WHAT’S NEW?

Not much, as it turns out.

Cautious respect for the transmissibility of the Omicron version of Covid-19-20-21-22 continues to keep me close to home. There’s always something to do here, but I miss being able to go to stores, the movies, museums, and restaurants. Not having those activities to define the days, I’ve found myself having to look at the calendar to verify which day and date it is. That’s not a good sign, is it?

I watch the twenty-four/seven news channels several times each day, expecting them to report news that’s REALLY new. Other than the unusual weather and animal stories (January flash fires in California, tornados in Kentucky in December, a Florida woman attacked by a bear,) the “news” is a continuous loop of sameness.

The former President’s name is invoked as frequently as it was when he was in office. The current Attorney General’s progress vis-à-vis indicting those whose actions deserve to be indicted seems to be as hesitant as the Mueller Report was ineffectual. Let’s hope the A.G.’s soft-spoken demeanor is really a cover for his intension to perform the Department of Justice’s prosecutorial duties. Otherwise… there’s nothing newsworthy here.

The dark side of the Senate blocked the Build Back Better legislation, part of which sought to mitigate the planet’s climate changes. So, the weird weather stories will continue to fill our news feeds. The only issue that’s new here is the possibility that sooner or later I’ll see videos of my own neighborhood under water or floating into the atmosphere. One afternoon last summer there was an incident of tornadic rotation above my area. Thank goodness it spun itself away at 65 mph.

The Senate’s “Republican + two Dem-Dummies” refused to pass the voting rights bill. There’s nothing new about that. The last century’s Jim Crow laws are being re-tailored to fit this century’s walk back to racial discrimination. Could someone please lead a prayer for John Lewis and all the souls who were killed as they worked for our right to cast our votes? Please?

The Senate Minority Leader, Mitch McConnell, states, “… if you look at the statistics, African American voters are voting in just as high a percentage as Americans.” Incorrect and stupid, but revelatory. My perception that a hell of a lot of people still believe that Americans of color are not really American is not a figment of my imagination, but a pigment stuck in the imaginations of those who would disenfranchise us. That’s sad, but not new.

The 2022 Winter Olympic Games begin soon in Beijing. Athletes from all over the world are prepped to compete in the host country, China. China’s regime also hosts the genocide of the Uyghur people. Remember the 1936 Olympics hosted by Germany, the country whose political leader sponsored the extermination of six million plus Jewish, Romani, and Gay people?

The Roe v. Wade decision, an example of settled law, is expected to be overturned by a majority of Supreme Court justices who recently rejected overturning the new repressive abortion laws in Texas. Clearly, settled law is influenced/interpreted by the settlers, not by the women who bear the consequences of their sexual liaisons, be they loving, or violent and forcible, or incestuous. There’s nothing new here. It’s another run back to a repressive past.

Wait! There is something new! I’ve come to admire Rep. Liz Cheney.

She admits she was wrong when she condemned her sister’s sexuality and stood against marriage equality. She publicly calls out the former president and his illegal acts as he tries to coup his way back to the Oval Office. She believes in and defends the principles of democracy.

Liz C. reminds me of an old-school conservative Republican. Don’t hate me, but right about now an old-school conservative is so much better than the cray-cray autocratic, seditious cabal that’s attempting to shred the Constitution.

So, dear readers, at least there’s something new!

©Renée Bess 2022

Renée Bess is the opinionated author of five novels and the co-story collector of an award-winning anthology, Our Happy Hours, LGBT Voices from the Gay Bars. Her most recent book, Between a Rock and a Soft Place, was published by Flashpoint Publications in 2021. http://www.reneebess.com