“Jennifer Johnson: Can you say why America is the greatest country in the world?
Will McAvoy: Sharon, the NEA is a loser. Yeah, it accounts for a penny out of our paycheck, but he
[gestures to Lewis]
Will McAvoy: gets to hit you with it anytime he wants. It doesn’t cost money, it costs votes. It costs airtime and column inches. You know why people don’t like liberals? Cause they lose. If liberals are so fucking smart, how come they lose so god damn always?
Sharon: Hey!
Will McAvoy: [Turns to Louis] And with a straight face, you’re gonna tell students that America is so star-spangled awesome that we’re the only ones in the world who have freedom? Canada has freedom. Japan has freedom. The UK. France. Italy. Germany. Spain. Australia… Belgium! has freedom… 207 sovereign states in the world, like 180 of ’em have freedom.
Moderator: Alright…
Will McAvoy: [Looks at Jenny] And, yeah, you… sorority girl. Just in case you accidentally wander into a voting booth one day, there are some things you should know. One of them is: There is absolutely no evidence to support the statement that we’re the greatest country in the world. We’re 7th in literacy, 27th in math, 22nd in science, 49th in life expectancy, 178th in infant mortality, 3rd in median household income, number 4 in labor force and number 4 in exports. We lead the world in only three categories: number of incarcerated citizens per capita, number of adults who believe angels are real and defense spending – where we spend more than the next 26 countries combined, 25 of whom are allies. Now, none of this is the fault of a 20-year-old college student, but you, nonetheless, are without a doubt a member of the worst period generation period ever period, so when you ask what makes us the greatest country in the world, I don’t know what the FUCK you’re talking about!… Yosemite?
[Stunned silence]
Will McAvoy: … It sure used to be. We stood up for what was right. We fought for moral reasons. We passed laws, struck down laws – for moral reasons. We waged wars on poverty, not on poor people. We sacrificed, we cared about our neighbors, we put our money where our mouths were and we never beat our chest. We built great, big things, made ungodly technological advanced, explored the universe, cured diseases and we cultivated the world’s greatest artists AND the world’s greatest economy. We reached for the stars, acted like men. We aspired to intelligence, we didn’t belittle it. It didn’t make us feel inferior. We didn’t identify ourselves by who we voted for in the last election and we didn’t scare so easy. We were able to be all these things and do all these things because we were informed… by great men, men who were revered. First step in solving any problem is recognizing there is one. America is not the greatest country in the world anymore.”
The Newsroom, Season 1, Episode 1 (June 24, 2012)
It’s been a while since I wrote anything blog wise. Last time was pretty vengeful and I guess one could view this in the same light but it’s really not. We’re only a little ways out of an election, one which, as far as I can tell, is quite decided. Now I have said during my sets that all I wanted people to do was vote, not for whom, not for what, nothing more than vote. I hope you did, whether your choice won or lost, I hope you did. I got back to watching The Newsroom, the Aaron Sorkin HBO series, not the Canadian series, and the opening scene really hit home. I loved it at the time of the original airing, but it’s funny how over eight years later I still view it as accurate. Let’s update the numbers though because facts are important and what was in 2012 may not be in 2020 right? I mean we’re up to 230,000+ dead from Covid-19 as it is.
So according to WorldAtlas.com the United States currently is #125 on a list of 197 countries for literacy. I’d say that’s not great. Alright how about math then, according to USNews.com the US ranked 30th in math, up from 35th in 2015 so that’s good, but still down from 2012. Science! Hey look we moved up in this one. According to USNews.com the US ranked 11th in science, up from 17th in 2015, and well above the 2012 number. Good. Next up life expectancy. We rank 46th in life expectancy according to Worldometers.info as of 2020. I do not know if that includes changes due to covid, but I will assume not and go with that number. So we had a little improvement there. Overall in the lows we had some movement, most up a bit, a little down, but not a huge swing outside of Science. We still lead with the highest incarceration rate, big shocker there. I’m not getting into angels because we’re already in politics, let’s not add religion or belief into this too, so that leaves Defense Spending. As of May 13, 2020 we spend $732 billion on defense. More than China, India, Russia, Saudi Arabia, France, Germany, United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, and Brazil combined. Those 10 countries total $726 billion.
Don’t get me wrong, I love my country. There are times where I disagree completely with not only those with opposing views, but sometimes those whom I would view as being on my side of the aisle. Some may say oh you watch this channel so your view is leaning in this direction. Sure you can say that if you’d like but it’s not accurate. I do my research. I look into the numbers, as I was on election night, and if you don’t believe me, feel free to ask Aria where my mind was on November 3rd. I’ll give you a hint, not on Florida, not on Texas, elsewhere. If I had to pick a party sure I’d be a democrat but not because I hate republicans or things they stand for. I don’t. My best friend in the entire world is the exact opposite of me on so very many things and yet never have we argued over politics. We like to say it’s because we can have an honest conversation, which seems so simple, but we see happen so little in the world today.
I guess to give some context I should explain where I stand, what I think, to some degree. I voted for Barack Obama, twice. I did not vote for him because I hated John McCain or Mitt Romney. I voted for him because he resonated with me. I think the late John McCain was incredibly respectable and just as worthy of that office as former President Obama was. I believe Senator Romney would have been worthy of the office of President of the United States. I wasn’t old enough to vote when Al Gore ran against George W. Bush, I would have probably voted for Gore if I could. Now you’re going to look at that and say well you’re a Democrat. If you go just by who I would have voted for then fine. Here’s where things change though.
2016. I did vote for Hillary Clinton. Say what you want, I don’t care. That’s the great part of this, I have my opinion, you have yours. We are equal. I did not vote for Hillary because I thought she was the best, I personally preferred Bernie Sanders in 2016 but he did not win the nomination. I voted for her because of the fear of what we have lived through for the last four years. I may not have agreed with George W. Bush, John McCain, or Mitt Romney, but I always feel like I could have at least had a conversation with them, maybe a beer. I could never picture that being the case with Donald Trump.
Why? Because he doesn’t care about you, me, or anyone else. He’s showing that now, with it very evident that he’s lost, he is choosing to throw a tantrum like a toddler. Bush, McCain, Romney, would not have done that. McCain and Romney both conceded, as is tradition in the United States. Bush won twice and didn’t have to, he did however leave a letter for the incoming President. I hear his family and the Obama family are actually quite close. If they can be, why the hell can’t we?
It’s kind of weird to think of how simple it really is when you look at it. Instead he turns to all of the tricks he’s pulled in the past, but they’re not working. Courts are not going his way, he can’t sue his way out of losing this time. It’s another loss in a pile of losses. Why not save face and go out peacefully like all those before him. He can’t. What happens after he’s left the White House, and trust me, he will leave, whether he wants to or not. The legal proceedings going on that are not Federal and thus not pardonable, haven’t stopped, and once out of office you can’t claim being President anymore. Your protection is gone. This is fear manifesting because the outlook after January 20th is not good. He knows, we know it. At least he likes orange right?
The idea of even doing this post, and trust me I know some will write me off for it, came from having a conversation in my World of Warcraft guild one night after we were done raiding. We talked about floors and ceilings for holding office on all levels of government. We talked about term limits, for senators, for congressmen and women, for judges, for supreme court justices, and yes for President. The idea we generally landed on was a floor of 35 years old, and a ceiling of 68 years old. Now I know, some say that’s ageist or whatever but let me explain. Our thought process was by 35 (which is currently the floor for President) you have a pretty good amount of life experience. By 68 you’re nearing your later years and are probably not as with the present times as you would be at your peak. So to simplify it, my grandparents do not understand the internet, or all that goes on on it. Why should they be making the decisions that alter -my- life, which at the present time is very different from theirs at the same age. Kind of interesting to think that way isn’t it.
We never settled on the amount for term limits across the spectrum I named, obviously the Presidency has a 2 term limit. Outside of extenuating circumstances. But I liked the idea of term limits because no one should hold a public office or position for their entire lifetime. Times change, everything changes, having grandpa make decisions that affect me makes no sense. Now we’ll go back to the “well you’re a democrat thing.” I do not think Nancy Pelosi should be speaker of the house again. I didn’t think she should have been last time either. I do not think Chuck Schumer should be minority speaker either. We need people who view the world in the modern age, not where it was 30 years ago. I’m not saying they are bad people, or stupid, or anything else. Change -is- good.
But that change is on all of us. That’s why I pushed so hard on voting this time around. Change doesn’t happen if we don’t vote and make our voices heard. We need change, on both sides, and everywhere between it. The status quo -isn’t- working for the modern American. I would never tell anyone who they should vote for or what they should believe in. Facts are a different story and funnily enough one that a certain side has chosen to use now that our outgoing President lost the election. “You are entitled to your own opinions, not your own facts.” Well yes that is true. The thing about facts though is they are facts. A short dictionary look-up can explain that more if you need it. Facts would say you lost, it happens, you lost, it happened, please grow up. Please grow up being my opinion, you lost, being a fact.
So here we are on, hell I don’t know what day I’ll actually finish this so sometime in November, the 2020 Election is effectively over. Joe Biden won 306 electoral votes, Donald Trump won 232. Math says you lost not only the electoral college, but the popular vote as well. I remember the tweets in 2016.
That was with winning the electoral college and losing the popular vote by over 2 million votes. So what is it when you lose both the electoral college by the same margin AND lose the popular vote by at present count over 5 million? Ass whooping? I don’t know, opinion obviously, but factually a loss. For those who are on the losing side of it, look I get it, we’ve all been there. We were there in 2016 and plenty of years before that. You’ll say but the Russia investigation. Yep that happened too. But before you jump on that one, might want to read into all of it. There was also the “sham” impeachment. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but he -was- impeached. That’s done. He was not removed, because well the Senate doesn’t get anything done, outside of sending judges to the bench. I’d say that regardless of what side I was on. Remember I want change on BOTH sides.
For those who are worried that he won’t leave and he will find a way to stay for another term, I have good news, it won’t happen. He is currently 1-24 in lawsuits. He has backed out of a recount in Wisconsin, my home state, because it’s too expensive. Law firms far and wide are not taking his case up. He simply has nothing. Come January 20th, power moves to President Elect Biden and with that former President Trump will leave. Whether he wants to or not. Let’s be honest too, I know some of you few who will read this will look at it as an attack on a certain side. To some degree I get it. I do. But I blame what could be called my side too.
The opening segment on the pilot episode of The Newsroom really does call it right. The last paragraph of it rings as true now as it did then. We used to be so much better than we are today. It’s the fault of both sides and everything in between. It shouldn’t come down to who you associate with as a party as much as it should be who you are as a person. From here on out for me, it’s country above party. I’m tired of choosing sides, I’m tired of arguing facts with people who are clearly not open to them, I’m tired of listening to endless siege of bullshit and lies. We make the change in the world that we want. Don’t just talk the talk, walk it. Prove it. Show it. Be it. Do it. No more waiting. -L
I’d be doing a disservice if I didn’t mention my fancy new beard from [MAGNIFICENT]. THE BOSS beard can be found at this months round of ManCave and is amazing! It has seven grooming options, and comes in multiple colors. The fatpack allows you to tint it and for the cost it is well worth picking up. I have tried numerous other beards and this is no slight to them, they just weren’t for me, but [MAGNIFICENT] always seems to hit the home run in my opinion. Make sure to stop by there and check out the demo, I promise you won’t be disappointed! Until next time, I’m out.
Credits:
Hair: Stealthic – Baron (B&W) ~ Stealthic Resident
Hairbase: LeLUTKA.Hairbase.001.SilverFox ~ Jaden Nova
Head: LeLUTKA – Skyler 2.5 ~ Jaden Nova
Eyes: Avi-Glam – Fame Eyes ~ Kendra Parfort
Ears: Swallow – Urban Ears ~ Luciayes Magic
Skin: Stray Dog LEANDRO LELUTKA TONE 04 ~ Gac Akina
Beard: [MAGNIFICENT] THE BOSS Beard – Grooming Series ~ LeBarbier Alpha ~ NEW @ Man Cave (Nov 17-Dec 11)
Beard Layer: Volkstone – Rey Facial Hair // 004 Tintable (BOM) ~ Daves Hexem
Body: Legacy – Athletic Mesh Body (m) (1.0) ~ MeshBody Resident
Jacket: [Deadwool] Hart jacket – all colors ~ Masa Plympton
Pants: [Deadwool] Hart trousers – slight break – all colors ~ Masa Plympton
Ring: [VEX] Lexington Wedding Band ~ Vexiin Takeda
Chair: BLACK NEST / Sade Chair (PG) ~ William Wanderer
LuckySpiritor.Com 
2 comments