mince words as to why this happened, who was involved in making it happen, and what the aftermath was for the Democrats in the Tennessee legislature. The ending of this podcast episode is one that will reverberate in your head for a long time to come.

April is Earth Month and April 22 is Earth Day. . . though on every day of the year, it would be ideal if each of us thought about how we use our planet’s finite resources and then do something positive to facilitate change. Right now, the U.S. is waging a war of choice in Iran that involves the finite resources of oil and gas but could, in a way, also be about freshwater. Tehran and other major cities in the world, including in the United States, are the poster cities for water scarcity. Future wars will more than likely be fought over freshwater because this is the world’s most precious resource. For without natural freshwater or desalinated freshwater, life cannot survive on this planet. Listen to this month’s podcast episode as Mama B tries to answer the questions of who, what, where, why, and when as it pertains to freshwater and its future?

(Recorded on March 18 before spring travels, any solution to funding TSA happened, and any end to the Iran War was in sight.) As usual, Mama B discusses what MAGA is up to both in Tennessee and the rest of the world. Look no further than this current war in Iran. Based on living in the Bible Belt, Mama B has opinions about why the U.S. is involved in yet another war in the Middle East, a religiopolitical one. She reveals new websites and a new list being put out by Christian organizations with future implications for all Americans.

​“Life under authoritarianism is actually, for the most part, weirdly normal. It’s often even, well, boring. . . it’s easy to think that if you just keep your head down and avoid making waves, you’ll be perfectly fine, thank you very much,” VOX Until you’re not fine. This is the year we celebrate the 250th birthday of our country, the world’s oldest democracy. But we need to ask ourselves, is this year one of American Authoritarianism or possibly, even American Fascism? Does my saying this sound extreme? Answer that question after you’ve listened to this podcast episode.

​(Recorded on 1/14/26 before the escalation of federalized forces and their continuing harm to US citizens in Minneapolis.) Right now, very scary things are going on in this country and in the MAGA petri dish that is the state of Tennessee. It’s entirely possible that by the conclusion of this month’s episode of Red State Blue Mom, and after learning way more than you ever wanted to know about the color “white,” you will not only be incredulous but in agreement with Mama B on where this country is headed.

This is a short holiday message with lots of bright hope for the future and in 2026, there is a way to "finally put this MAGA nightmare behind us."