Many of us probably have to be reminded that it's Labor Day weekend (Sept. 4-6). I used to tease Jim Morrison, every year in fact, about how he should get fired up writing an editorial for the occasion, talking up the "role of organized labor in building our great country." Well. . . Jim would not be of a mind to write such a thing, based on pretty unsubtle political inclinations.
The Republican Party and unions are rather the antithesis of bedfellows. Morris legend has long proclaimed that we were in position to get the big new 3M plant, but cold water got tossed on that by certain movers/shakers who feared unions. We have government-based institutions whose employees are in unions. In fact, government has seemed to be a last grand bastion for unions, n'est-ce-pas?
BTW Alexandria got the 3M plant. Alex is rather known to run rings around us in a variety of ways. We can only respond to that with a shrug. Morris couldn't even get its grant approved for an extension to the biking/walking trail. The trail is a nice place to go when you want to ponder questions like: why is there no local recognition of Labor Day? No speeches like for Memorial Day. And yet we observe the three-day holiday weekend.
The MACA football team played on Thursday so maybe that makes it a four-day weekend. Why not? The Tigers won 15-6 at Howard Lake.
Now we just have to take one week at a time as we all try to fend off any re-emergence of the pandemic. Odds are, it can only get worse as the air gets cooler/drier, unfortunately. DeToy's Restaurant was packed this morning, Saturday. It will be likewise tomorrow as people stop by after church, so our churches must be doing well for the time being. Ah, "for the time being." Keep that line handy.
Amidst the angst, are political conservatives really celebrating what happened with abortion in Texas? Such folks appear strangely quiet now, not exactly celebratory. What gives? They've been talking up the pro-life cause emotionally for years. Now they are starting to get their way. That's what happens when we elect a right wing president who appoints multiple Supreme Court members. We've made our own bed. You know the rest.
So now Texas has a "vigilante" system for abortion prohibition. Isn't that classy? At the same time we're dealing with the pandemic and all its ramifications.
Alternate history
Hillary Clinton would have attacked the pandemic with rules, laws and guidelines that, yes, would have gotten many of us upset. That's what happens when we're forced to obey laws, like the seat belt law. People grimace and complain, as per human nature from time immemorial, but we move on, learn to fasten our seat belt, and we're all the better for it.
But we decided to elect an unbalanced reality star con artist president, he of the attempted secret dalliances with porn stars and Playboy models, and of all people, the religious right went along with it, became the leaders of it.
Maybe in heaven we'll all find our sanity. If I go there, will I have to share space with the Mississippi governor? This individual recently said we shouldn't be all that afraid of covid because Christians can count on eternal life. I challenged all Stevens County ministers to give their sermon tomorrow based on that statement, that logic. Thing is, people in public positions like governors are supposed to serve all the people, all their constituents. Without bias.
Trump and his fellow travelers have dispensed with old norms. Like, the norm of not trying to influence the Federal Reserve. There were hot suspicions during the Trump presidency that the Fed chairman was made to answer to the treasury secretary. C'mon, can you dismiss such a suspicion? Trump was inclined to try any impulsive idea. And maybe the fallout hasn't all impacted us yet. It hasn't came home to roost, not yet, but what about when it does?
The conservative media skews everything. Extreme conservatives were a backwater when I was a kid. Thing is, this element has learned to seize the new electronic media so effectively. So the real paranoid folks have an appreciable audience now. The vaccine and mask deniers can wave their arms and get noticed.
Whither the academic year?
What lies beyond this Labor Day weekend? Schools at all levels everywhere are whistling in the dark as they hope to manage somewhat normal schedules. It appears various "red" states in addition to Texas are going to apply the abortion trick, the "vigilante" trick.
Our complete breakdown of civilization may lie ahead. We just lost another war. What do you think of that? That war was begun by George W. Bush who was once seen as the conservative bright light. Everything has gotten deconstructed since then. Bush looks like an eminent scholar compared to what we got from 2016 to 2020. Bush had a modicum of sense about respecting our institutions. Liz Cheney recognizes that. But even she has turned into an outlier now.
So, what should we be expecting in this Labor Day weekend of 2021? Enjoy the three days, because the outcomes after that could be under a shroud of bleakness. I just close my eyes and wonder if I should bet the green numbers at the roulette table.
My podcast for September 4
I invite you to visit my "Morris Mojo" podcast where today, the new music from ABBA is top of mind. That's the grist for today's offering, and I invite you to click on permalink:
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com
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