Category: From The Editor

The Web Is No Fun Anymore

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

It used to be, not many years ago, that you could pretty much talk about whatever you wanted to online and no one would freak out or take it too seriously. But, alas, those days are long, long gone. Now you have to be really careful what you say, no matter how low-trafficked your Website.

I have been using the Web since its inception and I guess that’s where I got the false sense that because of “practical obscurity” I could say whatever I wanted to about anyone and not have to worry about any one taking it the wrong way.

But, ironically, as the Web has grown in size, so, too, it seems as though the weight people give the content you generate on it has increased. So, unless you do it in the “dark Web” where no one of note can find it, you had better be careful what you write about even the largest star. Even if it’s totally innocuous, someone, somewhere could take it the wrong way if you seem a little obsessed with said star.

I’ve kind of gotten out of that phase in my life now, so I’m more concerned about becoming a professional photographer or writing the Great American Novel than I am having a celebrity crush. But it’s just sad that the moment in time where the Web was a free-for-all is long over. People have a hair trigger when it comes to any content that they may find online that seems in any way weird or potentially that worst of all things, “creepy.”

No one trusts anyone anymore, so people freak out at any moment for any reason over anything that doesn’t fit the norm. This is doubly tragic given how often people say “be yourself.” That’s complete bullshit. The last thing anyone should do online is “be yourself.”

Someone is always watching and judging, ready to pounce if you act weird.

Why Trump Was Inevitable

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

Let me state from the beginning that I don’t have all the political, psychological, sociological and even historical insight that I need to properly tell all of this, but I am a more than casual observer of American presidential political history and so I’m going to give it a go.

Having said that, it is clear to me that Trump — or someone like Trump — was inevitable at this moment in our nation’s history. It is obvious to me that what caused Trump was that while we were all enjoying Obama’s pleasant, scandal-free administration the Right was going completely insane. Tribal politics and its associated hatred of Obama for being the nation’s first black president made it so it was inevitable that we were going to have a completely bonkers Republican president at some point.

Add to this the headwinds of historic weakness of Hillary Clinton as a candidate and the election meddling of the Russians really the only way Trump would not have won was if he hadn’t run in the first place. But, really, if you looked at who was likely to get through the primary system at the time, it is highly unlikely that Jeb Bush was going to be the nominee. He was completely detached from the national Republican Party and everyone else who might have won was in some ways worse than Trump because no only were they insanely conservative, they were competent and had an ideology they were willing to defend to boot.

But Trump has his own unique set of bonkers qualities than make him extremely dangerous to the Republic. While he may be too lazy, unfocused and incompetent to be a true authoritarian, his complete lack of adherence to political norms may cause lasting damage to the American political landscape.

So, the issue is, there were and are structural problems with the Republican Party that the average person simply was unaware of unless they happened to catch FOX News one night. When about half the political electorate lives in an insane bubble of surreal conspiracy theories and race-induced rage, it’s inevitable that once they get their opportunity to run the country we’re in for a whole lot of trouble.

The truly tragic thing about all of this is there is no easy fix. The tectonic political, economic and demographic forces that led to the creation of the cancer that is the modern Republican Party aren’t going anywhere. It could be 20 to 30 years before things work themselves out and by the time they do the Republican Party will have turn our once independent judiciary into a bastion of Right wing nutjob hacks whose entire reason for being on the bench is to give old, wealthy white people as much power as possible.

What’s more, there’s a real chance of a civil war. There’s a real risk that we’ve gone beyond the point of no return and we’re going to have an actual civil war in the United States within the next 20 years. I have no idea if it will actually happen or not, but it’s something to worry about.

It will definitely be interesting to see what happens.

Jon Stewart Would Be An Ideal Presidential Candidate At This Point

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

This is just an idle daydream, but it seems to me that the ideal person to run against Donald Trump in 2020, should last that long, would be Jon Stewart. I say this because Stewart is everything Trump isn’t — funny, smart and self-aware.

Of course, Stewart, at least at this point, has zero political experience outside of his interest in 9/11 first responder rights and a little bit about veterans affairs. And, of course, there is the obvious issue that he appears to have zero interest in actually doing anything beyond running his petting zoo.

But the match up between Trump and Stewart would be one for the ages. And regardless, I think we would need someone like Stewart to take down Trump. Yet I honestly don’t know. The nation is so divided at this point that there’s no perfect person to do the job.

Trump is so powerful with 40% of the electorate and the economy is doing so well that it will be a difficult fight no matter what. Add to this the continuing struggle that The Resistance has with trying to find some sort of messaging beyond simply being against Trump and you have the makings of a pretty bad situation.

This doesn’t begin to address the issue of what happens if Trump wags the dog using Iran or the DPRk.

We’re going to have to just wait and see, I guess.

My Current Take On The #TrumpRussia Endgame

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

As of late March 2018, here’s my hot take on the endgame to #TrumpRussia.

It seems to me that what is going to happen is it will be a combination of Iran-Contra and the Monica Lewinsky scandals. Trump could very well be impeached, but he won’t be convicted and ultimately he not only survives but prospers as he grows more accustomed to the office of president.

What’s more, I still predict a major war against the DPRK (and maybe Iran) between now and August 2018. I say this for two reasons. One, Trump needs a Wag The Dog situation to get people talking about something else. Meanwhile, he wants to squash any chance of a Blue Wave happening this fall.

The ‘Unwinding:’ ‘Deep State Radio’ Talks John Bolton

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

Oh boy. I’ve been listening to the latest episode of Deep State Radio which is about the appointment of John Bolton as National Security Adviser. The issue for me is it reaffirms everything I’ve been thinking the last few days, which is we are lurching towards a war with at least the DPRK, if not Iran as well. I’m glad that the smarty pants of Deep State Radio are also beginning to freak out a little bit as well.

We really need to accept to take the concept that we’re hurdling towards a massive Wag The Dog in the guise of a war with the DPRK. The issue is that a war with the DPRK — started about August 2018 — would be, in theory, the perfect way to prevent a Blue Wave from sweeping the House and Senate in November.

There is a real risk that we’re going to look back at all of this as such a crass, craven power grab on the Trump Administration that history will not be kind to anyone involved. My real fear, from what I’ve read, is that just as Rex Tillerson gutted the State Department, so, too, will John Bolton will gut the National Security Council staff. This will happen just as the United States is about to go to war with the DPRK.

What is even worse is, I may be low balling the risks of essentially World War III. What I’m saying is, we may have two major regional wars taking place at the same time — one against the DPRK and one against Iran. Throw in the massive amount of instability that would cause around the world, there is a real risk that India and Pakistan would threaten nuclear war. And Israel and Iran may have at it as well along the way. And there is a real chance that the Russians would use all of this as a cover for a major escalation in their low-grade war against Ukraine.

The point of all of this, as I mentioned, is to divert attention away from the domestic disasters of the Trump Administration. Try to remember what was going on in the United States in early September 2001. It’s really difficult. A lot of stuff went down the memory whole once 9/11 happened. So, too, will Stormy Daniels and #TrumpRussia go down the memory hole should World War III essentially happen.

I suggest you listen to this Deep State Radio. It’s really good and affirms much of my thinking about John Bolton and what could happen next with the DPRK, Iran and beyond.

What We Need Is A Good Movie About The Trump Era

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

I’m struggling with a screenplay these days. I’m going to write it as a novella first and then once I save up the money, buy Final Draft and write it as a screenplay. But the point of the story is I want to tell one that really gets into how Trump has effected life on a personal level.

There have been a few movies like that, but nothing as seminal as, say, The Big Chill. That’s the type of movie I’m striving for, with maybe a little bit more drama. I have a lot of things I want to talk about in the story and they’re all coming together in one tidy project. I was the publisher of a magazine in Seoul about a decade ago and that story is really interesting, but I’ve struggled as to how to tell it. This story would be a way for me to do just that and that would be using as back story.

It’s been difficult to actually write the story. Part of writing a story as a writer is having to entertain yourself as you do it. So sometimes I get bored and stop working on this story, but I’m generally a creative person and I find myself wanting to write something again. So, I hope to return to this story pretty soon, if not today.

There is so much to talk about when it comes to this surreal Trump era we’re in. So much we can talk about in a story when it comes to how its changed how people are interacting with each other with such a troubling person as president. I have so much I want to talk about in this very thing in this story.

Regardless, it is going to take time. It’s going to take time to process all the batshit stuff that is happening because of Trump.

‘Spank My Booty’ — Idle Thoughts On The Current State Of The Stormy Daniels Affair

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

The sad thing is that even if we see Trump’s junk, he may very well not only survive but prosper. Whatever dark part of the American psyche Trump has tapped into is so strong, do powerful that we simply may not be able to get rid of him until he absolutely has to leave office unless he changes the Constitution.

Add to this the very real — and growing — danger that Trump will start a war with the DPRK and things as of this moment are not looking so great. It’s very possible that once Trump essentially starts WWIII, that Stormy Daniels will go down the memory hole and we’ll wake up in 8 years to a president even more conservative and bonkers than Trump.

I guess what I’m saying is we have to take seriously the notion that Trump is going to eliminate Ms. Daniels as a threat by willfully killing about 1 million people in Korea and beyond. I fear that we’ve not really processed that yet. This is really serious. The addition of John Bolton to the White House staff means Trump is at least lurching in that direction.

Additionally Sec. of Defense James Mattis allegedly has said he may not be able to work with Bolton. So, there is the off chance that Mattis — the only “adult” left in the Trump Administration may bolt and we’re totally, completely fucked.

This is personal for me because I used to live in South Korea. If I see Seoul razed on TV, it’s going to be pretty deep. It’s going to be one of the worst moments of my life to date. But there’s little any of us can do at this point. So, it’s possible that Stormy Daniels may have significantly more power in her hands than any of could possibly imagine.

It’s really weird, though, the power Trump has over his supporters. What, exactly, do they at this point love so much about him? Why does it seem that the typical rules of politics don’t apply to Trump? How did we get here and how do we make our way out?

It seems as though maybe the United States suffers from structural Constitutional rot and we may very well be careening towards an actual civil war. Or, put another way, the United States as some have quipped, is going through a slow motion Civil Cold War. It could be that at this point the only thing stopping us from having an actual real civil war is, well, Donald Trump. Or that we’re just too generally meh about politics on an existential level that it’s just not going to happen any time soon.

All I can say is, hurry up Stormy Daniels. We really need to see whatever “proof” you may have. The fate of the world may be at stake.

Cynthia Nixon, Chelsea Handler & The Right’s Hypocrisy About Trump

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

The Right has made an epic, enormous, historic deal with the devil when it comes to Trump. They simply don’t care that Karen McDougal was on TV for an hour talking about how much she banged Donald Trump while he was married. They just don’t care as long as gun rights are protected and the march towards making abortion illegal continues to be inevitable.

But trouble is brewing for the Right.

It comes in the guise of any number of women celebrities who might run for higher office at some point in the future. It will be difficult — but not impossible — for the very people who are completely silent about Trump being, essentially, a whore monger, to get upset if a female celebrity who has at some point in her career done nude scenes runs for office. I mean, hell, Chelsea Handler has a revenge-porn sex tape out that I’ve seen and I’d still rather vote for her than Donald Trump.

I guess what I’m saying is while the Right is completely shameless in their hypocrisy, them sucking up to Trump is at least going to make it a little bit more difficult for them to do it in the future. Maybe. A little bit. Should Cynthia Nixon become a viable presidential candidate, they’re going to attack her on her morals and on whatever she’s done on Sex & The City.

So people like me are going to go, “What the what?” I mean, it’s difficult for one to flip flop on morals within the span of a generation…twice! So it will be interesting. The damage that Trump has done to the moral standing of the Right is so devastating, so wide ranging that it is within the realm of possibility that the United States could go from a Right-wing nutjob (be it Trump or Pence) to a progressive bisexual woman all within the span of less than a decade.

But there are an enormous number of caveats to this scenario. The Russians could meddle again, Trump could start a war with either or both Iran and the DPRK. And history is pretty weird sometimes. It goes off in strange directions that you can’t possibly predict.

And, yet, like I said, the Republican Party is setting itself up for a pretty astonishing flip-flop on morals. Hell, even if it’s just Pence, the Republicans are in for a lulu of a moral compass change. Trump is such an historical aberration that no matter what happens, we’re in for head spinning change once he’s gone.

The question is, of course, will thing snap back into place, or have the changed forever? Only time will tell on that question.

Trump Should Get It Over With And Fire Mueller So The End Can Come

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

I am beginning to get the feeling that Trump is, like the great showman he is, teasing his eventual firing of Robert Mueller and wants to heighten the excitement for the season (series?) end of Celebrity President. But remember, it was a year after Nixon fired his Special Prosecutor before he resigned.

So, add to all of this the fact that Trump has a Vichy Congress to rely upon, the Russians could meddle in any prospective Blue Wave and Trump can always start a war with Iran or the DPRK to weasel his way out of all his problems and you have the makings of an enormous clusterfuck.

But I do think if Trump fires Mueller he will actually face some consequences for once. There’s a real chance that it would end his presidency…eventually. It is really, really hard to get rid of an American president and Trump could very well make it through 2020 and beyond.

All I know is I’m ready to protest if Trump fires Mueller and it won’t be easy to get rid of Trump if he does. It could take something like the People’s Impeachment that took place in South Korea for us to get rid of him. It could take a while. Like, weeks if not months of massive protests.

But the United States is not South Korea, so even that might not do the trick. I do think Trump should just fire Mueller and let the chips fall where they may. This teasing of us for weeks and months is really beginning to get on my nerves.

Do We Have What It Takes To Save Ourselves From Trump’s Autocracy?

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

We may have finally reached the tipping point of all of this clusterfuck. Or if we haven’t we’re getting a lot closer than we were. I still think we’re going to war with the DPRK by August, but we live in surreal times. There are no easy answers. I wish there were.

The issue is we’re going to have to save ourselves if that is even possible. It’s not like the Dutch are going to march in and save the day. We, as Americans, are going to have to fix this problem. But it’s very possible that Trump has successfully muddied the waters to such an extent that we’ll never pin him down.

But I still have hope.

The below video is pretty interesting.