Democracy Under Attack

 I am watching on live TV the disaster that confronts American democracy.  Even Mitch McConnell spoke against the efforts of fellow Congressmen to undermine the general election, reminding everyone that the election was not even close and there has been absolutely no credible evidence of voter fraud aside from isolated incidents.  While Congress debated, a mob has infiltrated the Congressional building and is threatening violence, incited by the sitting President.  The National Guard has been called in.  It looks like a frelling third world dictatorship in Washington right now and all I can say or think is, I am so deeply embarrassed for America today.  Shame on all those who have spread hate and lies and crazy conspiracy theories.  Shame on those who believe them.  And deep, deep shame on those who think the actions I am seeing right in front of me are in any way democrat ic.  I believe in freedom of speech and the right to peaceful assembly, but what I am seeing play out in front of me is on the edge of insurrection.  It would make a Stalin proud, but it makes me shudder.

A Gentle Poem For the End of a Brutal Year

 

Driving Home at 6 am, December 30, 2020 

I turn a corner slowly,

Watching out for deer.

My headlight catches

The speed limit sign,

Twenty-five, and I smile-----

I am alive!

It is the end of another year

And the rollcall of the famous dead

Tumbles through my brain

And I rejoice:

I am alive!

Snowflakes tumble slowly downward

Bound to gravity,

Bound to the earth,

And I rejoice:

Walking now toward my front door

As if I were in a snowglobe

Freshly shaken.

The Book Brag Blog

 

I finally have both Infrequent Flier and Avalanche of Bones finished to the point where I can let them go out into the world without me helecoptering over them. Please enjoy! Infrequent Flier is a collection of stories from my life and the lives of some of my fondest heroes, including one fictional one, Doctor Who. Avalanche of Bones is a shorter collection in terms of pages, with three sets of poems divided by a section of fictional and one of factual stories. I have spent a lifetime collecting these stories and reflections, intending to create many, many books but never quite having enough time for long projects. Instead, it occurred to me that each “book” would make an interesting “chapter” and perhaps a better way to tell the story. As always, I invite the reader to dig deeper into anything that sparks their interest. I have two mantras by which I choose to live: stay curious and, as The Doctor prescribes, “Above all, be kind.”

Cap'n Jack and Holiday Cheer

 

I love the holidays. Christmas is my favorite time of the year. The decorations, the anticipation, all those lights against the Dark, snow on the ground (just enough to be decorative, no shovelling required). The joy of giving, the excitement of receiving . . .

It begins with a slow rumble through October, then picks up steam from Halloween through Thanksgiving while our granddaughter happily changes the stick-ems on our windows. Then Advent comes, the real countdown begins, the tree goes up, the presents get wrapped and hidden until Christmas Eve. Then comes our traditional Christmas dinner, Chinese take-out from the Asian Buffet, and hours playing for all that new stuff while waiting for 7 pm. and, since 2005, the Doctor Who Christmas Special.

Chris Chibnall, newest showrunner for The Doctor, for whatever reason moved the Special to New Year's Day. That's okay, as long as it happens. In fact, with all the hope for the future we are investing into 2021, it seems fitting to start off with a new visit from the first female Doctor in the show's long and fabled history and her wonderful trio of companions including Graham, a man around my age who always gets it done.

But wait, there's more!

Few two word phrases in the English language, after “Doctor Who,” of course, elicit as much excitement in me as “Cap'n Jack.” This comes from learning about Calico Jack Rackham, fabled pirate captain and Anne Bonny's lover. I believe Captain Jack Sparrow of Disney fame was inspired by Calico Jack, even if the caricatrure was based on the mannerisms of Keith Richards and self-assurance of Pepe le Pew. Ultimately, though, it is Captain Jack Harkness, who first appeared in the initial season of the Doctor Who reboot, then was the lead character in Torchwood while making several visits to the Whoniverse, that brings me thrills. As played by John Barrowman, he is one of the outstanding characters of the 21^st Century. Chris Chibnall cut his teeth as showrunner for Torchwood. He knows the irreverant, bi-sexual, impossible to kill Jack Harkness. And now, on New Year's Day, Jack is back!

Today is the third Sunday of Advent. Santa comes by in eleven days and Chinese food in twelve. Captain Jack shows up in 19, and I'm counting down.

Democracy Is Not Dead

As we waited to see how the transition of power from Donald Trump to Joe Biden would play out, Linday Graham, that beacon of convenience, declared that Republicans had to change the rules or no Republican would ever again be elected President. The whole waiting game was a scary, scary moment. Many of us feared that the peaceful transition of power simply would not happen. It seemed that the honor system had been blown to bits. Trump seemed to be searching for ways to justify overturning the election results, tossing them aside altogether. We speculated on all the ways that could happen and wondered if we were strong enough and clever enough to stop him. And yet, and yet. The election itself was a refreshing boost of democratic confirmation. So I wrote the following poem on November 17, 2020, two weeks after the election. It was inspired in no small part by Ingrid Jonker's brilliant poem, “The Child Is Not Dead,” and, as always, by the incredible words of Wilfred Owen, one of my soldioer-poets of World War One, “All the poet can do is warn.” 

  Democracy is not Dead 

Democracy is not dead. 

She rides upon the millions 

Of restless, marching feet, 

Demanding to be heard,

Mis-quoting Twain, “Reports 

 Of my demise are just a bit 

Premature—be vigilant!”

Democracy is not dead. 

She shouts alongside the millions: 

I have spoken, let me speak! 

Her epitaph, though written, 

Lies inside the editor's desk 

Unpublished. 

Her voice, though trembling, 

Has found renewed strength but is 

Caught in her hesitation, 

Looking for words, needing but a few. 

Democracy is not dead. 

Her body shows the bruises 

Of every time she stumbled 

But the multitude each time 

Has picked her up and set her back

Upon the terrible long path to Golgotha 

While Liberty awaits her 

To share her fate. 

Democracy is not dead 

Though there are so, so many 

Who would make her so.

Five Points Post Election

One. At the pro-Trump rally in Washington yesterday violence broke out and twenty people wound up arrested. I don't care which side you are on, if you think violence furthers your cause, stay out of mine. Two: Let the courts decide. This is a nation of laws. Accept it! The Department of Homeland Security declared that 2020 was the most secure election in US history. Accept it! Eighty percent of America has. In a nation governed by majority rule, that's a pretty good number. Three:The election shows that America remains divided. Donald Trump lost but still garnered more votes than anyone else in history except Joe Biden. At the same time, the Democrats lost seats in the House and could not get their sweep into the Senate. State legislatures by and large stayed as they were. Four: What does it mean? Most Americans hope that a change at the top will lead to better, more coordinated management of the Covid-19 Crisis, but no one seems to want to endorse sweeping change anywhere else. Five: We do not want another lock down. But to avoid it, we just need to be courteous to one another and respect each other's safety. It has been shown that masks help both the wearer and everyone else. Wear them. They're just another item of clothing. Socially distance. Wash your hands. Be polite. Be mindful of those around you. Watch out for the other guy! Or gal. It's not hard, and if it helps keep our ecnomy going, it's patriotic.

Biden Wins, What Now?

The National Nightmare is not over. America remains divided and confused. Half the population is uttering a sigh of relief, the other half a groan of bewilderment. Many Americans are angry and restless and uncertain how to proceed. But the invitation to re-unite as a nation is out. Joe Biden is President-elect of the United States. Still, Donald Trump is acting President for 74 more days. He will challenge the vote. States with close results will automatically recount the ballots cast there before being certified. Mr. Biden is President-elect of a country in crisis, and there are no magic bullets to take us out of the varied crises that confront us. It will take working together for the common good. The invitation is out. What strikes me is that more people came out to vote than ever before, despite all the challenges to the process imposed by Covid-19 and utterly false suggestions about vote integrity, America's citizens stood in ridiculously long lines not just on election day but every day wherever early voting was permitted. 100 million voted by mail or brought their ballots in to voting centers. The voter refused to be disenfranchised by either disease or disruption. President Trump received more votes than any candidate in history except Joe Biden, while President-elect Biden won the highest percentage of the popular vote of any candidate facing an incumbent president. Democracy seems to have won a major victory here. Unity and Civility stand by her side. And Hope has booked the next flight home.