Blog

  • Coronavirus, Gig Economy, and Deaths of Despair

    To my surprise, when I woke up this morning and started to read the news, Charlie Warzel wrote a piece about how the coronavirus quarantines are affecting people along class lines disproportionally. (I hate to brag, but I pretty much said the same thing a little while ago.) Affluent people will not suffer the same way people who have to work will, and also the gig economy is now structured so that others have to support the ones who stay home.

    And then to make this a really happy Friday, the New York Times also had a story on how working-class Americans, those who do not have a four-year college degree, are dying in higher numbers to “deaths of despair” which is defined by death due to alcohol, drugs or suicide. The data is striking and rather scary. There is a lot to unpack here, and I suggest that you read it.

    All of it is important, but what jumped out at me are two data points about how working-class Americas are less likely to be married and to go to church. The stereotype for as long as I can remember has been the opposite; working class America was the church going and family values people. If that notion is now turned on its head, does that mean that “values voters” are now college educated liberals?

    What all of this reminds me of is what Studs Terkel always said about the importance of solid, reliable, dignified work, and how that is the cornerstone of communities. That a worker needs to know that their job will be there tomorrow, that they will be paid a fair wage, and that they are respected for the work they accomplish.

    Right now, the data is showing that this doesn’t exist anymore for working class Americans, and they are getting pushed into gig economy roles, which is clearly becoming a second-class worker in America.

  • No News Day: Farmer’s Markets

    I’m not anxious about the virus. Not sure if that is good or a bad thing.

    I also feel like I have overdosed on the Democratic party and the nomination process. I am sure part of that has to do with my guy underperforming, but hey… it’s nice to have a break from the Bloomberg ads.

    So, where does that leave me?

    Actually, it would be nice to take a break from the news and thinking about how it affects everything.

    What that leaves me with is wondering why I haven’t been able to get into farmer’s markets?

    (Yes, it will be that kind of blog today.)

    I used to work near the Union Square Farmer’s Market in New York, and they gets set up three times a week in the spring and summer… and when I found myself in it, it was mainly because I had to walk through it to get to the other side. Lot’s of slow-moving people picking over apples and lavender candles.

    When we were in California, and we lived sort of in the country, there were farmer’s markets everywhere, but only on Saturdays… which I found odd. Well, there was one on Sundays, but it was the ugly stepchild of markets; picked over, and lots of old hippies that seemed more interested in telling me that I really don’t “get” what they are trying to sell me.

    Either way, I kept expecting that I will go to one, and be inspired to cook something, or just get excited about farm to table sustainable food. And I know it’s important that we all do those things, and compost too, but I feel the steely eye of the farmer watching me, hoping that I make eye contact so they can tell me a story about their farm.

    That’s it… farmer’s markets.

    Thank you…

  • Biden Is Winning, Now Walk the Walk People

    Okay… I have to admit it, and be honest about it; Joe Biden did it. He hasn’t clinched the nomination, but he did the things you need to do to win. Biden had the turn out, grew his supporters, and outperformed everyone’s expectations.

    I am a Bernie supporter, and I do believe that we need to make serious, major changes in this country. The only candidate I see who has the resolve to do that is Bernie. I know he’s not out of it, but all of us in the Sanders camp have to take a very hard look at the fact that the youth vote didn’t show up, which was a huge kick in the crotch. And though in roads were made with the Latino vote coming out, no other demographic voting block grew for Sanders, which makes it look like Bernie has hit a ceiling. It hurts to say that, but those are the facts.

    What I really took away from Biden doing so well is that the idea of beating Trump is more important to Democrats than changing the fundamental structure the country. Basically, when it comes to policy, Biden is saying that he will be a third Obama term with tweaks. I wish that weren’t true, but it’s what happened.

    Now, I will hold out hope for Bernie, but I am fully prepared to do what I had asked moderates to do is Bernie won; I will support Joe, and I will work towards his election.

  • DNC Tries to Stop Bernie: Don’t Deny the People Their Choice

    I never held much stock in the idea that centrist Democrats would actually band together and try to stop Bernie from getting the nomination, but after Pete, Beto, and Amy all showed up for Biden yesterday, I am beginning to think that a fix, though not in, might be in the works.

    When I read Michelle Goldberg this morning, and her take is that Bernie cannot attract new voters to win against Trump, it really started to sink in how much Bernie scares the crap out of mainstream Democrats.

    For this piece, I will do a thought exercise. This is not what I currently believe, but I want to do an experiment.

    Let’s just say that all of the middle of the road Democrats all are right about Bernie; if Sanders gets the nomination, he loses to Trump. Well, how did that happen and what does that mean?

    If the centrists continue down their path of trying to pack the vote against Bernie, and create a contested convention where Sanders loses the nomination, then the centrists have just handed Trump a victory. It plays into the narrative that “elitists” know better than the people, and that’s how democracy dies, they would say. Also, if the Democrats do this, then the majority of Bernie supporters won’t show up. (They did it in 2016, remember?) Finally, it sends the message to the people of this country that incremental to no change is better. Sadly, mainstream Democrats aren’t listening to the rest of this country who are actually hurting, which is why they are looking for a Bernie to shake things up. That was a big reason why people voted for Trump, and the mainstream Republicans tried to do the same thing to derail that nomination. They failed and we got Trump.

    I don’t know for certain what the right answer is. Luckily, no one does, but denying voters their choice is not a solution. It will only make things worse.

  • Tales from the Video Store: Guardians (2017 Russian Film)

    If you are not aware, I do love bad movies. And Amazon Prime has become a goldmine for me when it comes to finding new awful films to watch. With their feature “Customers Also Watched” for movies which can lead me down a rabbit hole of amazing horrible bad movies.

    That’s how I got to “Guardians,” a 2017 Russian superhero movie that no one should ever confuse for anything associated with Marvel, or DC for that matter. I had actually thought it was one of The Asylum’s mockbusters, such as a rip off of “Guardians of the Galaxy.” Nope, I got something even more culturally rewarding.

    This “Guardians” is not only a bad superhero movie, but it is a bad Russian superhero movie that bombed in Russia. It’s like an added bonus that it’s disliked in two countries.

    It’s not really an awful idea for a movie. The superheroes are created but the Soviets during the cold war, with the lead scientist going crazy. The scientist blows something up, and everyone goes into hiding. (That’s the not so awful part; the Soviet thing, but I have a feeling the “Black Widow” movie this year will tell a better story… I digress…) Then years pass, the evil scientist returns, and so the superhero band has to be put back together. Stuff blows up, and the end. We got a guy who controls rocks… sure, why not. The super assassin guy, a dude who turns into a bear (Russian after all) and a women who disappears when she gets wet, or touches water.

    Oddly, no one flies, which means they were always dependent on a ride if you think about it.

    Not a very original film, and the worst part, besides some really awful special effects, is the montage of the band getting back together. The Rock guy is the one who goes out to collect everyone. So, each character gets a moment of showing how they have been using their abilities since breaking up. And after they get done demonstrating their abilities, usually meaning something blew up in slow motion, the Rock guy is there, right off camera to have some witty comment, which surprises that other hero.  It’s like no one sees the Rock Guy coming, ever.

    Either way, it’s a terrible/wonderful awful hour and a half of pretty much cliched superhero stuff from the other half of the world. I was left thinking that since this movie is generally hated in its home country, then maybe Americans and Russians are not that different after all.