Realizing that "them" now is "me" later seems important. But we’re tired. We’re exhausted. We’re lame.
March 27, 2025
I have no idea what I’m talking about. I hope that’s clear.
Several wildfires are burning in Western North Carolina right now. One of them is eyeing an old friend’s house in the same way a pedophile hovers on the periphery of the playground. Bad intentions. A sickness. Inevitable without preparation, a protector, a little luck, or all three.
My friend lives on a mountain way out in the woods south of Brevard, almost to the South Carolina border. I've never been there, but it's remote and hard to get to. This friend and I go way back. We carpooled to swim team together back in middle school. I always dreaded when it was her dad's turn to drive because I'd run out into the cold Connecticut morning at 5 am to see his silver car exhaling exhaust and steam in our driveway lit red by the taillights. And as much as I looked forward to the warmth of the car, I dreaded the horrible easy-listening station I knew would be blaring. I love jazz and classical, but this was like a soulless Muzak created by AI far before AI was invented. Calling this music is like calling the thick beige Sherman Williams slathered on a cinder block wall at the DMV a painting. I was always exhausted to the point of passing out at that hour of the morning, but there's nothing like listening to bad music to wake you up and give you enough anger to get through the day. Now, each morning, the news gives me the same irritating jolt.
I asked my friend if they needed a place to crash or if I could come down with a chainsaw to help clear brush from around their house. Her husband is a pretty famous trail builder, and they’re tough-as-nails mountain people, so I should have known they’d have already done everything that could be done. The last photo she sent was from her kitchen, and it was of an angry fire not far enough in the distance checking them out from across the way and deciding on its next move.
This got me thinking about fire suppression. The best defense against fire is to remove anything that fire likes to eat. All of that flammable brush near the ground needs to go. The trees need to go. The bushes need to go. If there's nothing to burn, nothing will burn.
It might be argued that the most flammable material in our country is concentrated at our college campuses. That's how it should be and how it always has been. If you're a new idea, a new movement, or a societal sea change, your birthplace might have been across from a student union or down the way from a dorm somewhere. My friend, being eyeballed by the wildfire, ended up going to the same college I did, down in South Carolina. I wouldn't say we were part of a new movement or a societal sea change, but we did hang out at a rock club called Rockafella's quite a bit where we drank heavily, saw great bands, and traded wild mostly incorrect thoughts the way college kids should be encouraged and free to do.
If you want to prevent a fire, you have to get out your chainsaw, shovels, and rakes- and you need to cut the brush down to the dirt. There can be nothing left. And by chainsaws, shovels, and rakes, I, of course, mean masked ICE agents driving unmarked cars. And by brush, I, of course, mean ideas and dissent. It's best to start by stripping away the fuel that is easiest to clear. 300 foreign students have seen their visas revoked under President Trump.1 Many have been detained without legal cause. (Empathy for the Palestinian people isn’t support of Hamas any more that empathy for the people of Israel is support of Benny Netanyahu). Mahmoud Khalil and Rumeysa Ozturk are the most notable detainees right now, but they're not the only ones. Not at all.
“We gave you a visa to come and study and get a degree, not to be a social activist that comes in and tears up our university campuses,” said Marco Rubio, Secretary of State.
Yes. Attending university and social activism just don’t mix. Oh Marco, you poor unhappy dickhead. I liked you better as a frightened, silent zombie staring at the wall from the sofa in the Oval Office. We could all see on your face as every regret for every single one of your poor choices registered in front of your dead eyes. I guess you've gotten over that. Power does that to a person. I wonder how Marco would feel if either of his daughters was confronted on the street by masked men, grabbed before being shown a badge, handcuffed and taken into custody, and thrown into an unmarked vehicle. Can you imagine how terrifying that would be? How on earth can this happen in the United States? How? But it has. It’s becoming routine. We hardly blink anymore when there’s a school shooting, and this will likely be the same if we can’t figure out how to start blinking again.
Mahmoud Khalil had a green card. Having a green card does have some restrictions. You can't vote, can't have a government job, can't serve on a jury, can't get a passport, can't hold office, etc... All things you'd expect. Green card holders can be deported if they commit certain crimes. I'm no scholar (legal or otherwise), but in the five minutes I spent researching this, I found a list of things a green card holder can legitimately be deported for. The list includes things that would land any citizen in jail. (Except for the rich citizens.) Murder, drugs, child pornography, theft, and so on. This list also includes engaging in terrorism or activities that threaten U.S. national security. Protesting a policy of the United States that you don't believe in is not terrorism—citizen or not. (Go read the op-ed Ozturk was detained for writing here and see if it sounds like terrorism to you.) As distasteful as it is, a peaceful KKK rally isn’t terrorism either and should absolutely be protected. Anyone, ANYONE has the right to voice their opinion in this country as long as they don't break any laws. It's my understanding that this is what free speech means. When I'm in China, I avoid speaking loudly about Tiananmen Square, Tibet, the Uyghurs, or Taiwan. Because it's China. In the USA, I've always been under the impression that I could think and say whatever I felt like thinking or saying. I'd hoped that any visitor to the US would feel the same. In America, no matter who you are - no matter what your viewpoint is—you have the right to express it. Right? That fact is becoming unclear. I’d prefer that the United States not have China vibes, if that’s okay with you.
I assume we're all aware that the Trump administration and that bland henchman Rubio don't give a crap about what these students were protesting against, or that they were protesting at all. It doesn't matter. That wasn't the point. This is simply a message to all college students and to every one of us that we'll be better off if we shut the fuck up. No matter what the administration does next, there'd better not be any hubbub about it because you know what could happen. Relax. Just a little pinprick. Sit quietly. This won't hurt a bit, okay? Of course, this isn’t the first time. "Look what they're doing to them. It’s horrible! To them. To them." And finally, and without actual realization or fanfare, that becomes - "Oh shit. Look what they’re doing to me. This is not my beautiful house. This is not my beautiful wife. How did I get to El Salvador?" Realizing that "them" now is "me" later seems important. But we’re tired. We’re exhausted. We’re lame. Mostly, we’re lame.
It's the same message that has Universities scrambling to erase their DEI initiatives. I hate to bring up Orwell, but they’re freaking erasing words from government websites for Christ sake! The message is, "WE HAVE ASSUMED CONTROL. YOU WILL OBEY." And it's working. For now. But in these scenarios, someone occasionally ends up hanging upside down in a public square, or a head ends up in a basket. People get pissed. And when millions of folks get angry at the same time for the same reason - well... I mean... that can be good or bad. Bland stooges against a pissed off tsunami is a match that should probably take place. But these sorts of things often start on college campuses. Hmm. Don’t let us down, young people. We don’t deserve it, but if you can ignore the threats and bullying and squeeze in yet another societal sea change, I, for one, would be much obliged.
I hope my friend down in Brevard has every success with their fire suppression. They evacuated last night, and the house was still there when they went back to check on it this morning. These are good people who don't deserve what a wildfire has to offer. So far, so good.
For those who sense panic in this post and feel it’s unnecessary—I want you to be correct. A right-wing reader commented that what I’m feeling now is exactly what he felt during the four years of Biden. This is the problem. I simply can not comprehend being freaked out by well-meaning, dottering old Joe being in power. I can’t understand how anyone could listen to Trump speak for 30 seconds and not realize he’s no one you’d ever want to hang out with. And on the other side, the right-wing reader has no idea why I’m freaking out. It just doesn’t add up for him. In his eyes, Trump is cool, and his suggestion was to “enjoy the ride.” And look, I’m fairly confident that right-winger and I could probably have a pleasant beer together if we concentrated on what we had in common and didn’t talk about politics. I know this because I’ve had plenty of beers and friendships with people whose politics would infuriate me if we talked about it and vice versa. But on a very deep and basic level, we just don’t understand each other at all. We speak completely different languages. That can’t be good.
Some things need to be panicked about. The opposite of panic may be complicity. The kerosene of fear that has been poured over our college campuses and throughout this country is not going to evaporate. It will sit there fermenting, concentrating, and gathering potency, soaking into the dirt even if all the brush has been cleared. There is righteous volatile fuel within each of us if only we can access it. Wrong can only maintain itself for so long. It can last decades or centuries, but it can’t last forever. Can it? What’s true and just may become covered by dark clouds and obscured at times. But it’s there. It can’t be disappeared like an unlucky college student or anyone else the administration decides on a whim is a foreign terrorist. The chemically charged dirt beneath us and within us contains all the required energy, just waiting to become action. We just need a bit of flint and steel.
NOTE: Good Lord Almighty. Remember that post where I said I disliked clueless people who talk out their asses about politics? This is self-loathing at its best. I can’t help it. It’s almost a week later, and my friend’s house has made it so far, and I think they’re in the clear. I hope the same for the USA.
Find a local 4/5/25 Nationwide Day of Action
Saturday, April 5
11am – 1pm EDT
Pack Square Park
80 Court Plaza
Asheville, NC 28801
All who support our constitutional democracy are encouraged to attend.
I have no idea what this is about or who’s running it or anything at all. I just know that being out on the street with other freaked out people can be extremely therapeutic and likely entertaining…
www.bbc.com/news/articles/c75720q9d7lo
www.tuftsdaily.com/article/2024/03/4ftk27sm6jkj
thehill.com/homenews/education/5218410-ice-arrests-tufts-alabama-students-trump-immigration-crackdown-rumeysa-ozturk-khalil/
www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/trump-administration-takes-aim-immigrant-students-rcna198346
“Enjoy the ride” is kind of like what somebody said about women and rape - “might as well lay back and enjoy it.” Itchy Boots is in Yemen today. With that stamp and two from Iran in her passport, I don’t think it’s wise for her to come to the U.S. later this year for her book tour.
Bravo!