Harry Sinclair Lewis died in 1951; he would be 131 years old today, had he avoided death. Like the swan song that marks the extinction of a sound frequency: never to be heard again, our auditory system erases a frequency from its database. When a genuine journalist dies she is not simply replaced.
Before the 17 candidates became the one I could not identify the sound of DJT’s voice from the sound of any other. It’s like a reverse swan song: from never heard to ever heard. I have yet to watch a single episode of “The Apprentice” and don’t plan to mar my record.
Sinclair Lewis explicated the incredible, the darkest shadows of homo sapiens. He dubbed the vile industry of meat manufacture a jungle. Where is the heart of that darkness today? Gone? No. The Jungle, published in 1906, has morphed into a spectacle that only grows larger — gross consumption. The rhythm of Trump’s speech slithers into my ear like a Dune-sized ear worm.
Bread and circuses and reality (TV)
What is a bold challenge? It’s marketing jargon for carefully controlled and crafted lying. It’s a way to make a living — if you can live with yourself.
But is there a downside?
I’m thinking of submitting product names to a local Cincinnati cleaning products company. I have two so far: “Pontius Pilate Hand Sanitizer” and “Lady Macbeth Soap.”
Ad copy suggestions:
“Naturally it’s flavored”
“Naturally it’s colored”
When shopping for the slouchiest in decadent snacks, discerning and discriminating hosts choose palm oil, the chemical that clings to ingested molecules for a longer acting crave experience that does not rely on saturated fats.
Veganism is the best and wisest move ever. So why are vegans among the hunted? Capital moves wherever the slightest marginal advance gains purchase. The smart money is in food deserts, where the most marginalized among us must shop. It is the only “food” available to Native Americans living with reservation. The so-called omnibus food bill for the USDA heavily subsidizes food desert fare. Junk buns offer a steady and reliable opportunity for the savvy investor. Bon appetit!
The so-called omnibus food bill for the USDA heavily subsidizes food desert fare. Junk buns offer a steady and reliable opportunity for the savvy investor. Bon appetit!
Endlessly exploiting every molecule of a sentient being for personal profit is ghastly enterprise. Inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness is not a right to share in polite society. We all suffer when human-headedness takes the fore. Pig-headedness is a pig doing its own thinking.
Believing what you are told can be harmful to your health and the well-being of others. This year has given voice to a few widely held dark beliefs that threaten everyone, and that includes all sentient fellow travelers.
Ignorance is still equated with strength, multi-multi-multi-trillion dollar industries must maintain market share and stockholder confidence. Chanting JobsJobsJobs convinces many to do unspeakable things. Why tell us about the index of Dow and Jones 24 times a day?
My thoughts in the health and beauty aisle: How is Pontius Pilate Soap performing? Looks like it is outperforming Lady Macbeth Stain Removal Cream, but that might be a seasonal existential thing…
The occasional North Korean escapes the country. The occasional cow escapes a death camp. Let us express amusement at the hapless cow wandering on a local highway as its tale spreads onto social media, only to disappear in the morning drone.
“How many pieces of bacon do you want this morning dear? It’s turkey bacon, so vegetarians can eat it too.”
Ignorance and arrogance is a combination that echoes with brute force this very curious year. Unfortunately, both are proudly celebrated. Doubly unfortunate for the entire planet: the sad celebration of ignorance occurs in an election year.
The topic least considered is the topic most important, global warming or climate change? Your choice.
What actions would HRC or DJT take on climate change? And answer came there none. It’s not a convenient time to…uh…next question please.
BTW, I am running on the Vegan ticket. For write-in ballots I suggest
Bill Ziegler (the one on billziegler1947.com). Readers are welcome to apply for cabinet positions in the event that I receive the most electoral votes.
Ironically, in 1912 the climate researcher Alfred Wegener proposed a theory of continental drift, positing that different large landmasses of the Earth almost fit together like a jigsaw puzzle. That they appeared to move. He was correct, but off by two orders of magnitude in the speed of plate movement. GPS tracks it automatically and continually now.
Sadly a very influential paleontologist name George Gaylord Simpson vehemently fought against Wegener.
Prof. Dr. Alfred Wegener, ca. 1924-1930
When I first began studies in Geography at the University of Cincinnati in 1965 (in the day of slide rules).Wegener was mentioned for his climate work, but the professors at that time roundly dismissed any realistic notion that the Americas ever met Eur-Africa. Tectonic plates. The thought had a romantic and fanciful value, but no evidence supported it.
In 1976 Exxon received the results of a study they launched on the global impact of increasing dependence upon fossil fuels. Exxon risked eventually losing claim to “We’re Number 1” (USAUSAUSA) on the Fortune 500. Ignoring evidence is an enormously profitable enterprise.
Addressing climate change could have begun 40 years ago. Veganism may be the only option available. It’s also great for your personal health. Just expounding.
Unfortunately (very unfortunately) a tectonic shift in political execution began in 1980.
There is great symbolism in the release of hostages during Reagan’s inaugural address. Allow blame to flow to the Carter Administration, rigorously and self-righteously deny any hint of a deal in Nicaragua. Proceed with an order to remove Carter’s solar panels from the White House roof. The Project for the New American Century raised a toast to the death of the 70’s. I call it mourning in America.
Slave-level labor keeps inflation in check. Fill in the blank, Made in …..
Meanwhile Jimmy Carter hopes that the Guinea Worm will die before he does. Google guinea + worm for details.
A question raised in January 2016 by the Party of the Grand Olds: Who will be our next Reagan? That month a friend of mine predicted the total collapse of the Republican Party. In the same month that friend asked my son about his estimation of the number of racists in the United States, he answered 35%. DJT’s hardcore.
January was already a WTF year by February. Lisa joins those explaining zombies in popular culture as a response to the impending doom dropped into their collective laps by preceding generations. As one of them. I can only agree.
At least Jerry Rubin did not live to witness the folly of equating a growing wealth-management portfolio with a revolution. RIP stock portfolios.
Here I elaborate on a poem by Peter Schreiner: “Earth.” Its text, contained in the graphic below, is available on Schreiner’s web-site Crows Head Soup. A state of being viewed with the vegan in mind. Awareness replaces normalcy, the gentle side of being aware is naturally repelled by flesh, fur and bone when known as resources, nourishment, craving. Normality is the unquestioning exploitation of fellow sentient beings alive today on this planet. 99% “living” in factory-fresh farms.
Borrowing a favorite phrase from a seldom followed play of T.S. Eliot, The Family Reunion. A Greek chorus explains the characters contained on the theater stage.
Sudden Solitude in a Crowded Desert
The concept became a byline for me one day while listening to the audio for this play. I was on the back porch, it was the late 90’s. Days of very early social media connected my life with others by a 1200 baud modem. Three States and a river. OH IN KY.
Very few Google searches yield much information on the Unix box located in a small room at the local phone company, TriState Online.
This link takes you to the full text at archive.org. You can search for “sudden solitude” there.
Sudden Solitude played into a concept in that poem “Earth.” The mashup that occurs when you imagine the inexplicable in everyday life. Things unquestioned in a polite society proud of its dominion. All matters familiar, ordinary and comforting (comfort food) in a moment of unexpected insight. A spinning coin flipped skyward that reveals the unanticipated: solitude/crowded.
Privileged consumer of all things animal from marrow to fur, then quite suddenly you become a witness, then a consumer of no thing animal.
Cognitive dissonance sets in when you identify enlightenment from the vegan point of view. At this point I fervently hope that readers remaining to read this far are not already convicted vegans. Dismissal out of hand is something you must expect when promoting marginal epiphanies. billziegler1947 is a tribute to the music of the crickets, I’m actually proud of that tribute.
My comment on “Earth”:
“Secular lands” evokes imposed national borders for me. Each sentient being I meet opens a complex but complete universe contained in one transient body: distinct personages/animalages. Borders are as much cage bars as they are expressions of nationality, but they are all arbitrary. Anyway that’s my reader reaction. Hope it makes sense to readers of these words.
It feels good to revive Sudden Solitude in a Crowded Desert, a thread to weave into the discussion here.
billziegler1947 