Let's get straight to the point -- nothing about this administration is normal, and to pretend as though everything is business as usual is a willful delusion.

It is not normal for a president to maintain corporate interests across the globe. It is not normal for a president to continuously refuse to release his tax returns to clarify his sources of income and the influence others may hold over him.

It is not normal for a president-elect to dismiss U.S. intelligence in favor of siding with a country that commits crimes against its own people and intentionally meddled with our presidential election.

It is not normal for an administration to plan a weekly list of crimes allegedly committed by illegal immigrants and claim it is not propaganda.

It is not normal for an administration to ban government scientists from speaking to the public. It is not normal for the President of the United States to constantly demean and vilify the free press.

It is not normal for a sitting president to claim without evidence that three to five million people voted illegally, when his transition team said not two months ago that there had been zero evidence of fraud.

It. Is. Not. Normal.

And we shouldn't let it become so.

It's easy to get overwhelmed by the sheer amount of news that breaks each day, and easier still to close our eyes and ears to save even a shred of sanity. That would be comfortable, uncomplicated. It would also be irresponsible.

The United States has already been downgraded from a 'full' to a 'flawed' democracy by the Economist Intelligence Unit. A government can only be controlled by the people if the people are engaged. With an administration that makes up for what it lacks in experience with an abundance of corruption, civic participation is more important than ever.

Call your representatives. Research and fact check everything. Use your voice, and gain as much knowledge as possible.

Let's not pave the way for even more horrific stories to be simply another Monday.