I try to avoid partisan politics in this blog, but I want to share a letter to the editor I wrote today to the Tucson Daily Star.
People wring their hands about Donald Trump, despairing about what he is doing to the country. Rather than fret, they should simply enjoy the sheer entertainment value of this administration. Hollywood could not come close to creating anything that would be so interesting, funny, fantastical, or horrifying.
For example, Humphrey Bogart’s manner on the witness stand in the classic film “The Caine Mutiny” is considered a masterpiece of acting. Yet, his portrayal of the paranoid behavior of Captain Queeg is amateurish compared to the astounding performances Donald Trump gives every day, e.g., the amazing scenes relating to his predictions about Hurricane Dorian. He was so good that he deserves both an Oscar nomination and the nickname “Alabama Don.”
Not only is Trump a fine thespian, but he has created an acting troupe without parallel. The best is Mike Pence. In the last two years, Trump and Pence have perfected their own comedy and magic act, one that vastly improves on Penn and Teller. The similarities become clear if you think about it. Alabama Don is like Penn, the one who leads the act, offering banter as well as slight-of-hand tricks such as using Pentagon money to pay for the border wall. All the while, Pence looks on mutely, like Teller, with the same slightly addled expression. After their time in office, Trump and Pence could easily have a permanent act in Las Vegas.
The Saturday Night Live lampoons of Trump and his minions are wildly popular, but the daily actions of the players of the Trump Theater of the Absurd are far funnier. Their comedy writers are better, and they truly understand the power of self-parody.
Hey Tom – i’m glad that you have a more enlightened & amused attitude towards Trump than I. I should emulate that . I did want to discuss Sue Hubbell – remember that we both tried to hear her speak once years ago? She died a little less than a year ago. Apparently she decided that she didn’t want to live with dementia, so stopped eating & drinking. Pretty admirable, don’t you think?
Are you keeping bees again?
Lorrie
Hi Lorrie,
Indeed I am keeping bees again. I have five hives right now as I learn about bee husbandry here in the Sonoran Desert, but I hope to add more next year.
It is timely that you ask about that since I have been working on a post about bees and beekeeping in these times where many people think that by following sites on the internet they can become experts in almost no time. That sort of thing exemplifies the epidemic we face these days of many people confusing information (some of it of questionable veracity) with knowledge and, even worse, confusing this pseudo knowledge with wisdom, which is the understanding that comes from much experience as well as an attitude of modesty and respect for one’s ignorance.
I will write you on email.