We, the Rebel Alliance, do therefore in the name—and by the authority—of the free beings of the Galaxy, solemnly publish and declare our intentions:
- To fight and oppose you and your forces, by any and all means at our disposal;
- To refuse any Imperial law contrary to the rights of free beings;
- To bring about your destruction and the destruction of the Galactic Empire;
- To make forever free all beings in the galaxy.
To these ends, we pledge our property, our honor, and our lives.
Until about two months ago, I was really into the Empire in the Star Wars universe. Darth Vader was cool and the bounty hunters were awesome, and the Death Star was bad ass, and Star Destroyers were amazing.
And then America elected (barely and with interference from a hostile foreign power) a Fascist know-nothing who has so much contempt for our country and the people who live in it, he has chosen men and women who have no experience in government and/or aggressively hate the agencies they will be charged with overseeing to lead them. He’s instigated dangerous international diplomatic incidents that threaten the safety of all of us, and he doesn’t seem to care.Though he lost the popular vote by the largest margin in history, though he will take office (unless the Electoral College acts to preserve the Republic — I’m still in Bargaining, it turns out) with the lowest approval rating in this century, though he has never held a public office or cared about anyone other than himself in his life, he and his toadies are acting like he has a mandate to destroy the popular, progressive achievements of the last century, and enact policies that will greatly harm the very people who voted for him.
Neonazis have been welcomed into the mainstream of America, and their leaders have been normalized by our media. An unabashed authoritarian is set to take control of the most powerful office in the world, with the most invasive and unaccountable spying apparatus in history at his tiny orange fingertips.
All of that was going through my mind as I watched Rogue One last weekend, especially during scenes that take place in cities that are under occupation. I realized that I’d sort of known on some level that Star Wars was, at its core, an anti-Fascist story, and I’d understood that the bad guys were, like, bad … but it was all in the fiction for me. Until this weekend, it wasn’t something I’d ever really felt as a commentary on reality. After a lifetime of being entertained by Star Wars, it landed on me in a way that it never had, before. I didn’t want to like the Empire, or admire how cool it was when Vader uses the Force to choke someone. I wanted the Empire to lose, and to lose badly. I wanted the Empire, and the Emperor, and the Sith to be destroyed. Retroactively, Darth Vader’s redemption in Jedi was more powerful than it had ever been, and I haven’t watched Jedi in years.
Suddenly, Stormtroopers weren’t just cool action figures I played when when I was a kid; they were literal stormtroopers. They were the forces of evil and terror. The fun of cheering for Darth Vader when he’s being a badass villain, believing that bounty hunters are awesome, or getting excited when the Death Star is cleared to fire and a Star Destroyer blasts ships into oblivion … it was all gone. The Empire is terrible. The Empire is evil. I realized that Yoda is right about the Dark Side of the Force and those who are seduced by it. I realized that the Republic — our Republic — is worth fighting for, and even though it feels like nothing matters at all right now, everything is terrible, and the forces of evil are going to get away with it because the so-called “leaders” in Congress put their party and their ambitions ahead of their patriotism — maybe because of that — it may soon be time to get off of Tatooine, and join the Rebel Alliance.
May the Force be with us.
hear, hear. you said a mouthful.
i was always partial to the Jedi and the rebels anyway, but yeah, it’s all hitting too close to home lately.
I’ve felt this way for a long time now. That’s why it’s so important for us to put a stop to new gun laws. They use media to blow up gun related events to try and make striker gun laws which is unconstitutional. Our founding fathers made sure we had the right to bare arms for one reason and one reason only. It’s because where we came from was so government power hungry and corrupt and this new land was to be ran and owned by the people not the government. If it came to a point where we NEEDED to raise up and bare arms to take back our government for the people, we could and will. That’s why we have the right to bare arms, not for hunting and not for protection, it’s so we don’t loose control over our government, which in my opinion we are at that point now.
If you’re not smart enough to spell correctly, you’re not smart enough to handle a firearm.
I was just responding to the great post. It sparked a bit of passion and spell check may have filled in the wrong word, I see that now. Sorry if this or my post offended you Gary Miles. Also, I don’t even own a firearm.
You don’t need weapons to take over the government, that is why we have elections and democracy. Government should be the reflect of the social contract, representing the will of the people
@Eric: “There are four boxes to be used in the defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury and ammo. Please use in that order.”
Gary Miles has a very interesting idea. A spelling bee to decide who can own firearms. That would certainly limit the number of gun owners. 🙂
You have my hand, Wil, and I have your back.
i agree and hope that you have been watching the Keith Olbermann segments The Resistance from GQ. No one does righteous indignation like him and he is all over it. Pulling no punches. Choose hope over fear – and I will continue to do this until there is no hope left. I pray that day never comes.
I was about to suggest to readers Olbermann, but you beat me to it.
I had a similar type moment re-watching Gandalf’s speech in Fellowship of the Ring “”Frodo:I wish the ring had never come to me, I wish none of this had happened. Gandalf: So do all who live to see such times but that is not for them to decide, All you have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to you.” No surprise that the book was born out of the Fascism and horror of World War II, but it’s a shame that it is still so relevant.
This is something that has always bothered me about people that like the Empire. I honestly don’t mind people liking the Sith, I don’t believe there is anything inherently evil in the Sith philosophy, just in how it is used (much like there isn’t anything inherently bad and evil about Communism…). But the Empire? It never sat right with me that people wanted to be Vader or a Stormtrooper or an Imperial Officer. Maybe because as a woman I knew the Empire was a no girls club kind of place, so even as a little girl I didn’t want anything to do with that. I wanted to be Obi-Wan.
I agree with you @Siona, I always recognized the institutionalized cruelty the Empire represented. I don’t want to chalk it up to being just female – but definitely the concept of the Empire was kind of terrifying.
You can’t be serious 😳
I guess it’s true what Lexi Alexander said about what they teach about WWII in US schools.
As a German, having had 9 years straight of “What we did and why it was bad” grades 5 to 13 in history class, this was NEVER the case for me.
This revelation is just baffling… and in the level of frogs on Twitter going “Star Wars is about Trump?!?”
I’m not angry at you Wil but more in general at the US school system. I mean wow…
Hey I don’t fault Wil for feeling this way and I don’t blame him it’s just so extremely baffling.
While we’re at it: after re-unification we had a gigantic Nazi problem because East Germany had an immigrant population of about zero while West Germany took in millions of guest workers from Italy and Turkey because most of our able bodied men died in the war. They’re mostly all still here – 12% of people living here are foreigners because we didn’t use to have dual citizenship – kids of Turkish parents had to decide if they wanted to become Germans or remain Turks and serve two years in the military over there.
The only guest workers in East Germany were Vietnamese fellow Communists and they were treated like garbage. These days only 1.6% of people living in East Germany are foreigners and Nazis are very prevalent over there because of 16 million East Germans over 1 million made their way to the West. Not evough jobs for the remaining, not well enough educated people means a large nationalist sentiment.
But even in the West we had problems with Nazis in the 1990s and we managed to get rid of them by offereing exit programs for people who got in with them. The thing is: to me it feels like white people in the US have no idea how racist they really are or how internalized racism really is in the US.
Anyway if you think I was being a dick so be it. I’m just trying to make sense of the fact that 46% of voters voted for someone to Germans is such an obvious Nazi it isn’t even remotely funny. You guys have nuclear weapons stationed in Germany so this is all kind of a big deal.
And again I can’t for the life of me, as a German, understand how you’d identify with the Empire. Those are clearly the Nazis. I mean why. How. I just don’t get it. They’re called “Stormtroopers” for a reason. What’s not to get? I thought you’re supposed to read “The Wave” in schools and “1984” and “Fahrenheit 451″… I just don’t get it. Nothing about the Empire is cool to me. They are pure evil, genocidal maniacs who literally choke people to death right there on screen. Not to mention killing a couple BILLION people by blowing up Alderaan. How can you identify with them? How?
I think you’re mostly correct. There’s another whole bunch of them who know, and don’t care because it works out to their benefit.
I grew up in the 70s and 80s, and Nazism was something we learned in history class; it wasn’t something that even seemed that real. I know that none of us who grew up in America will have any idea what it was like living in Germany through Unification. I just have my own experiences and process life through the lens those experiences have formed.
And I never identified with the Empire. I just didn’t fully internalize and understand until recently the reality of what it stands for and represents (which is why I wrote this today). This is also part of the ignorance I have from my personal, American, late 20th century childhood experience.
I am disgusted on a daily basis by how my own family act towards people of other ethnicities. Nothing I say or do can change their minds, yet they don’t think they are racist… They get pissed off every time they see some poor kids in Houston getting charity, because they are black and hispanic. They call it racist, because the kids receiving charity aren’t white. When it is simply that those happen to be the people living in the poorest neighborhoods in Houston. Nothing I say or do can get them to see reason. They simply dont think they are being racist. I am lucky to be ethnically colorblind. While I will admit most of my partners in life have been white, my first girlfriend (Kindergarten) and 1st boyfriend (5th grade) were black. I didn’t choose them for their race, I didn’t see their race. Literally. I was completely unaware of their race until I saw photos of us together more than a decade later. The natural state of humans is to be ethnically colorblind, racism is something that is taught.
I too grew up in the 70’s and 80’s. I still have the first episode of TNG on VHS from its very first showing. I love pointing out how much Star Trek tech has invaded the real world. I eagerly await Warp Drives and Holodecks…
Anyway I can easily see how you could have cheered for the Empire, its fantasy. Fantasy allows us to explore both the good and bad of the human condition, without consequence. While the Empire was meant to be Nazi’s in space, as kids we didn’t see that. We just saw fantasy monsters, no different than Dark Elves, or Vampires, both of which people love to roleplay in tabletop RPGs and LARPs. Personally I always sided with Jedi’s, but I also side with Vampires and other monsters. The only thing to turn me off of the Empire is the uniforms… I hate uniforms. The Rebels often wore flight suits, but they could choose to wear what ever they wanted.
I have been predicting (based on the state of society, not mystic powers) for 20 years that we are at the brink of civil war. With Trump being elected against the will of the people, with the electoral college creating the very situation it was meant to prevent, we are now closer to the 2nd US Civil war than ever before. As of December 12th (the deadline for electoral college votes), any hope that the electoral college would change their votes has ended. While the media has all but stopped reporting on it, protests continue across the country. The only ones that can fix the situation now is Congress. Congress has the authority to throw out the electoral votes of any state, something that has happened only twice is US history. In both cases to prevent the election of a highly outspoken racist president. And they have until Inauguration Day to do it. But I fear they wont do it. Congress is controlled by the republicans, and the very concept of parties creates a divide in our nation. They know he’s evil, they know he’ll destroy the nation, everyone can see he’s an Oompa Loompa, but he identifies as a republican so they would rather have him than Hillary. The only thing that will stop civil war now is if Trump isn’t nearly as rotten as he seems. It’s a slim hope, but its one I hope for. I don’t want Americans killing Americans again. It was bad enough the first time, we don’t need to repeat it… But if push comes to shove, if war breaks out anyway, I know which side I’ll take. Meanwhile, I’ll just stay quiet and watch, and hope that the next 4 years pass without civil or nuclear war breaking out….
…
…
…
I beg you Obama, when it comes time to pass over the football… give him a realistic fake. Make it look like the real thing, act like the real thing, but not actually send the proper launch codes. I seriously don’t think Trump understands what the rest of us do. That using the nukes the first time was a mistake. Yes we won, but the cost was too great. If you think I am wrong, you only need to see pictures of children who survived the initial detonations in Hiroshima and Nagasaki laying in hospital beds as they slowly die from radiation poisoning and rampant cancers. The nukes the US has now are a million times more powerful than those 2 bombs, and they number in the thousands…
Ah, mr random string of digits, it’s when people don’t see the difference between equality and equity that they get their knickers in a twist about so-called “reverse racism” http://secondlineblog.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Equity-vs-Equality.png
If you’re serious, then it’s time to consider some new investments.
not sure if you mind being told about a typo but i noticed in the last line of your 4th paragraph an “n” is missing : “more powerful than it had ever bee,”
great post, I hope we can make it thru these next 4 years.
I’ve had the exact same feelings. I never really preferred them over the rebels, but the “cool factor” of the Empire resulted in me not feeling any unease about them. Up until a few weeks ago I could ignore that little voice that reminded me every now and then what Stormtroopers and the Empire were references to, because that all seemed so very detached from the fictional universe.
Now, I just…can’t. I can’t still imagine that convenient detachment. I think all those articles with headlines trying to frame neo-Nazis as “dapper” and fashionable had a very chilling effect, because part of the appeal of characters like General Hux and Captain Phasma is the dashing figures they cut in their uniforms.
Can’t say that I’ve ever cheered for the Empire, but I’m excited to see what Rogue One brings.
I’m just old enough to remember the assassination of JFK. I became eligible to vote right after Nixon resigned over Watergate and was pardoned by Ford. I was serving in the US Navy when Carter got hit with the Iran Hostage Crisis leading to the election of Regan.
In all these times I was worried about our political system, but never about the process itself. Not even when Bush was elected over Gore.
Now I’m worried. With millions more voting for Hillary and Trump on an insane path, I now feel the process itself may be in jeopardy.
I’m begging for sanity from the Electoral College, to fulfill its mandate as described by Hamilton in Federalist Papers 68 (https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Federalist_No._68&action=edit§ion=5).
Wonderfully said. One of the best analogies of our current situation I’ve read. The Empire is evil and now that we’re experiencing it in real life it drives home how vigilant we need to be.
I know people hated the prequels and all the political mumbo jumbo, but what a perfect example of a great society going down the tubes through the guise of “keeping the Republic whole”.
I’m really enjoying these blogs every day!
It took me until I was quite a bit older to really viscerally understand what the Rebel Alliance was all about. I just knew they were the good guys. But then ‘rebels’ always had a negative connotation…how could the good guys be rebelling against the government? Didn’t that make them the bad guys? I understand now how even the ‘good guys’ started out as the ‘bad guys’ in somebody’s narrative, and history rewrites our perspective. And it took The Clone Wars animated series for me to truly understand how awful the plight of the Storm Troopers is. I’m sure you’ve seen the series, but if you haven’t….so highly recommended.
The Force will be with you, Wil wheaton, always.
Sorry to see you’re putting yourself in a deep hole of gloom about the election. Maybe it is time for you to step away from all the news for a bit, none of it will make you feel better.
Cue John Williams epic music and scores of extras cheering and raising their hands and me cheering and raising my hand!
Dear Wil, this is what is called Russia-baiting. Corrupt government officials state there is proof of Russian cyberwarfare, through the ever impartial NYT. They provide no evidence, the information comes from The NSA and the CIA, and if that doesn’t make you doubt the authenticity of the story, don’t really know what to tell you. In any case, considering how much the US involves themselves in other nations elections, I can’t quite get emotional about it if it turned out to be true, which I doubt.
When I was a kid in the 90s and played Star Wars with my brother and cousins, I was always the Empire. My plastic lightsaber was red, my homemade JoAnn Fabric robes were black, and my ride was a TIE Fighter. Because they were cool. They were smart and shiny and had their shit together. Storytellers know that good villains are attractive.
I found out later that the stormtroopers and jackbooted officers were directly inspired by the Nazis. Still, we knew all along that they’re “supposed” to be the bad guys. As a teen and adult, I gained the context to separate the story/aesthetics from the ideas. But man, representation matters, and it runs both ways.
Let me quote some James Baldwin at you: The moment we cease to hold each other, the moment we break faith with one another, the sea engulfs us and the light goes out.
We need to hold on to our love for each other, and for our country. That is what defeats the power of the Dark Side.
Just so you know, Star Wars is make believe. And your obsession over political parties and letting talking points shape your thoughts is not healthy.
Make-believe? Sure.
An allegory of historical events which seem to be repeating themselves? Indeed.
with the most invasive and unaccountable spying apparatus in history at his tiny orange fingertips.
Pretty sure 95% of the intelligence community f!@#$ing hates him after the last three days, actually. When former CIA directors come out of the woodwork to talk about how much he’s pissed the IC off, don’t assume everyone’s going to be walking in lockstep with Trump. Quibble with their methods all you want, but they care about this country, too.
puts hair up and tucks a couple of blasters into a shoulder holster and thigh holster Our Republic DOES deserve saving. places hand over heart and takes the pledge
I served as a Stormtrooper – er, I mean US Army Medic, AND I took the Republic pledge when BILL CLINTON won the White House. Both sides of the isle can be like the Empire, and what we need to preserve is not who is in power but our own freedom to choose what to believe and how to live.
I’m sad that you equate serving as a medic in the Army with being a Nazi stormtrooper.
I served “the Empire” – no matter which side you think I was on. That made me either a Stormtrooper or a Sith Lord. No gray area there.
If you remember, Luke Skywalker almost served the Empire as well: “I want to transfer my application to the Academy THIS year.”
I believe many people enter into military or government, or even private business with the best of intentions, regardless of beliefs. Some inherently good, some selfish (neutral), some evil. Only then does their position allow their alignment to shine through, and beliefs steer the direction of whatever entity they are a part of. Or that entity may run in contrast to their beliefs/alignment, that’s not their fault, but they need to also have the guts and character to refuse to follow orders, perform acts, or even quit when the entity they are part of no longer aligns with their beliefs.
I understand that in the case of US military service, you essentially sign a contract of employment, and any refusal to obey orders can result in termination and legal repercussions. But those consequences can be mild compared to compromising your personal beliefs, which you should probably question before you enlist in the first place.
Mild? What fantasy are you having? refusing to obey orders and seeking to fight the order legally WILL result in a Courts Martial hearing, and loosing the hearing WILL result in a dishonorable discharge – ruining any chance you’ll ever have of getting another job. That is a HUGE penalty for standing up for your rights.
Holy hell thats a lot of info.
I’m pissed about what is going on in Michigan, stopping the recount and the fact that in many districts the log doesn’t match the ballot box and they can’t recount… what? If they don’t match they SHOULD be recounted. Ugh.
I’m amazing news I got some artis-anal coffee in the mail today and husband and I are excited to drink it!!!! 👏🏻😀☕️
I’ve been surprised at how many people think precincts with discrepancies should still be recounted, mainly because I’ve been used to thinking that ballot security should just be a baseline requirement (if the counts don’t match or the seal isn’t proper, it leaves open the question of whether or not someone opened it up and messed with the ballots).
I understand the frustration, especially with half of Detroit precincts not being recounted, as an example. But it still feels like we would just end up with another problem if we counted all the precincts—namely, that the recount’s results were unreliable.
As yet I don’t really know how to reconcile those things. I know full well it’s just minor human error (in the vast majority of cases) that causes the ballot counts to be off by one or a handful. Common sense tells me we should recount them despite that. But then there’s no guarantee (to the degree that any of the election protocols can be trusted) that what’s been recounted is the actual vote. It would just end up in court again, right? Or worse, the legislature.
For now, I guess that’s why I still favor not recounting precincts with discrepancies.
Wil, please don’t insult Darth Vader by comparing him to Donald Trump. 🙂
Yeah, Palpatine is a much better choice for comparison. 😉
Wil, well said…..many of us agree and are bracing and preparing.
Love you Wil, feel your pain, it is mine and all of your friends as well. Fare-not-so-well to heretofore and ever after troll Captain Obvious Prick, a.k.a. Voice of reason.
Many people did not like the Star Wars prequels, but you can see a lot of parallels in those to our current situation as well. Look at how Senator Palpatine – soon to be the Emperor – took over without having to fire a single shot himself. He manipulated everyone around him and the Jedi were too busy up on their high horses staying out of politics to bother to see what was happening until it was too late. Palpatine used fear and hate to convert Anakin – but most of all fear. And what did Trump do? He used fear, he used hate, and people went for it. As Padme says “So this is how liberty dies – with thunderous applause.”
Wil,
Any call outs to the Rand Pauls and Justin Amash’s that warned of such an event when the left was centralizing power into one position? How about those warnings. How about those men actively campaigning again Bolton and Giulliani? Thank god the Republicans have a few conscientious men left or we would have secretary of state Bolton. Think about that.
Many of us that don’t consider ourselves leftist screamed and hollered and said don’t you dare remove the check and balances of the filibuster. But if Harry Reid was anything, he was a party man through and through. He’d let the world burn if the Democrats could rule it. If a few GOPers hadn’t joined the dems in the new filibuster proof senate, he might have just gotten half his wish. He may yet. There’s to be many occasion in the next four years I’ll wish the Democrats could fillibuster.
You can’t rule by an iron fist, and expect those you ruled over to act gently when it’s their turn at bat. “It’s the rule of law, get over it.” You said in the early 2010s. I didn’t want to get over it then… and I don’t now either. The question is will you be here with me if trump loses in 2020? Will you still support maybe a little less authoritarianism? Or will you stand behind another power grabbing queen like you did in 2016, and tell me tough luck? I’ll still be with the rebels. I’ll still be with Luke. And in a different galaxy… I’ll still be a browncoat. Or will me and mine need to lay down so you can have your perfect world then?
I’d like to apologize for my agressiveness.
I just am so mad becuase I spent so long agonizing about the increased power to the executive, loss of fillibuster, etc. I kept saying here it comes, just wait till the shoe is on the other foot. I kept being called an idiot. And here we are.
I took my frustration out on you. Apologies.
Thank you Wil, for putting into eloquent words the way I’m feeling. I live in a state that went for Trump, so mine and my family’s puny little votes probably didn’t count, but I’m still fighting the fight. I just found a list of the Republican electors for my state online, and I am in the process of reaching out to them on Facebook with a calm and reasoned arguement for NOT voting for Trump. This may be totally ineffective in helping to change anyone’s mind, but it will make me feel like I’ve done SOMETHING! I’ve thought so many times in the last few weeks of the Chinese curse: “May you live in interesting times.” I have 4 young grandchildren, and I am sick over the world we are leaving them.
And that, sir, is why I continue to follow your writing after all these years. Chuck me a lightsaber. Let’s DO this.
Wil!
Totally OT, but I can’t find a submission link in your Tumblr just now and your lively Twitter would drown this message out.
An adult Christmas themed Choose Your Own Adventure book is about to be released.
The title is Choose Your Own Misery: The Holidays by Jilly Gagnon. It’s available on Amazon & might be a perfect read for Twitch.
You the man, Wil. This has been a public service announcement.
Yo Will! Here’s a box of tissues for your issues and a pair scissors to get rid of that turban wedgie that’s compressing your tiny little brain into goo.
Good lord, I think you’ve become #1 with a bullet as a companion piece to those Trump voters you despise, cause you know, the average American who might spend their money on you, will spend it elsewhere.
Bye the bye, were you one of those weenies who pledged to move to Canada if Trump got elected, but backpedaled once it happened.
Also, here’s food for thought. Obama wasn’t always a professional politician ya know. But, he did learn from the best political machine that money could buy in Chicago.
But apparently, to you, being Black, being a Liberal, being a Democrat and not being a professional politician, is a good thing, but being White, being Conservative, being a Republican, and not being a professional politician is not.
So refreshing to hear an opinion from someone who doesn’t live in the real world and doesn’t suffer from real world problems. Just brings a crocodile tear to my eyes.
Wut?
It’s all about the money?? (Your 2nd paragraph.) Heh. And BTW: Fuck you.
And my axe!
Being upset means you care. Being scared means you understand the potential consequences. Being angry means you want to fight injustice. But do not give in to your anger, young padawan. Do not lose control.
Yes, America needs to move away from the current extreme trends and to fix broken systems, for the sake of everyone on this planet. Anger will help you do that. But if you are on the side of tolerance, compassion, and understanding, you have additional responsibilities. You must safeguard the vulnerable, preserve the decent, seed a positive future, and make sure the lessons are remembered. Constructive destruction.
There are two ways to change the world: to fight against the bad and to create and support the good.
I’m off to put my hair in buns, blaster in one hand and kid’s book in the other.
Someone who loves you
Yes. Now, go watch “Firefly”, or for the shortcut, “Serenity”.
You’ve literally read my mind. The “I rebel” line from the trailer has been stuck in my head ever since November 8th. The left needs a rallying cry, an icon to aspire to, etc. It might just be the nerd in me, and maybe you’d only attract other progressive nerds, but I say to keep going with this and spread it as far and wide as you can. Thank you for writing this and for all that you do.
Dude, why do you let politics run your life? You are obsessed and it is not healthy.
Also, you do realize Star Wars is make believe, right? Don’t mix reality with make believe. You will go insane. Again, not healthy.
Live your life the best you can. Everything else is outside your control.
It may help to keep in mind the US Presidency is not a dictatorship. There is very little the President can do all by himself or herself. Even if the President is the most awful person in the world, there are controls in place limiting what they can do. Even so, no President would make decisions you would agree with 100% of the time. If they did, you need to question your individuality and own critical thinking ability.
Please think happy thoughts.
Wallowing in misery isn’t going to fix anything.
The die has been cast.
The moving finger has writ.
Don’t let that magnificent brain of yours be defeated by the doom and gloom that’s being spread.
Think positive thoughts and consider that this may simply be an opportunity for Trump to prove he isn’t as bad as Hillary & co said he would be.
He’s not the one building a new wall.
At best he’s going to improve the one that your previous governments already have build.
There’s too much profit in illegal aliens for anything to change without a major paradigm shift.
A country isn’t a nimble ship that can change course at the captains’ command just because he said ‘make it so’.
It’s a big slow thing that takes decades of hard work to move ever so slightly into a new direction.
As is I’m more worried about how your own media made a big deal out of some random pop star visiting Trump tower, when news about the crap that’s happening in Aleppo is barely mentioned.
Yeah, NONE of that type of “reasoning” saved Germans in the 1930s. Learn some history dude.
[CUE: Luke’s theme, in a melancholy key]
D minor?
I just had a similar epiphany last night, while watching the Fathom Events broadcast of Allegiance, George Takei’s Broadway musical about the Japanese internment during WWII. My maiden name is obviously German, yet my family did not get packed up to live in horrendous conditions during the war; my grandparents kept their jobs and served their country to the best of their abilities. Our Japanese citizens were labeled the enemy and lost everything, just because of what they were, not what they did or didn’t do.
We are on the cusp of internment camps yet again – this time for Muslims, or whatever group is deemed “dangerous”; we’ve already had Republican leaders saying that camps are a good idea that can be used again.
I’m joining Team Rebel Alliance.
You seriously think we are on the “cusp” of internment camps again? Wow, you need to think again.
Watch and learn. Donald recommitted to demonizing 2-3 million. (More than in internment camps in WWII.) No place to send them. Jails too expensive. QED.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/18/us/politics/japanese-internment-muslim-registry.html?_r=0
Hyperbole. Try something else.
I’ve been thinking about this ever since the election. At first I was angry and upset and frustrated and … pretty much like what you have been going thru Wil. But as I thought about it and learned more and listened more I came to realize that what happened is (INMHSO) a failing of all of us.
Some don’t remember WWII because they weren’t there and the stories they did hear were just that – stories. They probably never knew anyone who had been alive during the war, or if they did, the person did not talk about it much. We just passed the 75th anniversary of Pearl Harbor. My parents were married 6 months prior to that date, they spent the first 4 years of their marriage separated because my dad was drafted. My dad told tales of his time during the war, but they were light weight and never – never – dove deep into his experiences then. Not real unusual, I’ve come to learn.
I love listening to Old Time Radio shows – many going back to 1939. The other night I heard a Jack Benny episode that ended with a reminder for everyone that ‘brotherhood’ is the foundation of our nation. Brotherhood of all creeds and colors and races and religions. A plea that the war was not fought in vain. This plea was from 1946. it isn’t the first time I heard similar commentaries from OTR shows, but it struck me how many times over the decades the plea has had to be repeated.
I found myself ending the last election cycle with high hopes – who in their right minds would vote for such a creature as Trump? He is everything America is not.
Well, after the shock of realizing what happened, I have come to learn that for many of the folks who chose him, it was a way of being heard. After decades of being ignored by most politicians unless they needed a vote, people who want jobs, healthcare, fair taxes and all the rest of the promises finally gave up and changed sides in the hope that someone would listen and help.
I understand, I don’t agree with the choice, but I understand. Who wouldn’t believe the huckster who offers the shiny coin with just the right words to appeal in just the right way? Desperate times need desperate measures, or so I’ve been told.
The sad truth is, if you were willing to listen and learn, the facts were right in front of you all along. The evening news has been full of tales of unemployment, high taxes, medical care costs out of sight, racism, bigotry, fear and pretty much everything else.
The lessons of WWI, the Great Depression (1930’s) and WWII have been repeated time and again in our culture. Star Wars, Star Trek, Harry Potter. Downton Abbey. Any superhero comic you can name. They are all wonderful distractions from real life, but they all started with the events of history.
I know quite a few people who are pretty dismissive of those folks who live in middle America. They have no clue who those folks are, how they live, what they do and they aren’t really interested in learning. These same folks have no clue where their food comes from, not to mention pretty much anything else that comes into their homes. Some would tell you they are pro-labor and believe in a minimum wage, but have no need for coal. They want high quality goods for cheap prices and expect to be paid high wages for jobs that are not sustainable. Ask them what the out of work coal minor is supposed to do to put food on his table and you get a blank look. Or two. Ask him about the impact of Big Agriculture on the small farmer and you get pretty much the same blank stare. Yes, the farmer’s market is a great place to visit, but the realities of what it takes to get the goods from the farm to the market are way over the heads of lots of these folks.
On the other hand, I also know a lot of folks who have lived in the same small towns all their lives. The idea of big cities is so foreign they can’t fathom the idea. Everyone knows everyone else and there is a camaraderie that is almost familial. Strangers are just that. Many have had to send their kids away from the home towns because there was no work. Towns with dwindling citizens die slow deaths.
Throw in different religions, ethnic backgrounds and languages and it gets even more interesting.
We may chuckle when Sheldon Cooper talks about growing up in West Texas, but he’s pretty spot on.
I guess what I have come to understand is that the situation we have now has been building for decades and there is no easy fix. Especially when you have politicians who really aren’t interested in fixing anything. I just hope we don’t have a repeat of another historical episode – The Civil War.
Gotta say, Wil, I love the analogy. Really great..
Just remember, “Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.” Personally, I don’t think I ever reached the “hate” stage. Been angry a few times- even Hangry. I don’t think I ever made anyone suffer (except those reading my comment here). So I have been staying on the side of light and recommend you continue to do so, you closet dark side person you. 😉
Maybe a better line would be (from the Hitchhiker’s Guide) “Don’t Panic!”. Or how about Mongo: “Mongo only pawn…in game of life”. Whatever cracks you up and brings a smile to your face, roll with it.
I would think someone as tech savvy as yourself would be more skeptical of the “Russian Hack” story. I mean, I believe you use Nexus phones, install custom ROMs, etc. Surely you know of people that use proxy services or otherwise spoof their IP address to look like they are from other countries than they really are in order to access region restricted content in the Google Play Store. Heck, I’ve spoofed my IP in order to save a couple hundred dollars to get cheaper airfare to Europe by pretending I was from Norway instead of the United States because Norwegian Air Shuttle gives people in Norway a lower price.
Georgia says at least 10 of the hacking incidents were from our own Department of Homeland Security.
http://www.wsbtv.com/news/georgia/georgia-secretary-of-state-says-cyberattacks-linked-back-to-dhs/475707667
I like to watch the tech shows on Jupiter Broadcasting. It is mostly all Linux shows but they also have a weekly show called “unfilter” which discusses the media. They have given plenty of coverage of the “Russian hacks”. Here is one they dedicated a good amount of time to the Russian hack story but they also talk about it on most episodes following this one including one where they show a media outlet that sent someone to Russia to show the physical location some of the IP addresses are linked to. It was a Russian proxy service meaning those Russian IP addresses could have been used by anyone anywhere in the world.
http://www.jupiterbroadcasting.com/102486/russias-cyber-sneak-attack-unfilter-201/
I don’t put much faith in what we are told about the Russian hacks.
Wil – the real irony here is that you are totally unable to see the greatest truth of all. Those you demonize have been looking at the DEMOCRATS and thinking of it as the Star Wars Empire in exactly the same terms you did here, for 20 years! This is the real drawback of demonizing anything. It makes understanding and compromise impossible. Where you’ve described progress and enlightenment, others have seen lost jobs and poverty. There are NO absolutes in US Politics – and an infinite number of shades of gray. FYI – Hillary would have been just as bad as Donald. FWIW – I’m a registered Independent.
No, Donald is in essence Hitler, as you will soon see. You are stuck in False Equivalency world.
Umm, well, yeah. I’m not a Wars fan, but the reason this stuff “resonates” is because it is ultimately a commentary on “reality” no matter how “fantastic”. Especially TOS. Even your TNG. Right??
Thank you Wil for saying exactly what we’ve been thinking. The scary part is that we all need to stick together and not lose sight of the truth when the Cheeto King takes over. Folks are quick to look at the new shiny thing and forget all that has been fought for these past 8 years. I hope that voices like you stay vocal about it, as I found this post through Twitter. People are listening to you and it is important-really, really important.
Thanks.
Myself and my lightsaber, which has always been green, will fight at your side, Wil. Welcome to the Rebel Alliance.
Mr. Wheaton, those of us who’ve earned real uniforms in the actual military — versus, you know, wearing a costume from a fake military, on a mere television show — had to endure 8 years of Obama. If you’re lucky, you’ll only have to endure 4 years of Trump. Next time, get a better gottdamned candidate. Hillary Clinton? Seriously? That was the best the Democrats could come up with?
Trump probably will suck. Or maybe he doesn’t? And all this silly hyperventilating (on your part) makes the Leftward side of America seem even more out of touch.
I blame Democrats squarely, for allowing a serial liar and manipulator to scuttle Sanders, while silencing all internal Democratic opponents. You were either “With her!” or you were muzzled. And — apparently! — calling 1/4 to 1/2 of the country deplorable, is not a winning strategy in battleground states.
I didn’t vote for Trump. I thought him absurd.
But Clinton was equally absurd, for different reasons.
I’ve voted Democrat before. I probably would have (in this election) again. But Hillary? Nope. No way. I myself have a security clearance. If I’d done with my secure mail, what she did with hers, they’d have fried me. Only difference being, Hillary could buy off or intimidate everyone who might risk trying to hold her feet to the fire.
Again, next time, get a better gottdamned candidate.
I suspect that at the beginning the GOP thought what a lot of people thought: “This guy will be entertaining and get more eyeballs on our primary, but there’s no way he could win it.”