American Ghosts in Kiwiland
Quick update - I live in New Zealand now.
I have a house in a neighborhood, and a car and a driver's license. I have a bank account and a visa. I go grocery shopping. I complain about the trash pick-up schedule in my neighborhood. This is the status of my livelihood here in Auckland.
It's also an odd time to be here, I think, if one steps back and observes the arch of human history. In 50 years, I imagine historians and cultural anthropologists will study the trend lines and tell us all about how rural America gave it's last fit before it succumbed to tide of urbanization, mechanised agronomy, and the crush of opiates - all our lives the worse for it. In eight years, I'd put money on the Academy Award for Best Picture going to some two and a half hour epic on EITHER the Washington Post's coverage of 2017 - the year of "Where there's smoke, there's fire! And there's a lot of smoke!" Or something with a morbid backtrack and a lot of cut shots profiling the Kremlin undermining the 2016 election. Ivanka played by Amanda Seyfried - because the doe eyes scream "COMPLICIT". Melania by Penelope Cruz, largely because it'd troll her adoring closeted-Nazi public. Pence would be played by some fab, openly-gay, silver fox, true to the Hollywood tradition of thumbing their nose at conservative America. ::sigh::
Yesterday Cohen was sentenced to three years. By current count, we have 7 guilty pleas, 36 indictments, some never ending list of other names and contacts - all of which, Individual 1 continues to claim is a "Witch Hunt!" - which does nothing for his case, really. The average American must be past the point of illusion that illegal shit didn't go down between Trump's core campaign team and the Kremlin. It's increasingly obvious that the GOP candidate was involved, in-the-know, directing illegal activities, funding illegal activities, etc. to line his own pockets at the expense of the American people, and to mislead the American people. I am aggrieved myself as I am, in fact, American people.
The real division in the electorate is about to get a lot more visible. Those who believe Trump's very traceable, very illegal actions warrant impeachment, and those who just flatly .... do not care.
And I have to say, there are going to be a lot of folks who do not care. Think about all the times you look at the news, at some despotic or violent or self-serving leader and think "Well, I can't understand why that's allowed to even happen! Don't they know how corrupt that human is?! Ugh. In our civilized America, nothing so terrible would happen. We believe in justice. We believe in basic human rights. Blah blah blah. First world supremacy 'n' capitalism 'n' whatnot."
The reality is that folks forgive a lot for perceived tribal affiliation. We want to identify with our leadership far more than we want ethical leadership. And a big swath of America looks at an easily angered, crass, slow-witted, xenophobic human with a penchant for abusing women and preserving the white race - and strongly identify with him for some or all of these things.
I don't believe it's a majority. I believe a lot of people have run out of patience with him. Either they don't mind the corruption, but are fed up with his character (maybe all the women the GOP lost in Nov.\). Or they don't mind his character, but are committed to rooting out corruption (Where you at, swamp drainers?! LOCK HIM UP! LOCK HIM UP! Get them shirts made! Go ahead ... I'll wait ...).
I believe he's played his hand out with his base, and sheer power of numbers will save American Democracy. But remains to be seen whether it's enough to get impeachment through.
I also have this strong urge to go back in time to 2016 - when all of us were freaking the hell out because Britain had voted out of the EU, America had elected Trump, and Le Pen was making a strong showing in France - you know, back when the progressive world order was losing their shit because what the hell? I'd like to go back and say "Yea - this is all going to shake out pretty much exactly how you think it will. By end 2018, Brexit is essentially DOA, France is in week two of violent protests, and seemingly Trump's entire campaign core is on their way to jail." It's a chaotic shitshow - to be sure. But it's not like these dolts are gleefully unencumbered, skipping hooked-armed down the yellow brick road of fascism, pushing the world toward authoritarian nationalism, like my fever dreams. It's all going a bit shite, actually.
Which makes me sort of skippy and gleeful these days.
I promise more about NZ and/or recent travels, less politics next post. That's really just a promise to myself, since no one reads this thing anymore anyway. But an important promise to keep regardless.
I have a house in a neighborhood, and a car and a driver's license. I have a bank account and a visa. I go grocery shopping. I complain about the trash pick-up schedule in my neighborhood. This is the status of my livelihood here in Auckland.
It's also an odd time to be here, I think, if one steps back and observes the arch of human history. In 50 years, I imagine historians and cultural anthropologists will study the trend lines and tell us all about how rural America gave it's last fit before it succumbed to tide of urbanization, mechanised agronomy, and the crush of opiates - all our lives the worse for it. In eight years, I'd put money on the Academy Award for Best Picture going to some two and a half hour epic on EITHER the Washington Post's coverage of 2017 - the year of "Where there's smoke, there's fire! And there's a lot of smoke!" Or something with a morbid backtrack and a lot of cut shots profiling the Kremlin undermining the 2016 election. Ivanka played by Amanda Seyfried - because the doe eyes scream "COMPLICIT". Melania by Penelope Cruz, largely because it'd troll her adoring closeted-Nazi public. Pence would be played by some fab, openly-gay, silver fox, true to the Hollywood tradition of thumbing their nose at conservative America. ::sigh::
Yesterday Cohen was sentenced to three years. By current count, we have 7 guilty pleas, 36 indictments, some never ending list of other names and contacts - all of which, Individual 1 continues to claim is a "Witch Hunt!" - which does nothing for his case, really. The average American must be past the point of illusion that illegal shit didn't go down between Trump's core campaign team and the Kremlin. It's increasingly obvious that the GOP candidate was involved, in-the-know, directing illegal activities, funding illegal activities, etc. to line his own pockets at the expense of the American people, and to mislead the American people. I am aggrieved myself as I am, in fact, American people.
The real division in the electorate is about to get a lot more visible. Those who believe Trump's very traceable, very illegal actions warrant impeachment, and those who just flatly .... do not care.
And I have to say, there are going to be a lot of folks who do not care. Think about all the times you look at the news, at some despotic or violent or self-serving leader and think "Well, I can't understand why that's allowed to even happen! Don't they know how corrupt that human is?! Ugh. In our civilized America, nothing so terrible would happen. We believe in justice. We believe in basic human rights. Blah blah blah. First world supremacy 'n' capitalism 'n' whatnot."
The reality is that folks forgive a lot for perceived tribal affiliation. We want to identify with our leadership far more than we want ethical leadership. And a big swath of America looks at an easily angered, crass, slow-witted, xenophobic human with a penchant for abusing women and preserving the white race - and strongly identify with him for some or all of these things.
I don't believe it's a majority. I believe a lot of people have run out of patience with him. Either they don't mind the corruption, but are fed up with his character (maybe all the women the GOP lost in Nov.\). Or they don't mind his character, but are committed to rooting out corruption (Where you at, swamp drainers?! LOCK HIM UP! LOCK HIM UP! Get them shirts made! Go ahead ... I'll wait ...).
I believe he's played his hand out with his base, and sheer power of numbers will save American Democracy. But remains to be seen whether it's enough to get impeachment through.
I also have this strong urge to go back in time to 2016 - when all of us were freaking the hell out because Britain had voted out of the EU, America had elected Trump, and Le Pen was making a strong showing in France - you know, back when the progressive world order was losing their shit because what the hell? I'd like to go back and say "Yea - this is all going to shake out pretty much exactly how you think it will. By end 2018, Brexit is essentially DOA, France is in week two of violent protests, and seemingly Trump's entire campaign core is on their way to jail." It's a chaotic shitshow - to be sure. But it's not like these dolts are gleefully unencumbered, skipping hooked-armed down the yellow brick road of fascism, pushing the world toward authoritarian nationalism, like my fever dreams. It's all going a bit shite, actually.
Which makes me sort of skippy and gleeful these days.
I promise more about NZ and/or recent travels, less politics next post. That's really just a promise to myself, since no one reads this thing anymore anyway. But an important promise to keep regardless.
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