Genetics Don't Make Change

 

(This was written right after the election of Joe Biden in 2020)

Dangerous Women

“Lizzie Borden took an axe, then she gave her mother forty whacks.” Children’s Nursery Rhyme

Perusing upcoming books recently I was suddenly struck by the notion that History has become a resource goldfield for liars and naïve opportunists who use it as a “Eureka” moment for disseminating false or arbitrary knowledge or knowledge for confusing the truth.

I guess there some usefulness as well. Every now and then we all do need to be reminded that there is nothing new on this the most precious realm of God’s green earth except as some scientists report, five new genus (not genius’) of newts and salamanders.

Take the book-Dangerous Women- a book I did not read. It could actually be called anything else as long as it promised women a tete a tete (in this case between an author and the reader) of titillation, especially for the remnants of women who either forgot or have been isolated in libraries for a prolonged period of time that, yes, women can be as dangerous and exciting and obtuse as men.

For me, who has lived in this wild and mildly tame intellectual middle class ideology for most of my life, thinking or believing that there are essential differences between women and men, enough for women to change the course of history and mastermind a entirely different political, social outcome than the one we have now(herstory), simply because they are womenhas become as ridiculous a notion as there is, for me.

We are living in strange times indeed. All the beliefs held by black and white, men and women, gay and straight, whether or not disagreeable or grounds for crimes against humanity, are all merely the residue of social, religious, political training as children, as fantastic as grim fairytales.The college educated, of course, have the fruits of research to tell us that all the racist, ethnic, sexual, economic distinctions are the products of our culture and historical bias and not avenues for exploration or even evolution toward progressive social order.

This is true, however if you ask these intellectuals whether or not they would want to rid the nation, an institution itself that needs reconstruction, so we can add it to the list, they will say No, as if Change from racism to non-racism is a non-starter if you talk about revolution.

In the last five years we’ve been bombarded with the simplicity of fascism to reckon with. It’s been a confusing, daunting task for most the civilized world and yet, although it was obvious from the beginning to anyone who has a beating heart that Donald Trump represents an ideal so contrary to the best interests of most of those living at the bottom of the economic spectrum. Yet, because our system does not like change, it dragged on for over five years and still we are not rid of it as investigation after investigation goes on and on.

Since I started this rant on the literary aspects of presenting history to those who want to believe they will have a history or to those who still believe in one form or another that women are not equal to men or black people are not equal to white, that muslims are not as good as Catholics/christian etc etc. If I look at all the books I’ve read or seen emerge into the public’s consciousness, I can’t tell you how many have been sucked into a historical black hole of creative american grandiosity and grandstanding. Everything from black history, civil rights, wars, all the way back through human history, it all says the same thing, yet still everything is treated as if it’s newfound, resurrected from obscurity, brought into the light and enlightenment.

What grandiose bullshit.

History buries everything and what it doesn’t bury, vultures get fat on.

I’m going to sashay into another realm for a minute. Four years ago we recently elected Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as our answer to the Trump anti-revolution. I’m inclined to say that Trump inspired a revolution of sorts and not the one that neither you nor I ever would want. Nevertheless, it is here. It’s clear that in Malcolm’s overly used warning-The chickens (of racism, anti-democracy, economic disparity) have come home to roost. We’re stuck with it and I can assure anyone that there will be a million books about people’s lives living through this period, this pandemic, this four year moral crisis and still, right now, I can feel Trump should have faded into the historical limelight but instead he is now the president elect. The intellectuals told us history would not be favorable to Trump and that was not true but as time goes by, america has always proven that the Lie lives longer than the truth, the truth gets buried by those in power.

I can certainly conceive of a history book dedicating two paragraphs to the legacy of Obama (more or less focused on his being the First A/A president) and an entire book dedicated to the rise of trump's legacy, his election, his selection of the lifelong supreme court, his two impeachments, his exposure as a crook and a demi-god, and finally the unwritten second presidency.

Nevertheless, his influence on the future is uncertain. So now, he just completed another two paragraphs worth of First future history. The oldest President ( though Trump will be older but certainly not be as feeble and rigid) and First A/A woman, Asian, Vice-President, which brings me full circle. Need I remind people that Kamala Harris was selected by Biden to be his running mate because she is black and a woman. Why? Only in america is it worthy of mention. Other nations around the world, too many to name, have already had important women leaders and political icons, whether it be monarchs, prime ministers, wives of political leaders. It’s a shrug of the shoulders for most of the world. But Kamala was chosen for both her race and gender because in america it’s good strategy and that’s all it is. Her politics didn't differ, except, again, in america many people impose their belief that somehow women and differences in race impart some magical powers (dedicated to the change they want). As for political issues, Amy Klobuchar or Elizabeth Warren or Kirsten Gillibrand would have brought the same program as Kamala.

We should have reached a point a long time ago in america that notions of race, gender, poverty are unacceptable but, simply, we haven’t. The issues are always the same and the solutions are always the same. Most women, according to some surveys, support abortion rights and yet ever since Roe vs Wade the deterioration of abortion rights through state legislation has worsened that right over the decades. Both Civil Rights and Voting Rights legislation at the Federal level have been lauded and continue to be lauded today in history books and intellectual discussions and simply, it all may be worse. Of course, some people would say struggle is a lifetime project but is it what people want. At some point in human history the struggle of survival against natural elements was transformed to the struggle for the right to live under whatever social system one was born under but still retain the promise of a simple life, working, raising family and community, something nearly everyone has been deprived of by a constant fear hammered into the national psyche.

ignorance can hardly be denied,

but the causes are multiple. One being the actual issues surrounding daily life and life decisions are complex, much more complex than they should be.

The governments of the world, both local and national have simply grown capitalism beyond the comprehension of anyone to understand the oppressive nature under which they live. Believe me, this is no coincidence.

Capitalism has been taken to the heights of another religious cult, whereby those who profit by it and are able to use it to their advantage, like all religion, are able to convince those who are used by it that it is the "natural" order of it.

Now, in this country, Acirema, capitalism has brought itself to all the workings of government in order to manipulate and subvert the institutions, and ideals, the nation supposedly built itself upon.

Immigration to Acirema is entirely built on rumor, innuendo, and false belief among the world population. For sure, it is better to live in obscurity once one does safely cross the border and disappear rather than living in some violent village in your own country, susceptible to the brutality most third world nations offer. But that same brutality exists in Acirema, and, although for many decades it was less obvious, recently gun, domestic violence has been more widespread and fearsome.

Real solutions to violence require addressing root causes, including poverty, addiction and community health, and how about the acquiescence of the general public to Ignorance. Stupid is derogatory, but it is an actual behavior which entails the ignoring of actual events, details of significant knowledge, and the relationship between oneself and their own personal environment.