The Future of This Newsletter

It’s hard to believe, but it’s been nearly two years since I began writing The Status Kuo, and I have very much enjoyed watching this community grow. What began on Facebook in November 2020 to assure folks that Joe Biden really had won the election (and that we just needed to wait for the counting to be completed) morphed into a larger discussion of the Trump campaign’s efforts to overturn the election in the courts, and then took on enormous gravity with the violent assault upon the Capitol on January 6, 2021. 

I launched this newsletter as a way to take a deep dive each weekday into important political and legal topics, using plain English and broken down into easily digestible morsels. We created a community here of folks committed to protecting the rule of law, our civil institutions, and the future of our democracy. Readers here want to be informed and remain active in defending our freedoms, rights, and cherished system of governance, and it’s been an honor helping to make that possible, particularly as we mobilized successfully around the historic 2022 midterm elections.

As I look ahead to 2023, I’ve come to two important realizations. First, with the sharp downturn in my business (and dizzying pay cut), resulting from the loss of nearly all ad partner revenue—thanks Elon Musk!—I realized that I can no longer responsibly afford to devote so much unpaid time each week to this work. Second, I realized that I do very much enjoy researching and writing about politics and law while fostering and interacting with a welcoming community, and I want to find a way to continue to do so.

I recently took advice from some of my readers to heart, with many offering to support my work as paid subscribers. I was honored and flattered to hear that, and it made this leap an easier one. So today I’ve decided to ask for your support in the form of a voluntary paid subscription.

Truth be told, it’s hard for me to ask for help. I’m still working on that pride thing. But your pledge of support will help make it possible for me to continue my efforts rather than take a time consuming legal gig to cover things like my family’s increasingly high health expenses. 

A paid subscription here also will allow me to continue to update regularly throughout the day with news and developments on Facebook and other platforms. And with enough support, who knows, I might finally even be able to afford an editor to help me proofread before publishing!

This next point is important: The Status Kuo will not go behind a paywall. I want to follow in the tradition of other free newsletters (such as Prof. Heather Cox Richardson’s) so that those who are without financial resources can continue to stay informed and connected without any fee or charge.

There’s a Buddhist word my sister recently taught me. It’s called dana, meaning generosity and support, and it’s how she funds her work as a teacher. Dana operates on the idea of reciprocity. With my newsletter, each weekday, I offer my best efforts to support a clear understanding of the issues, the challenges, and the state of our political and legal system. In exchange, I invite you to reciprocate a dana reflecting the support, guidance and clarity that you feel you have received. My suggested dana is $6 per month, but if that isn’t doable, please continue to read and participate without charge. And if you happen to be blessed with greater means, please consider becoming a Democracy Defender at a higher annual donation level by specially donating on behalf of others who can’t afford to give.

It’s my goal to continue The Status Kuo well into the future, and with your help and support, that would be possible. Thank you in advance for your generosity, for being a part of this journey, and for joining me each weekday to help protect our precious liberties, our rights, and our democracy.

Yours in service,

Jay