Day 40: Light at the End of the Tunnel

Shower Thoughts: No other species is watched more while pooping than dogs.

Oh my goodness, day 40 has arrived! It’s been 40 days since the official declaration from our governor to Shelter in Place, March 24th. We are in the middle of our 5th week. We learned on Friday, May 1st, the lockdown will be extended to May 31st. How are you holding up? Hope you are healthy and adjusting to your new normal. As soon as we adjust completely, perhaps, going through all the stages of grief and loss, at some point we’ll be thrown back into the fire. This morning I am thinking about the working class returning to dead-end jobs. I’m wondering what factors make a job a good job.

The 5 stages of grief and loss are: 1. Denial and isolation; 2. Anger; 3. Bargaining; 4. Depression; 5. Acceptance. People who are grieving do not necessarily go through the stages in the same order or experience all of them.

Many Americans will return to their jobs to face a brilliantly obvious discovery, a very REAL tried and true FACT- they are underpaid. Their previous jobs were unable to prepare them for regular emergencies such as a new transmission much less a pandemic. Middle-class life is now 30 percent more expensive than it was 20 years ago. Meanwhile, salaries, which have stagnated for decades don’t go as far as they once did to cover the necessities. Do we really want to go back to “normal”?

Michigan

People with guns are starting to freak out. Last Thursday, April 30th, hundreds of well-armed citizens waving MAGA signs crashed the state capitol of Michigan demanding that the country reopen. They wanted to get to the House floor where representatives were in session but were blocked by state police and sergeants-at-arms. In Michigan, it is legal to carry firearms as long as it’s done with lawful intent and the weapon is visible. Lawful Intent? hmmmm… In my town, if this lockdown extends another two months, my biggest concern is folks might just start biking naked or something. But, there are many parts of the US where the breaking point could result in converting Doug’s Toyota Tacoma into a freaking ISIS tank and start patrols!

I’m wondering about the demographic that stormed the capitol. Are they the same that was studied in various reports over the last two decades? Did you know that the suicide rate for white middle-aged working-class men has spiked? This group of Americans appears to be the most pissed off and depressed. Why?

For white men without a college degree, the average growth in median wages between 1979 and 2017 was a negative number (−0.2 percent a year), even as median hourly earnings for all white workers grew by 11 percent in the same period. This wage deflation has had well-documented cultural ripple effects, depressing marriage rates as men’s appeal as partners fell along with their earnings. Without a stable family life, these men are more isolated, with fewer of the sorts of social buffers that might inoculate them against suicide or drug abuse. As a result, the rates for both have gone up.

For what it’s worth, I was raised in a working-class neighborhood in South Seattle and my folks had small businesses. A part of me recognizes these men. They are the sons of my neighbors. My personal interpretation is that these suicide rates reflect a group of men unwilling to seek self-improvement in the form of therapy or education. Perhaps in their culture it is a sign of weakness, or maybe they do not believe they are wrong, mentally injured, or perhaps it is a simple financial barrier. Adaptation to our changing world is difficult but necessary.

So, let’s move ahead a few months. We have a Presidential election coming up. Is Biden going to go the way of Hilary or Barak in his campaign outreach? Will he be able to identify, and connect with the majority of voters? …also could folks start voting out the sellouts in the Senate? Seriously. Otherwise, in my view, Trump will simply be more fuel to the unpredictable, unstable, despair bonfire.
F*ck Trump!

Here is my current mood expressed in a meme. Thanks for visiting. Be safe, stay healthy. -Shannon