Extreme Media

By utilizing mass media, America has created a most impressive engine of economic growth by way of an army of consumers ready to buy their way to happiness. Sales, bargains, and upgrades for all!

Advertising is a powerful tool in the arsenal of any message maker. So it should come as no surprise the use of mass media by extreme voices in the far right would lead to a radicalized portion of the American citizenry who are constantly exposed to such messages. Whether it’s cable television (FOX News), social media (Facebook), or dark places of the Internet (Breitbart), when the reinforcing message heard everyday is to be afraid, that has dire consequences. It not only leads to terrible debate full of conspiracy theories and outright lies, it can also lead to violence.

Media is powerful. Media shapes us. We need to look at media as engaged citizens with critical thought and due diligence. That’s a must. Otherwise, there’s no telling what we’ll be convinced of. That we need a new LED flat screen, or a caravan of criminals and terrorists is frantically scaling our walls. That a fragrance is the key to sexual fulfillment, or our only recourse to save the republic is to turn to violence.

Open your eyes America, before it’s too late.

Putting the sweet corn in the trunk was a bad idea

My Grandpa Joe was a farmer through and through. My uncle, Joe Jr., worked the farm with him. Every August was time for sweet corn. They would drop off buckets of deliciousness to all the homes of family members. My grandpa would also drive around our small town selling it to people on the street. Everyone looked forward to his delivery operation.

While I was in college, Uncle Joe and I decided to expand the enterprise a bit. Our target was the city of Lincoln. He’d bring me corn from the farm, we’d fill the back of my Dad’s pickup, and I’d setup shop in a parking lot somewhere and just see what happens.

The first time we did this we sold quite a bit of sweet corn. It was a Sunday and I setup in an bank’s lot at a busy intersection. From their cars, people would see my sign and the corn in the back of a pickup truck. They flocked. We sold a few hundred dollars worth. Not bad for an afternoon of sitting around and handing people bags of corn.

The second time was different. It was during the week and I wasn’t able to use my Dad’s pickup. Instead, we thought it would be fine to put the corn in the trunk of my beige Ninety-Eight Oldsmobile. This proved fatal.

I had a hard time finding a place to setup. A grocery store kicked me out of their parking lot and a gas station wanted a hefty location fee for its use. The nail salon I ultimately convinced to let me use was an okay spot. It was on the corner of a busy intersection but with my new setup, selling corn out of the back of my trunk just didn’t add up for folks. I mean, if you want a legit, from-the-farm product, who in their right mind would trust corn out of the back of a car that looked like it was made for selling Mary Kay® beauty products? No one, that’s who.

The purveyors of the nail salon even felt sorry for my sad looking state of affairs. I had given them $20 for use of their lot but when they came out to see what I was doing they gave the $20 back. And then they bought a couple bags of corn out of pity.

This entire episode taught me something important in a very real-world way: when it comes to selling sweet corn, it has to be on brand.

That corn remained in the back of my trunk for a week. Almost all of the corn my uncle had brought me was returned to him. On the day I handed over the unsold corn, we both just sort of shrugged. Deep down, I think we knew we tried to cheat capitalism in brand America. And we both knew we would never do it again.

Deactivation

I’m on an unsubscribing spree. Email lists be damned, I’m removing myself. In most cases, nothing against you the sender, I just need a break. Post election, I’m cutting back. News notifications on my phone? Nixed! And I’m really not liking Facebook very much at all these days. Hence, time to deactivate. Very much looking forward to a less “noisy” next few months. Still love Instagram. Because I’m a sucker for the visual. Anyway, carry on. Also, follow me on Twitter.

What concerns you most about the future?

My answer: That we will no longer use our collective, public sphere to solve problems and allocate our vast resources in service of the full society, at the human level.

My fear: This division, hatred, fear, ignorance, suspicion, and credulity is only beginning and will continue to grow.

Worst case: The planet burns us into a horrible existence.

Best case: Music that actually goes to 11.

Only the beginning ...

2016: lots of people in my networks voting for Hillary Clinton.

2018: lots of people in my networks calling, canvassing, donating, writing, driving, attending, and voting for Democrats. So yeah, things are different.

This matters greatly. It’s about engagement, participation, democracy. If you were someone who showed up and put your body on the line, then you are the solution. When added together, when you and your friend and your neighbor and so on all get involved, things get better.

Even in defeat, and there were some hard ones to take, we win. Even if the vote tallies were not in our favor, the message being sent is that apathy is on the way out. We are ready to take on the dark forces at work in our society and no matter the outcome, we will not quit. Remember, the powers that be want us to be quiet, to not pay attention, and to get out of their way. We say no thanks to that horseshit.

This is our great march forward toward progress. And it has only begun. See you out there.

Vote Dems

On average, I am furiously outraged at the news 6–72 times a day. I am tired of the corruption and incompetence. I have had it with all the lies and deceit. And I can’t take anymore the idea that all our collective futures are getting ruined because the people in charge of our government are enacting some truly horrible policies with ramifications that will be with us for decades.

Despite all of that, and even setting aside the racism, sexism, and overall hateful bigotry of the current administration, there’s really only one reason that should compel someone to vote for the other political party. And that reason is this:

Checks and mothafuckin’ Balances, people!

Without checks and balances, power is abused. Without checks and balances, the worst is possible. Without checks and balances, our institutions cannot fulfill their promise of liberty and justice for all of us. I think this is one of the simplest ideas in all of the world. If you want large entities like government to work, you cannot have unchecked power. It leads to disaster.

So with that, if for no other reason, to restore checks and balances to our political ecosystem, VOTE DEMOCRAT!

Small ‘d’ democracy

I’ve hosted events, attended fundraisers, knocked doors, made phone calls, wrote notes, dropped off lit, and made many donations. I have a host of yard signs covering my yard. I’ve offered up my design skills in the making of posters and such to help candidates raise money and/or highlight important issues at stake in these upcoming elections. And I’ve been posting every day on a host of social media accounts about the importance of voting. And you know what? None of it is enough.

But hopefully, with all the contributions of everyone else, it adds up to be enough. Adding together the forces of anyone who cares about our democracy in the most important midterm election of our lifetimes, maybe that does the job. Alone, all my efforts were a drop in the bucket, but together, those efforts get multiplied. Because that’s how you do it. You do what you can do, how you do, and you make your mark. And so does another person, and another, and another. Living out this small ‘d’ democracy the best way we can.

We can help. We can make a difference. So let’s get out there! For an hour, for two. Toss in a few bucks. Maybe twenty. And if you voted early, then get to work on election day. Canvass, make calls, hold signs, make more calls, or drive voters. And then get ready to toast your favorite candidates who put their bodies on the line for our democracy. They did so for the good of the nation and the hope of our future.

Onward democracy!