“OLD, YOUNG, UNITED AGAINST OLIGARCHIC POWER”

Sun Tzu said, "In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity." And make no mistake, America is in chaos.

Let’s get one thing straight: the system is broken. If you’ve been paying attention, you know that. If you’ve been pretending it isn’t, you’re either living in a bubble or just lying to yourself. But what happened in Tempe, Arizona, on March 20, 2025, wasn’t just another political rally. It wasn’t about Bernie Sanders, or Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez; it was about the people. About the fight to save what’s left of the American dream before it gets auctioned off to the highest bidder.

Over 15,000 fired-up citizens packed the Mullett Arena, with even more streaming in online. From every age group, from every walk of life; young, old, black, white, brown, male, female. It wasn’t just a crowd; it was a community. A community coming together to confront the nightmare of an oligarchy that’s creeping into our lives, one piece at a time. And the message was simple: If we want to reclaim our democracy, we have to do it together. Because make no mistake, the system; the one that’s stripping away our rights and handing them over to billionaires, isn’t going to fix itself. And you’re damn sure not going to fix it by sitting on your hands.

Here’s the kicker: On that stage, you had the old guard, Senator Bernie Sanders, a 30-plus-year veteran of the political game, standing side by side with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a young firebrand who’s only 35 but already shaking up Washington in ways that make the old guard uncomfortable. Their alliance might seem odd at first glance; an octogenarian male and a millennial female, but that’s precisely the point. They represent two different generations, two different sides of the same fight, one thing in common: the will to take on the oligarchs.

Bernie’s been in this game long enough to know the ropes. He’s seen it all; the dirty deals, the backroom handshakes, the corporate money buying influence in Washington. And AOC? She’s the future; fighting to drag the party into the 21st century, kicking and screaming if necessary. She’s already done more in her short time in office than most people ever will. Together, they’re the bridge between the old and the new. And let me tell you, these two are not afraid to mix it up with the powers that be. They know that to make any real change in this country, we need to push back, hard against the wealthy elites who control everything; from the media to the politicians. If we don’t, we’re screwed.

Look, if you think Bernie’s too old or AOC’s too radical, fine. But the reality is, the enemy we’re fighting doesn’t care about your age or your race. The oligarchs don’t care if you’re young or old, black or white, a man or a woman. They only care about one thing: power. And right now, they’ve got too much of it. And they’ve got it because we’ve let them.

What struck me the most about this rally wasn’t just the crowd, though. It was the unity. That’s what this is all about: coming together to save what’s left of the American experiment. Bernie’s been calling out the corporate interests for decades. AOC, for all her talk about the future, gets it. This fight is about all of us, not just one group or another. We’re talking about everyday people; the ones who are tired of being screwed over, tired of seeing their rights erode bit by bit, every single day.

AOC put it plainly: "We need to fight against the billionaires and the corporate greed that’s taking over our country." And she’s right. We’re in the midst of a political and economic system that rewards the rich and punishes the rest of us. But here’s the thing: Bernie and AOC get it. They understand that to take down the oligarchy, we need more than just a handful of activists; we need a movement. We need everyone. Everyone. That means you, me, the people in the crowd, and the people at home who still think they don’t have a say. You do…that’s why I always ask for your comments!

As AOC said to the crowd at Arizona State University, “No matter who you voted for in the past, no matter if you know all the right words to say, no matter your race, religion, gender identity or status, no matter even if you disagree with me on a few things. If you are willing to fight for someone you don’t know, you are welcome here.” And that’s what it’s all about, isn’t it? The fight. The fight for our future, for our rights, for our democracy. We can’t afford to sit on the sidelines anymore. This isn’t just a rally; it’s a call to arms.

Sun Tzu said, "In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity." And make no mistake, America is in chaos. The oligarchs want us to believe it’s too big to fight, too entrenched to change. But that’s where they’re wrong. The opportunity is now. Together, we have the chance to reset the balance of power. It won’t be easy. There will be pain. It won’t happen overnight. But if we don’t stand up, if we don’t fight back, we’ll wake up one day and wonder where the hell America went.

So here’s the bottom line: This isn’t about Bernie. This isn’t about AOC. This is about us. The people. And if we don’t come together; across generational lines, across race, across gender, we’re going to lose everything. The oligarchs already know that. They’re just hoping we don’t figure it out in time.

And that is what we are all doing here. Together as a community on this Substack platform; acting as independent journalists and news sources. And, as you hear me repeatedly say, “All who want to fight are welcome here because the fight is worth it!”

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