My wife left me.

We are still married, for now. I'm adult enough to know that As her husband, I believe that her happiness is as important as my own. And yet she isn't happy, and I want to address it.

I'm having trouble understanding why she left. There is a communication issue, to be sure. Here is a story about why I love her.

She bought tickets online for a movie with her money. We got to the theater, and the doors were locked. There must have been a staffing issue with the pandemic. Mistakes happen. We go back the next day, and I insisted on getting a refund for the tickets. She didn't want me to bother the theater employees, even though we were clearly in the right. She would have preferred to eat the cost of $30 in wasted tickets rather than cause a moment's inconvenience to a service worker. Regina is the anti-Karen. and that is what I love about her. I still got her money back. I just showed them that we bought tickets for a day that they were closed, and they didn't fight us about it. They gave us movie passes, and we used them to watch the movie.

I like to think that she is learning to stand up for herself.

How to react when they want to do something dumb?

Sometimes a loved one wants to make a life altering decision, like taking up an expensive hobby, moving to a different state, or making a career change. And then I'm presented with three options.

1. Try to talk them out of it. (Their response is that I am trying to kill their dreams. Never mind that this is one of multiple conflicting dreams and goals that they presented to me within a short time frame. I am the Dreamkiller.)

2. Encourage them in their passion. (Tomorrow, they're going to say that I'm pressuring them into doing something that could ruin their life. As if I have something to gain by them failing.)

3. Leave it completely up to them. (Obviously it's clear to them that I don't care about anything they have to say.)

It's even more fun when they bring up, say, becoming an astronaut even though they have never been on a plane because they are afraid to fly. And now it sounds like I'm mocking them, but they never had any serious plans towards becoming an astronaut so why did they bring it up, so yeah, I guess I am mocking them.

And now they are going "I NEVER SAID I WANTED TO BE AN ASTRONAUT" and of course you didn't, because this story isn't about you in particular. It's about a lot of people I know who dream way, way too big. Like maybe the schools should stop with "anybody can grow up to be President" nonsense and just go with "anybody can grow up to be stable adults who pay their bills and don't have some kind of crisis every month".

Gosh, I probably should update this blog more.

 All these hopes and dreams that I have, all that require daily maintenance, and being a semi-pro blogger is one of them. There are challenging things going on in my personal life, but I shouldn't share too many details. It would be my luck if people chose this moment in time to take an interest in this blog at a time when I decided to share too much.

It's really all about abortion for the GOP base

Yesterday, I wrote a diary that wondered why Republicans were so loyal to such a nakedly corrupt, immoral man. I went to bed, woke up, and it finally hit me. It is all about abortion for them. For 50 years, they couldn’t do anything about it. Then this promiscuous charlatan comes along and beats Hillary Clinton. Just as the sinking of the Titanic was a miracle for the lobsters in the kitchen, Trump’s victory looked like divine intervention for those who think God cares about US politics.

Since I’m a man, I’ve had the luxury of taking my time to come around to the realization that a fetus only matters if its mother says that it matters. Abortion can be a unpleasant subject to think and talk about, so that’s why a lot of people come to the wrong conclusion about it, even if they aren’t particularly religious.  To be sure, there are atheists and agnostics who oppose abortion too, (and whatever their religious beliefs are, their secular belief that abortion should be illegal is still wrong.)

So if you are a person who sincerely (but incorrectly) believes that abortion is murder, that can float to the top of your political priorities. You can rationalize anything, including violence, if it causes fewer abortions to take place. You stop caring about things like the economy, the justice system, and national security. Everything else can be dismissed as a distraction, or be exploited in order to distract others.

Consider the topic of vaccines. If you care about fetuses, then you should care about the health of pregnant women. Maybe you might not support vaccine mandates, but you still might be making PSA’s about how pregnant women should consult with their doctors about vaccines, and how the rest of us should get vaccinated to protect pregnant women.

Except now there is a huge overlap between the anti-vax and anti-abortion crowds. The common factor is a misunderstanding of biology, and a weaponization of that misunderstanding.

Trump gave the anti-abortion crowd three Supreme Court justices. No matter how delusional they are about everything else, they know that TFG played a role in overturning Roe V. Wade. They would follow him off a cliff for that alone. If we can win the debate on abortion, then that guts the GOP base. 2024 could be a fun year.

Why I'm not going to watch that video

I'm not going to watch your video. You aren't the first person I'm saying this to, but you won't be the last either so I'm writing this so I don't have to repeat myself. Don't be deluded into thinking that you won our little Internet debate. Feel free to think that I'm just a tool of the corporations, the Deep State, or whoever you think the bad guys are. But I bet you are never going to watch all of the January 6th Committee hearings either.

I already have a pretty good idea of what the video is going to say. Maybe it might have something that I haven't heard before, or maybe this a Rickroll or whatever the kids are doing these days. Even if that video is the only way to learn the secrets of Life, The Universe, And Everything, those secrets shall remain unknown to me because I will not watch that video.

You could type out what relevant facts are in that video, and I might read them. But I suspect your real goal is to increase the viewcount of that video and help the people who made it. Or maybe you knew I was going to refuse to watch that video, and you want to be able to say that I'm biased and closed minded. Maybe you're closed-minded because you think everyone who doesn't have time or cellular data to watch your video is closed-minded. Why don't you go outside and touch some grass?

As I am typing this, I have the day off. And obviously my Internet works. Now would be a very convenient time for me to watch videos. But I'd rather be watching Star Trek and writing this than watch your video. Maybe that's a poor use of my time, but suggesting videos to me is an absolute waste of your time, because that's just not going to lead to a desirable outcome.

I have watched a LOT of videos before I wrote this. Far too many of them contain a Gish Gallop. They say a bunch of things that sound like facts because they have big words and statistics. But you didn't bother to double check any of them, so why should I bother to hear them in the first place?

Joe Biden for President

 

I’m 44 years old. I have voted in every Presidential election since 2000. Next year I’m going to vote for Joe Biden for the first time.

As a former long time member of the Libertarian Party, I get that many people have grievances with the way things are. In the past, when there wasn’t a Libertarian on the ballot, I usually voted against the incumbent, whether he was a Republican or a Democrat.

I’ve had three previous opportunities to vote for a presidential ticket with Joe Biden’s name on it in the past. In 2008, I voted for Bob Barr because Senator Barack Obama, Senator Joe Biden, and Senator John McCain all voted for the TARP bailout. We were told that this was necessary to prevent a recession, but that recession happened anyway. We can have a long discussion about whether this was the right thing to do at the time, and what to do next time a similar crisis happens, but my stance is that successful banks don’t need to be bailed out, and unsuccessful banks don’t deserved to be bailed out.

In 2012, I voted for Gary Johnson because I wanted marijuana to be decriminalized. I don’t smoke, drink, or use drugs myself. But the war on drugs has had a huge negative impact on my family, friends, classmates, and neighbors. Thankfully, Joe Biden’s stance on this has evolved.

In 2020, I voted for Jo Jorgensen because I was a long time Libertarian Party hack. However, the Libertarian Party has been since been hijacked by alt-right, antivax lunatics. I am the same guy that I was 20 years ago. The Libertarian Party has gotten worse, but Joe Biden has gotten better. He now supports marijuana legalization, marriage equality, and opposes the death penalty. As Libertarians, we used to lose elections proudly because we held these stances when they were unpopular. Right now, Joe Biden is heavily favored to win the 2024 election. But heavily favored candidates can still lose if people are complacent.

Here are the two main reasons why I am voting for Joe Biden:

1. He completed the withdrawal from Afghanistan. Some might argue that this war could have ended better, but when would it have ended? At what point would the ending be psychologically satisfying for all concerned? Every war involves loss of life and equipment right up until the end. If Biden loses, people will say it was because of the withdrawal, and that could mean the next war won’t end.

2. Nobody running against him really has anything to offer.

RFK Jr is running on an antivax platform. Vaccines are why we are living longer healthier lives in the 21 century. For decades, they weren’t even controversial. Red states and blue states alike require vaccines for schoolchildren. Today, some adults understandably resent feeling pressured to take a new vaccine. For some people, this might be the first time in their adult lives when someone suggests that they should get vaccinated. The bottom line is, vaccines work but you don’t have to get a shot if you don’t want one. If your boss fires you for not getting a shot, you should have no trouble at all finding a new job when the unemployment rate is less than 5%.

Donald Trump is a domestic terrorist and a foreign intelligence asset. When his supporters were storming the Capitol, he could have stopped the attack right away by going on TV and Twitter and telling them all to leave federal property. The people who planned and carried out that attack expected him to stay in office as a dictator.

Ron DeSantis is waging an idiotic culture war against one of the largest private sector employers in his home state. If you’re going to fight Disney, fight them for the right reasons.

Folks, things like vaccines, racism, and election results shouldn’t even be controversial. Every candidate on the ballot should acknowledge that vaccines work, everyone is equal, and Biden won the 2020 election. Since Joe Biden is the only presidential candidate who believes all of those things, I have to default to him as the only acceptable choice for President.

National Divorce is a big joke

 Many people reading this might be repulsed by the idea of secession or national divorce. I’m writing this essay for the secession-curious: no matter where you are on the political spectrum, secession isn’t going to lead to desirable outcomes. Back when I was a Libertarian, I gave it a bit of thought. Secession for Indiana would mean the Hoosier Nation-State would be surrounded on four sides by a foreign country that might not have cause to like us very much. Our only coastline would be Lake Michigan. Any imports we buy would have to pass through the US. I came to the conclusion that the best way to maintain friendly relations with the US was to remain part of the US.

But the idea seems to have more appeal in large states along the coast, depending on who the President is at the time. Here are just a few thoughts that they may not have considered:

1. You lose access to the US Constitution and the US Supreme Court. To be fair, US politicians haven’t always complied with the Bill of Rights, which might be the reason why we’re having this conversation. And many state constitutions have clauses that also enshrine the Bill of Rights. But if your newly independent government locks you up without a trial, you won’t be able to ask the Supreme Court for help. You’re on your own.

You were fighting for more freedom, right? Are you so naïve as to assume that everyone on your side has the same ideals?

2. Your state lines would become an international border. Ever visit Canada with a messy car? The Canadian border guards will search through everything in that car. Any firearms that were perfectly legal back home will get you arrested in Canada, even if you forgot that you had them in the car. You also need a passport to enter and exit Canada. Now imagine that same level of hassle to visit relatives in a different state.

3. Your taxes might actually go up. The newly independent Republic of Florida will not be able to print US dollars like the Federal Reserve does. It won’t have as good of a credit rating as the US government. But it will have to provide a lot of what you expect from the federal government: highway funding, a Coast Guard, Social Security, etc. You are going into uncharted water with secession, so who can say if you can keep your US citizenship if the state you live it breaks off. But you will still have to pay federal taxes if you keep your US citizenship. Your state taxes WILL go up.

4. Things like this never go as well as you think they will Ever break up with someone and think that you’ll still be friends afterwards? How did that turn out for you? Was it a velvet breakup like Czechia and Slovakia? Or are you more like Russia and Ukraine? There will be no trial separation here: once you realize that you made a horrible mistake , it will be too late to f