The Political is Personal
and now is the time for all good people to come to the aid of their country.
I’m writing this after the so-called ‘debate’ on Thursday starring 45 and Biden his time. I didn’t listen to it; I just watched their faces. It’s crazy how much 45 has a resting bitch face with a frown that is a smile turned upside down. It’s an actual arc. And then those squinty eyes.
It wasn’t exactly a debate, more of a debacle, and not because Biden seemed so off his game. What was worse was how much 45 seemed on his game. His game sucks, and it is beyond my comprehension that the mainstream media keeps acting like these two men are different but equal in their role as candidates for Prez.
Now I’m hearing all the chatter about how Sleepy Joe should step aside so that someone whose energy level is a better match for the other guy can take over the project of winning the election for Democrats and Democracy.
I don’t know whether Biden should step aside or not. I wish he and a bunch of other people were better at stepping aside and letting others step in. They don’t say the words “I alone can fix it” but maybe that’s what they’re thinking. I’m talking to you, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and you, Biden, and others. Or maybe they’re just saying “I alone AM it.” One of the greatest challenges of old age is to let go of ego identity to access a deeper sense of self.
What I do know is that if Biden were literally an empty chair surrounded by reasonably intelligent people of goodwill, he would be a far better president than his lying, bombastic, no shame opponent.
What I found most disturbing in the reactions to the debate was the it-goes-without-saying assumption that being loud and forceful, no matter what BS is coming out of your mouth, makes you a winner. All form, no content.
Even as commentators declared 45 to be a Big Fat Liar, they still handed him the debate prize, just because his BS pours forth without hesitation or filter. Why is this admirable? To assert that a person who spews an endless stream of utter nonsense is a ‘winner’ makes you wonder what’s going on around here.
It’s like getting the Booker Prize because your book is printed in a really really big font (probably Papyrus or Comic Sans).
What is so creepy about these reactions, and so creepy about our capitalist culture in general, is that the measure of success is not about being enlightened, dedicated, joyful or helpful, it’s about getting the most attention, and getting the most everything, even if the means to that getting are value-neutral, or worse.
It’s always a good time to get over oneself
In my last post I mentioned having qualms when writing about politics and current events for reasons I don’t quite understand myself. I fear my own ignorance and tendency to pontificate.
It’s time to get over myself, because this is a watershed moment in American history. Also, my tendency to pontificate is not limited to talking about politics. It can strike at any moment.
I’m going on record to say that there should be no topic I can’t reflect on as long as I am bringing my whole self to the task. If I can be as honest, open, reflective, creative and funny as I wannabe, then no problem.
It’s true that I tend to think about human life on Planet Earth in ways that overlook politics du jour, but politics du jour is part of the story.
Why it matters
The question being asked in the upcoming election here in the United States is not which party’s policies will be in the ascendant, or which party will be able to use the system to advance its goals. It’s not the business of politics as usual.
In this election, the winner will either protect or greatly damage our system of government, and the quality of our lives. One of the candidates has shown, clearly, that his aspiration is a will to power, excluding any other values or considerations.
It is wrong that he is a legitimate candidate for the presidency. It astonishes me that there is no bar to a complete lack of integrity or character in a person running for the most impactful job any American can have, a job which will have an effect on everyone, pretty much in the whole world, given our power and position on the world stage.
Politics everywhere and always is a jockeying for power and influence. Everywhere and always people play hardball to get what they want. The degree to which they play hardball depends on how much their own values, in combination with external circumstances, let them get away with.
If a will to power excludes any other values or considerations, including respect for our system of government, then we are in dangerous territory. Especially when so many allies of this candidate believe that they can exploit his will to power to promote their own agendas, agendas that require extreme hardball to execute, because they are about the few controlling, or using, the many against their will.
Compassion and judgement…
MAGA followers, I feel for you. The less power you have the more I feel for you. I am sorry that your natural need for tribal connection in this fragmented society has led you down such a twisted, thankless path. Trust me, whether or not your leader succeeds in amassing more personal power in his few remaining years on earth, you will not be thanked by him or anyone else. And you will not gain whatever you think is being offered by loyalty to a man so bereft of heart and accountability.
For those of you in positions of power and privilege (members of congress, business leaders, etc.) I feel less compassion. I feel a lot of judgement. You are craven fools who have sold your birthright for a mess of pottage.
What comes next?
We do not yet have an actual civil war in this country, though ideologically we sort of do. In spite of gerrymandering, voter suppression, and all the tricks and hacks used by people for whom winning trumps (ugh, there I said it) faith in or respect for the system, we still have a government that should function well enough to allow elections to take place and to have the results of those elections accepted (even if some bozos want to challenge the results, because they are in it to win it no matter what).
So, let’s get out the vote!
Voting is not the only thing that matters, but it’s essential. Voting is our ticket to protecting ourselves and even those on the ‘other’ side, from the devastation that could result from what would amount to a coup, even if 45 actually wins the election. It would still be a coup because he’s a grifter, a con man, a person who cares for nothing except self-aggrandizement. For him, the whole USA, its history, its meaning, its power, is just a means to an end.
The real heroes these days are all the people who are working tirelessly to GET OUT THE VOTE. That’s what it will come down to in November. People who think like me hope that 45/34 will lose SO BIGLY that he can’t convince even his most ardent followers that the election was rigged against him.
Art and Propaganda
If I want to influence people, maybe even shift their thinking, then I have to use art, because that’s the only thing that works. Art is like W-D 40. It loosens up tight screws. Art is not partisan; it is nondenominational.
The difference between art and propaganda? I’m not sure. It’s subtle. I think it has something to do with the field of vision from which it arises. An expansive vision in the maker encourages an expansive vision in the viewer. Let’s just say that art is soul propaganda.
How do we come to the aid of our country?
There are as many ways to be helpful as there are individuals with different strengths and skills. In our time, aka now, it seem as though what is required is for as many people as possible to vote for Biden (or his replacement) and as few people to vote for the other guy. That is what needs to happen. So whatever you can do to facilitate that, go for it! Meditating in your room may help as much as writing postcards to voters.
Postcards to Voters
This is a little project of mine. I am selling the postcards to voters you see in this post on my website in groups of 50 and 100 for $30 and $50 respectively. This includes shipping.
This is like a Kickstarter project. I need to get a few orders first so that I can pay for the printing. There will be a little wait if you are one of the first to order. Please order! And spread the word too. I can give a special price to anyone who wants to order large quantities.
The Political is Personal
I’m riffing off the feminist slogan of the 60s and 70s: The Personal is Political. Either way can be interpreted to mean that politics effects us personally. The key, for me, in taking any actions that I would call ‘political’ is what I said above about writing. I can do whatever I want as long as I am bringing my whole self to the task. If I can be as honest, open, reflective, creative and funny as I wannabe, then no problem.
I’m never going to be deeply involved in the political process; it’s not for me. Until November I will try to encourage people to VOTE for all the qualities I mentioned in the postcard at the top of this post. It’s personal and political. It matters.
Outstanding, Janina. I'm going to do the same, use my newsletter to advocate, realizing that my creativity and focus needs to be on fighting for democracy and freedom for until it's safe to breathe. I'm corralling some of my friends to fund full page newspaper ads, starting in August, that contrast Biden's accomplishments with Trump's. To share the message that Trump invites people to be their worst, Biden the opposite. If Biden dies in office, there is a strong, honest, principled team around him that can keep fighting. If Trump dies, the evil corporate agenda will continue to unfold, more than likely with even worse actors in the grand scheme to destroy our country and feed on the leftovers. I will be ordering postcards later in July, thank you!
I loved this. You said it so well. Thank you.