Some news from Cog's founding editor, Frannie

Also: What my Nazi grandfather's efforts to cleanse his legacy tell us about this moment [View in browser](    [❤️]( May 22, 2022 Dear Cog reader, “When I think about the moment we are in,” [writes Julie Lindahl]( “my thoughts return to a book bound in green linen. It was the only thing my grandfather … left to his son.” As a child, Lindahl was told her family had relocated to Brazil from Germany because land prospects were better in South America. But through a long and painful investigation of her family history, Lindahl learned that her grandfather had been not only a Nazi, but a member of Hitler’s elite guard, the SS. That green book was a post-war account of Germany’s invasion of the Soviet Union. Lindahl’s grandfather read the book more than a dozen times, “scouring it for explanations as to why the vast estate he’d dreamt of owning as a future member of the Reich’s SS aristocracy in Ukraine, a promised land to avid Nazis for its black earth, had remained out of his reach.” In her family’s story, Julie sees a clear connection to Vladimir Putin’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, as well as efforts in the U.S. to restrict which history kids learn in school. Julie makes the compelling case that attempts to control the way we remember the past are a sign of rising hyper-nationalism. Democracy is in trouble, [she writes](. If you’re a regular reader, you might remember Lindahl from a multimedia series Cog produced a few years ago. “[Beyond Sides of History]( told the story of two women — Lindahl and Rachael Cerrotti, the granddaughter of a Jewish Holocaust survivor — and how, through a twist of fate, their lives become linked. The series explored how one generation influences the next and the remarkable lengths people go to make themselves whole. It was one of the most memorable reporting experiences of my career. I’ve been feeling nostalgic about my work at WBUR recently, and there's a reason for that: I’m about to embark on a big change. After 10 wonderful years at Cog, I am leaving next week to take a senior editorial position with The New York Times audio team. While I'm tremendously excited about the opportunity, I'm sad, too. I've spent a quarter of my life(!) building, sustaining and growing Cog. I like to joke that Cog is like my first baby — but it’s true! And while leaving is hard, it’s made easier by knowing that Cog has never been stronger — or more effectively delivering on our mission to be a place where people find ideas, connection, advice, solace and humanity. Thank you for reading and listening. Thank you for all of it. Frannie Carr Toth Editor, Cognoscenti [Follow]( Support the news   Must Reads [My Nazi grandfather wanted to cleanse his legacy. What his story tells me about this historical moment]( Attempts to control the way we remember history are a sign of hypernationalism, writes Julie LIndahl. Our democracy is in trouble. [Read more.]( [My Nazi grandfather wanted to cleanse his legacy. What his story tells me about this historical moment]( Attempts to control the way we remember history are a sign of hypernationalism, writes Julie LIndahl. Our democracy is in trouble. [Read more.]( [We can’t control guns or the internet. But we can watch kids for signs of extremism]( Teachers, mental health professionals and parents might be our best defense for stopping hate crimes committed in the name of white supremacy, writes Meredith Ganser. [Read more.]( [We can’t control guns or the internet. But we can watch kids for signs of extremism]( Teachers, mental health professionals and parents might be our best defense for stopping hate crimes committed in the name of white supremacy, writes Meredith Ganser. [Read more.]( [My idol is an Antarctic explorer — and it's not Sir Ernest Shackleton]( It may seem silly for a middle-aged woman to imagine herself as Robert Falcon Scott, the Antarctic explorer who died in 1912 after losing the race to the South Pole. But Scott's failure is precisely what makes him so fascinating, writes Henriette Lazaridis. [Read more.]( [My idol is an Antarctic explorer — and it's not Sir Ernest Shackleton]( It may seem silly for a middle-aged woman to imagine herself as Robert Falcon Scott, the Antarctic explorer who died in 1912 after losing the race to the South Pole. But Scott's failure is precisely what makes him so fascinating, writes Henriette Lazaridis. [Read more.]( [A mass mobilization of democracy is the only way to stop white supremacy]( Wild conspiracy theories and eugenic hysteria — once the views of the right-wing fringe — are increasingly vital features of the GOP, writes Steve Almond. [Read more.]( [A mass mobilization of democracy is the only way to stop white supremacy]( Wild conspiracy theories and eugenic hysteria — once the views of the right-wing fringe — are increasingly vital features of the GOP, writes Steve Almond. [Read more.]( [A return to pre-pandemic 'normal' is not the way to fix Mass. schoolsÂ]( Instead of using the pandemic as an opportunity to upend the less-than-perfect status quo, writes Neema Avashia, officials doubled down on the failures of the before times. [Read more.]( [A return to pre-pandemic 'normal' is not the way to fix Mass. schoolsÂ]( Instead of using the pandemic as an opportunity to upend the less-than-perfect status quo, writes Neema Avashia, officials doubled down on the failures of the before times. [Read more.]( What We're Reading "I’m scared. Just please pray my lungs will do something miraculous over night." "[1 Million Deaths, 13 Last Messages]( The New York Times." "Replacement theory forms the strands that connect this web of violence — from the Oklahoma bomber to Norway to New Zealand to Buffalo." "[Where 'replacement theory' comes from — and why it refuses to go away]( Vox. "The relentless surges locked [health-care workers] in a two-year dystopian stasis, from which they are emerging to find that their old lives are unrecognizable." "[What COVID Hospitalization Numbers Are Missing]( The Atlantic. "If most Germans omitted the Holocaust from their remembrance of WWII today, Germany would be a very different place than it is." — Julie Lindahl, "[My Nazi grandfather wanted to cleanse his legacy. What his story tells me about this historical moment]( ICYMI [Motherhood isn't contingent on a romantic relationship. So why do we still treat it that way?]( Our culture encourages nuclear families and discourages single parenthood, writes Nicole Sussner Rodgers. It’s an ideological bias still enshrined in law and policy, and one that needs to be tackled head-on. [Read more.]( [Motherhood isn't contingent on a romantic relationship. So why do we still treat it that way?]( Our culture encourages nuclear families and discourages single parenthood, writes Nicole Sussner Rodgers. It’s an ideological bias still enshrined in law and policy, and one that needs to be tackled head-on. [Read more.]( If you’d like to write for Cognoscenti, send your submission, pasted into your email and not as an attachment, to opinion@wbur.org. Please tell us in one line what the piece is about, and please tell us in one line who you are. 😎 Forward to a friend. They can sign up [here](. 📣 Give us your feedback: newsletters@wbur.org 📧 Get more WBUR stories sent to your inbox. [Check out all of our newsletter offerings.]( Support the news     Want to change how you receive these emails? Stop getting this newsletter by [updating your preferences.](  I don't want to hear from WBUR anymore. Unsubscribe from all WBUR editorial newsletters [here.](  Interested in learning more about corporate sponsorship? [Click here.]( Copyright © 2022 WBUR-FM, All rights reserved.