It's OK to be patriotic tonight

You can cry and scream and text everyone you know during the debate

Patriotism can get a bad rap sometimes. It’s been largely co-opted by the right with their talk of freedom and their love of American flag and bald eagle aesthetics.

But America isn’t theirs. I have talked about this before:

Conservatives don’t get to own patriotism

And tonight, as we watch Kamala Harris debate Donald Trump, it is OK for us to shout about how much we also love America and how invested we all are in the future of this country.

I will be hosting a live chat throughout the debate for all paid subscribers. There will be commentary, memes, fact checks and lots of laughs from our whole RIPPLE team.

Make sure you’re subscribed to join in.

We ARE going to have our first woman president. And it is OK to be excited about that despite what has happened in the past. Be inspired. Be delighted. Be loud and proud and out with your bad American self.

Patriotism has been hijacked and narrowly defined, wrapped in the rhetoric of a political viewpoint that waves the flag, speaks of freedom, and idolizes an asipring despot. Let’s reclaim it & lets make it fun.

Tonight, as we watch Kamala Harris debate Donald Trump, let’s not do so from a place of fear - but one of excitement of how totally bad*ss she is. Because loving this country isn’t about blind allegiance—it’s about being invested in its potential. Patriotism is about hope, about believing that we can shape the future of this nation with our actions, our voices, and our votes. So tonight, let’s own our patriotism and allow ourselves to be excited about the new way forward.

My friend and collaborator

Jo Piazza

lives in Philly and she texted me this morning that the vibe over the debate being there tonight is off the charts. She said: “People were talking about it at school drop off this morning and organizing debate watching parties. I haven’t seen this since Obama!”

These ads are currently all over Philly.

To get you and your text crew hyped we have created a Bingo card for you to share around. You can play in person or over group chat. I made it with our team at Ripple. If you haven’t signed up for Ripple yet, I would love to have you on board. It is an easy and fun way to text all of your friends about making sure to vote in the presidential and local elections.

Conversations between people who know each other are the most powerful tool to get people to vote, and research shows that a text from a friend increases the likelihood to vote by over 8%. Ripple provides sample text messages participants can send to their family and friends to talk about what’s at stake this election.

If you want to DO SOMETHING with your excitement the most effective use of your time is texting people you already know about what’s on their ballots.

Now go forth and be patriotic tonight. Enjoy this. Kamala is going to kill it. Send this bingo card to all your people and dance the debate away when she wipes the floor with Trump.