I don’t know what I am going to write
each night:
until I actually sit down and wait
for each word to drip out
one
by
one
like a leaking faucet or a rain cloud.
tonight it’s passed midnight:
we sat beneath an awning in the rain
drinking red wine
talking about pets and cruises and other mundane things
adults talk about to feel less alone.
we are all doing our best to be happy
eating cheese and stuffed peppers,
playing games,
raising kids,
hoping for a Green New Deal
and medicare for all-
and for the Nazis on our Facebook timelines
to crawl back into their holes
and take less space in our minds.
Showing posts with label fascism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fascism. Show all posts
January 9, 2021
9/365
January 7, 2021
December 10, 2016
The Worst At Everything
According to the CIA, it looks like the Russians influenced the US elections, and when Trump heard this information he said, referring to the CIA, “These are the same guys who thought there were weapons of mass destruction.” It also look like his top choice for Secretary of State is the former CEO of Exxon, who has been frustrated by the sanctions put on Russia, because has had wanted to get a few oil projects going in Russia for years.
pol
At one point today I saw the president elect of the United States ask a crowd to cheer because they thought that Time magazine should still have a man of the year instead of a person of the year. This is our reality. Polls conducted by chanting and cheering from an ignorant, sexist mob, conducted by a sad old clown.This man is literally the worst at everything.
If this was the script to a movie, we would find it too implausible, but here we are a few weeks before we are living this meaningless nightmare.
In other news, Alt-Right toads, read as neo-nazis, are upset with the new Star Wars because the good guys are people of color and a girl, and the bad guys are white. Apparently they just realized the obvious parallels between the Empire and fascists. I for one am super excited to see it and get fired up and my rebellion on!
Today was a slow family day and it felt good. I was up on my foot a lot and it swelled up and hurt at times throughout the day, but we had a great lunch and then saw Sing. Such a cute movie.
Came home for a rest-up for everyone, then some mulled wine, vegan stuffing and cranberry sauce, and yes another viewing of Elf. The house was lit up all Christmas, and the girls snuggled their grandparents. it was calm and quiet and relaxing and life is coming back together. If only I could ignore the internet.
pol
At one point today I saw the president elect of the United States ask a crowd to cheer because they thought that Time magazine should still have a man of the year instead of a person of the year. This is our reality. Polls conducted by chanting and cheering from an ignorant, sexist mob, conducted by a sad old clown.This man is literally the worst at everything.
If this was the script to a movie, we would find it too implausible, but here we are a few weeks before we are living this meaningless nightmare.
In other news, Alt-Right toads, read as neo-nazis, are upset with the new Star Wars because the good guys are people of color and a girl, and the bad guys are white. Apparently they just realized the obvious parallels between the Empire and fascists. I for one am super excited to see it and get fired up and my rebellion on!
Today was a slow family day and it felt good. I was up on my foot a lot and it swelled up and hurt at times throughout the day, but we had a great lunch and then saw Sing. Such a cute movie.
Came home for a rest-up for everyone, then some mulled wine, vegan stuffing and cranberry sauce, and yes another viewing of Elf. The house was lit up all Christmas, and the girls snuggled their grandparents. it was calm and quiet and relaxing and life is coming back together. If only I could ignore the internet.
March 2, 2016
Led Astray
I don’t live in America and it is most likely that I never will again. I don’t pay taxes there. I don’t own property there, and to be honest I don’t really have any connection to the place other than my passport and twenty-five years of cultural manipulation- a childhood of watching its TV, listening to its music and reading its books. Having said that, I love the place. I love the idea of it. The brashness of it. The audacity of it. And yes, even the reality of it.
It is clear, however, that we are in a big fat mess right now. A little over two hundred years in and the place is heading toward disaster. I could be wrong. I hope I am wrong. Like I said, I have not lived there for twelve years, so I don’t know how employment works, or if I could make a living as a teacher and raise a family there. But, from what I remember living in NYC as a single guy, I am pretty sure that it would be pretty hard to make ends meet. I have no idea what people pay in taxes and what that gets them, or what kind of health care people get. I read stories, but I have no real stories. I see many of you making it, so it must be possible, but I am clueless as to how you are able to live in America.
I might not have real life or current experiences, but I know my history, and I know my economic theory and I know about corporations and greed and oligarchy and how Fascism is born and I know racism and the frightening power of the under-educated poor. I know about The American Dream and the desperation of an inner-city and a crumbling promise in the rural south. I know about fear and loathing and thinking you are a champion, when you are not even playing the right game.
I might not have lived these traumas first hand, but I am attuned to the literature and media of our nation. I know the history of struggle and revolution and mass incarnation, of riots and looting and police shootings and labor wars won and lost. I might not live there, but I can see that we are in a place of hurt and fear and pain and anger and the results of these traumas are not good for our future. The American people are waking up to the reality of the false dream we were promised and we are not equipped to build a new one.
It is embarrassing being an American ex-pat. My friends are always asking how is this happening? They might be talking about some shooting or the latest never ending war or these days they are usually asking about our election process and the rise of Trump.
It is hard to explain how afraid America is of its own demise and poverty. It is hard to explain to my friends the true nature of America- the one that lurks one layer beneath the glitz and glamour. These non-American friends may not have driven through the rural south or a strip mall in Idaho or seen the vast expanse of mediocrity that many Americans often mask with bluster and jingoism. Most Americans actually believe that God has blessed America. As if somehow, we are different and that in the evolution of societies and nations, we have miraculously come out on top.
Our media lies to us. Our education system teachers us to worship the wealthy and praise capitalistic gain as the only true measure of success. American’s believe in being number one and being rich and powerful and in control, even when we are clearly very far from all those things. Anyone who questions these false values is labeled as an American-hater, a communist and the scum of the earth. Being a winner is embedded in our national psyche, but there are few winners in America these days, and so Trump becomes the symbol of the decaying dream. He is shallow and vapid and empty and the prefect vessel for people who see themselves as winners, but clearly people who are not, to pour themselves into.
Americans on average do not travel They rarely read. They are not involved in the political processes. They have been taught for decades to mistrust the government and the process of governance. They are too busy working and surviving. Another problem is that most Americans don’t have a firm understanding of the world outside of their immediate circles. Everything beyond the county line, whether it be a different religion or country or series of ideas, is a scary foggy no-man’s land, most Americans have no interest in investigating the real world, they just want to dominate the one they see on TV.
But like I said, what do I know? America has become a stranger to me. A distant relative I only see through the lens of the internet, and I know that this warped view is not an accurate representation. I want her to be well. I want to help and send cards for her birthday, but I don’t know how to relate anymore. I hope that our trip “home” this summer will help me reconnected. I hope it reminds me that America is a land of diversity and excitement.
I sometimes think about moving back home. Trying to buy a house somewhere in Oregon and maybe running for public office. Really getting my hands dirty with the process. Find a way to dig my way through the layers of filth that are clogging up every system in the land. But in the meantime, I will sit on the sidelines and judge everyone and everything like a self-righteous, pretentious asshole, the very stereotype of the privileged liberal.
I hope my American friends living in the US are okay and living worthwhile lives and that the political systems that are in place are not, and will not, get in the way of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. I hope you are not offended by this post. It is messy and sloppy and not very clear. It needed to be raw and written more for me than anyone else.
Closing note, I know there are thousands, millions of educated, kind, compassionate, dedicated Americans who are working tirelessly to make America function as a democracy- and I tip my hat to you all. Teachers, organizers, labor leaders, cops, and more. This post was the first of many that I will write to try and make sense of how the country that I love is being led astray by such ignorant and dark forces.
I’m sure I’ll write more on Trump as times get darker and scarier but in the meantime, I can’t help but think of this clip as I watch Trump rallies. Get them up against the wall!
It is clear, however, that we are in a big fat mess right now. A little over two hundred years in and the place is heading toward disaster. I could be wrong. I hope I am wrong. Like I said, I have not lived there for twelve years, so I don’t know how employment works, or if I could make a living as a teacher and raise a family there. But, from what I remember living in NYC as a single guy, I am pretty sure that it would be pretty hard to make ends meet. I have no idea what people pay in taxes and what that gets them, or what kind of health care people get. I read stories, but I have no real stories. I see many of you making it, so it must be possible, but I am clueless as to how you are able to live in America.
I might not have real life or current experiences, but I know my history, and I know my economic theory and I know about corporations and greed and oligarchy and how Fascism is born and I know racism and the frightening power of the under-educated poor. I know about The American Dream and the desperation of an inner-city and a crumbling promise in the rural south. I know about fear and loathing and thinking you are a champion, when you are not even playing the right game.
I might not have lived these traumas first hand, but I am attuned to the literature and media of our nation. I know the history of struggle and revolution and mass incarnation, of riots and looting and police shootings and labor wars won and lost. I might not live there, but I can see that we are in a place of hurt and fear and pain and anger and the results of these traumas are not good for our future. The American people are waking up to the reality of the false dream we were promised and we are not equipped to build a new one.
It is embarrassing being an American ex-pat. My friends are always asking how is this happening? They might be talking about some shooting or the latest never ending war or these days they are usually asking about our election process and the rise of Trump.
It is hard to explain how afraid America is of its own demise and poverty. It is hard to explain to my friends the true nature of America- the one that lurks one layer beneath the glitz and glamour. These non-American friends may not have driven through the rural south or a strip mall in Idaho or seen the vast expanse of mediocrity that many Americans often mask with bluster and jingoism. Most Americans actually believe that God has blessed America. As if somehow, we are different and that in the evolution of societies and nations, we have miraculously come out on top.
Our media lies to us. Our education system teachers us to worship the wealthy and praise capitalistic gain as the only true measure of success. American’s believe in being number one and being rich and powerful and in control, even when we are clearly very far from all those things. Anyone who questions these false values is labeled as an American-hater, a communist and the scum of the earth. Being a winner is embedded in our national psyche, but there are few winners in America these days, and so Trump becomes the symbol of the decaying dream. He is shallow and vapid and empty and the prefect vessel for people who see themselves as winners, but clearly people who are not, to pour themselves into.
Americans on average do not travel They rarely read. They are not involved in the political processes. They have been taught for decades to mistrust the government and the process of governance. They are too busy working and surviving. Another problem is that most Americans don’t have a firm understanding of the world outside of their immediate circles. Everything beyond the county line, whether it be a different religion or country or series of ideas, is a scary foggy no-man’s land, most Americans have no interest in investigating the real world, they just want to dominate the one they see on TV.
But like I said, what do I know? America has become a stranger to me. A distant relative I only see through the lens of the internet, and I know that this warped view is not an accurate representation. I want her to be well. I want to help and send cards for her birthday, but I don’t know how to relate anymore. I hope that our trip “home” this summer will help me reconnected. I hope it reminds me that America is a land of diversity and excitement.
I sometimes think about moving back home. Trying to buy a house somewhere in Oregon and maybe running for public office. Really getting my hands dirty with the process. Find a way to dig my way through the layers of filth that are clogging up every system in the land. But in the meantime, I will sit on the sidelines and judge everyone and everything like a self-righteous, pretentious asshole, the very stereotype of the privileged liberal.
I hope my American friends living in the US are okay and living worthwhile lives and that the political systems that are in place are not, and will not, get in the way of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. I hope you are not offended by this post. It is messy and sloppy and not very clear. It needed to be raw and written more for me than anyone else.
Closing note, I know there are thousands, millions of educated, kind, compassionate, dedicated Americans who are working tirelessly to make America function as a democracy- and I tip my hat to you all. Teachers, organizers, labor leaders, cops, and more. This post was the first of many that I will write to try and make sense of how the country that I love is being led astray by such ignorant and dark forces.
I’m sure I’ll write more on Trump as times get darker and scarier but in the meantime, I can’t help but think of this clip as I watch Trump rallies. Get them up against the wall!
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