Reflections of a New Blogger (Part Two)

 

 

Coming up on two months now and I have new observations:

 

1. Still haven’t figured out a way to stop obsessing about the stats. I can instantly see how many people are viewing each post, whether they are exploring and reading other posts while visiting my blog, which ones connect and those that don’t. I suppose it could lead to my tailoring my posts to give the public what they want to read but instead it clarifies what I always suspected in that I pretty much write about what I feel like writing about which leads to the second point.

“Life, my ass, motherfucker! This is a business, and you ain’t too far gone to see that yet! I told you before, you’re not packin’ them in like you used to. No one digs your music but yourself.” Billy Sparks – Purple Rain

2. I’m writing a particular thing that to this point almost nobody digs but me. It’s an online book, “The History of American (White) Exceptionalism” and I’m posting approximately one chapter a week, according to the stats, almost nobody is reading it. It’s long, it requires a lot of research, so far its about history which some people find boring. I’ve seen data about blog length and at what point readers lose interest, but I write on. I’ve learned so much about American history and the continuing narrative about how it was built literally on the backs of slave labor and indentured servants. While slavery officially ended after the Civil War, there has been something in its place ever since then to guarantee a perpetual lower class of minorities and poor whites to provide an economic advantage for the country and to enrich the already wealthy. Whether it was the Black Codes, Jim Crow or the current system of redistricting, gerrymandering and voter suppression. The system is rigged and people need to know. I will continue to write this until it’s conclusion in about 14 more chapters because I am learning so much. I’ve found that for every Civil Rights Act (of which there were many) or “Brown vs. The Board of Education” or Voting Rights Act, there has been a Supreme Court or Congress that whittled away all these rights until their impact was minimal. When I’m finished I’ll edit it and put it out in book form, even if self-published because I’m stubborn like that.
3. People that think they’re smart, myself included, tend to think people will be swayed by their brilliance when what they’re looking for is a personal connection. I typically write about stuff and don’t always write about me hence the “Enigma” in the blog name. I’m working on that I promise. The things that have resonated the most were ones that were less facts and more feelings. I hear you.
4. Send in the clowns. In some of my blog posts, I’m saying some fairly provocative things yet no one has disagreed… not once. On my Facebook page, I have trolls I can count on to liven up the discussion but they haven’t found their way to my blog. I encourage opposing views; it may sharpen my argument or I might even change my view. Test me in this!

That’s all for now. I’m thankful for those who’ve given tremendous amounts of support and encouragement.

Nativism: An Excuse to Follow Donald Trump

Nativism: An Excuse to Follow Donald Trump

 

I’ve watched television political commentators try to describe Donald Trump’s brand of racism as “nativism”. This is not a new term in America. It was used to discriminate against the German’s. It was the basis for the “Alien & Sedition Acts” which lengthened the period for gaining citizenship to 14 years in an attempt to limit the influence of new French and Irish newcomers. It’s been an excuse to shut out Catholics and the Chinese. Despite the promise inscribed on the Statue of Liberty, America has never welcomed all immigrants, certainly not the tired, poor or huddled masses. Today legislators struggle to find a way to keep the college graduates, engineers, doctors and tech savvy while looking to exclude others. Another barometer they look for a way to exclude people is by color and religion. Donald Trump has gone where none has gone before, declaring his desire to ban “all Muslims” from our shores.

Nativism as used today is an excuse not to call it what it is… pure, unabashed racism. It is the justification for explaining away policies attractive that are obviously racist without having to say so. That America has a problem with race is not new. America has always had a problem with race and there has never been a shortage of politicians and judges and even Presidents willing to put their thumb on the scale in favor or their white constituents. The irony of the term “nativism” is that it is typically used to describe the protection of the native or indigenous population. Only in America where we constantly rewrite our own history can we conveniently forget that this isn’t white people’s native land. They came and took it from Indians and Mexicans, negotiating with their one-time enemy England as to how to divide it up.

I would love to see someone from the media or the Republican Party simply acknowledge that they are not appealing to nativism, but nakedly to the racist portion of the Republican Party that ascribes a very specific meaning to “Make America Great Again”.The reason that crazy districting within states and gerrymandering and voter suppression and mass incarceration are allowed to exist in America is indeed nativism. It’s also racist to the highest degree.

Rigged Elections

Donald Trump is crying about the “rigged elections” that don’t reflect the will of the people. When he starts fighting against gerrymandering and voter suppression I’ll give a damn.