Choo-Choo Charlie had a plenty good band, but he couldn't understand why no one would go.

 Well, since I screwed around yesterday and didn't get the News done until almost 8 p.m. - despite having some Actual Paying Work to do - I figured I might as well knock this out while I'm still awake. Yep. Wound up pulling an all-night, because that's definitely something a 45-year-old man needs to be doing when he's not actually getting paid all that much.

 Anyhow, checkout yesterday's News. I know I usually wait until the weekend to promote it, but it came together well. For some reason, Our Idiot President has decided to go after Bubba Wallace two weeks after that whole thing was eclipsed by the rest of the horror that's been 2020. He's buckling down on snagging the racist vote, it seems. Between this and caping for statues of Confederate generals that were put up 50-plus years after the Civil War specifically to give Black people a middle finger to claiming the Washington Racistname football team was considering changing its name due to political correctness, one assumes this is the pony he's going to ride on into November. He's got nothing else going for him, that's for damn sure.

 It's sad to see the President act this way, but it's disturbing that so many people are buying this hook, line and sinker just because he's saying it. Well, that's not exactly true. Trump getting elected didn't make the people that support him racist. He was elected mainly because the people that support him are racist. They were tedious myopic shitheads before he entered office and they'll be tedious myopic shitheads when he leaves. If we're at all lucky, they'll just be quieter this time around.

 His whole thing with NASCAR and especially the flag business is a puzzler. Granted, I understand why he's doing it - it gets the humanoids hot and bothered and chanting his name, and that's all he cares about - and, really, I understand why the humanoids take him at his word (hint: they're morons). It's still a puzzler that they all buy this like they do. Do they really think this soft-handed Manhattan fancy lad actually gives a shit about "Southern pride" or NASCAR. Remember when John Kerry caught hell for saying something like "of course we all love NASCAR"? I mean, I didn't buy that either, but we're supposed to take this seriously? Sure.

 I'm getting sleepy and draggy. I've been reading a lot of Hunter Thompson, which itself isn't so unusual, but I'm reading more about his early days and why he got into writing. Long story short, I manage to depress myself because I gave it up when I did. We're not all that different, though. He arguably gave it up sometime in the '80s and didn't start producing quality stuff again until the Bush Jr, years. In the context of his whole Death of the American Dream deal, Bush's re-election was definitely when that particular horse was put out of its misery.

 And like I've said, I see my job as exploring the Post Mortem of the American Dream. I hope I'm wrong, but I think we as a culture, country, society is on its last legs. The argument that wearing masks to protect yourself from COVID-19 is some sort of insidious plan by the Illuminati to get people complacent and compliant to be taken over and completely controlled. Seriously. These are the same people who bark like little dogs whenever Tucker Carlson tells them people in San Francisco are shitting in the street. That's a sign of a society too dumb to feed and clothe itself properly.

What is the endgame for this insidious plan of total control? People will work themselves to death at jobs that consider them disposable for not enough money to live on, much less enjoy yourself, while following pinhead, power-hungry ideologues and possibly go into bankruptcy because your kid gets sick? Get 'em to buy useless shit? Hate each other because of the color of their skin and how they chose to live their lives when it doesn't affect anyone else? Mission fucking accomplished, then, I guess.

 Well, it's getting close to noon. I might as well pinch this one off, do the editing and get it ready for posting. Had to break away to help out with a small emergency with my cousin's goats. One of the dangers of living out in the country is everyone lets their dog run loose and dogs can be buttholes. Also, goats have huge nutsacks. I did not know that. 

If looks could kill, it would be us instead of him.

 Ugh. I should've written this last night. I had fire and vinegar last night, when today's just a bunch of sludge. Unfortunately, I stayed up too late getting some Actual Paying Work and rescuing humanity from the boot heel of genocidal alien invaders, and here we are.

 And though I need my nap, we're going to try to squeeze this out, if truncated. I have some more APW to get done before tomorrow, and I'm still trying this morning thing. Even though it's almost three in the afternoon.

 Anyhow. There is definitely something in the air right now. As a Twitter mutual said, we appear to be in the middle of a thing. HBOMax pulled Gone With the Wind from its streaming service after a letter from 12 Years A Slave screenwriter John Ridley. NASCAR announced the Confederate Flag will no longer be allowed at its races and events. Country trio Lady Antebellum changed its name to "Lady A", admitting the connotations of the old name were, at the very least, in very poor taste.

 All of this seems to be fairly organic. Ridley's letter was less an "outcry" and more of "hey, notice this and think about it". Of course, conservatives are losing their minds over all of this, all of which seems to be decisions made by the corporations or individuals. They're less interested in "cultural sensitivity" and more interested in "not hurting our continuing profit" from what I can tell.

 I'm going to be honest, I really don't believe most if any of the clowns rending their garments over the GWTW business have given the movie that much thought before yesterday's announcement. Frankly, I doubt many of them have ever sat through the thing, and they're knowledge is all pop culture references and memes. I refuse to believe any of them read the original novel by Margaret Mitchell.

 This isn't the place to critique the quality or cultural importance of the movie or the book. Personally, I think it's overrated and benefited greatly from the circumstances in Hollywood at the time. Nor is it necessary to discuss whether it has racism in it. It does. It's a movie that glamorizes the "Lost Cause" and Antebellum South, of course it has racism in it. You dopes.

 But what is worth discussing is whether or not this counts as "censorship," and I really don't understand how it does. The individuals made this decision, motivated solely by profit. The government didn't force them to, nor was the pressure from outside forces really all that great. This is something HBOMax decided was best for their bottom line, and if you think entertainment entities care about anything but their bottom line, then there's nothing I can do for you.

 HBOMax, NASCAR, Lady A, and whoever else made these decisions because they know which way the wind's blowing. We're in our second week of protests sparked by George Floyd's murder by Minneapolis police. The anger, frustration and desire for change in our culture has grown. The oppression of black people by the white status quo is still and should remain the key focal point. But we can't ignore what else there is, such as displeasure at the authoritarian nature of society and how we're supposed to be thankful that the cops are told to treat us like the enemy. You don't have to be black to see that's a problem.

 And why is there so much pushback from conservatives? Do they care that much about GWTW, art or even "free speech". I don't believe they do, not really. They don't care about the movie or even the Confederate Flag. They don't care about art. They don't even care about "free speech" or "freedom of expression." Not really. If anything's "performative," it's that.

 What they care about is that society is evolving past a point where their opinion was the only one that mattered. They're angry that corporations and businesses are recognizing it makes them more money to change than keep the status quo. They're furious that no one cares if they're angry because, frankly, it really does not matter how angry they are or even if they're angry.

 Americans don't like change. Americans don't really care for admitting that other views matter as much as theirs. But what Americans really, really hate is being told something that makes them consider even the slightest possibility that they might have been - might, just the chance of it existing - wrong.

 As my brother said, "'Am I right or am I right' is the most American thought ever." But the times, they are a-changin'. That's what times do, and no culture stands unmoving like a beetle in amber. If you can come along at least stop trying to make other people change.