Several weeks into the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown, it appears that America may never return to the same normal as before. Whether life in America AC (After the Coronavirus) is better or worse than life in America BC depends on the choices that we make, individually and collectively, from now on. America is facing an existential crisis the likes of which we have not seen since World War II, maybe since the Civil War. Politics as usual will no longer suffice. A fundamental restructuring of our priorities and our politics is needed to address the crisis and its aftermath.

Over the next few weeks, I will be posting a series of essays on the lessons, challenges and opportunities presented by the concurrent crises in public health, politics, the economy, climate change, and US-China relations. To paraphrase Winston Churchill, we must not let these crises go to waste. Let’s start where the crisis began with the public health meltdown.

Ken Starr’s hypocritical attempt to defend President Trump at this week’s impeachment hearing was missing just one thing -- Starr’s admission that he was wrong 21 years ago to pursue abuse of power charges against President Clinton for lying about an extramarital affair, or that he is wrong now for opposing those same abuse of power charges against Trump for shaking down Ukraine to help him steal the next election. Sadly, Starr managed to be wrong on both occasions.

The ongoing Trump impeachment saga brings to mind Pulitzer Prize winning author Michiko Kakutani’s prescient and incisive book The Death of Truth published in 2018. Subtitled Notes on Falsehood in the Age of Trump, Kakutani correctly diagnoses the roots of our decaying social and political order and our current political impasse. She forcefully demonstrates why, in the words of reviewer David Grann, “we must rescue the truth before it is buried under a regime of lies.”

At a moment when it appears unlikely that Senate Republicans will muster the political courage to rescue the truth, America will have to fall back on its greatest resource to do so -- the American people. Those of us who are dismayed by this dark chapter in American history cling optimistically to the notion that the American people will come to the rescue by voting Trump out of office come November. I certainly hope so.

But what if the same kind of Russian collusion and interference that we witnessed in the 2016 election repeats itself in 2020? What if bad actors exploit social media and the internet even more voraciously this time around, spreading misinformation and disinformation faster than the Coronavirus? What if Americans become so distracted, so exhausted and so confused by an unrelenting stream of lies and obfuscation that they cease to resist?

In my memoir CITIZEN COHN, I listed my most memorable movies, television shows and songs from each decade since the 1950s. This year, I am updating the list to add my favorite books. Technically speaking, the decade doesn't end until December 31, 2020, but who really pays attention to that technicality?

You may not be surprised to see my own book THE BLUE SKY REBELLION topping 2019’s best book list, along with best-seller WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING by Delia Owens. My top books of the decade feature the alternative history of slavery novel THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD by Colson Whitehead, the epic untold history book GENGHIS KHAN AND THE MAKING OF THE MODERN WORLD by Jack Weatherford, the laugh out loud travelogue IN A SUNBURNED COUNTRY by Bill Bryson, and the too long-ignored history KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON: THE OSAGE MURDERS AND THE BIRTH OF THE FBI by David Grann.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and Parasite top my 2019 movies list, while Greta Gerwig's love letter to Sacramento, otherwise known as Lady Bird, tops my all-decade movies List.

Without further ado, here are MY FAVORITE BOOKS, MOVIES, TV SERIES, AND SONGS OF 2019 AND THE PAST DECADE.

I was inspired to write a novel rather than political commentary because the 2016 election and its aftermath have been as unexpected and strange as fiction. Setting the novel in the near future provided me the perspective and freedom to write a story that challenges the reader to think beyond current events and reimagine the American dream under a new social compact that better harmonizes individual liberty with social responsibility. Relying on my experience in energy and environmental law and politics, I have tried to craft a novel that addresses the biggest issues of our day from climate change to creeping fascism in a manner that is both realistic and visionary. I hope you will come away from this novel motivated to change the world in a positive way, starting with your own life and your community.