A Harsh Self Assessment

What next?  I could continue forever writing about the myriad of injustices that are continually perpetuated upon “us” by “them” never nearly touching upon a fraction of the horror.  But what would that accomplish?  Words must be converted to action.  That is a daunting thought and a daunting process.  We know the problem.  They’re trying to take fundamental rights from us one by one, like falling dominoes, and it has to stop.  I have no idea how that is going to be done in completion.  But I do have a stream of consciousness.  So I offer that.  Someone smarter than me will have to make sense of it all and do something with it.

If you don't notice that we're being sapped of our freedoms, now might be a good time to crack open that history book we all glossed over in grade school, high school, and college.  Contrary to what your exams may have conveyed, memorizing dates wasn’t that important.  It was what happened on those dates that mattered.  And even more, what happened on those dates and was conveniently left out of the history books that matters the most.  Remember when the federal government enacted social security?  Me neither.  I was born in '82.  But I do know that one of the major concerns by opponents was that social security numbers would become our identity.  The government assured us that this number would never be used for anything except paying into and distribution of benefits.  Try to open a bank account now without a SSN and the teller will look at you like you’re absolutely nuts.  This is because the teller was probably born in ‘87 and assumes that SSN have been around since the beginning of time.  The bank teller doesn’t even know that the US government promised its citizens that SSN would not be used as a form of identity.  The bank teller probably can’t tell you a single promise the US government has ever made because he a) doesn’t know, b) never cared, or c) can’t talk because he has to write a text message with 47 LOL’s in it and no actual content.

The solutions to all the obvious and not so obvious problems we are facing are not going to be made reality overnight.  And so, unfortunately, we must suspend one of our fundamental American "virtues," namely the very American tendency to demand instant gratification.  From here many battles must be waged for the war to be won.  The only way the fight will be sustained, victory realized, is if we operate under the pretense that any fight fought is for the sake of our grandchildren's grandchildren.  Total bummer.  We do all the grunt work and those ungrateful, snot faced little rugrats reap the benefit of our blood, sweat, and tears.  Some tribe of ancient people had a poignant thought on the subject.  They said something to the effect of, "we don't inherit this earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children."  They probably had more to say, but after this we decided we had heard enough and mowed them down with machine guns.  But it’s an interesting perspective to consider given our cultural dedication to shortsightedness.  Generally speaking, no matter how shortsighted we may be, I still know that a mother or father looking into their child's eyes wants the best for them, no matter what sacrifice is required.  And I’m hoping this instinct will drive us.

So we're not perfect, what with the machine guns and the impatience.  But in each of us there is humanity, nobler intentions than what we often act upon.  And it is this nobility that must be nurtured.

So what can we do for our children’s children’s children’s children?  One must first identify an enemy before a proper war can be levied.  This is one of the primary lessons I learned in Catholic grade school.  Identify your enemy, and then bring down the wrath of god upon them using all sorts of different chanting and incense and blessed weapons and just general weirdness.  And the enemy can't be an ambiguous concept like Terrorism or Drugs.  Because those are enemies invented by marketing companies in order create false, shallow patriotism and discord in American society.  Wars on concepts don't address the underlying issues.  Like maybe we should stop doing billions of dollars worth of blow because people are getting their heads cut off.  These futile, ambiguous wars simply redistribute money from the poorest to the richest, reconstitute human beings from living, breathing organisms to vapor, and keep those of us lucky enough to remain safe well behind the front lines, in a debilitating state of fear.  So who is our enemy?  It's not the government.  It's not the banks.  It isn't the Taliban, or narco-traffickers, or the creators of Two and a Half Men.  It isn't even the top 1% of the rich.  The true enemy, at least at this point, is ourselves.  Shocking, I know.  First we are our own enemies in the individual sense.  And then we are in the collective sense.

We have to be strong to see this through.  Not strong like the 'roid addled geniuses that staff the WWE.  But strong like people who survived the Great Depression with nothing but grit and determination.  And let's face the difficult truth.  None of us are strong.  Few of us have an attention span that would actually require the minute hand of a clock to measure.  For most, the second hand would suffice.  Our situational awareness is gone along with any sense of direction.  And we have offered up every last drop of our self reliance as a sacrifice to the gods of technology.  It looks bleak.  It is bleak.  But bleak is not hopeless.  Bleak is Seattle.  And for like 7 or 8 hours twice a year, the sun even shines there.  Just as a sculptor removes every piece of stone that is not a part of his sculpture, we too can chip away the imperfections that block our humanity and grace from radiating forth.  How is that done?  There's no single formula.  What are your weaknesses?  Address them.  It's going to be different for each individual.  But the key is discomfort.  We have another American “virtue” to shy away from pain and hard work.  We take the easy road, because its there and it’s well lit.  If one is content and comfortable, one is not learning.  One is stagnant.  And if one is stagnant, one might as well be dead.  Cows are content.  Cows get slaughtered, neatly packaged, and magically end up on your dinner plate without you having to clean a single drop of blood off your hands.  Just like cocaine.  All the benefit, none of the dirty work.  I’m off on a tangent.  Anyway, discomfort must be savored and sought out.  That’s the feeling of growth.  Go for a run.  Have a face to face conversation with a human being, especially one with a different viewpoint.  Learn math.  Drive four blocks without texting somebody.  Discomfort equates to progress.  It's not rocket surgery.  Everyone knows this.  And everyone knows the sense of satisfaction that comes with the expansion of a comfort zone.  It's just difficult to remember and be motivated when all doped up on opioids like TV and, well, actual opioids.  I'm not talking about beer though.  Beer is fine.  In any quantity.

When we each individually endeavor to become the best version of ourselves, we will find within us security, strength (Not like Lou Ferrigno as The Hulk but like Lou Ferrigno as a guy who rose above a disability to achieve great things), and a compassionate, indomitable will.  Only then can we move on to address the collective issue and begin properly sticking it to the man.  Until then, they'll continue trying to divide us and take from us what little we have left.  Like our ability to get together and say that we as a group want fair treatment.  What the fuck?  I still can’t believe that’s even a thing.  Orwell was right.  Shit is getting crazy.

Just don't forget, we aren't fighting for ourselves.  We are fighting for those that come after us.  Instant gratification must be delayed.  Indefinitely.  (I just want to be totally clear again that this does not mean beer).

I don’t care if you agree or disagree with me.  I only care if you think for yourself.  If you do that, then we are brothers and sisters.  Unless you’re from New Zealand.  No amount of anything can make me unite with that “situation.”  (A little backstory here to prevent any future accusation that I'm racist against kiwis.  My brother in law is kiwi.  He infiltrated our borders, wooed my sister, married her, and then engaged her uterus to propagate demon spawn.  So I have a healthy weariness.)

A Primer: Lace 'Em Up

I don't write, or post rather, much other than satirical dribble.  Contrary to appearances, though, I do occasionally think about things that matter.  And I feel it's time to stop hiding that fact.

Our beloved country is, very plainly, in a state of disarray.  Disarray is just a fancy word for chaos.  And chaos is just a fancy word for we're fucked.  Whoever "they" are, they are trying to officially put an end to our ability to band together and bargain for a fair slice of the pie that we probably baked in the first place.  "They" are against that because their agenda involves us having none of the pie.  By the way, we also grew and harvested the fruit as well.  It might be helpful to offer a few definitions here.  When I refer to "us" or "we" I'm referring to those of us ranked in the bottom 90% when it comes to assessing ownership of this great nation's vast wealth.  When I talk about "they" or "them" I'm referring to the top 10%, more specifically the top 1% who, incidentally, own more of this nation's wealth than the bottom 90% combined.  (In case you're wondering, the top 1% own around 38% of the wealth while the bottom 90% control about 19% collectively).  As I generally do, I'm not citing my source, hoping that you might go find out for yourself and begin a path of self discovery that will lead you to other pertinent information that I've never even seen.

So let's do that math.  There are just over 300 million people in the U.S.  That means the top 1% is about 3 million while the bottom 90% amounts to 270 million people.  If my understandings of physics and 3rd grade playground dynamics are as sound as I think they are, in a tug of war 270 million people should always be able to beat 3 million.  Especially when the 3 million are fat, white people with soft hands and the 270 million are the ones who have driven the rivets that hold up bridges and buildings, fight the wars that they get us in, put out the fires that ravage homes in the night, raise and educate the children, and generally create the wealth that the top 1% claim for themselves.

Throughout history, when the rich oppress the poor, the poor rise up and and attempt to strike down the rich, sometimes successfully.  Sometimes not.  But while "they" may be greedy, "they" aren't stupid.  "They" don't want us to revolt.  Over the years they have refined their system of controlling us.  They have thinly veiled their actions through a network of politicians and corporations.  And they have blessed us with ample forms of entertainment and distraction in order to prevent us from ever taking a good look at what is actually going on.  In short, they have created a nation where thinking for oneself is so uncomfortable that most of us simply forego that activity.  And even if someone does think for themselves its unlikely they'll ever be able to find common cause with another human being.  Ignorance is bliss.  And TV helps.  God I love Jersey Shore.  Learning that Snookie can't handle the size of Vinnie's d*** (this is an actual topic covered on the show) is far more important than putting together certain details about major political movements in this country.  If it happens in Wisconsin, it can happen anywhere.  What details, you ask, wondering what Snookie's parents must think of her.  Important details.  Like the fact that they're trying to end collective bargaining in Wisconsin to make up for the state deficit.  And the fact that the deficit in question is almost exactly the same amount as a tax cut that the mega-rich received when this new governor took office.  Coincidence?  Probably.  Yeah.  That seems like total coincidence (I really hope you can hear the sarcasm in my keystrokes).  But who cares.  Because the boys left "The Situation" at the house because he was taking too long to get dressed.  Oh snap! Draaaaammmaaaaa.

So here we are.  We live in a modern serfdom.  Except instead of starving to death, we have too much to eat.  We pay way too much money for government subsidized (a term for a massive corporate backed decision) corn that has been reshaped, repackaged, and rechemicaled to appeal to some anthropological desire of ours for fat and sugar.  These are substances which, several hundred years ago were scarce in the human diet and rightfully so.  Because they're essentially addictive.  And we take the bait.  We eat food that provides no nourishment for our mind, body, or soul.  And it makes us dumb.  And it takes from us our sense of self reliance.  Then they give us each a car so we can buy oil and a little plot of land on which to grow grass which also nourishes nothing and serves no purpose except to give the HOA a reason to fine us if we happen to be such good farmers that our grass grows too well.  And we think we're happy.  Because we think if we work hard enough, we can become one of them.  It baffles me, this impulse to cannibalize our brothers and sisters so that we might have a few more dollars in our pocket, a bigger TV perhaps, with higher resolution.  You know, so you can see the cellulite and the complexion that results from 365 days a year of smoking, drinking, tanning beds and sexual folly.  It's especially baffling when you allow relationships to disintegrate, ignore your community, and generally miss out on the true joys of life chasing something you are literally never allowed to achieve, but that always seems to be just within an inch of your grasp.

I relate to my world through analogies.  And I'm a big fan of my family and how we all stick together even though individually we're nuts and get on each other's nerves to a degree that probably can't be conveyed with a number that has a name.  So here's my family analogy.  They refer to the rich white men who initially developed this nation as forefathers.  Regardless of their individual character flaws, they had ridiculously accurate foresight (most of which we've collectively ignored) and laid the foundation upon which a great nation could be built.  They did actual work.  They actually fought in the wars they perpetuated.  And they didn't perpetuate war under false pretenses.  These forefathers are the antecedents of modern politicians.  But it seems that all the politicians of today were thalidomide babies.  Something clearly went wrong somewhere.  They're supposed to be the leaders, the benevolent patriarchs, our heroes.  But instead they've decided to be greedy assholes and shills for the people pulling the strings.  And they're not only greedy, but they're fat and lazy.  That's why, in a roundabout way, I always liked Putin.  Even though I'm sure he sucks, he seems like he could at least kick my ass if I challenged him.  He swims in freezing waters and probably wrestles bears.  I digress.

The analogy:  Whenever our family was in trouble, dad (the father, the patriarch) worked harder to right the ship.  Fingers to the bone.  And not only did dad work harder, but he also tightened his belt because he didn't want mom and the kids to feel a single hunger pang.  But in this country, the patriarchs are not only refusing to work harder, they're eating the fucking children.  And if dad tries to eat the kids, then mom and the kids have two options.  Mom and the kids can either run away, or they can kick the shit out of dad because they really like the house and don't feel like leaving.

I think "we" should put on our boots.  Not the walking kind.  The shit kicking kind.