Lemmings 2016

Or what lessons might we learn from a small Scandinavian rodent ...

A popular (though somewhat scary) image from my childhood school learnings was that of thousands of small rodents called Lemmings pouring over a cliff to their deaths, each blindly following the Lemmings in front of them, who were in turn following the ones in front of them until we get to the first jumper(s) and have to wonder what the heck they were thinking and did they know the impact of their verticalistic impulses on their fellow Lemmings.

Never mind that the suicidal aspect of the Great Lemming Jumps has been discredited, it is still an apt metaphor for some (or a lot) of the political insanity that's been playing out in the news and social media.

If there a better way to explain the steadfast support that many are showing for a certain republican candidate for President, no matter how many warnings they receive that he may be about to lead them off a cliff?  It seems these supporters are following the lead of those further up towards the front, in the form of some conservative 'news' pundits or faded political stars trying to stave off the end of their careers, who all seem to be clinging to a desperate belief their candidate can somehow jump off the cliff but fly, not fall, and they (if not the rest of the Lemmings behind) will grow wings and fly with him.

If that is what the pack-in-back thinks, gravity of a political sort may soon give them a painfully demoralizing lesson.

Let's imagine a reality in which the Lemmings and their human political analogs watched their Leader(s) teetering on the brink, noted the height of the fall and the distinct lack of wings, and turned and walked away, muttering something about idiots.

Great Expectations 2016

... "you can't always get what you want ... but if you try sometimes, you get what you need"

What do we need?  

How's this:

To be safer from violence (from other humans) - fewer battles and terrorist acts would be a start; innocent people not having to fear their own police would be even better; adding being treated more equally and with greater fairness despite your religion, ethnicity, gender, or social status would bolster this basic need

To have enough healthy food and drink - nobody should have to subsist on cheap fast food

To have a stable place to live - everyone should have a home they can reasonably count on being available to them; one they own, rent, or share with others, but something reliably there

To have effective basic medical care - nobody should die or be incapacitated for lack of medical care; and nobody should have to face bankruptcy to pay for mandatory treatment

To have an education- everyone should have access to the education and training needed to function in the world; this shouldn't bankrupt or burden anyone with unmanageable debt

To have gainful employment - everyone should have the opportunity for jobs that will pay a wage capable of providing the basics of life

To have the potential for social and economic upward mobility - everyone should be able to improve their condition, whether through hard work, education, or just luck; whatever the means and how difficult the task it must be possible or else we deprive our society of hope; being "able to pursue happiness" or more simply have 'freedom of choice', is an important addition to this (even if not strictly basic by definition)

These seven are what I think are basic human needs. You might be able to add more.

The Dark Mirror

... or what do you see when you stare into the internet abyss?

Sometime in my distant youth an unknowable combination of genetics, upbringing and experience conspired to turn me into what I am today,  that most hapless of internet inhabitants, the 'Voice of Reason'.

To me, everything boils down to logic and fairness. You don't lash out at someone or something unless there's a supportable, logical reason, and the lashing on balance is fairly dealt.  Better still don't lash out at all.  Fairness is the Be All and End All, and logic its guide.

This attitude put me at risk in my high school and long-haired college days during 'discussions' with local constabulary.  I can say in retrospect only my absolutely obvious innocence saved me from my righteous (but logical) indignation landing me in the clink on more than one occasion.  Does Right Make Might? No, not in the real world, Dorothy!

This attitude, though tempered with age and experience, still today makes me an outcast, weirdo, and sometimes unwelcome commentator to my 'friends' Facebook rants.  

I too often interject with what I see as a reasoned appeal to calm and careful appraisal. Logic and fairness the goal. You'd be amazed (or maybe not) on how this goes down.  

And something even nastier happens from time to time.  Just as I sometimes reveal myself on the internet to be a lame-ass 'Dudley-Do-Right' know-it-all, some other of my 'friends' who are totally nice people to meet and interact with in person, reveal themselves as ideologues only slightly to the right of Genghis Khan's right-hand man, or slightly to the left of Karl Marx's dentist.  And being me I have a hard time deciding whether I should hate these people that I normally 'like' just because they are odious baboons on Facebook or Twitter. It's a logical dilemma on what constitutes fair appraisal.

Its been a difficult lesson and I am still trying to learn it fully.  Its a lesson on what the internet really is (or at least what certain social portals within it are). 

What we post on the internet is frequently our unfiltered, unedited, innermost thoughts.  Some of us spew out amazingly toxic vitriol which we'd never say to someone face to face.  We don't want discussion or gainsaying or an appeal to logic and fairness. We want to vent and we want the world of our 'friends' to support or stay silent.  

Perhaps its cleansing internet therapy, but it shows the World, or at least our circle of 'friends' exactly how dark our dark sides can be.  

Passionate Politics

 There's no doubt that political speeches can be boring.  The more the speaker brings in actual facts, plans, and specific pronouncements, the more boring it can get.  This leads to a quick channel switch to the latest episode of River Monsters (or similar less painfully-real 'reality' escape).

Now, give us passionate sound bites, over-the-top promises, and unproven but so, so nastily enjoyable dirt on opponents, and we lap it up.  Hey, we'd say, its almost as good as the latest Mountain Monsters episode, where someone may have actually smelled a Sasquatch (!)

Personally, I like a little passion in political stump speeches.  I understand facts and wouldn't mind hearing modestly-detailed plans, but I don't need a scholarly lecture by a candidate taking up my precious viewing time.  On the flip side, I want passion but not so much to the deficit of intelligence that afterwards I come away with no clear idea as to why I am suddenly feeling scared, or angry at [insert name of group or individual].  I have enough vague unease and unspecified, poorly-directed irritations already, thank you.

So, somewhere between Cosmos and the Sharknado series lies the factual sweet spot for political speeches to hit.  I'd say so far we've been dodging a lot of bull (sharks)...

Across The Great (Political) Divide

 ... or, seeing the same light through differently-colored glasses


I am a firm believer in two theories that are currently popular in progressive politics:

Donald Trump is the least qualified candidate for President in the history of the USA

Hillary Clinton represents little or no change in the status quo

I believe both of these things, but I believe in one more than the other, which is where I come into conflict with many of my very progressive Sandersonian friends.

The theory I believe most in and actually believe is demonstrable fact is the sheer inappropriateness of Mr Trump for any national political office, most importantly President.  And this is where I veer sharply away from my conservative borderline libertarian but staunchly republican friends. However, it make me political brothers-in-arms with the 'traditional Republicans' who hate and fear Trump, as much or more than Democrats.

And this experience, my fellow captives in this political theater we are calling Presidential Election 2016, is a reflection of the political divide that has encompassed our nation this quadrennial season. It is proof like nothing else that we can appear - actually be -  the same in almost every way and yet look at the same information and come away with distinctly different conclusions.

I believe another thing; that the cause of this inability to reach the same conclusions based on the same information is we are not getting the information the same way. It is being 'filtered' for us by media and by influential people we believe are trustworthy (or at least interesting). By the time we hear the important things we need to know to make a good decision, those things have been added to, colorized, and pre-digested for us.  We are given slanted information to support the position of those who gave it to us.

If you need a blatant example, it's this:  the statement that America is in dire straights and in need of making 'Great Again', both economically and militarily.  And the counter to this statement that America is already Great, has always been, and will always be (as long as reasonable non-Trump people run the show).  Both can't be true, seemingly; however,  I think each of these views are wrong as presented yet both contain elements of truth.

America - overall - is currently the 'best' nation to be a citizen of and/or a resident of in the world. People flock here (or try to) from all over the planet, and once they are here often want to stay. But it is true that while our economy has recovered under a democratic presidency better than most nations from the meltdown of 2007 (which happened at the end of 8 years of republican administration I must add), we have not protected the middle class American dream in that recovery.  I believe some of those who support Trump believe that is what making American Great Again means.

The United States of America is also the most powerful nation on earth militarily. Our current annual military spending far outstrips any other singe nation by huge margins.  Our global capacity to strike is daunting to any would-be foe.  This ability has not appreciably decreased during President Obama's administration and is likely to increase under a Clinton administration (much to the dismay of progressives).  Yet, Trump's claim that America has been weakened under Obama is believable to conservatives when viewed in a certain Fox-news, slightly-twisted way.  Our current President has attempted to work with other western nations and NATO, instead of going mostly our own way as George W. Bush did in Afghanistan and Iraq.  Obama has attempted to avoid direct introduction of US troops wherever possible and avoid US entanglement in fights we don't understand.  This policy is long-term, complicated, nuanced, and hard to understand.  Positive results are largely unnoticed because nothing newsworthy happens while negative results make the headlines, presenting the view the policy isn't working and that America is helpless (or incompetent). I think this is what many of those who support Trump believe when they say 'Make America Great Again'.

Our mutual divide is based on our individual and collective backgrounds and experiences, but differences based on these are nowhere near as great as when they are magnified through our choice of trusted media and thought-leaders.  If you wish to believe that Obama is Satan and Clinton a Crook, then you will have plenty of media voices to support and encourage you in that belief.  If you believe Obama was too moderate and a traitor to the progressive cause, and that Clinton will be even more of the same, you have shrill voices to support you there too.  If you believe that Trump is unqualified and perhaps even an insane Hitleresque demagogue, you have ample backing from thought leaders (both democrat AND republican).

We are more alike that we are different.  We all want to see our country endure and prosper; we wish for health and happiness for our families and friends, and we aspire to enjoying our lives in freedom.  All of us are striving for these same things, but we have been told (and are being reminded everyday) that somehow our political opponents threaten our achieving these things.  We have been separated by an artificial yet impactful Great Divide of opinion.  Let's try our best not to live by that Divide; let's instead look for common ground based on real life concerns and necessities and not political theories and dogma.

I also have to add (because I believe it so strongly):  Let's agree that we shouldn't hire someone who is totally unqualified for the nation's top job.  Whether you are a fundamental conservative or socialist/progressive, or sit somewhere in the great in-between, let's agree on at least that.

Congress and the Two-Thirds Rule (of Thumb)

... or, a political commentary based on the cliche of too many cooks in the kitchen ...

I have a strong suspicion bordering on certainty that 2/3 of all bills submitted to Congress are - whatever their intellectual merits, totally irrelevant to the future well-being of the country and would not be missed in the slightest if they died a quiet death in committee.

Why so many useless bills get generated I don't know for sure. I can speculate that its due in part to a 'publish or perish' pressure not unlike that found in academia, but there must certainly be more to it. Maybe its just representatives trying to represent too many, too-specific interests; or maybe these are pieced together by lobbyists.

Whatever the underlying reason for the avalanche of crap bills, there is a good side to the situation.  The slow-down, hold-up, blockade, filibuster, or whatever you want to call it the Republicans are doing to gridlock Congress isn't harming us at all by keeping most bills from a vote.

The downside, however, is that the 1/3 of all bills that are important - maybe even essential, to the well-being of our society get blocked up too.  I wonder if the Republican gridlock would be so successful if every bill submitted  were as important as that 33 percent.

So, to all you Congressional 'cooks' out there, please most of you, stay out of the kitchen.  Write less, read and listen more, and make every roll call and vote.  Support what's important, don't waste time on the rest.

Brexiterrible, explained with the help of British Comedy

Its too bad the members of Monty Python have either left this world or have semi-retired to an innocuous nostalgia,  since who else than they would be more capable of enlightening us on the Brexit nonsense?  We can only try our best to carry on in their absence, with a little help from the past ...

Its tempting to think the forces behind the recent vote to leave the European Union were led by Upper Class Twits of The Year.  But I expect a large number of 'Gumbys' were also involved.  Probably a smattering of Village Idiots too.

Certainly a powerful force of blind ignorance to the benefits of EU membership was involved. Even blind to the realities of Britain's own contributions to the Union.

Of course all of the arguments in favor of Leave ultimately were targeted at people's fears and baser motivations. (warning - inappropriate language)

Whatever the actual reasons behind the slim majority vote to Leave, the aftermath is already looking horrific, per HBO's in-house UK expert John Oliver (warning - adult language, and OK, this is not really 'British' comedy, but its close)

Ok, I know that to many of you this is not a laughing matter.  But to paraphrase an old saying, you sometimes have to laugh to keep from crying.

Good Luck to all my British friends, by far the majority of whom voted to Remain. I know the long tradition of British humor in the face of adversity will help get you through.  (Try to create some new material to help us in November, just in case ...)