Category: politics

beginning to realize

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This blog cannot be a vent for whatever my personal random shit is that day.

It’s meant to connect, to put out into the world what I want to say, to be honest about myself.

This ain’t the Mungk no more.

The Mungk was fatalism; bemoaning the state of the world was par for the course.

Now that I’m into Bad Neighbours and spending my days thinking about the nature of conflict, consequences and the lack thereof, this will have to get more intellectual.

More “into it”, as the kids say.

I don’t hold controversial views; I believe in peace, cooperation, and respect for our fellow beings.

At least, that shouldn’t be controversial.

These days, though, petting a puppy is considered evil by someone, and that someone is almost definitely MAGA.

Here’s another view that shouldn’t be controversial.

MAGA is bad. Fascism is bad. Bigotry is bad. Corruption is bad. Trump and Elon are bad. All Republicans should be removed from power at the earliest possible opportunity.

These are things that should not be controversial.

But then again, if they were actually considered as they are, we’d never have been in this position in the first place.

Target: 1100 words
Written: 180 words, novel: Bad Neighbours

Read: Proof Of Collusion, Seth Abramson
Comics: Shadowhawk v3 3-4, Shadowhawk Gallery 1, Shadowhawk v4 12 (yes, that's correct; in the original numbering, they decided to make it an ongoing, folding in the first three miniseries, eleven issues' worth)
Music: NOFX/Rancid BYO Split Series, NOFX/Rancid

super bowl

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I finally feel a little liberated. I honestly never gave a shit about football, but like many of us, I trudged out to some kind of Superbowl party every year, to watch two teams I did not care nor know anything about battle it out.

I used to say it was for the commercials, but I only buy experiences and not stuff now (at least, as much as possible – I still have to clothe myself, wash dishes, that sort of thing), so I don’t really give a fuck. Functional or experiential, not collectible.

Most commercials are shit anyway, trying way too hard. Wazzup wasn’t that funny.

Plus, the orange menace was going to be there, because, of course, he fucking was, and the less I see of that absolute piece of garbage, the better.

The half-time show is occasionally interesting, but I lost interest after they forced the Red Hot Chili Peppers to lip sync. I have seen anyone I actually cared to see since Tom Petty.

(Scratch that, the year with Eminem was pretty good).

So, yeah, I did what’s now become our new tradition and a much more enjoyable one – the Puppy Bowl followed by a movie.

A glass of wine.

Maybe a shot of cream liqueur, because we fancy.

Or some shit.

Anyway, enjoy your sport named after another sport that doesn’t have anything to do with the original sport and has very little to do with feet connecting with balls, making it aptly misnamed.

America. You’re so predictably boring, and your favourite sport?

It’s tedious as all get-out.

Target: 1100 words
Written: 108 words, novel: Bad Neighbours

Read: The Personal MBA, Josh Kaufman
Comics: Images Of Shadowhawk 2-3, Shadowhawk v3 1-2
Music: No1 Record - Radio City, Big Star

integration bill

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I know Quebec continues to get a free pass, but come on. This is some racist shit.

Quebec is very much turning into a xenophobic state; its leadership is not compatible with the values of Canada as a whole.

I hate that men like this (and by extension, Trump, Putin, Musk, Farage, etc) are allowed to freely sow division. We as humans have been through all this.

We know these lessons.

Why the fuck do we continue to let pieces of shit like this lead?

The world needs purging of demagogues.

Target: 1100 words
Written: 1629 words, novel: Bad Neighbours

Read: The Personal MBA, Josh Kaufman
Comics: Shadowhawk 1-4
Music: No!, They Might Be Giants

black ice

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Well, that was a fun day. Started well enough; turkey in the oven, potatoes scraped and cut and ready to be mashed, Groundhog Day queued up on Prime…

Then we took the dogs for a walk.

We should have turned back when we first started slipping, but no, we’re idiots, so we continued and sure enough, a fall turns to a hospital trip and a broken wrist.

The state of health care in this province is disgusting. I’m glad Doug Ford called an early election, so I can give him a big old middle finger on the ballot.

Cons, man. Describes them perfectly.

Target: 1100 words
Written: 273 words, novel: Bad Neighbours

Read: The Natural Navigator, Tristan Gooley
Comics: The Maxx 26-28, Friends Of Maxx 2
Music: No Surprises, Radiohead (one of my all time favourites)

tariff war

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Here we go. The dumb fuck did it. Shooting himself in the foot, because he’s too insecure in his person (and his manhood) to be a reasonable human being.

Seriously, the entire world is getting fucked because this man’s monstrous ego has grown so deeply out of proportion, because he can’t or won’t address how deeply insecure he is. How incompetent. How actually bad at all the things he claims to be good at he is.

All this for one man’s penis envy.

What a pathetic, sad, little man.

Target: 1100 words
Written: 891 words, novel: Bad Neighbours

Read: The Natural Navigator, Tristan Gooley
Comics: The Maxx 23-25, Friends Of Maxx 1
Music: No Substance, Bad Religion

comfort

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I miss the comfort in being sad, as Kurt Cobain once opined.

Being sad is bad. But it’s better than in a constant of conflict. One can accept sadness as it is, live in it, find one’s way through it.

Conflict for the sake of conflict?

It’s going to be a tough go while I’m working at Bad Neighbours and it’s the constant contemplation of the incompatibility of viewpoints, left and right, and the futility of anger.

The inability of consequence. The pure rage of missing justice.

The absence of karma, or rather, its lethargic, procrastinating nature.

It may come around, but when? And how fucking long?

Quite frankly, too many assholes have died peacefully in their sleep on top of their piles of money, surrounded by a beautiful wife, successful children and a mistress with glittery fake boobs.

Karma does not reward waiting.

Justice is not automatic.

Target: 1100 words
Written: 920 words, novel: Bad Neighbours

Read: Amatka, Karin Tidbeck
Comics: The Maxx 20-22, Gen13/Maxx 1
Music: No Security, The Rolling Stones

spiralling again

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I’m doing it again. I feel like giving up, starting over, losing more time, more years, more precious life force, precious focus.

Christ, at this point, maybe heaven’s a better option. Or would be, if I believed in an afterlife.

In any just afterlife, we’d spend eternity finding out all the things we’d ever wanted to know, to experience all the things we ever wanted to experience, to be all the people we ever wanted to be, to relive moments of our lives in as many permutations as we choose, to see what it really would have felt like to take that stand, to try that thing, to make that move on someone special.

Much of it would be unpleasant, but without the endless self-deception, with the ability to try again and learn and grow and be better, what would there be to lose?

Lifetimes lived in an instant. Fantastical trips beyond imagination. Relationships won and lost, friendships gained, battles fought, tyrants brought low by our actions. Our dedication.

Of course, that’s speculation.

But to attempt to live life as it is, good and bad, filled with glory and tragedy, joy and pain, fully engaged with it, stripping away all our blinders?

We may have a limited amount of time to do it in, but it’s still worth the trip.

Target: 1100 words
Written: 1581 words, novel: Bad Neighbours

Read: Ready Player One, Ernest Cline
Comics: The Maxx 8-11
Music: No Line On The Horizon, U2

the price of eggs

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Yeah, it ain’t going down.

I’m not saying it’s time to drag profiteers and corrupt politicians out of their homes and in front of a judge, but…

Wait. That may be exactly what I’m saying.

All billionaires must be brought to justice.

Target: 1100 words
Written: 1258 words, novel: Bad Neighbours

Read: Ready Player One, Ernest Cline
Comics: The Maxx 4-7
Music: No Joke!, Meat Puppets

unsatisfied

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I’m not satisfied with my performance. Obviously.

I’ve got several pieces that need to go out, but I can’t find the time or the energy to actually do it. I mean, it’s ridiculous that I won’t.

How the hell is anything going to get published if I don’t let anyone else look at it?

Also, I’m really unhappy with what I did today toward the novel.

I have this whole Grumpy Old Men concept breeding with a “state of politics” idea brewing, but instead, I wrote the main character as a stuck up ass-kissing effete.

He’s supposed to be modern liberal satire; a Democrat who thinks rules actually mean something to the boorish neighbour who has bought off the police and local government.

But instead, it’s shit; I have a feel for the character. What I wrote wasn’t it.

The only thing I can think of is to move on. Rewriting at this point is always an option, even if it’s not happening today.

Fuck. Today sucks.

Target: 1100 words
Written: 2545 words, novel: Bad Neighbours

Read: Ready Player One, Ernest Cline
Comics: The Maxx 1-3, 0.5
Music: The No Fun, Local H

conflict

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It’s the basis of any good story, but it’s the bane of our existence.

How much nicer would the world be if we were all just a little… nicer?

Is that really such a hard thing to do, you fucking toddlers?

Target: 1000 words
Written: 256 words, Novel: Bad Neighbours

Read: Ready Player One, Ernest Cline
Comics: The Darkness/Pitt 1-3, Darker Image 1
Music: No Exit, Blondie (ha!)