Category: The Trump Years

The Debate on Socialism

I ran into a friend the other day, and the first words out of his mouth were “Since when did the Democratic party become Socialist?” My short answer was — they haven’t. They’re they same old corporatist, center-right party they’ve been for years. It’s just that Republicans, seizing on the rhetoric of Bernie Sanders and a few others, have decided that socialism is the Democrats’ Achilles heel and so they’re making a big issue of it. Oddly enough, however, this could turn out to be a good thing. By drawing attention to it, they’ve opened a debate that’s been dormant for decades. Read More

Media Misuse of the Word “So”

Lately I’ve noticed that a great many commentators on television and radio feel obliged to begin every answer to every question with the word “so.” For example, the answer to “What did President Trump mean by his latest tweet?” might be “So, no one knows what is going on in the mind of Donald Trump, but….” The problem with this usage is that it is both unnecessary and incorrect.

There are many more or less correct uses of the word “so.” Read More

Fashionable Revolution

Student Protest Paris 1968-web

Although the times are unsettled and revolutionary jargon is in the air, one doesn’t expect a women’s fashion magazine to employ it as a motif, or at least, not one as haute as W.   In a recent issue, I discovered a highly entertaining profile of Dior creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri, subtitled “the quiet revolutionary,” and illustrated with slogan-y artwork reminiscent of early 20th century art manifestos.  How ironic, I thought, coming from the mag I read to spy on the wealthy. Read More

Thinking For Yourself

With election day upon us here in Vermont, I got to thinking about voting and what that takes. The short answer is: you’ve got to think for yourself. After all, this is what real democracy demands, that each of us weigh in with our own choices. Even though the election itself is winner takes all and not necessarily a reflection of all views, it still takes all views to determine the winners. Everyone’s vote is part of the outcome. Read More

Can Immigration Be Fixed?  Yes It Can!

After listening to Trump’s speech on immigration on Monday night and the Democrats’ response to it, I got to wondering what a humane and effective immigration policy might be. Many people seem to think immigration can’t be fixed. I believe it can.

Here are my thoughts, in the form of a convenient, ten point program: Read More

The Slow, Distressing Demise of Real Life

Increasingly, people are choosing big corporations over other alternatives. From retail to professional services, there’s an app for that! And it’s so convenient. You can do it all from your phone!

This is the 21st Century American dream come true. We are lazy, distracted, “busy,” and consequently, we want machines to do it all for us. Never mind that it was the machines themselves and our addictions to and reliance upon them that did this to us. This is where we are and there’s nothing to be done. Read More

Frank Underwood’s Unexpected Comeuppance

This morning, we sat on the back porch talking about Kevin Spacey, who has been discovered to be a groper of young men.  Although groping people is a rotten thing to do, Spacey’s case seemed more complicated than that.  For starters, he already plays the biggest villain on tv, Frank Underwood.

We’ve been binge-watching House of Cards this year, trying to catch up with the rest of America, as we grapple with a vision of American politics that’s darker than Shakespeare.  The “hero” of this drama is not a likable guy.  Frank makes ruthless deals.  He has people killed and kills people himself.  He takes advantage of people in every way — politically, personally, and sexually.  And then he has the gall to turn to the camera, conspiratorially, to tell “us,” the audience, what we think and why we’re wrong.   He brings us into his web of deceit and makes us complicit. Read More

The Perils of Non-Conformity

Ours is a conformist society.  Social media has made it even more so.  The vast majority of us are afraid to appear different from our peers.  Social media allows us to create and enforce peer standards that bind us to (locally) acceptable thoughts and behaviors.  We do what we must to fit in.  Woe to s/he who doesn’t.

The non-conformist exists primarily because there are still people so stubbornly independent that they cannot conform, and couldn’t even if they wanted to, which they don’t.  This would be okay  if society hadn’t organized itself to stamp out non-conformity wherever it appears.  Society is very good at this because society is composed of individual people, each acting in accord with the belief systems of their peers.  It’s as though society was a splintered mirror with millions of shards!  The non-conformist finds that through their atypical thoughts or behavior, they have taken on an army of others who exist (seemingly) to make sure nothing is said or done that isn’t part of the group catechism of proper thinking. Read More

An Easy Solution to the Healthcare Problem

Every time an employer issues a paycheck, they record two sets of deductions: one for Social Security and the other for Medicare. There’s actually a third deduction for federal tax but that one doesn’t matter for our purposes. What I’m getting at is that every employer already takes out money from employees’ check for social programs. We’re used to this system and guess what? it sort of works. So if health care is so important that every single person must have it no matter what, then why not treat basic health care the same way we do Social Security and Medicare, and just deduct it, proportionate to how much each person makes, from their pay. Read More