Anne Belden

Author of “Inflamed: Abandonment, Heroism and Outrage in Wine Country’s Deadliest Firestorm,” journalism instructor, dog lover and popcorn worshipper

[The Lincoln Project @ProjectLincoln]

These two psychos have access to all your personal data, by the way.

[CALL TO ACTIVISM @CalltoActivism]

A British writer penned the best description of Donald Trump I’ve ever read:

“Why do some British people not like Donald Trump?”

A few things spring to mind. Trump lacks certain qualities which the British traditionally esteem. For instance, he has no class, no charm, no coolness, no credibility, no compassion, no wit, no warmth, no wisdom, no subtlety, no sensitivity, no self-awareness, no humility, no honour and no grace – all qualities, funnily enough, with which his predecessor Mr. Obama was generously blessed. So for us, the stark contrast does rather throw Trump’s limitations into embarrassingly sharp relief.

Plus, we like a laugh. And while Trump may be laughable, he has never once said anything wry, witty or even faintly amusing – not once, ever. I don’t say that rhetorically, I mean it quite literally: not once, not ever. And that fact is particularly disturbing to the British sensibility – for us, to lack humour is almost inhuman. But with Trump, it’s a fact. He doesn’t even seem to understand what a joke is – his idea of a joke is a crass comment, an illiterate insult, a casual act of cruelty.

Trump is a troll. And like all trolls, he is never funny and he never laughs; he only crows or jeers. And scarily, he doesn’t just talk in crude, witless insults – he actually thinks in them. His mind is a simple bot-like algorithm of petty prejudices and knee-jerk nastiness.

There is never any under-layer of irony, complexity, nuance or depth. It’s all surface. Some Americans might see this as refreshingly upfront. Well, we don’t. We see it as having no inner world, no soul. And in Britain we traditionally side with David, not Goliath. All our heroes are plucky underdogs: Robin Hood, Dick Whittington, Oliver Twist. Trump is neither plucky, nor an underdog. He is the exact opposite of that. He’s not even a spoiled rich-boy, or a greedy fat-cat. He’s more a fat white slug. A Jabba the Hutt of privilege.

And worse, he is that most unforgivable of all things to the British: a bully. That is, except when he is among bullies; then he suddenly transforms into a snivelling sidekick instead. There are unspoken rules to this stuff – the Queensberry rules of basic decency – and he breaks them all. He punches downwards – which a gentleman should, would, could never do – and every blow he aims is below the belt. He particularly likes to kick the vulnerable or voiceless – and he kicks them when they are down.

So the fact that a significant minority – perhaps a third – of Americans look at what he does, listen to what he says, and then think ‘Yeah, he seems like my kind of guy’ is a matter of some confusion and no little distress to British people, given that:

• Americans are supposed to be nicer than us, and mostly are.

• You don’t need a particularly keen eye for detail to spot a few flaws in the man.

This last point is what especially confuses and dismays British people, and many other people too; his faults seem pretty bloody hard to miss. After all, it’s impossible to read a single tweet, or hear him speak a sentence or two, without staring deep into the abyss. He turns being artless into an art form; he is a Picasso of pettiness; a Shakespeare of shit. His faults are fractal: even his flaws have flaws, and so on ad infinitum. God knows there have always been stupid people in the world, and plenty of nasty people too. But rarely has stupidity been so nasty, or nastiness so stupid. He makes Nixon look trustworthy and George W look smart. In fact, if Frankenstein decided to make a monster assembled entirely from human flaws – he would make a Trump.

And a remorseful Doctor Frankenstein would clutch out big clumpfuls of hair and scream in anguish: ‘My God… what… have… I… created?' If being a twat was a TV show, Trump would be the boxed set.”

-Nate White

[Anne Belden @abelden]

@MilaLovesJoe Obviously you know nothing of wind-driven wildfires, climate change, or California. Please stop spreading your ignorance.

[Anne Belden @abelden]

Feels like it’s happening again. @Inflamed_Book

[Dhruv @dhruv2038]

This is absolutely Horrific!
100 elderly people out in a cold dark 7-11 parking lot, breathing in smoke, laying on gurneys and wheelchairs trying to evacuate.
They deserve better!
#EatonCanyonFire #Altadena #PasadenaFire

[Anne Belden @abelden]

@dhruv2038 Do you know what facility they are from?

[Anne Belden @abelden]

@inflamed_thebook just won the 2024 Annual National Indie Excellence Book Awards for Regional Nonfiction - West. "Your book embodies the standards of excellence that this award was created to celebrate." https://t.co/75yVmMs181

[... @kevinsteinley]

@ZaleskiLuke @RonFilipkowski Trump 2016: “She shouldn’t be allowed to run...If she wins, it would create an unprecedented constitutional crisis... we could very well have a sitting president under felony indictment and a criminal trial. It would grind government to a halt.”" / X" / X

[The Press Democrat @NorthBayNews]

Local authors win major award for book on Fountaingrove care home exodus during Tubbs Fire. Click the image for more info. https://t.co/0mooAbTmlA

[Anne Belden @abelden]

So excited and honored! Thanks @IRE_NICAR!
@PaulGullixson @laspates @Inflamed_Book

[Investigative Reporters & Editors @IRE_NICAR]

The IRE Award winner in the Book category is "Inflamed: Abandonment, Heroism, and Outrage in Wine Country's Deadliest Firestorm." @abelden and @PaulGullixson tell the story of hundreds of elderly residents during the 2017 Tubbs Fire. https://t.co/Nq0Sdkeamh

[Anne Belden @abelden]

Thanks @marinij_ent for the great article by Colleen Bidwell about "Inflamed." We'll be at #sausalitobooksbythebay on Tuesday at 6.

#nonfiction #newbook #newbooks

[Marin IJ Life @marinij_ent]

Tamalpais High School alum co-authors book on wine country's deadliest firestorm https://t.co/EKO7whntrn

[Inflamed_TheBook @Inflamed_Book]

Visit us at the San Francisco Writers Conference (@SFWC) from 7:30-9:30 Friday evening at the Hyatt Embarcadero for a Wine & Book Tasting.
https://t.co/BmZ2dz8NwS

[Anne Belden @abelden]

East Bay Area readers - join @PaulGullixson and me this Tuesday at 7 p.m. @booksincberk on Shattuck for an author talk and signing.
#nonfiction #journalism @ucbsoj #investigation #newbooks
https://t.co/V68MJFA9jz

[Anne Belden @abelden]

Join us in the East Bay at 7 p.m. Tuesday ⁦@booksincberk⁩ for an author talk and signing.

Inflamed: Abandonment, Heroism, and Outrage in Wine Country's Deadliest Firestorm at Books Inc. - The West's Oldest Independent Bookseller https://t.co/Ouq1jDi7M9

[Anne Belden @abelden]

Interview with Anne Belden: Unveiling the Stories Behind “Inflamed” https://t.co/Bi3xudbDSt via @writersprogram
@Inflamed_Book @latimesbooks @pewjournalism @CJR
#newbook #nonfiction @Poynter @propublica

[Inflamed_TheBook @Inflamed_Book]

Join us Sunday, Feb. 4 at 2 p.m. at the Central Santa Rosa Library for a book talk and discussion. @abelden #nonfiction #newbook @sonomalibrary https://t.co/NI0OMUs3ib

[Anne Belden @abelden]

Great turnout @bookpassage Sunday for @Inflamed_Book. Sold every last copy and answered lots of insightful questions! #nonfiction #BookRecommendations #BookReview #bookstagram #newbooks #Tubbs

[Anne Belden @abelden]

Join us @bookpassage in Corte Madera on Sunday at 4 p.m. for an author book talk and signing.

@Inflamed_Book #nonfiction #NewBooks #ClimateCrisis @PaulGullixson @tamhigh #wildfire
https://t.co/VdK17wdoGF

[Anne Belden @abelden]

Marin County peeps -hope to see you on Jan. 7 at Book Passage in Corte Madera.

@Inflamed_Book @bookpassage #nonfiction @marinij_ent #ClimateCrisis #NewBooks #MarinCounty #Marin @tamhigh #TamHigh @KGO810
https://t.co/VdK17wdoGF

[Anne Belden @abelden]

Thanks @sfchronicle !

[San Francisco Chronicle @sfchronicle]

Review: 'Inflamed' reveals the shocking abandonment of elderly in Wine Country firestorm https://t.co/XAuSZd7F5X via @SFC_Datebook:

[Anne Belden @abelden]

First review for @Inflamed_Book came out today in @sfchronicle - "a powerful work of investigative journalism about a particularly vulnerable segment of the population." https://t.co/uQm0CcZiMm
#NewBook #bookreviews