Mission Statement

I have a table-top gaming blog. Last Wednesday, I wrote on there that I don't think geeking and politics should mix. I'm officially retracting that.

Why? Because last Tuesday a narcissistic pathological liar won the highest office in the United States of America on a platform of open racism and sexism. That's not 21st century America. It's 1930s Germany.

John Oliver told his audience before signing off on Sunday is that the worst thing we can let happen is to let that seem normal. I can't, and I won't.

This is a message to the poor, mostly rural whites that are mostly conservative but not as malicious as Trump's rhetoric makes you appear. It's also a message to urban liberals that aren't as condescending as the celebrities on TV make you look.

No More Bubbles

I'm white and well educated. I also live in a poor, rural community. I know the anger on both sides. Benson's job options are a few no-tell motels along the freeway, the city government, a hospital, a mental health facility, and a Walmart. So I know that anger.

But what has my college degree and secondary training in a writing and research intensive field gotten me? Jack all so far. Jobs at call centers? Fuck those. I'd rather work retail customer service and be able to look people in the eye. Either way, I have some expensive pieces of paper that say "Yay! I Did It!" and not a whole lot else. I know that anger.

And for those of you lucky enough to have never experienced it, or better yet, lucky enough to have moved on to a better place in your life and are forgetting that feeling, the anger is bone deep. A Rage, if you will. Something that wants to project outward to make enemies and tear down everything they hold dear. Especially since projecting it inward only tears you apart inside and only makes it harder to find a way to move on.

I'm tired of enemies. I can't alienate the rural poor people I work with. I can't alienate the literate, more urban circles that I'm a part of. I want to understand the anger both feel and channel it.

No More Lies

I lie to myself. I say that because I don't put on a white robe and burn crosses on peoples' lawns, I'm not a racist. I say that because I don't grope women or chant "No means yes. Yes means anal" I'm not sexist. I tell myself that because I'm not part of the problem, that I'm the solution. That's a lie.

Not being part of the problem matters, yes. But it's the first step. It's to say something when I see someone being racist, sexist, anti-semitic, or Islamaphobic. Even someone just passively accepting a line of thinking that's flawed. I've passively accepted it when I've seen it for too long. I can't anymore. The more I tell myself, "It'll change eventually," the more I forget that change needs to be fought for.

And I'm not just going to stop lying to myself. I will strive to research what the politicians on both sides of the aisle, local and national, are saying and catch them in lies. And not just politicians. Business leaders. NGO leaders. Media pundits. Anybody.

No More Dismissal

I know the anger. I know the lies. I can't dismiss the people for believing lies or feeling anger.

So I'm gonna do the best research I can. I have an agenda. Yeah, it's a socially and economically liberal one. I also have a particular voice. Since I started with blogging about table-top role-playing, I'll be couching this one in my familiar language. But if you have a problem with the agenda, if you have a problem with the voice, take a deep breath and CONSTRUCTIVELY tell me what you think and why. I don't want to dismiss you. Please return the favor.

I have a long slog ahead of me. We have a long slog ahead of us.

So the plan going forward?

First, I'm going to keep track of our President Elect as best I can and post as much of the truth about what he is doing as I can.

Second, sometimes I will dig into history and discuss times when politics and geekery mixed, and the tragedies and triumphs that came out of those.

And I'm going to conclude this post with a simple declaration:

Blacks, Hispanics, LGBTQ, Women, Jewish people, Muslims, anyone who isn't a white, Christian male: if the worst happens, and they come for you, they'll have to take me, too. Because I will be standing with you.