Category: Current Events

Attention must be paid

Well, now. I said I would pay more attention to what is happening in America because attention must be paid, but this is a bit much. I am, after all, retired and a woman of leisure, but every day the shitshow gets worse, and I can’t in good conscience look away. Somehow, we’ve got to unravel the truth.

What I’ve learned this week is the truth hides in plain sight. I believe it was David in the comments section of my last post who said, “Pay attention to your news source.”  

Case in point. I’ve been reading independent news reports that say on Jan. 28 the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) sent an email to nearly all full-time federal employees offering them an alleged eight month’s severance package to resign by Feb. 6. That’s about 2 million people.

I went into panic mode, wondering how I’m going to get my Social Security if everyone is gone, and my husband said he read about the email, but the buyout was for people who are working from home and refuse to go back to the office.

Oh, only that, well, it’s about time.

Dale’s information source was a Bloomberg article with the headline, “Trump Offers Buyouts to Federal Employees Resisting In-Person Work.”

Kinda sorta. While the email includes a return-to-office requirement, the “deferred resignation” offer is much broader in scope. Some say it’s a simple workforce reduction strategy, and others say the goal is to rid ourselves of a nonpartisan civil service and replace it with party loyalists. The Trump administration seems to have rigged up some sort of con to address pesky legal concerns, but thankfully, there is truth and resistance from all corners.

I had to re-check all my sources to prove to Dale I wasn’t making this up. Even the OPM confirmed the email wasn’t only for those who don’t show up at the office.

Deferred resignation is available to all full-time federal employees except for military personnel of the armed forces, employees of the U.S. Postal Service, those in positions related to immigration enforcement and national security, and those in other positions specifically excluded by your employing agency.

Everyone chooses how they tell a story, me included. No matter who you hear it from, attention must be paid. Sometimes you have to pull back the curtain to figure out what’s really happening. Whether intentional or not, trusted news sources aren’t always trustworthy.

Interestingly, the email’s subject line featured the same wording Elon Musk used when he took over Twitter and tried to fire just about everybody. A Fork in the Road.

Or as I like to call it, A Fork in the Throat.

I’m reading lots of intelligent commentary on America’s turn to the right but still not seeing any clear direction on what average citizens can do to stop it. I’m working on my little handout that might direct people to topic-specific independent news sources and non-profit organizations, so at least we can read about it and maybe give some money to others who are working hard to save our country.

Dinner

And at last we turn to talk of dinner! We’re headed for a cold and rainy spell, so Dale and I are prioritizing the list of delicious “winter” meals to ease our suffering. I’ve been getting my sourdough starter ready so I can bake a boule this weekend. Probably miso seafood chowder to go with.

Dale plans to make a batch of chili. His recipe uses pork and beef but no beans and is from a handout we got at a liquor store 40 years ago – a promotional piece by Marlboro!

Also on the docket is a dish we make called Transylvanian Layered Cabbage. It’s a casserole with layers of sauerkraut, rice, sour cream, ground pork, smoked sausage and bacon. It sounds weird, but it’s oddly fabulous. One of us will make rye bread to go with that.

Slather some butter on that bread and fill up a tankard of beer, and you remember that in spite of it all, life is good!

Denial is not an option

As expected, all things Trump put me in a foul mood. It would be easy to stick my head in the sand and go about my happy life. That’s what one of my golf buddies said – this stuff largely didn’t affect him, so he was tuning out.

I said, yeah, I get that, but I keep thinking about the poem by Pastor Martin Niemöller.

First they came for the Communists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Communist
Then they came for the Socialists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Socialist
Then they came for the trade unionists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a trade unionist
Then they came for the Jews
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Jew
Then they came for me
And there was no one left
To speak out for me

Citizen Donna came to the rescue and helped me realize denial is not an option. I know it’s different for everyone, but I’ll share my thoughts in case there’s a nugget or two.

For starters, I’m not much of an activist and don’t want to be. But reading the news and getting jolted every day with the lunacy of it all was making me feel angry and powerless. What to do?

It might sound counterintuitive, but I started actually paying more attention to the news – not just titillating headlines, but in-depth information on equal rights, fair taxation, immigration, abortion medication, Supreme Court ethics … and the beat goes on.

I quickly realized there’s a lot I don’t know about pretty much everything. I saw birthright citizenship was buzzing around in the headlines, but I didn’t realize the potential impact of Trump’s executive action until I read up on the 14th Amendment. I thought I was all cool with transgender issues until I went to a resource for transgender allies and learned I’m actually quite clueless.

Switching from the victim mode to the learning mode has made a huge difference in my mental state. It’s not just read it and weep anymore. As I become more educated on these issues, I’ll be better prepared to discuss them, and that already makes me a better citizen than I was before I came out of my funk. Is that an approach that will work for you as well?

The next step is harder, and that’s action. I’m not likely to go door-to-door or join a march, but I have skills that can help other people make sense of it all. For some clarity, I started working on a master document that succinctly describes the top issues, nonprofit organizations focused on those issues and independent media sources that provide facts and perspective. For the nonprofits, I will also include a rating from one of the charity watchdog organizations.

I’m hoping this whole exercise will help us see which issues trigger a reaction so we can decide where to focus our time and energy. I’ll be sure to post it when I’m finished. You know, I never did find a volunteer opportunity that suited me, but maybe the best way for me to give back is to share my pro-Democracy content and donate money to causes I care about.

That doesn’t mean all my other stuff is going away. I’ll still write about books, movies, food and all the other simple pleasures that add up to a great retirement.

The Great Resignation

Have you been reading about The Great Resignation? Droves of people are quitting their jobs, much of it as a result of the pandemic. While lots of factors play into their decisions, including child care challenges, it sounds like workers have discovered the joys of a slower pace and aren’t going back until they find something with more balance.

You’ll notice I didn’t say work-life balance. In one job, I wrote talking points for the president of the company about his efforts to change the culture of the workplace. He asked me to “socialize” them with other executives, and one VP took issue with the term work-life balance. He said, and I quote, “Work is life.”

As for resigning, we get it, don’t we? One of the reasons I retired earlyish is because the rat race was wearing me out, too. But I was 62, and my husband and I had enough money saved to presumably last the rest of our lives. These are young people gambling with their futures … holding out until employers bend.

I’ve never understood why 40 hours a week isn’t enough. In my last job, you were expected to put in at least 50, preferably more. My boss had some sort of document readily accessible on her smartphone that could instantly tell her who was putting in the most unpaid overtime … and who wasn’t.

She would check on weekends to see if your Instant Messenger light was green, which usually meant you were online and working.

Granted, I was highly compensated, but my hourly rate was down there with fast food. Not really, but you like to think you’re paid more because you bring extra value, not because you are willing to give up having a life outside of work.

Fast food reminds me of a funny story.

We had just returned from working abroad, and I interviewed for a job at an insurance company in Columbia, S.C. They made an offer, and I countered.

I made more money than that at my last job working in Egypt.

Well, that was overseas. You can’t compare us to overseas.

I made more money than that when I lived in Alabama.

Well, that was aerospace. You can’t compare us to aerospace.

I accepted the job anyway, but when I later told the story to a coworker, he said his response would have been:

I made more money than that when I worked at Captain D’s.

Well, that was fast food. You can’t compare us to fast food.

That story still makes me laugh.

Anyway, I want the workers to find their bliss, but I can’t say I have much hope. I suspect they’ll enjoy some time off, run out of money and once again be at the mercy of the man.

It’s a tough predicament, and I have no love left for what’s become of the workplace, but I have some amazing memories and am still exceedingly grateful for all my experiences.

And the money. Oh, and retirement. Definitely retirement.