Lizard People

I learned today on a podcast from The Bulwark that some 12 million Americans believe that the country is being run by lizard people. Seriously. I wish I could do the math on this, but I have never been a stable genius at math and math gives me a headache. I will just say that 12 million seems like a significant number, especially when we are talking about something so ludicrous as the existence of lizard people. We do not actually see these lizard people, mind you, as they are also shapeshifters and exist in a separate dimension at the same time that they are existing in our dimension. 🤔 Some of these lizard people are not political figures, but entertainment figures, such as Justin Bieber. Okay, that part kind of makes sense. Bieber has always seemed pretty lizardy to me. His music kind of seems like it's from another dimension where people, and lizards, don't understand music. But that could just be a personal musical prejudice of my own rather than proof that Justin Bieber is a lizard. Apparently in due time, as the story goes, these lizard people will not be able to maintain their disguise as the energy waves from the other dimension begin to weaken 🤔 In short, they will be exposed and no doubt featured on all of the most popular political content venues. It may be that Fox has already signed a reptilian other-dimensional contract with these creatures, because of course the truth matters. As for me... Well, I'm not sure I can take anything seriously anymore when 12 million Americans are taking lizard people seriously.

Debate

 I must say that the presidential debate yesterday was the most satisfying television I have watched in a long while. To say that Harris cleaned Trump's clock is an understatement. The poor guy was drawn and quartered. And then hung out to dry. Trump looked old and incompetent, senile one might say. He was shrill, unhinged, downright nutty. Once he got to the part about immigrants eating family pets it was laughter the rest of the way for me. Of course the ever loyal Trumpers are declaring victory. He won hands down, they are saying. Well something was down, but it wasn't hands. It was him. Down and out. Soundly thrashed. Good show, Kamala. 

Prophet Song

 "What I see now, Eilish, is a black hole opening before us, we have passed the boundary of escape and even when the regime has been overturned the black hole will continue to grow so that it will consume this country for decades."

So writes Irish novelist Paul Lynch in his dystopian novel, Prophet Song; and so it is where the American situation is concerned. One election will not change anything, for the malignant poison of MAGA is now deep in the body of the nation and will afflict us for years to come.

Falling and Failing

 I seem of late to have developed a particular talent for falling. I mean, I have long been at novice level, but I have advanced now in expertise in that I no longer require a very specific reason for falling. One fall was from a chair when I was trying to put a clock on the wall, and I really don't know how this happened. One minute I was standing on the chair and the next I was flat on my back on the floor. Yesterday merely rising from my chair at a cafe and beginning to walk away was sufficient to lay me out. And it's not just the act of falling that I've become so good at. It's more than that. It's the completeness of the falls. No twisting or rolling or gaining a knee or jumping up afterwards. No, this is more like a tree falling in the forest and then just lying there. 

I note that Donald Trump has also developed an advanced expertise in falling. Not physically of course. Mentally. We have for instance those electric boats and sharks, and now we have bacon and windmills, as well as the disappearance of all the cows on earth. I guess he can say at least that no one fails in cognition better than he. Scientists, I suppose, have told him so. Or professors. Or maybe Putin mentioned it. In any case, good work, oh stable genius. And please do keep up the good work right up until you work yourself out of being the president again.

A Brief Encounter

 I ran into a very friendly fellow American this morning as I was coming out of the Daily Baguette Cafe. He came out as I was pausing to smoke a cigarette and struck up a conversation. He was from California, he told me, but came originally from Minnesota and has been here in Bali 3 years. I thought of saying Oh, Minnesota, the home of Tim Walz. I'm glad I didn't though, because he immediately started out on a rant about how terrible America is now. Even the food is fake, he said, and everyone is so woke. It's all you hear about. Woke culture. And he can't stand it anymore. 

To be honest, I don't know what woke means. Yes I see it all the time on Facebook and so on, but I can't really put my finger on any specific meaning other than perhaps it has, among those who are opposed to it, something to do with a dislike of and an intpolerance for homosexuality and trans people and liberal ideas, and so on. Anyway, I sure didn't want to talk about it. I can understand if people don't like woke culture, whatever woke happens to mean to them, but I don't understand how it does any harm to them or how it seems a threat to the extent that they would have been driven out of the country altogether. Very strange. I've been away for a long time now, and I am reminded again that I'm better off for it.

Now I'm a Believer

 Well, I have to admit that I have been positively surprised by the Harris campaign. As I mentioned here previously, I felt that Biden could have won the election fairly easily, but it appears now that Harris may win even more decisively than Biden would have, so it's all good. She is, after all, basically committed to carrying out Biden's vision for the future. And what we need ultimately in this election is a resounding victory in hopes of finally stamping out the poison that MAGA has injected into American politics--a resounding victory not only on the presidential level but on a congressional level as well so that we may secure a democratic House and Senate and actually get some things done in this country. 

Of course there are still nearly 100 days left before the election and the Republicans are desperately searching for anything they can cling to. This, so far, turns out to be insults, racist and misogynistic slurs, fake outrage over fake issues, and the like. Frankly, I think most people are finally tired and turned off by crap like this. Yes, there are some who will doggedly cling to Trump's dark vision of grievance, paranoia and fear, but hopefully many more are seeing the light of optimism and joy that the Harris team is bringing to the Democratic ticket.

The Smile

 The young woman had come prepared. As she climbed onto her motorbike, I noted that there was something attached to her chest, and that what was attached to her chest was a baby. It was tucked into a sort of backpack arrangement, head and arms sticking out as if from the shell of a tortoise. It was a small baby, maybe 4 months old. I don't know, I've forgotten what 4 months is like, or 2 months, or 6 months. This was a girl, I think. Yes, I'm sure. Pretty sure. And she did that thing that all babies do. She engaged me with her eyes, staring at me as if I were the most strange and wonderful creature in the world. Blue eyes. Wisps of blonde hair like angel hair at Christmas time. And then she smiled, as babies do, and she raised her little hand and curled her fingers in and out. Hello. And then we also smile again, don't we. How can we help it? What else can we do? And in the next moment, the child is whisked away, bound for another and another world of whirling colors and wonderful new creatures. And a brief prayer passes from my soul to my tongue and I lift a finger and touch it to the dryness of my lips. 

May God watch over this little one in the sea of trouble between here and home.