My thought, long ago, was to contest everything society accepts as “normal” with my words. I’m sure it meant something totally different when I started this blog than it does now. I’m not the same person I was before COVID. My thinking has changed. A lot. Before COVID, I was more optimistic about the world and the people in it.
Everything a person is judged by seems to come down to which way you lean politically these days. Usually, I do not like to pin myself down by subscribing to one belief, but if I would classify myself it would likely be more Libertarian than anything. My attitude is, live and let live. If you don’t hurt other people, do what you want.
People are so polarized now. Sometimes it is very hard to have a conversation about something without getting blow back in your face about how offensive it is or how wrong you are. The key word in the zeitgeist for this is “nuanced”. Nuance is the reason some people can’t pin Joe Rogan down as a conservative or a liberal. On his show, he converses with people in a 3 hour window, really debating and discussing subjects with his guests. They’re not shouting at each other. His show is a great example of civilized debate. People hunger for this now. That’s why Joe Rogan is so popular.
Real news is rare in the mainstream today. Our staple “Dinosaur Media” would mostly be considered editorial, and all opinion. Really, most of it propaganda. If you want to find out what is going on in the world, don’t look to our news establishments. You have to go to Al Jazeera or RT or even the BBC to get any news outside of the US anymore.
What has emerged, though, is exciting. Alternative News excites me because it gives the ordinary person a voice. I think it aggravates the Intelligencia and all of the wanna be intellectuals out there. For some reason, some of these people believe one has to have a degree or be stamped with approval by the government to even have an opinion on something. It is a totally desperate need for “authorities” to validate anything before they’ll even consider it. It is very odd.
That’s a major part of the problem we’re having right now as a society. The people who fancy themselves an intellectual like to look down from their thrones upon everyone else. If you try to have a debate with these particular people they will either automatically insult you, or try to debate you, realize they’re failing, and call you a trumptard or something like that. Its insane, and it was happening online even before COVID. You just can’t have a real debate about anything with them.
It makes me really sad. If we can’t learn to have a conversation without raging against one another, we are going to lose everything our forefathers fought for. This country depends on Freedom of Speech. That’s why it is the First Amendment. It is that important. If we lose this, we’re done. I’m fearful we lose more and more of it everyday. Perhaps we have just become too reliant upon the internet. Eventually we may have to just go back to mailing out newsletters or handing them out. Who knows.
My intent with contesting normal is to try to write blog posts that are timely and relevant. I want to contest normal, especially the “new normal” crazy world this is becoming. I would also like to share my journey through this world as I navigate the sometimes choppy waters of my life. Having PTSD makes things harder, but I wouldn’t count me out. You never know, there could be someone out there who needs to know that they’re not alone in their struggles. The good news is, I’ve come a long way in the last year and I feel better than I have in a long time. I’m ready to do this for real!
Onward and upward!
Contesting Normal 