After the events of last week even the curmudgeon needs to take a deep breath and say a prayer of thanksgiving and hope for our country.
We need to stop the spread of this virus that is killing our fellow citizens and we need to stop the virus of fear and hate that is killing our humanity.
We need to come together to beat the one and realize the other.
I may not agree with your politics, but I acknowledge your human dignity and respect you for it.
Breathe deep!
Do we really want to live in an “open” society? 
The answer to that question depends on who’s society we are talking about. In the United States we have returned to the society of the rugged individual or cowboy mentality. Our “open” society of today is much like the old west, might makes right, white makes right, vigilantism subverts the rule of law because the law is not effective enough for some. The outcome of this “open” society is predictably what we saw on January 6, in Washington,DC. Left unchecked the logical extension of this “open” society would be to ship everyone of non-European decent back to where they came from – apologies to native Americans – and establish a pure “American” society.
Sounds a bit familiar to be sure for those of us that actually learned about the history of Nazi Germany. But I digress, almost no one actually paid any attention in history class – sooo boring!
I grew up in a different “open” society. One shaped and controlled by the greatest generation. It was a society that today’s republicans would call socialist by most measures. It was anything but socialism if you happened to be gay, native American, black, or a woman. Those folks were effectively marginalized from the social mainstream – they knew their places and we had social structures in place to keep them there. Today we call the remnants of those social structures systemic racism and economic injustices. I can tell you one thing for sure; life was better than good for a poor white boy growing up in the midwest in that society. White privilege meant, that despite being poor, I could still get a good education and actually have a real shot at attaining the “American” dream.
Then came the cultural revolution fueled by protest over the Vietnam War we saw on the positive side the civil rights movement, feminist movement, and gay pride parades. As with any revolution there were many casualties and battles including freedom riders, the Stonewall Riots, the siege at Wounded Knee and the assassinations of Robert Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., and Harvey Milk. Society had begun to see the marginalized and had also begun to include them – at least symbolically – at the table. The society was now considered progressive and “open” at least on the surface.
Next up was the digital revolution. Gone was the need for authority on the world wild web. Anyone could post anything they could imagine and purveyors of fringe ideas and ideologies could find like minded individuals to prove they were not fringe anymore but normal. Add in the engine of social media and our culture of celebrity and we quickly became a society the allowed for QAnon and neo-Nazis to spew the biggest pile of crap since Babe the Blue Ox actually made cow pies. Into this “open” digital society place a billionaire TV reality show host as president and – well you know the rest.
Now under threat of losing their Section 230 immunity from prosecution the social media platforms and on-line marketeers are finally policing the content of their sites. Cries from the extremes of first amendment censorship ring hollow against the violence we witnessed last week.
I guess our “open” society isn’t really that “open” after all.
Warning: you might not like these.
The Dark Side:
I pray to God that everything I predicted so far is 100% wrong! However, given human nature and psychology we all ought to be on our knees every day praying for a miracles.
Some Brighter Predictions:
The observance of the Christian season of Advent dates back to the 5th century. It is a time of personal reflection and reconciliation in preparation for the Feast of the Incarnation, Christmas. A time when Christians are to spiritually prepare for the celebration gift of God’s unconditional love for humankind, Jesus. It is a time to pay attention and to prepare for Jesus’ second coming as well.
This year we are not only in the spiritual season of Advent but we are – or should be – preparing for the advent of two great gifts. The first gift is that of a vaccine for the Covid19 virus. We need to prepare not only to distribute and to vaccinate people on a massive scale but we need to prepare for the gift of a more normal society. Foremost is what each of us can do to prepare: stay home when you have any symptoms, don’t gather with anyone outside the people you live with, wear a mask when outside your residence, wash your hands. That way we CAN get to the other side of this pandemic. We need to stop the self-destructive pointless individualism and realize that we are all in this together. What I chose to do can and will affect you. Be still and know that I really and truly want you to live – even if I disagree with your political views.
We are also awaiting the second gift in the new year of a new government. We need to prepare to work together to rebuild our country after the devastation of the pandemic in 2020. So many people out of work. So many small businesses bankrupt. So many people hungry. So many people homeless. So many people grieving the loss of loved ones to the virus. We need to work at being kind to one another. We need to work at being supportive of one another in our recoveries. We need to prepare to hold our government to accountable for the common good of our people and the health of our planet. One is truly irrelevant without the other.
So please take this season of Advent and prepare for all of us to have a brighter tomorrow.
I have been to and hosted many a holiday dinner in my lifetime. And I have observed that it must be a mortal sin to run out of food at these gatherings. No, I’m not just talking about food in general but about every single dish: turkey, goose, duck, prime rib, ham, dressing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes (yams really), wild rice, gravy, cranberry sauce, cakes, pies, cookies, and well you get the gist. I have had or prepared them all and never once have the collective we of the gathered been able to polish any of them off in one sitting. Which brings me to the topic of leftovers.
Right off there is the word itself, “leftovers.” When did it become a word? Well it officially shows up in the English dictionary in the 1890’s. I thought it was two words smooched together in the typical German style but it turns out it comes from Old English origins. Who knew?
Next comes the ritual of packing the leftovers for the next day(s), week(s), and the compost pile in a month. Here I have pretty much seen it all from the simple wrapping in aluminum foil over paper plates to the creation of aluminum swans and other exotic animals – I’m sure Martha Stewart would be proud.
Then come the containers. Many people routinely bring their food dishes to share in containers with their name on them only to be repurposed after the banquet to carry home the leftovers. Then there are the leftover leftover containers from cool whip, cottage cheese, sour cream, to what have you. Heck, I have even seen people arrive at holiday dinners with a grocery bag of empty Tupperware (remember Tupperware) in order to take leftovers home with them. Now days with the advent of “disposable containers” you can save everyone the trouble by buying a prepackaged stack of “disposable containers” right in the grocery store when your picking up the rest of your feast essentials.
Who gets the leftovers? There is a generally a ritual to the doling out of leftovers. First come the leftover people, grandma and grandpa, aunts and uncles, elderly friends and relatives. The folks who might have hosted these dinners in the past but who we must now make sure that they don’t starve to death. So, we heap leftovers on them. Next come any young marrieds who never seem to have enough of anything. We make sure that we provide them with sustenance for the coming week until we invite them over for dinner the following weekend. Last comes the leftover pusher. You can spot them when they say something like, “Are you sure you don’t want to take some of Aunt Mabel’s green bean casserole home with you?” Or, “I can wrap up a little turkey and you can make a sandwich for lunch tomorrow.” Their goal is to clean out the frig so they don’t have to gain any more weight.
The thing about leftovers is that they are never as good as the original dinner. Sort of like our governmental bodies after an election. They weren’t that good to begin with and as leftovers they are worse. Time to pack them up and send them home.
Happy holiday parties!
So here we are in the eighth year of the Coronavirus pandemic, well actually in the eighth month – it just feels like years. Adding to the starkness of social distancing is the fact that here in the upper midwest we have record snowfalls and cold temperatures – and it’s not even Halloween yet. The second wave is looking more like a tsunami that is about to crash across the entire country. Violence is at record levels in our cities. Calls and protests for racial justice continue with little or no actionable response from our elected officials. White supremacist militia members walk with assault rifles over their shoulders in broad daylight on our streets as if this is normal. Unemployment is at an all-time high as an additional 8 million citizens slide into poverty. And yes, we are in the middle of another very nasty election. What is being done?
Well the Romans had a solution to keep the unruly idle mob of citizens from getting out of control, Bread and Circuses. What do we have? Sports. Specifically, now that what can only laughingly be called a baseball season is ending, we have football. And no, I’m not talking about soccer although it has its own culture of hooliganism, I’m talking about good old American football.
American football with its brutal mind-numbing physical violence is almost a perfect modern reflection of the Roman gladiators in the colosseum. In fact, in Los Angeles, it is the name of the stadium where the “Trojans” actually play. Yes, we had to have football or else the population might start to focus on real political issues and not politicization of mask wearing. We are so addicted to this football circus mentality that The Donald is trying to take credit for “saving” college football. “We need it!” So now we have adults and the occasional minor choosing to play football. At least their adults, right?
No wait – the high school football teams now have to play too! In fact, we had maskless parents demonstrating at our state capitol demanding that their children be allowed to play and be exposed to the Coronavirus. Well they got their wish and so far there have been countless high school football games cancelled due to Covid19. So badly do the non-infected schools want to play when their game is cancelled, that they phone each other up, jump in a bus, and in on case drive over 200 miles just so their team can play a Friday night game. Please remember that we are as far north of Texas as you can get in the contiguous United States. Can’t be the money. Could be the parents of these young people desperately want to instill the value of instant gratification over community and sacrifice. Go ahead infect your grandparents. Regardless the game must go on. It must at least be comforting to the sportscasters across the state who were no doubt rethinking their vocation during the lock down of March and April.
Looks like the populous is distracted by the sports circus, but what of the bread?
Well unemployment rate has declined to 7.9% mostly due to a shrinking number of people seeking work as their unemployment benefits run out. The hospitality industry continues to spiral into rampant bankruptcies and main street businesses continue to close as their customers stay home and order goods online. The US Senate, rather than take up relief measures passed by the House that could actually help small business and unemployed workers, has decided they are losing the election and will settle for leaving a conservative legacy in the Supreme Court. So much for the people!
With the snow outside, hunger is already setting in and I am left to conclude that we have arrived at Frank Carpra’s Pottersville.
So last week I decided to vote early. I should tell you that I intended to vote by mail but given a SNAFU in receiving my absentee ballot I trekked on down to my local community center which is one of several early voting sites in my county.
A quick note of clarity – whether you vote by mail or vote early you will be using the same “absentee ballot.”
In my case the SNAFU was weird. When I voted by mail in the primary election in August, I thought I requested an absentee ballot for the November election. Mrs. Curmudgeon did the same. Well two days after the absentee ballots were sent out by the county Mrs. Curmudgeon received her ballot but I got a letter with a form to request an absentee ballot. I decided then and there that – even if I checked the wrong box on-line (as if!) – I was going to make sure my vote got in before November 3.
The early voting site was scheduled to open at 10:00am. I arrived at 10:05am only to find a line in front of me. After a 43 minute wait, I was finally seated in front of a plexiglass screen with an election judge on the other side. (Don’t you wish you’d have bought shares in Plaskolite last year!) In short order and with the aid of my driver’s license I received a ballot, 2 envelopes, and a pen. I proceeded to a “Sanitized” voting booth, filled out my ballot, placed it in the brown envelope, placed the brown envelope inside the white envelope, turned the voting booth card over to reveal a “Needs Cleaning” message, dropped my ballot in the ballot box, dropped my pen in a bin with a dozen other pens to presumably be sanitized, grabbed my “I Voted” button, and headed out the door. Start to finish 48 minutes to vote. That is with over a month to go until the actual election.
Please take the advice of the Curmudgeon – who can remember arriving at a tiny country town hall at 7:00pm on a cold and rainy Tuesday night in November only to find himself outside in line with 100 other people to vote – plan to vote early and allow extra time to get it done.
Or if you live in Chicago – where I lived for a dozen years – “Vote early and vote often!”
California is burning. World record temperature in Death Valley, record all time high temperatures set all over the state. Yet we talk about “forest management” and ignore global warming.
Siberian forest fires are burning an area over 3 times the size of the state of Minnesota. But there is no one to fight most of them.
Permafrost is adding greenhouse gasses to atmosphere at record levels. But our government sells leases to oil companies to explo(it)er in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
Greenland is becoming green as its glaciers melt at a record pace. No doubt making it easier to extract rare earth minerals and you guessed it oil that the US wants, ergo, our overture to buy the island.
The Amazon rain forests are burning at a rate greater than last year’s record fires. Called the lungs of the planet now they have their own case of pneumonia.
The Antarctic ice shelves have been losing massive amounts if ice for over 25 years. A testament to our ignorance as a species.
By the time you read this the United States alone will have had over 200,000 people die from the Covid-19 virus. Yet we have no national health plan or system.
Racism in the United States has been unmasked as violently systemic. We have become the world leader in promoting white supremacy and nativism.
Black Lives Matter. Apparently, it matters that they are kept as an economically deprived underclass in the richest country in the world so that the richest 1% can get even richer.
A legal titan of women’s rights dies and before her body is cold the political firestorm begins over the process of choosing her replacement to the supreme court.
The list goes on and on and on, of these big issues that the people and our government must address if we are to survive and thrive in our communities and on our planet.
What choices do I have? An ego maniac who sows division to consolidate his own power or a well intentioned old white guy with the energy of a 5 watt refrigerator bulb.
God help us all!
Last week I visited my ophthalmologist for my annual vision checkup. His office is in the Minneapolis Medical Arts Building on the corner of 9th and Nicollet in the heart of the downtown area. It is a place that is considered to be the heart of the city. I think it is fair to say that Minneapolis has had a heart attack.
Gone is its iconic department store, Daytons, a victim of corporate takeovers, suburban malls, and the relentless onslaught of online shopping. There was the two plus year renovation of Nicollet Mall that stressed a number of the retail tenants. Then there were the graphic images of street gangs beating multiple people to near death as they walked to their cars – some in broad daylight. Seemingly nightly reports of shootings outside one night spot or another were regular fare on the local news shows. As if all this wasn’t enough, along came the Covid-19 pandemic.
With the pandemic came the mandatory shut down, then the gradual reopening of almost everything except restaurants and bars. Several businesses closed never to return. Just as some relief was on the horizon, the horrific murder of George Floyd occurred and Minneapolis became a war zone. While the East Lake Street area went up in flames the police and National Guard were able to largely protect the downtown area of the city from rioters and looters. The police and mayor’s office partnered with community activists to attempt to restore order. The city seemed to be calming down until a black man – who was being tracked by police for having just shot and killed another man in a parking lot – committed suicide as the police closed in. Despite releasing video to the public within 90 minutes of the incident, unruly crowds began to riot. Efforts by the police and community activists to calm the situation were initially ineffective largely due to the mistrust of one of the nation’s most violent police departments. And so began a night of burning and looting in the city’s downtown. Many businesses, paying some of the highest rents in the city, had had enough and closed or moved out of downtown altogether.
The president of the Minneapolis Downtown Council had predicted that over 10,000 people who worked downtown would lose their jobs unless something was done to assist businesses and increase public safety in the downtown area. That was before the August 26 riots. To date – nothing – has been done to provide large scale assistance!
The City of Minneapolis, just like many US cities, is in the grips of an ever increasing cycle of violence – police violence, civil violence, economic violence, and personal violence – with no immediate end in sight. There are good actors on the stage now but they have decades of abuse, violence, and poverty to overcome. That is a generational task. We need to give them a chance no matter if it doesn’t all go as smoothly or as quickly as we would like. The only other path is one of more violence and more death. I pray that we as a human family are better than that!
Leaving my ophthalmologist’s office and stepping out on to the Nicollet Mall I was looking at a boarded up ghost town. Indeed, the heart of Minneapolis had been attacked. My vision was sadly clear.
So the TV ratings are in and looks like the Democrats finished first – which you know will not sit well with The Donald. Of course, all you will hear from The Donald is that his acceptance speech was the highest rated event of the Republican National Convention forgetting the fact that Joe Biden’s acceptance speech got higher ratings.
Ratings aside, the takeaway I’m choosing to focus on is the labeling of Joe Biden as a “Trojan Horse” for the left wing (read “socialist wing”) of the Democratic Party. Well let’s see how that analogy plays out. In Homer’s epic the Trojan Horse was perceived as a gift and taken in by the people. And practically speaking, if ever there was a time when some gifts were needed by the American people it is now. Apparently with joblessness rivaling the Great Depression and main street businesses dropping like flies the American people need some kind of a gift. Perhaps a major jobs bill like building a green energy replacement for our fossil fuel dependency or rebuilding our railroads and highway infrastructure for the delivery of goods and people. Maybe a medical safety net that won’t require people to lose their life savings just because they are sick. More of a gift still would be an actual national medical SYSTEM, you know like one that could be marshaled to address something like a global pandemic. Ah, but that’s socialism! So like 1932, we are supposed to reelect the guys that have let this happen to hardworking citizens because the other guy is dangerous with too many radical ideas – read common sense ideas – heck read any ideas at all!
So now we come to Achilles’ Heel or rather the hero in our Greek tragedy, Joe Biden versus the most dangerous man in the world The Donald defeated.
We have already seen in “Trump’s America” the emergence – in fact an outright acceptance – of armed right-wing militia trolling the streets of peaceful protests stoking the fires of violence. While The Donald is already working to discredit ANY election result, and with The Donald’s militia having already taken to the streets as a matter of course, can you imagine what this will look like after the election?
If you think that peaceful protests have been hijacked now just wait, read as “violent lawlessness, rioting and looting” it will be the excuse for militia’s shooting of citizens in the streets protesting The Donald’s declaration of an invalid election and possibly declaring marshal law. IN the face of this if parts of our military acquiesce to inaction – you know like exactly the thing we don’t want The Donald to do with the military now – what is to become of our democracy?
I only hope and pray that we are not a 21st century update of a classic Greek tragedy!
gobblers nob 