Gaslit Nation

My skin acted up.

For those playing the home game, I have pemphigus foliaceus. Google it if you want, but be prepared to bleed.

It took eighteen months and four doctors to diagnose. According to the organization, and there’s one for every disease, the average patient sees five doctors in a year, proving that I’m my mother’s son…as in it’s illegal to be sick and if I just hang in there it will go away when the truth is if the medical establishment doesn’t know what’s going on keep searching, keep going to more doctors, because you are right and they are wrong.

And despite everybody e-mailing me their fakokta solutions, none of them work, because pemphigus foliaceus is an immune disorder, anything topical is palliative at best, in order to speak to the underlying condition you must get Rituxan, which is what they give lymphoma patients.

But the last thing I wanted to do was go to the infusion center.

But I did.

At first you’re freaked out. They take your temperature. They don’t allow anybody but the patient inside. And after being indoors for weeks, the thought of touching an unprotected door handle was overwhelming.

So, you sit in a chair for four to six hours as they drip this poison into your body, you go home and fall asleep and for the following three or four days you’re off-kilter and then you’re back.

And then you have to do it all over again.

That’s right, two infusions exactly two weeks apart.

But the problem is you don’t get the total beneficial effect for two months. Maybe you see some improvement in two weeks, a month should show results, but meanwhile, I’m itching up a storm, my legs are covered in giant red blotches, if I hadn’t experienced this before, I’d be freaking out.

But the problem is since we’re all at home, we’ve got too much time to think about our problems, there are few distractions. As for going out protesting…the dermatologist asked me if I was taking self-quarantining seriously, she emphasized how important it is.

So I’m home.

But at night I go hiking. Where fewer and fewer people are wearing masks.

Yup, Trump and his minions won. They don’t look manly, what are the odds of infection anyway, let’s all return to normal. And you may feel fine, but you’re supposed to be protecting me, and you’re not.

So I’m driving to the park last night, and I had to go when it was still hot, to beat the curfew, and Howard Stern is talking about Blackout Tuesday, how he grew up in Roosevelt, New York, which went from white to black seemingly overnight. And he’s castigating those whites who are so self-righteous but who he knew would move immediately if a black family moved in next door. And it was so riveting, that I wanted to continue to listen.

But I was out of cell range.

So I pulled up Gaslit Nation instead.

Gaslit Nation is a podcast hosted by Sarah Kendzior and Andrea Chalupa. Sarah tweeted that the episode would be delayed because they wanted to get it right, they wanted to cover the insanity of our president and our country that had occurred in D.C. earlier.

And I remembered this. And downloaded the podcast. Usually I stream, that’s what unlimited plans are for, but, like I said, I was gonna be out of cell range, for about ten minutes.

And at first it was just talking heads in my ears.

And then…

The episode is entitled “Reichstag Fire.” Do you know about the Reichstag Fire?

Probably not, American schools are so busy teaching to the test that kids don’t learn anything, they don’t emerge fully-rounded citizens.

Anyway, Hitler took power, and then a month later there was this fire. The Nazis blamed the fire on the communists, when in truth it was a single perpetrator. But that didn’t matter, Hitler, et al, quashed the communists, the resistance, so there would be no contrary opinions, and then immediately passed a law getting rid of most civil liberties. You had to keep Germany safe, right?

Now I don’t want to make this about Hitler and Nazis, and that isn’t the point anyway. It’s all about authoritarianism.

And Kendzior and Chalupa are experts on authoritarianism. And that’s where we’re headed.

Forget the hoi polloi white nationalists and other Trump supporters, go straight to the top, go to Trump, that’s where the problem resides.

In other words, be afraid, be very afraid.

You keep saying it can’t happen here, and then it continues to do so. Wake up!

Sarah and Andrea walk you through the authoritarian playbook. Bringing out the military is a key element. And what is making me write this tonight is last night’s stories of unbranded cops. Because Sarah and Andrea predicted this in the podcast I’d listened to just hours before! You don’t know who is a cop and who isn’t, who is on your side and who isn’t, who to trust and who to not.

“A dangerous new factor in an uneasy moment: Unidentified law enforcement officers”

So, Trump and his cronies are blaming the problems on antifa and other leftist organizations. This is conscious, truth is irrelevant, it’s about scapegoating and eliminating dissent. You want to be safe from the rioters, right?

This is why involving the military is such a big deal. Force is needed to quiet opposing opinion.

But Mark Zuckerberg keeps saying disinformation is fine and “The New York Times” prints the Cotton opinion piece demanding the military be employed.

Sarah and Andrea rip “The New York Times” a new asshole. The paper was wrong about Iraq, it’s wrong about so many things. It’s complicit with those in power. And this is absolutely true, the “Times refuses to review Kendzior’s new book, because it’s just too dangerous, it might piss off the owners of this country.

And then there’s the denial. Yes, those in power, both in D.C. and the media, keep saying they didn’t foresee the troubles, and therefore they can’t be held accountable. It’s all about accountability. And I’m sure you noticed that they’ve arrested more people on the streets of Minneapolis than were arrested on Wall Street in 2008.

And isn’t it funny that Trump couldn’t get it together to fight Covid-19, but he lost no time jumping to action when it came to fighting dissent in the wake of the death of George Floyd. There you’ve got his priorities.

In other words, we’re on the road to autocracy and the trusted sources are not to be, trusted that is.

I know, I know, this sounds like apocalyptic drivel, but you just couldn’t conceive of what is happening now, whereas both Sarah and Andrea detailed it completely back in 2016, when Trump got elected.

But they’re in their early forties and not part of the media elite.

That’s right, Ronan Farrow is a hero because he stood up to big old NBC and then the “The New York Times” criticizes the accuracy of his work and there’s a pissing match and now Blackout Tuesday supporters are hassling Alec Baldwin for launching his podcast with Woody Allen two days ago. He should have respected the blackout.

Alec bit back, said he thought Woody was innocent, after all the only place he’s been convicted was in the court of public opinion and that he, Alec, is sick of politically correct behavior that achieves nothing.

In other words, we’re not fighting over the major issues. The two Allens, Satchel (Ronan) and Woody, dominate the headlines in big media and no one is covering what’s happening in the streets until there’s outright revolt.

Change always comes from outside. New York and D.C. like it just the way it is. Furthermore, the right has been trying to cancel California, demonizing it because of its power, as goes California, so goes the nation, without the Golden State’s economy, the entire U.S. craters.

So, the public has been neutered. Social media is pissed upon because that’s the only place regular people can communicate.

So, now is the time to listen to outsiders. Listening to the “Reichstag Fire” episode of Gaslit Nation will be the most important thing you do today. Turn off the television, forget the minute by minute news, take an hour to get historical insight into where we are now.

Trump is not unique. He’s just the latest in a long line of authoritarians. And one thing is for sure, he doesn’t want the truth revealed. He doesn’t want you to know about his dealings with Russia, he doesn’t want you to see his tax returns, he wants no investigation into his administration’s behavior and…

You sit at home and rely on checks and balances. From a do-nothing Congress and a right wing packed court system. Never forget, the Supreme Court handed victory in 2000 to Bush.

Write Sarah Kendzior and Andrea Chalupa off. Write me off. That’s what you’ve been doing for decades, pursuing wealth and ignoring process, if you can understand it at all.

But now is the time to wake up, to understand our democracy is hanging by a thread. And that the Republicans won’t save you, the Democrats won’t save you, the media won’t save you…

But you have to save yourself.

This one is on you. It’s your responsibility. To educate yourself and act accordingly.

And there’s no better place to start than with the “Reichstag Fire” episode of the Gaslit Nation podcast.

Gaslit Nation – Reichstag Fire – apple

Gaslit Nation – Reichstag Fire – spotify

Robert Kolker is the author of the best-selling book “Hidden Valley Road” (an Oprah’s Book Club choice!) as well as the “New York” magazine article upon which the HBO feature film “Bad Education” is based and the book “Lost Girls,” the film of which recently debuted on Netflix. First, we explore the mechanics of a book deal, how “Hidden Valley Road” came to be, and then we go deep into the essence of the story, about the Galvin family of Colorado Springs, with twelve children, six of whom became schizophrenic.

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It’s everywhere, covered in the NYT, WSJ and WaPo.

You see good intentions are no longer good enough.

And celebrities no longer get a pass.

If you stand for nothing, no one is interested.

This is the opposite of the past four decades, when it became about building your brand all over the world and maximizing your financial potential. Now, it’s about saying no as much as yes, and realizing you’re no better, no different from the people on the street.

We used to live in a two-tiered society. Those who had made it, who had power, and those who did not. And there was a very thin layer of those who succeeded, and they thought they were immune.

But as Bob Dylan sang in “It’s Alright, Ma (I’m Only Bleeding),”

But even the President of the United States sometimes must have to stand naked

You see Trump has lost control of the narrative. As have the traditional media outlets. And no one is looking to the words of celebrities for truth.

We saw this first with Gal Gadot’s “Imagine.” It was immediately excoriated:

This ‘Imagine’ Cover Is No Heaven

And now it’s open season to react against those who are well-intentioned but clueless.

Naomi Klein talks about the shock doctrine, how momentous political events allow bad actors, i.e. corporations and the government, to institute change that benefits them and leaves the people out.

We’re experiencing a shock right now, and everybody who does not align themselves with the people, whether it be in the street or in their minds, will be on the wrong side of history.

This is what Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t understand. Even at Snapchat they’re cracking down on promoting Trump:

Snapchat to stop promoting Trump after controversial posts

This is a giant sea change, an end to false equivalencies, if you’re not willing to re-evaluate everything, you’re going to get lost in the shuffle.

And if you don’t have an open mind, you’re going to become a pariah, lose all your relationships and quite possibly your livelihood, like that drummer:

“DW Drums artist Hilary Jones unleashes racist rant online”

Now is the time to get on the side of the people, the masses, who’ve been abused too long.

And the abuse has come at the hands of the employers.

Contract work, gig work? Now is the time to make people employees, otherwise you’re going to incur their wrath. Companies don’t want to hire people as employees because they don’t want to pay the benefits and they don’t want to deal with firing them. But just like California cracked down on Uber and Lyft and other gig work, this cancer on our society will have to be treated or the employers too will become pariahs, just like the aforementioned drummer and Amy Cooper.

Same deal with individuals. Think before you speak, otherwise you could sacrifice your livelihood, your entire career. And sure, cancel culture is unfair, but it’s a backlash over eons of abuse. If you think there’s too much #MeToo, you don’t understand that women are afraid to walk the streets, are on high alert at work, just imagine if you’re an African-American woman!

But the right has been laughing about the special interest infighting of the left for years. And it’s true, the left is not monolithic, but constituents’ hearts and minds are in the right place, and now it’s a time of hearts and minds.

Unlike the heartless Bill Barr. These people have to go.

And it’s not only me, I’m sure you’re aware of George Will’s column:

“Trump must be removed. So must his congressional enablers.”

I’m sure you’re aware of the Lincoln Project, I’m sure you’re aware of the latest ad:

“Mourning in America”:

This is how it was in the sixties, you were either for us or against us. And you’ve got to choose.

I’m speaking to those who straddle both sides most especially. Who are left on social issues and right on fiscal ones. They’re the same. I’m not saying you won’t get rewards from working hard, but if you’re paying a low tax rate, if you’re the beneficiary of the carried interest rule, if most of your income is taxed at capital gains rates, if you make a lot and don’t give enough away because you’re protecting your lifestyle…you’re in trouble. Both the NYT and LAT did stories how rioters have gone to Beverly Hills. Turns out the vaunted BH police force is no match for the people when they organize:

“Beverly Hills, Buckhead, SoHo: The New Sites of Urban Unrest”

And you don’t need to be rich to organize, and you don’t need to be famous. The tools are at your disposal, everybody counts, and if you dismiss someone…there will be backlash.

This does not mean everyone gets to play in the NBA, everyone gets to be rich… But it does mean we focus on the national safety net, we stop blaming people for their poverty and we do our best to lift people up.

People don’t want to change, it’s too hard.

But sometimes events force them to.

You don’t want to evaluate your positions, you don’t want to learn you’re wrong.

And if you live in an echo chamber, it’s to your detriment.

The right/left, Fox/MSNBC world no longer holds. First and foremost, because all the mainstream media outlets did not predict this and are not in control of the narrative. Chaos is not only in the streets, but in the national consciousness, what is truth?

And the fact that there were protests in over 140 communities for over a week… I lived through the sixties, protest was never that wide for that long.

As for patting yourself on the back for being so enlightened… Posting on social media… Don’t kid yourself, you’re not that important. Either be a leader, or get out of the way, the social media paradigm of gaining followers and likes is irrelevant. Think about it, none of that b.s. helped spread the word on the protests. It was mostly one to one, you talked with your friends, it was all about dialogue.

But we do need leaders.

But we’re flipping the script. For too long we’ve said if you’re rich you get a voice and your voice matters more than everybody else’s.

Now, it’s about intelligence, insight. The media believes it controls whose story is amplified, whose is boosted. But now, the people do that, the people have been in control of breaking acts, TV shows, every important story for over a decade now. The public broke “The Tiger King,” the national media was caught flat-footed.

So, if you’re resting on your status, check yourself.

You don’t only need to learn the plight of African-Americans, but that of the poor, the underclass, the drug-addicted.

And this is not about voting. That’s how the old guard dupes you into being under their control. Those in control of the system have to bend to the will of the people, like with the civil rights laws and the amendment to the Constitution that allowed women to vote. Those who are saying the Constitution is inviolate, and we must adhere to it, interpreting it as those who wrote it did, are on the wrong side of the future. Like I said, everything is up for grabs, even the Electoral College. The ground is shifting under your feet, this is an earthquake, your edifice might fall.

You might think we’re going back to business as usual, that after we clean up from the protests everything will just be hunky-dory, but this will not be the end, but the beginning, it’s the will of the people.

The will of the people has been subverted for years, how long do you expect it to last? There’s a price for gerrymandering and voter suppression and team playing.

It’s no longer us versus them, we’re all in it together.

Like the cops who kneeled with the protesters, they realized the only way out of this is to all be on one side. Those who have force only will go down in defeat. Hell, even Trump and Barr’s shenanigans are being blasted by some Republicans. Trump might sacrifice Barr, but he’s never sacrificing himself.

But this is about much more than Trump.

We’re sick of hearing about guns being needed by the public to keep order. I didn’t see all those Second Amendment nitwits out in the street on the side of the police, no, they’re just afraid. It’s all puff and no substance.

And we’re sick of hearing it’s our fault that we’re on drugs, that we’re obese, as the government tears down healthy food guidelines in school.

We’re sick of drinking tainted water, we’re sick of climate change.

Yup, it’s all up for grabs. You thought this was just about George Floyd, you’re wrong, that was just the trigger, it’s been brewing for decades.

And what we’ve learned in the internet era is the will of the people always wins. It always goes people’s ways. You might be able to put your finger in the dike for a short time, but you’re still gonna be overrun by the flood.

This is something you feel in your heart. You don’t need to be out in the street, you don’t need to be protesting. You know it’s wrong. We’ve been sold a bill of goods since 1980, that if we just let the corporations run ragged the wealth would trickle down to the hoi polloi and everything would be groovy. But this did not happen, and this is still the paradigm. Hell, look at the most recent tax cuts.

And if you think people don’t know all this, you’re dreaming. People are informed.

Then again, they’re misinformed. And the miscreants misinforming the public are crying now that social networks are cracking down on them.

But the truth is the social networks are going to crack down further. Zuckerberg is gonna cave, just you watch. Because he’s ignorant now, saying there was no history to looting begetting shooting, but as he gains insight and the blowback sustains…

This is the story of today’s America, the pressure. Change first, don’t wait to be forced to.

Don’t just cough up what you need to reluctantly, give workers what they deserve now. And I’m speaking to those self-righteous record companies too. How come acts can’t own their records, writers own their books! How come profits can’t be split 50/50? So Vivendi and Warner Music can make more on the stock market? That’s one thing we’ve seen since Covid-19, the stock market has got nothing to do with economic reality on the street.

And right now, we’re all on the street. You can’t hide. Everybody knows the truth.

Wake up, it’s judgment day.

“When Did Instagram Go Dark” We have mixed feelings about #Blackout Tuesday, too.”

“Opinion: Blackout Tuesday Backfired spectacularly. Five ways to support Black Lives Matter”

Why Some Black Lives Matter supporters are upset about those black squares on Instagram – Use the hashtag #BlackoutTuesday, not #BlackLivesMatter, they say, so vital voices are not drowned out.”

DEUTSCHLAND ’83

This was recommended by “The Week.” And I recommend “The Week”

But it’s expensive.

The magazine world has completely changed, and it’s even worse in the era of Covid-19. I.e. advertising has fallen off dramatically. But “The Week” was never based on advertising. So now, every magazine is expensive, look at the price of “The New Yorker” or “Rolling Stone”! Furthermore, you can get so many overpriced journals via Apple News+. But I recommend subscribing to “The Week,” especially if you don’t subscribe to many periodicals.

Anyway, “The Week” combs through all the news of the week and distills it down. Kinda like a Zagat guide, but more comprehensible.

I subscribed years ago, but thought there was a right wing bias. If there ever was, I no longer believe this to be the case. But be wary of the long condensed article at the back, oftentimes there’s no context and you don’t get an accurate picture.

Now I have subscriptions to almost all of the publications they quote, the NYT, WaPo, WSJ…but not all of them.

You can avoid all TV news (which you should, other than for images that are breaking) and all periodicals and just read “The Week” and be more informed than almost anybody you know. Buy it!

Now “Deutschland ’83” has a tone problem. As in is it humorous or serious? It’s about an East German spy invading West Germany. But it’s not a James Bond movie, it’s more of a delineation of the viewpoints…and the landscape is amazing! Makes you want to go to Germany.

And the story is true.

Not the set-up, with the characters, but the basic framework. I don’t want to give anything away, but I didn’t know the truth of this story, and I doubt many people will.

You get hooked.

And, East Germany is the land of the true believers. Kinda like Trumpworld, they’re wearing blinders. Unfortunately, I think the Republican party is following Trump right off a cliff. What he did yesterday was indefensible, even the bishop was offended, and by defending him… What did the Beatles say, “Think for yourself”? This is the time of iconic leaders, those who stand up for what is right, followers will be burned. Everything is up for grabs and we’re experiencing a giant reset. The ball is being moved as we speak. Zuckerberg is gonna stand up. The NYT is taking a firmer stance against Trump. And the Fox people have no idea what is going on outside their bubble. Which is why you want to get “The Week,” to see what’s going on outside your world. Information is power. Challenge your parents’ precepts. Make your own decisions.

Do what’s right.

Actually, that’s the ultimate message of “Deutschland ’83.”

DEUTSCHLAND ’86

I didn’t know it existed. I thought “Deutschland ’83” was a one time shot. But it turns out there’s going to be a “Deutschland ’89”! Word is it’s going to be on Amazon, not Hulu like the previous two. And speaking of platforms, it’s unfortunate the new Laurel Canyon documentary is on Epix. If you know nothing about the scene, you must see it. But you don’t come away beaming and needing to testify. But there is so much more here than has been focused on previously. The impact of the Monkees, the players more than the TV show. And this doc takes you all the way up to the seventies, Manson and beyond, to the Eagles and when acts were making so much money they embraced more upscale digs and wanted more safety.

So, there’s no tone issue with “Deutschland ’86.”

Its focus is on Africa and apartheid. East Germany was on the side of the oppressed.

Once again, the landscape makes you want to go there, South Africa is so beautiful!

“Deutschland ’86” portrays the cracks in the East German system.

That’s why you should listen to “The Big Steal” podcast. We don’t realize what chaos existed in Russia between the fall of Communism and Putin. Everything was up for grabs. Watch the Showtime documentary now on Netflix “Operation Odessa” for further insight. “Operation Odessa” is nearly a romp, you’ll have a hard time turning it off, but maybe that’s another newsletter.

DOUGLAS

Hannah Gadsby’s latest on Netflix.

No, it’s not as good as “Nanette,” but I still recommend it. Hannah Gadsby is so damn LIKABLE! She talks about being an autistic lesbian, but even if you’re straight, you’ll be drawn to her. And at the end she says we’re all somewhere on the spectrum, which is probably true.

There’s a big focus on Gadsby’s haters. She doesn’t wince and crumble, she pushes back, but the fact that she spends so much time on them is noteworthy. If you’re in the public eye, you’ve got haters. And they hate so much that you become inhibited, you think before you write or speak, for fear of the backlash. You know exactly what the triggers are. And the haters are professionals, they’re working the refs 24/7, especially the Trump supporters, I know from experience. Those on the other side? They’ll complain, but not as vociferously, not every time, and they won’t make it personal.

But that’s the world we live in today. Everybody’s gun-shy. Politicians and artists and… Whereas the public resonates with the truth. It’s kind of the reverse of the Nixon era, the silent majority is actually left!

And, once again, like in “Nanette,” Gadsby focuses on art, there’s a whole section where they flash paintings and she whips out her pointer and makes comments. She needs to do a whole special just on art. She’s very knowledgeable and her sensibility is unique and she makes art history come alive. Made me want to know more.

THE GIRLS FROM CORONA DEL MAR

The Girls from Corona del Mar: A novel

I could not put this book down. Not initially, but then I got hooked and had to sit and finish it all in one marathon session.

No, this is not as good as Rufi Thorpe’s latest book, “The Knockout Queen,” but in “The Girls from Corona del Mar” you see a reflection of how people really are. Their choices and the results. Life is long, you may think it’s over immediately, but you can pivot, you can make new choices.

Not that there are no consequences of these choices. What is your character, what is your responsibility?

Thorpe’s books are SoCal focused. And that’s quite a different mentality from the east coast. On the east coast everything’s serious, important. Parents hover over their kids, especially when it comes to education. On the west coast it’s life and life only. On the east coast, it’s about notches in your belt, as if at the end you’ll get acknowledgement from the committee in white robes. Education does not insure success in labor life.

But that’s another screed.

Once again, I refuse to delineate the plot, I don’t want to ruin it for you. Books are private adventures, that you luxuriate in. When someone tells you what is going to happen, the experience is hobbled, you’re ripped off.

When this book ends you’ll sit there stunned with the truth. It’s not so much what happens, but the reflection on life. You think you’ve got the game figured out, you think you’re winning, you jumped through all the right hoops and…you find out at the end that you know less than you did at the beginning.

DEAR FANG, WITH LOVE

Don’t read this. This is Rufi Thorpe’s second book (out of three), it misses the mark, it fails. But the reason I mention it here is I became so enraptured with Thorpe’s writing and viewpoint that I wanted more, I needed more, I wanted to explore, and that’s why I kept plowing through her books.

Twenty five years ago, I cut out a quote in “Newsweek,” when that was “The Week” of its day. I kept it right by my computer. It was inspiring. It was by Mitsuko Uchida, the Mozart pianist/expert. And I can almost quote it by heart, but the essence is she tells all her students to practice really hard, because there are very few great things out there, and if you’re great, people will be drawn to you.

That’s the absolute truth.

We’re trying to find a new streaming series. Been through about three that haven’t met the mark. Stopped after seven episodes of one. And there are some on Sundance Now and MHz and Britbox but I refuse to sign up for one more streaming service, it’s an insult. It’s worse than the cable bundle. Just quote me one price for EVERYTHING!

With the plethora of TV shows, it’s stunning how few are truly great. And that’s all I have time for. And when something is great, I want to go deeper, check out everything the artist has ever produced. It’s no different from the sixties and seventies, there’s just more stuff. There are very few gems. And I know, people e-mail me their mediocre material all day long. If it was truly that great, OTHER PEOPLE would be e-mailing me about it. In our self-promotional culture purveyors don’t realize this. If you made it and you’re telling me it’s great, I ignore it completely, it’s got no value, I need to hear it from someone else. But it’s easier to promote online than to create great work. Every artist thinks they’re entitled to time and eyeballs, but very few deserve attention. But if we find one who does, we tell everybody we know!

Like I’m doing with Rufi Thorpe.