Living on a Thin LIne

The last time I heard The Kinks perform "Living on a Thin Line" was when it piped over the soundsystem at Bada Bing, Tony Soprano's strip club in the HBO series The Sopranos. It's an incredible song by an incredible band. The critics claim it's one of their best. I know I like it. When I was in college, The Kinks had a big album, Low Budget. It was their 18th LP and they cranked out records for almost two more decades. I forget who sat at the bar during the episode, but they knocked back drinks as topless women with pasties danced to the tune about the death of a culture and the changing of a nation. I get a sense of déjà vu now when I listen to it.

The current political climate in the United States is reminiscent of the Spanish Civil War from 1936-1939. A precursor to World War II, it pitted The Republicans (socialists, anarchists, and communists all backed by the Soviet Union) against The Nationalist rebels (an alliance of fascists, conservatives, monarchists and traditionalists supported by Nazi Germany). Although over 35,000 anti-fascist volunteers from the International Brigades (including George Orwell) joined The Republicans, they lost from a variety of factors that are too vast for this brief. At the end of the war, Francisco Franco became dictator of Spain and remained in power until his death in 1975. 

I don't have the apolitical blues. I'm angry. I'm a registered independent, lean left of center, and caucus with the Democrats. It's the lesser of two evils, but I believe in voting because I believe in The Republic. I voted for Jimmy Carter my first eligible presidential election and haven't missed one since. I was a card carrying Democrat for thirty years until I got fed up. They're a circular firing squad, and because of their blunders, a narcissist white nationalist masquerading as a real estate mogul was elected Commander in Chief. For the second time. Plus, Trump got the popular vote this past election. Nice job DNC. You bungled the job. As a result, the MAGA movement remains strong, running on an agenda fueled by Project 2025. 

According to Google, "Project 2025 is a political initiative published in April 2023 by the Heritage Foundation with the goal of reshaping the U.S. federal government by consolidating executive power in favor of right-wing policies." Russ Vought, the lead architect of the project is currently head of the Office of Management and Budget. This is the office that executes Trump's agenda among other duties. Pam Bondi, the U.S. Attorney General supports Project 2025. White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller is also in the fold. The left compares him to Heinrich Himmler. I don't go that far. I don't see any gas chambers, only detention camps. Kurt Vonnegut once wrote: "True terror is to wake up one morning and discover that your high school class is running the country." Most aren't my high school classmates. They're much younger.

If you follow the "fake news", Project 2025 is probably familiar to you. If you follow Fox News, you're probably familiar with it, too. After all, Project 2025 is the agenda of the White Christian nationalist movement. Only 10% of the country identifies with this crusade, but do they ever pack a punch. With an additional 20% of the country agreeing in sympathy, they're still a minority, but growing by the day. I'm not a hardliner on the issues. Closing the Southern Border is a good idea. Concentration Camps are not. 

I live in crunchy granola Ithaca, New York. Ten square miles surrounded by reality is the tagline for our liberal community. Lots of tie-dye shirts and black socks with Birkenstocks. The electorate here prefers communists and socialists to candidates with agendas that actually work. We finally have a Democrat legislator in Congress after years of GOP rule. Josh Riley is our representative. I voted for him twice and believe he's doing a great job. If you read the Ithaca subreddit, all the protesters and agitators want to vote him out. You get voted down if you dare say one thing positive about him. Why? Because Riley reached across the aisle on a couple of issues and also supports Israel. I know it's a small sample size, but it's a microcosm of bicoastal elitism. Snap out of it. 

The musical Cabaret takes place in Berlin circa 1931 during the decadent years of the Weimar Republic as the Nazi Party gained power. Most of the play is set in the Kit Kat Club, a popular nightclub. According to Google Gemini, "the cheerful music often underscores the bleak political reality, serving as a chilling reminder of how easily people can become complacent as totalitarianism takes hold." Liza Minnelli and Joel Grey starred in the film adaptation in 1972. I remember watching it when HBO was called Home Box Office. The end of the story "culminates with tragic consequences to those who ignored the danger."

Life is a Cabaret, old chum.