It is what it is...(a short but spirited defense )

It is What it is.

While dumb heartless pricks like “president” Donald J Trump use the phrase “it is what it is” to absolve himself of any responsibility for allowing the unfettered spread of Coronavirus to make people sick and cause 155 thousand American deaths, allow me to address a less angry and contentious side of all this.

Let me offer my spirited defense of… “It is what it is.”

I started a new job about ten years ago and honest to God, I had never heard this expression before then. And then suddenly, there it was: everywhere.

“It is what it is.”

Everyone said it. Everyone employed this expression when a day turned dark and horrible through no one’s fault.

I work outside with heavy equipment where there are probably about 200 people working at any given time. Rain or shine, snow or blazing sun, in all manner of things. Nothing stops us, with the exception of lightning or the occasional hurricane or bad storm. I work with real people who come from all kinds of backgrounds and prejudices and assumptions and wit and humor and idiosyncrasies that you may or may not get used to over the years. The people come and go, and sometimes people drop off and you forget about them.

But there are 2 constants:

1. The weather is the weather.

2. The job is the job.

You are working outside, doing the job, which will never change, in weather, which you can’t control. There is no point complaining about it because….

It Is What It Is!

It’s actually a beautiful expression when used correctly, and in context. It is working class unconscious Zen Buddhism, Stoicism, and Serenity Prayer, all wrapped up in one. The bottom line is that it advocates accepting your lot in life if that is what you have to do to survive. It is saying, “bitching won’t help me out of this.” Because sometimes that is the case. It is a lesson we all have to learn, just as surely as learning it’s opposite. Knowing what to do when is part of the game.

But you know…it is what it is….

A Parochial Case for Joe Biden, our next President.

A Parochial Case for Joe Biden, our next President.

The Parochialist is not in the business of telling you what to think, how to act, or what to do (other than wearing a mask to help stop the spread of Coronavirus). The Parochialist is all about telling you my opinions, how I think, how I act, and what I do. All I ever hope is that by the choices I make, I can influence others to do the same. That’s it. That is the sole purpose of this blog. I have the right to say what I say in my narrow perspective of the blog that was at one time my tool to bring down the Baltimore City Paper, which in retrospect, was an ill-conceived and nihilistic marketing ploy…

But it is within the scope of my mission as the Parochialist to offer up what I call The Parochial Case for Joe Biden…

First and foremost : D***** TR*** is a fucking disaster. If you do not accept this, then it is likely you will not be a fan of what I have to say. (I can offer up many examples on my JOMPT blog. https://jompt.blogspot.com/ )

But even if you argue with this point of view, I can still find some common ground with you. But read on…

Second and second-most: Joe Biden was not my first choice, nor my second, nor my third, not even my fourth. I Liked Yang, I liked Warren, I liked Harris, I was all in for Bernie (until he started winning those early states and I got buyer’s remorse). And then there was South Carolina, where old Stumblin’ Joe got his second wind…

Third: Third parties.

Guys: I was once like you. I really wanted to vote, but I didn’t want the responsibility of my choice mattering. I proudly cast my 2000 vote for Ralph Nader, because I hated both Bush and Gore and I lived in deep blue Maryland and I wanted to make a point. But…holy crap. All it took was some Nader votes in Florida and the relative unpopularity of Al Gore to make Bush the president who started the war in Iraq. (and to think, years later, we wax nostalgic over this guy because even he was better than the guy we got now.) Listen: if we eliminate the Electoral College, maybe we can talk. Until that happens, no. Just no.

Fourth: You are never, ever, ever, ever, ever going to find a candidate who completely gets you and gives you everything you could ever want. Just like you will never, ever, ever, ever, ever get anything under the current administration, who will work like hell in the next 4 years to dismantle everything you hold dear, like healthcare and personal freedom and Tik Tok and whatever...

Fifth: Judges, Federal and Supreme Court. Think Elections don’t matter? Think who the president is doesn’t matter? Ok. Do you freak out anytime RBG goes to the hospital? Do you ever notice that Clarence Thomas is almost always on the shitty side of every argument? These people are appointed by presidents. It fucking matters.

Sixth.

Ok…getting back to Biden…

There is nothing wrong with Biden’s mind. That’s just some bullshit certain disreputable media has been trying to use against him.

But it does bring me to an observation.

My background is in Communications, written and spoken.

T**** is what would be called a “hot” candidate. His messages are simple (not his speeches, which are incoherent): Build the Wall. Suburban Lifestyle Dream. Protesters are Anarchists who hate America. And other bullshit.

Biden is “cool.” You fill in a lot about him and you see what you want when you look at him. What he says and does don’t matter half as much as who he is.

In fact, both candidates have this in common. There is no getting through to a hardcore T**** fan, but there is also no getting through to a Biden supporter, either. While T**** could at one point correctly assume that shooting someone on 5^th Avenue won’t cost him any votes, he was basically giving an exaggerated version of his view. Conversely, Biden could drive a bus full of schoolchildren off a cliff and he’d just be crazy Uncle Joe. People will vote for him because they are tired of T****. Actions don’t matter. And that will work to Biden’s advantage.

What people say about Biden doesn’t matter. No one who is on his side will believe anything, but the narrative spun by the campaign.

And for once, I’m ok with that.

And once in office, Biden will continue to be roundly criticized by Fox news and your Trump loving relatives. But the rest of us will go back to tuning out and just being happy we survived……

And I will still be The Parochialist….

The Chaos in “Democrat-led” Cities.

The Chaos in “Democrat-led” Cities.

First thing I have to say is: fuck this Trump step-up of law enforcement/aka quick slide to Fascism. We are fine here. Nothing but the usual. Save our tax dollars for, oh I don't know, saving people's jobs during the Trump Virus shutdown. Ok.

The breakdown of mayoral political parties is 35 Democrats , 13 Republicans , and 2 Independents (both elected with state Democratic support). From Wikipedia.

Anytime there is a riot, shooting, civil disturbance, something fucked up, there are always those yahoos who are quick to point out “DEMOCRAT CITIES!!! THESE ARE HAPPENING IN CITIES CONTROLLED BY THE DEMOCRAT PARTY!!!”

Ok. First of all, it is not the “Democrat Party.” It is the “Democratic Party.” A member of that party is called a “Democrat.” When people say “Democrat Party” they are deliberately getting the name wrong to piss off Democrats, who as we’ve just learned, are members of the Democratic Party.

I know it seems like a petty thing to take issue with, but that is the whole point of the slur. It is meant to make Democrats seem petty. That was started by Bush 43 to throw shade at the Democrats. (I know he’s experiencing a rehabilitation of sorts, thanks to the god awfulness of the guy in charge right now, the “president” of the 38 percent…but Bush was a divider as well during his 8 years. He just wasn’t as obvious or disgusting about it.) Deliberately getting someone’s name wrong has always been a subtle way to take a jab at someone, and you know what? It’s really fucking immature.

Second: Civil unrest in the name of social change? Smart people tend to live in cities. People move from their Podunk towns because they can’t stand the smallness and the small-mindedness of the small town, so we move to big cities. It is these types of people that tend to be more liberal, more Democratic, and more inclined to speak out about injustices in the world. (calm down…this is a generalization. Yes, Conservative Republicans also live in cities. But in general, cities tend toward being Democratic for the reasons I listed above.) These Democrats tend to vote for Democrats, so much so that Republicans never mount a serious challenge. In my own city, Democrats outnumber Republicans 10 to 1.

Third: Systemic racism ain’t called that for nothing. It is IN THE SYSTEM. Meaning, it has been around for years. It is insidious, it is baked into the fabric of cities in the form or redlining and disinvestment in poor communities, who unfortunately (and not at all coincidentally) tend to be Black.

Fourth: …Republicans and Republican supporters have the easy job when it comes to cities: they can criticize from afar and from outside.

In the 50 largest cities in the US, there are only 13 Republican Mayors, compared to let’s call it 37 Democrats... In sheer numbers, not even looking at policy of the individuals occupying the offices, there are three times as many Democratic Mayors as Republicans.

(I’ll be honest. Other than maybe San Diego, there are no Republican led cities on this list that I would ever want to live in.)

It STANDS TO REASON that when the breakdown is like that, there is a statistical probability that in a Nationwide wave of protests the Democratic run cities will experience more of the violence that is often on the fringes of otherwise peaceful protests… (hey, Baltimore’s protests have been a model of peace and civility, with a few notable exceptions…now if only we could extend that peace to the rest of the city…)

Speaking of which.

Fifth: The police are out of control, no matter what the stripe of politician running that city is. You mean to tell me that the “Democrat” mayors with the out of control cops are responsible for the behavior of those cops…so that means you are decrying Police brutality too? Or are you part of that whole “sit down shut up don’t get into trouble and there won’t be any hassle” crowd? Either way, the Police that you defend on your Facebook feeds are operating as equal opportunity pricks in cities both Republican and Democrat.

Ok, I think that’s it. I am the Parochialist.

On Work

The prevailing view about work in this society is pretty basic: you don’t work, you don’t eat. If you are able-bodied and capable, you are expected to have some sort of job, be productive, make a living, keep the world running….and if not, you are a lazy, good for nothing free-loading miscreant.

I’ve certainly felt this way at one or more points in my life. I don’t feel this way now. But I still hate working with lazy people. I still would rather do a job myself than count on someone who isn’t giving the job their full attention. But worrying whether or not someone has a job or is working hard the entire time?

I couldn’t care less.

When I think about my life and how I’ve spent it so far,( I’m 45) it breaks down into a series of relationships, places I’ve lived, people I’ve met, things I’ve done, schools I’ve attended, and whatever job I was doing at the time…when I remember something, it is usually connected to one of these factors. (conversely, as I’ve lived in the same house for 11 years, been at the same job for 10 and been with the same partner for 15 years, it becomes harder to use this method to remember things). But how many of these things define me? How many of them define you?

Let me put it this way: do you love your job? Or is it something that you just do because it’s easier than doing nothing? (then again, what could be easier than doing nothing?) Or do you fall in the dreaded category of actually hating your job?

“If you hate your job, quit!”

(Oh lord, how I hate when people say this. It’s usually some lucky person who has no memory of what it was like to do something you don’t like just to pay the bills.)

As if that were the only factor. As if nothing else mattered other than my happiness on the job. As if getting another job that may turn out to be just as bad or worse than the one you presently have isn’t a crushing heartbreak of a journey. As if getting another job wouldn’t come with its own set of problems. As if you weren’t simply blowing off steam when you said you hated your job and maybe just needed a few minutes to cool off…

But love…love, love your job…?

I guess I started thinking of this recently after watching the magnificent documentary film about soundtrack composers, called “Score.” At the end, in the wrap-up, composer Hans Zimmer (wearing his velvet jacket and sitting on a velvet chair looking like the happiest man on earth) says, with no irony or sarcasm “I love, love, love what I do.” These words inspire me as much as they depress me.

Can you say the same thing? Can anyone?

Is it the lack of effort? Lack of imagination? Lack of passion? Lack of funding? Lack of motivation? Lack of opportunity? Or a combination of all of these things, and more?

I don’t bemoan where I am in life. The bigger problem is why is it like this for anyone… I don’t want to suffer and go back to where I was 20 years ago, unable to do basic shit like buy carryout food or drink in bars or even worse, having to donate blood plasma to make rent….but I also don’t want to get rich and leave everyone behind and say “Fuck you. I made it, why can’t you?”

But the system is: get an education, get a job, work until you die. It’s a waste of life except for the very few who love what they do. We don’t all love what we do. Some of us just “do” what we have to.

It just shouldn’t be this way, period.

Death Penalty Blues

The Federal Govt. threw up quite a stinkbomb the other day, carrying out the first Federal execution in 17 years because the guy who they executed was a White Supremacist who killed in the name of White Supremacy. Putting people who oppose the Death Penalty (a-hem) in the awkward position of having to take the side of a fucking racist. The guy was white, so there are those on the side of killing people as punishment who say “see, the death penalty isn’t racist!” (even though it’s employed far more often against Black Americans, but like everything else, who cares about facts when I have this one measly example to claim that those overwhelming facts don’t matter.) It’s quite diabolical.

I am against the Death Penalty, just not in an impassioned “fight to the death with those that support it” kind of way. But to be sure, it’s yet another weapon that the Man uses against Black Americans and just for that reason, it is wrong enough.

Columbus was the line we shouldn't have crossed? Really?

Baltimore.

Hey…I do love it here, but somehow the Governor declaring that we need to “Regain control of our streets” because people threw Columbus into the water is the most asinine shit ever. That’s the line? That’s the line we shouldn’t have crossed? Not murder, not drugs, not poverty, systemic racism, failing schools, corruption in the police department (though to be fair, and to their credit, they haven’t been National news lately). No. But Christopher Columbus…how much money did we spend fishing him out of the water?

Shaking. My. Head.

A Parochial Take on Mask Wearing (take this shit seriously)

COVID-19

I don’t know why Americans are so hell-bent on destroying themselves. We’re not asking you to jump into a fireball or go fight in a war somewhere (unless you’re a fireman or a soldier). Comparatively speaking, staying inside or wearing a mask when you go out is pretty small potatoes. It’s just wearing a mask—as a courtesy to others, as a way to stop the spread. You can cry “fake news” all you want, but the consensus has become that if more of us were wearing masks (and had been doing it since the beginning) we could have stopped this spread. (South Korea, and New Zealand have stopped Covid-19 and if you can’t be bothered to research things then I can’t be bothered either, but I know there are more.). But we don’t. The “President” doesn’t want to lead so he leaves it to the Governors. The Governors don’t want to lead so they leave it to the local authorities. And more people get sick. And more people are going to die. People hate when I say we are going to lose 300 thousand Americans (we’re at 120 thousand now). I want to be wrong. I hope I’m wrong.

“But the economy,” or the assholes that cry “herd immunity” (this article is a few months old, but it gets the point across about why herd immunity is not the answer for this https://www.sciencealert.com/why-herd-immunity-will-not-save-us-from-the-covid-19-pandemic ) or “that mask won’t protect you.”

Yadda, yadda, yadda. Don’t believe me.

I’m just wearing my mask and trying to get through this whole thing alive without unknowingly transmitting the disease to anyone else. I wish other people felt the same.

I am the Parochialist.