I know, hate is a strong word, but I HATE politics. All politics — right, left, center, local, statewide, national, international, European, Canadian, Mexican, the concerns about the Neutral Zone and the Klingons. I hate it all.
Everything is politicized. I can’t buy a vegetable without feeling guilty that its not organic. My car is polluting the air, there’s not enough rain, there is too much rain, you can’t get facts about anything since there is always a ‘spin.’ The Globe is warming, its cooling, no matter what its caused by the sun, moon, people, oceans, clouds, yikes.
My friend down the street produces the “Avenger” and “Guardian of the Galaxy” movies for Disney. One of her stars said publicly that maybe actors shouldn’t wear their politics on their sleeves since not everyone will agree with them, and maybe not go to their movies. I told my friend that this one ‘gets it,’ and she deserves a raise. My friend said yes, and so many don’t get it.
She told me that her movies are financially the most successful in Hollywood (by orders of magnitude, grossing literally billions of dollars) because they tell simple stories, there are good guys and bad guys, there is no deep political meaning, and they don’t take themselves too seriously. And guess what, people love them.
Politics has become so viscous that it is separating mothers from daughters, husbands from wives. Lifelong friends cross the street when they see the other coming. What is it when you can’t advertise for a roommate without asking their political affiliation? I mean really.
I refuse to watch any live television. I glance at the front page of the paper (to be sure we haven’t been invaded) then read the funnies. But I can’t read all of them because half of the cartoons are politicized. Don’t even talk about the Oscars.
Its getting so that if I see a story in the paper, and it has any political spin at all, I believe exactly the opposite. It doesn’t matter which side. They are all so twisted there is no way of sussing out the truth. So I just give up.
Psychologists are telling us that their patients are so taken with politics that they are deep in some sort of psychosis, and that the doctors are confused as to how to help them. What the hell is that all about. This is politics, for goodness sake, not whether your mother loved you.
So I have given up politics for Lent. No news, no internet, no discussions, none nada. The depression I have been feeling has lifted. The world looks better. If someone mentions anything political I smile nicely and walk away. If somehow my laptop locks on to a political blog, I look away. After dinner, if I want to watch TV, its a couple of reruns of MASH and an NCIS, Bull, or Bones. Then I read mysteries set in 19th century England.
You know, I’ll bet that in a few years the sun will still rise in the East and set in the West. We will still be a free country. Food will still be on the table. Hopefully the streets will be swept and the trash picked up. People will still park their cars. Music will sooth the savage breast. (Yes it’s ‘savage breast’ look it up.) Life will go on.
And all will be right with the world.
JVH
