My Paper, My Words is a collection of essays, stories, and poems that reflect the challenges of a middle-class husband and father trying to navigate a rapidly changing political, religious, and technological landscape of post-911 America.
I see a brown wall and I want it painted black if you have brownish skin I want to send you back
I see brown men walk by dressed in their working clothes I tell my ICE agents It’s time to make them go
I see the Ukraine fry in Russian drone attacks the bombing raids and tanks that turn their cities black
I see our democracy begin to fade away a thousand starving kids in Palestine today
When I look inside myself I see my heart is black the orange spray-on tan can’t cover up the fact
’till that day I fade away you’re tied onto the track I’ll make you suffer days while turning this world black
I watch the climate change from here to Timbuktu I smile at the heat that’s burning into you
If you look hard enough into my soulless eyes there’s only room enough for all that I despise
I see a brown wall and I want it painted black just like my darkened heart too hard to even frac
I see brown men walk by dressed in their working clothes I tell my ICE agents It’s time to make them go
My feeble mind is tainted tainted black Black as night Black as coal I wanna see the hope Blotted out from your eyes I wanna see them painted, painted, painted painted black, yeah
My Paper, My Words is a collection of essays, stories, and poems that reflect the challenges of a middle-class husband and father trying to navigate a rapidly changing political, religious, and technological landscape of post-9/11 America.
Picture a man with some bloat on his liver with raked yellow hair and marmalade thighs He steps to the mic and opens his pie-hole this man with blue pinholes for eyes
White MAGA letters on foreheads and tees Flow in a sea of blood red Look for the hope and the sun in the sky And it’s gone
Donny paints the sky in sorrow Donny paints the sky in sorrow Donny paints the sky in sorrow, ahh
Follow him down to a fridge in the basement Where sweet chocolate sundaes are in full supply Everyone screams as he gets in the shower With swastika shampoo and pie
Bullet-proof limos appear on the shore Waiting to take him away Climbs in the back and he waves at the crowds And he’s gone
Donny paints the sky in sorrow Donny paints the sky in sorrow Donny paints the sky in sorrow, ahh
For the benefit of Vladimir A sourpuss that’s insincere, a criminal JD and Trump will kiss his ass to lend support for his morass is seminal. Soldier men and forces, bombs and bosses, Jumping through a hog’s head of real fire. with a sneer Vladimir will challenge the world!
Inebriated Vladimir lays down a beat on Saturday, at Ukraine’s gate. A Russian Bear will dance and sing As Rubio bows to a King, a coward’s fate Mess’rs P. and T. assure the public their protection will be lesser than none. and of course, NATO the Horse, dances alone
The bombs begin at ten to six When Vladimir performs his tricks without a sound And Mister T. will demonstrate There’re things he can’t resuscitate from underground Having stuck the knife with devastation A bloody time is guaranteed for all And tonight, Vladimer is having a ball
I have four college friends with whom I meet every few months for dinner and drinks. It’s always a great evening. We relax, catch up, and laugh.
We’ve had two get-togethers since the 2024 presidential election.
Because one of our friends is a staunch Republican, we don’t talk politics at these dinners. It’s strange because if that one friend was not sitting with us, we’d be talking politics – not the entire evening, mind you, but at some point. How could we not? Look at what’s happening to our country – not talking politics in this day and age feels like a dereliction of civic duty – at least to me, it does.
Since Donald Trump won the presidency, we’ve seen firsthand the harm a dictatorial know-nothing president can inflict on Americans and citizens across the globe – every one of our allies hates us (even Canada!) now, and rightfully so – fuck, I hate us – we’ve become the nation-state version of the ugly American – taking on the personality of our intellectually vapid, bloviating, bigoted, bully of a president.
On one level, I think we feel that talking politics might reveal something about our Trump-voting friend that contradicts the deeply held values the rest of us have about truth, honesty, the rule of law, Democracy, and the country we live in. We don’t want to deal with all that on a casual night out, where the primary goal has always been to enjoy each other’s company.
And so, in this unprecedented era of political upheaval, we choose to bite our tongues. We keep our views on Trump to ourselves – sticking to familiar and comfortable topics like family, work, retirement, sports – everything and anything under the sun – except the fall of America’s Democracy at the hands of a deranged and narcissistic demagogue.
We sipped wine and whisky at our most recent get-together and indulged in expensive appetizers, never speaking about America’s seismic political shift and disastrous effects on our friends and allies worldwide. It’s a strange dichotomy—like we sense the orange elephant at the table and simply talk around it.
Sometimes silence (whether for fear of retribution by a government or to avoid feeling uncomfortable with a friend) isn’t the best approach. Fascist movements grow when citizens bow to fear and go silent. Silence can also damage friendships differently. When we hold our tongues to avoid being uncomfortable around a friend, we subconsciously fill the quiet with preconceptions. When that happens, we attribute characteristics and hardened views about that friend, which may or may not be true. Over time, these views can weaken the friendship.
Maybe it’s better to discuss everything openly so we truly know what each other thinks about America’s current situation.
I’ve had conversations with 3 of my friends who, like me, are appalled at the shitshow that is Donald Trump – and none of us can understand how an educated person capable of critical thought would ever consider voting for Donald Trump, especially after what played out before our eyes on January 6th, the stolen documents case, and Trump’s 34 felony convictions. I always thought that even for diehard Republicans, all of Trump’s negative baggage would be enough to say, “I’m done with this guy.” That doesn’t necessarily mean they would vote Democrat — just that they would not / COULD NOT cast a vote that would hand America’s policy keys to a malevolent malcontent who is drunk and hellbent on retribution and indebted to Russian mobsters and oligarchs.
POLITICS FEEL DIFFERENT TODAY BECAUSE IT IS DIFFERENT—In the past if a Republican won the presidency, I was disappointed for a few weeks, and then I moved on. I wasn’t worried about American Democracy crumbling when Reagan or George Bush was president. I understood that even though my politics didn’t align with theirs, we believed in the same core principles that define America.
Recently, I saw a post on social media categorizing Trump voters into nine groups. It’s less complicated than that. In my view, Trump voters fall into three (sometimes overlapping) groups:
The ignorant/uneducated
The misinformed
The selfish
The 2024 election taught us that when combined, these three groups—the ignorant, the misinformed, and the selfish—outnumber voters who think critically, and we’re seeing chaotic and tragic results on the national and international stage.
By the way, I know how I come across when I lump people into three negative categories—I come off as a judgmental elitist / absolutist. But here’s the thing: I had never categorized voters like this before Donald Trump became president.
Before Trump, the difference between Democrat and Republican voters wasn’t perplexing. Elections before Trump didn’t cause me to look for a deeper understanding of “what went wrong” by digging into the cult-like psychology of Republican voters. Before Trump, voters differed on policies and social issues but not on truth, integrity, and what it meant to be an American — that is not the case with Trump Republicans. Honestly, I hesitate to call Trump supporters republicans, because they are askew of traditional Republican values, such as free-market capitalism and a more internationalist approach to foreign policy.
I don’t associate my friend (who I admire on many levels) with any of these groups. I began to think that I was oversimplifying or over-generalizing people who voted for Trump.
The Ignorant/Uneducated
Voters in this group see a candidate holding a bible and humping the American flag while saying over and over Make America Great Again, and that’s enough for them. They either don’t care much for thinking critically or are incapable of doing so. They go with their gut because their gut is all that they got. These voters represent low-hanging fruit for populist demagogues like Donald Trump.
My friend is well-read, educated, and not a piece of fruit; he does not fall into the Ignorant and Uneducated group.
The Misinformed
The misinformed consist of the conspiratorial deep-state fear mongers who live on an intellectually unhealthy diet of Reddit communities, YouTube channels, and Joe Rogan podcasts and who believe that by consuming copious amounts of content, they somehow become experts in climate, health, immunology, geopolitics, the Kennedy assassination, and fake moon landing or whatever the fuck they happen to be watching while eating Cheetos and drinking beer – they gravitate to content that confirms their conspiratorial beliefs and hunker down in those polluted ecosystems. I include the Fox News audience in this group because Fox News is not a news channel – they are a rightwing opinion and entertainment platform. While trying to defend themselves in an 800-million-dollar lawsuit in which they admitted to lying about a rigged 20/20 election, part of their defense was, “We are not a news channel, so don’t hold us to that standard; we’re an entertainment channel.”
Fox News is largely a Trump propaganda machine that is on its way to becoming the equivalent of RT (Russia Today), the Russian state-controlled international news television network funded by the Russian government.
I don’t know which cable news station my friend has on at his house. But I know if it’s Fox News, he’s not getting a fair and balanced view (despite their tagline) of Donald Trump as a person or as a president.
I don’t think we can underestimate the negative impact Fox News has had on our nation and our family and friends who rely on Fox as their primary source for news.
The Selfish
Here is where things get tricky.
If we’re honest with ourselves, we’d say all humans are selfish to a certain degree. We get behind a presidential candidate or a set of ideas when we believe that candidate or those ideas will help us prosper and take care of our family.
Voters who fall into the “Selfish” group know in their hearts that Donald Trump is an intellectually lazy criminal thug and a liar. If they looked more deeply at Trump’s history, they would probably be open to the likelihood that Trump’s been compromised by Russian mob bosses or Putin himself. Still, even all that is not an impediment to them supporting an administration that they believe benefits them financially.
What matters most is taking care of their family and (if they own a small business) their employees. Never mind the fact that historically, America’s economy does better when Democrats are in charge or that Trump is a horrible person. If you honestly feel that Trump is better for your business and your family, I can see how that might override all the other shit for some people. I am not one of them.
At dinner, my friend broke the unspoken rule and brought up Donald Trump by saying his business had gotten better in the four months of his presidency. He couldn’t say for sure that Trump was a cause, but to him, there was at least a correlation, and he said multiple times that “facts are facts” and that his business was doing better. I’m glad my friend’s business is doing better—truly, I am.
But the country is not doing better; the world is not doing better; our Democracy is not doing better; the markets are not doing better; people’s retirement accounts are not doing better – legal residents are being snatched from the streets by masked agents of the government and whisked away without due process – there’s a measles outbreak in Texas where two kids have died. The leader of our country is demonstrably incompetent and cruel daily. America’s president has been credibly charged and civilly convicted of sexual assault and fraud; he pardoned dangerous and violent criminals who assaulted the capital. Trump is demonstrably a shitty human being – and I don’t think my friend would dispute that (because really, how can you?) and when I kept saying over and over that Trump is a shitty human being, he never disagreed. Things got heated for a bit, but we were able to transition to normal non-political talk seamlessly, which I took as a credit to the strength of our friendship.
On the walk back to our cars, we talked a little bit more — and we agreed that we look at Trump from different perspectives — him on a micro-level where a Trump presidency seems to favor his business and his ability to take care of his employees — where I look at the macro impact of a Trump presidency on Democracy, individual freedoms, social safety nets for the most vulnerable of us and adherence to western democratic principles.
My friend and I are in our sixties—we’ve got 20 years left if we’re lucky—and my question to him the next time we sit down is, what kind of country do you want for your kids or grandkids—a democratic and free country (like the one we grew up in) or an authoritarian oligarchy that cracks down on individual freedoms and forces political, social, and religious beliefs on its citizens?
Let’s Ask Arty uses existing Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology to query LLMs about politics in these troubled times.
Query 1: What does it mean to “be an American”
The idea of “being an American” is deeply tied to the nation’s founding principles and values. While interpretations can vary, there are some core ideals that are often associated with the American identity:
Freedom and Liberty: The United States was founded on the belief in personal freedom, whether it’s freedom of speech, religion, or the press. The idea of individual liberty is enshrined in foundational documents like the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
Equality: The notion that “all men are created equal,” as stated in the Declaration of Independence, is a key American value. While the country has faced challenges in fully realizing this ideal, the principle of striving toward equality remains central.
Democracy: The U.S. stands for the right of its people to have a voice in their governance through elections and civic participation.
Opportunity and the American Dream: The belief in the possibility of upward mobility, where hard work and determination can lead to success, has long been part of America’s narrative.
Innovation and Individualism: Americans often value creativity, entrepreneurship, and the pursuit of personal goals, reflecting a culture that celebrates independent thinking and innovation.
Diversity and Inclusion: Although the journey toward this ideal continues, the U.S. is seen as a melting pot of cultures and backgrounds, and many celebrate the richness of its diversity.
Query 2: What are American Values on a global stage – what has America stood for internationally?
On the global stage, American values have often been associated with ideals such as democracy, freedom, human rights, and economic opportunity. These principles have shaped the nation’s foreign policy and international actions over the years. Here are some key aspects of what America has stood for internationally:
Promotion of Democracy: The U.S. has historically supported democratic movements and institutions worldwide, advocating for free and fair elections, rule of law, and accountable governance.
Human Rights Advocacy: America has often positioned itself as a defender of human rights, speaking out against oppression and supporting initiatives to protect individual freedoms and dignity.
Economic Leadership: Through institutions like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, the U.S. has played a significant role in shaping global economic policies, promoting free markets, and fostering international trade.
Global Security: The U.S. has been a key player in maintaining international security, often leading efforts to combat terrorism, prevent nuclear proliferation, and address global conflicts.
Humanitarian Aid: America has provided substantial humanitarian assistance in response to natural disasters, health crises, and conflicts, reflecting its commitment to global welfare.
Cultural Influence: Through its media, technology, and cultural exports, the U.S. has shared its values and ideals, influencing global perceptions and fostering cross-cultural exchange.
Can you explain how America promotes democracy internationally?
America promotes democracy internationally through a combination of diplomacy, aid, advocacy, and partnerships. Here’s how it generally operates:
Diplomatic Support: The U.S. provides diplomatic backing to nations transitioning to democracy or facing challenges in maintaining democratic systems. This can include offering guidance on structuring constitutions, electoral processes, and governance.
Economic and Technical Aid: Through organizations like USAID, America provides funding and technical assistance to support democratic institutions, civil society organizations, and free press initiatives in developing democracies.
Education and Training: The U.S. funds programs that educate citizens, journalists, and political leaders about the principles of democracy, human rights, and accountable governance.
Election Monitoring: By working with international bodies and sending observers, the U.S. promotes transparency in electoral processes, ensuring that elections are free, fair, and credible.
Sanctions and Incentives: The U.S. can impose sanctions on governments that undermine democracy or provide incentives for reforms that align with democratic values.
Global Partnerships: America collaborates with international organizations like the United Nations, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), and other allies to advocate for democracy on a global stage.
My Input
Arty articulates that “being American” transcends mere geography or ink on a birth certificate.
“Being American” comes with firmly formed and instilled principles and values crafted painstakingly by our forefathers – principles that we’ve fought for proudly at home and abroad, both individually and collectively – values that feel intrinsic to our identity.
Our forefathers didn’t conjure up the American system of government in a vacuum. They considered admonitions from two of the greatest thinkers in world history (Aristotle and Plato) who stated, “Inequality brings instability, and demagogues exploit free speech to install themselves as tyrants.”
Our forefathers were so concerned about the rise of tyranny that they devised a system of governmental checks and balances to prevent it from occurring on our shores. Today, we’re discovering that the system they devised is only as strong and viable as the humans who serve in it.
Donald Trump is the tyrant that our forefathers feared. He is “American” by birth and residence only. His actions, deeds, words, and values are ardently un-American and tyrannical.
With backing from his Russian BFF, Donald Trump is twisting our Democracy by the nuts into submission. He is hammering, bending, and malforming America into an ugly, extortionist, and oligarchic fiefdom.
Unless true Americans stand up to him and the congress of cowards who fear him (as well as the billionaire class that sustains him), the definition of what it means to be American will change forever.
We must not let that happen.
What makes America’s drift towards oligarchy and fascism so difficult for many to handle is that it involves the dissolution of our American identity.
Our parents and teachers taught us that America welcomes immigrants, detests fascism, and protects the vulnerable – and we were proud to be associated with these values – so much so that these values became our values – they defined who we were as individuals and as Americans.
I always viewed myself and most of my fellow citizens as kind, tolerant, and fair. My view changed almost overnight when America elected an unkind, intolerant, and unjust leader to represent our nation on the world stage.
The impact of the 2024 election felt seismic and personal all at once. And when I witness my fellow citizens support America’s shift towards fascism and authoritarianism enthusiastically, well, that’s been a fucking gut punch that I wasn’t ready for.
But I’ve absorbed it, and now I’m ready to move on.
I cannot love, respect, or maintain friendships with people who casually voted for a convicted felon and serial sexual abuser.
I cannot go back to the relationship I had with them before the election, knowing that they support the chaos, vindictiveness, cruelty, and anti-intellectualism going on around me.
What America do you want to live in?
That’s going to be decided in the next 2 to 3 years.
My Republican friends and family members seem unable (or unwilling) to contrast the Republican party of their past with what that party represents today. It’s a party that your father, mother, and younger self would never have supported years ago and it’s a party unworthy of your support today.
Neo-fascist-oligarchic-expialidocious Elon-Bezos-Zuckerberg are really quite atrocious We need to fight them in the streets and call them on their grossness Neo-fascist-oligarchic-expialidocious
We cannot be afraid to speak at what is being done Trump’s a bully and freak who wants to shock and stun with fascists in our government, this isn’t a dry run And so we have a song to sing, a song that must be sung
GO!
Neo-fascist-oligarchic-expialidocious Elon-Bezos-Zuckerberg are really quite atrocious We need to fight them in the streets and call them on their grossness Neo-fascist-oligarchic-expialidocious
It seems a lesson wasn’t learned from Hitler’s evil days when you lose democracy, your freedoms slip away when oligarchs and fascist pigs try to steal away everything you’ve worked hard for this is what to say
Hey!
Neo-fascist-oligarchic-expialidocious Elon-Bezos-Zuckerberg are really quite atrocious We need to fight them in the streets and call them on their grossness Neo-fascist-oligarchic-expialidocious
Now’s not the time for sitting back or fretting in dismay Be courageous in your deeds and learn to seize the day Don’t go hiding in the weeds or worse just weep and pray, take to the streets to fight misdeeds while singing all the way
Hey!
Neo-fascist-oligarchic-expialidocious Elon-Bezos-Zuckerberg are really quite atrocious We need to fight them in the streets and call them on their grossness Neo-fascist-oligarchic-expialidocious
bendingtheneedle 