Panic and More

Last night, as we were leaving for swim practice, I was suddenly subject to a barrage of panicked questions and remarks from Julia.  It seems she was having a total internal melt-down about climate change, politics, and pretty much everything else.  Our conversation started as we got into the car and continued on our drive to the pool.

JULIA: Massachusetts is gonna flood and we'll be TOTALLY underwater.
ME: That's not something that's going to happen in the immediate future.
JULIA: But it's too late for us to save the world from climate change.
ME: Some things are irreversible at this point, but there's still a lot we can do to prevent worst case scenarios.  Hopefully we can get our country back to agreeing to combat climate change.
JULIA: But Joe Biden didn't vote for the Green New Deal!
ME: Yes, but I think he would re-enter us into the Paris Climate Accord.
JULIA: But Donald Trump is just gonna win again.
ME: Well, if he does, then we'll have to work really hard as individuals to reduce our impact.
JULIA: Mommy? Do you think he'll win again?
ME: I really don't know what to think.  The polls were so wrong for the last election.
JULIA: But Mommy? I've been reading all this stuff about dictators, and I read that Trump is acting like Hitler did in Nazi Germany.
ME: But in the United States, we have a democracy, so people are allowed to speak out against Trump without getting thrown in jail. We're in a much better situation to fight against any attempts to create a dictatorship than the Germans were.
JULIA: (distraught) But I realized we're basically living in a Nazi world because our country has Neo-Nazis.
ME: But we also have the ability to speak out against them.  This country has checks and balances, so even if Trump tries to become a dictator, there are systems in place to prevent that.  
JULIA: (becoming increasingly more distressed) But what if he loses and he refuses to leave?
ME: Well, that's why we have institutes like the Supreme Court, to help uphold the rules.
JULIA: (reaching panic) But Brett Kavanaugh is just gonna vote for anything Trump wants.
ME: Look. Ruth Bader Ginsburg won't vote for that. Elena Kagan won't vote for that. Sonia Sotomayor won't vote for that.

During this conversation, Julia and I kept getting text notifications on our cell phones, but since I was driving I couldn't check.  It turns out Ethan was messaging us with some breaking news.  As Julia was reaching her pinnacle of despair, she happened to check her phone.

JULIA: (on the verge of hysteria) RUTH BADER GINSBURG DIED!

Okay. Crap. Any attempts to calm her down at this point were futile, and the way we left things was Julia going into the pool building and texting me, "I'm in and I'm scared." I can't say I blame her.

Madeleine's practice was just ending, so when she got in the car, I gave her the news about RBG.  We then discussed the other members of the Supreme Court and their political leanings during the remainder of the car ride.

This morning, the girls had swim practice yet again.  Ethan did the drop-offs, and I did the final pick-up shift, getting Madeleine from her practice at noon.  When she got in the car, she cheerily told me about her workout, then fell silent for a moment as she scrolled through her phone notifications.

MADELEINE: (in shock) Ruth Bader Ginsburg DIED?
ME: Honey, we talked about this last night.
MADELEINE: I remember you telling me about SOME Democrat, but I didn't know you were talking about HER.

Who's surprised that Madeleine doesn't remember me telling her about this last night?  Anyone?