Republican Fuckery XI: MTG on a National Divorce, You Know Who Visits East Palestine, TN Anti-Drag Queen Bill, and the Rising Use of Migrant Underage Children as Labor

In the Jane Austen novel, Sense and Sensibility, Marianne Dashwood says the following:

“The more I see of the world, the more am I dissatisfied with it; and everyday confirms my belief of the inconsistencies of all human characters, and of the little dependence that can be placed on the appearance of merit or sense.”

I could say the same about the Republican party.

A couple of weeks ago, Marjorie Taylor Greene decreed that it is time for a national divorce. It’s happened before. It’s called the Civil War. Though it ended almost 160 years ago, some of the scars are still bloodied and raw.

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At about the same time, you know who visited East Palestine. Though he talked a good game (as he usually does), he ignored the obvious (again, as he usually does). The safety regulations that he gutted while in office led to the accident. In an effort to look good to those around him, he gave out his own brand of water and McDonalds. Let’s put aside the fact that this fast food giant is not everyone’s cup of tea.

What is more important is how nothing has changed with the man. His response was akin to when he visited Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria and threw out paper towels as if they were t-shirts at a sporting event. The only thing that I have to begrudgingly admit is that I agree with him that someone from the current administration should have been there sooner.

In Tennessee, a new piece of legislation that restricts drag shows has been signed into law. In an ironic twist, an image of Governor Bill Lee dressed in drag as a young man has made its way to the press. Though this question may sound obvious, don’t they have more pressing issues to deal with? I can think of a very long list that does not include anyone who dresses in drag.

Courtesy of the Other 98%

And finally, the right is constantly railing against “illegal immigrants” and the problems they cause. And yet, they look the other way when thousands of underage migrants cross the border without an adult and are employed in inhumane conditions by major corporations. I guess child labor laws mean nothing when one’s skin is brown and you come to this country looking for a better life.

Somehow, someway, we have to get these people out of office before they destroy this nation.

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Throwback Thursday-Coming to America (1988)

Once upon a time, Eddie Murphy was the king of the box office. His movies did well with audiences and critics. Sadly, those days seem to be long gone.

In 1988, Eddie Murphy entered the royalty/romance genre with Coming to America.

Prince Akeem (Murphy) is the heir to the throne of the fictional African kingdom of Zamunda.  He is 21 and of an age to marry. The only problem is that his wife has been chosen for him, but Akeem is not thrilled with the idea of this marriage. Breaking tradition, he travels to New York with his loyal aide Semmi (Arsenio Hall) to find a woman who would marry him for love, not because she has been chosen for him. Lisa McDowell (Shari Headley) works for her father at McDowell’s (not to be confused with McDonalds). She has a boyfriend, Darryl (Eriq La Salle), but is starting to spend her free time with Akeem, who has started working at McDowell’s. Akeem is trying to keep his real identity a secret, but that secret will not remain a secret for very long.

I like this movie. Breaking from the buddy cop movie genre that Murphy started in after he left Saturday Night Live, he plays Akeem with a combination of optimism and a sense of who he wants to be and who he wants to be with. The comedy in this movie comes from Hall and Murphy playing multiple characters, a feature that Murphy would later known for in movies like The Nutty Professor.  The royalty/romance genre is still, even in 2015, for the most part white, it’s nice to see African and African American characters portrayed on screen as they are in this movie.

I recommend it.

Another Person’s Shoes

Let me begin by asking a question. Based upon the picture above, can you guess the city?

A. Miami

B. Honolulu

C. Tel Aviv

If your answer was C, then you are correct.

Let me tell you about the time I spent in Israel.

I have been there twice in my life. The first visit was as a teenager, the second was ten years later.

Israel is a small country, it’s no bigger than New Jersey.  But in it’s compactness lies it’s greatness.

The food is amazing. Instead of McDonalds and Burger King at every rest stop, they have falafel and schwarma. Breakfast is not just cereal and milk or a bagel with cream cheese. It’s salad and tuna and eggs.

The people are very friendly and as diverse as any large city in the United States.  The beaches are absolutely stunning. Walking barefoot into the Mediterranean sea while the North East Of the United States was engulfed in winter was heaven.

My two favorite   places to visit were the Western Wall and Masada. There is an energy around the Western Wall, as if there is a direct line to G-d. I was fortunate to climb Masada at dawn.  It was one of the most difficult experiences of my life, but also the most rewarding.  I have never seen a more beautiful sunrise than the one at Masada.

It’s no secret that the media distorts many things, including what is going on in Israel. There are many people who would happily see Israel wiped off the face of the earth.

I am going to end this post with a challenge. Regardless of your feelings or beliefs about Israel, I challenge you to visit Israel. See with your own eyes and make your own judgement. Whether or not your mind is changed, only time will tell.   But until you walk a mile in another person’s shoes, you can never truly understand them.