We are being trained to vote against our own interests. Moreover, we are being tricked into thinking our interests are not what they are. This is true of both major US parties, but the Republicans are just plum better at it. I’ve been struggling to understand why, but in the end it comes as a reflection of the base. In short, the Republican base is one that follows church principles and concepts of listening to those who channel the moral authority. The Democratic base… less so. I speak of the lock step process that once held the GOP together. They always had the stronger grass roots movement, because the roots were buried deep in the church, and every Sunday the base got watered. This is still largely true, and that base largely supports the divisions being fed to them through their common outlets (news, music, etc.). It is common enough to be a film and TV trope. It is so common in fact that the opposite, derision of democrats, is equally a trope. It is okay to say in film ‘we know where every democrat lives’ but to say that of Republicans… that’d be both wild and immediately targeted by the Republicans as an attack (and an excuse for them to buy more guns).
Divisions are sharp in our nation and they are shaping our future, but how much are we really divided? How much of it is the blustering of those in power to remain in power?
Some Thoughts:
- Here’s what I learned about being young: you have no real sense of a context outside your own. My kids were talking about the idea of being old and wondering why people are so disturbed when they are called that. My partner and I attempted to explain the context (which they do occasionally use) of oldness as being a bad thing or somehow being a label consistent with being diminished. To them however, old means what they say it means, and this is all. Tried to teach but it went nowhere, but towards a place of us being talked down to. I deal with ODD every day at home and, honestly, I’m over it.
- Trying to really sink into these projects a bit more, but I gotta say: Only two of the three are really appealing. The 3rd feels like work. Still, writers need work. I hope to take this ability to juggle the work as a moment of momentum and channel it into the next novel and, hopefully, securing more work at GenCon.