Month: January 2022

America’s Immediate Future Is Perilous



by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner
Something wicked this way comes. We’ve officially entered the danger zone on a macro basis when it comes to the stability of the United States. A wide range of things could happen starting now that could cause Red States to leave the Union in a collective huff. (I still believe that any civil war directly caused by Red Constitutional shenanigans in 2024 – 2025 will lead Blue States to bounce.)

The point is — I’m on edge. And I’m likely to be on edge from now until whatever clusterfuck happens in 2024 – 2025. I don’t think enough people appreciate how awful things are going to get as part of the 2024 presidential cycle.

The United States is an anocracy and, as such, the final step will be either a peaceful slip into full-blown autocracy or a civil war. And it’s not going to be any type of rolling political violence like Barbara F. Walters thinks — it’s going to be a battle royale based on the state level.

If there is a civil war — and God forbid there is one — WMD will be used extensively and millions upon millions will die. The political map of North America will be rewritten as well. Either with a forced union of Canada and the United States or some sort of split in the United States between Trumplandia and the US of Canada.

I’m also on edge because all that has to happen for something closer to Ms. Walters civil war scenario to happen would be Trump shuffling off this mortal coil in his sleep. The MAGA New Right base is so primed to believe he was knocked off by the Deep State that THAT would be when we would have something akin to The Troubles.

They say you go bankrupt gradually then all at once and I think that’s America’s fate. We’re just about to end the “gradually” phase. We’ve just about entered the “all at once” part. I don’t know what it will look like, but being an expat in South Korea for a few years taught me a lot about how to survive in a crisis and the United States is now in a severe years-long political crisis which will either implode — autocracy or explode, civil war.

And, again, I honestly have no idea what you can do to protect yourself. I hate guns and violence. But I do believe in ideas. And I would suggest you figure out what ideas are your True North and what you’re willing to suffer for or fight for when the time comes.

The rest will take care of itself, I guess.

We Have A Beginning!


by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

Well, if nothing else, I have a stable first few lines of the first novel in this series. It’s really, really good. Everything else the last few days, however ,has been in a severe amount of flux. I’ve rearranged the order of the first act a dozen times in the last 48 hours.

My literary hero.

What’s more, after making such a huge deal of how I was making the chronology of events tighter, tonight I turned around and made it exactly what it was to begin with. But at least I have a reason for doing so — I’ve realized that if I’m going to do bad things to character, I probably need to give them enough page time so you like, actually care about what happens to them.

That’s a huge flaw in a lot of thrillers — they open with a dead body and the reader hasn’t even had time to take their figurative coat off in the figurative theatre yet. So, my first act now gives a lot more page time to two characters that are going to have something bad happen to them.

My struggle for me as the writer is to make you character about these characters in a way that is interesting enough that you’ll keep reading even though in real terms Nothing Is Happening. (I’m being a little harsh on myself — a lot is going on, but if you had no emotional attachment to the novel going into it I could see you thinking that in some respect.)

I’m supposed to get my cast off tomorrow, so that will be something of a New Era for me. As such, I’m pretending to myself that I’ll stop fucking with the outline and actually get back to writing one a second draft. I’ve really, rearranged things. The story flows a lot better now and there’s a lot more room for character development.

But there comes a point when I’ve got to stop fucking around and get back to writing. Breaking my ankle has definitely reminded me that I have a limited time on this earth and death be no proud, as they say.

Anyway, I’m really, really pleased — with the first novel’s beginning, if nothing else. I’ve got to power through and wrap up this second draft as soon as possible. I think I’m going to continue to use the weekends to read and develop the other novels in this series.

I just have to keep an eye on the calendar. If I don’t get more serious, it will be year from now and I’ll still be struggling with the second draft of the first book. Ugh.

MoscowMitch & The Republican Establishment Will Not Save Us


by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I continue to be eager to read Barbara F. Walters’ new book “How Civil Wars Start” when I get it from Amazon, hopefully this week. But in the interview she gave to The New Yorker Radio Hour, I was taken aback by her belief that somehow, someway Mitch McConnell would come to our rescue and prevent us from having a civil war.

Uh, no.

The MAGA New Right’s fascist infection has gone septic. We’re totally fucked. I say this because if McConnell did The Right Thing and simply started to say “No” to Trump and work towards some accountability for him, Trump could just gather up all his deporables and start his own party. So, no, MoscowMitch has every reason to embrace fascism up to and including pushing us into civil war or full blown autocracy.

I think what’s going on is, from the point of view of political theory, one could make the argument that — I guess? — MoscowMitch might side with democracy is the other option was civil war. But that is an extremely dubious assumption in my view.

What’s more likely to happen is there might be some vague talk on the part of MoscowMitch about doing something to prevent a civil war, but he probably won’t even believe it’s possible until the shooting starts. So, again, we’re fucked. This is it folks, the end of the Second American Republic is careening towards. It will happen at some point, probably, between Election Day 2024 and Certification Day 2025.

The only question at this point is how the Second Republic will finally end. Will it be civil war? Will it be autocracy? Might it even be a military junta of some sort? But what isn’t going to happen is what Traditionalists assume — they get all the “cruelty is the point” policies they love, but they get to keep the goodies of democracy.

They don’t even think in those terms. It will not be until, literally, the excesses of autocracy (or civil war for that matter) are up close and personal that they might begin to regret making common cause with the MAGA New Right instead of libtards like me.

Of course, then they’ll tell me “for the sake of the family” to shut up. And then I get to tell them what I keep telling them will be my answer, “Fuck that and fuck you. You should have listened to me when it meant something.”

So, that’s it. You really, really, need to figure out what you believe in the real world. What you’re willing to risk your life for when the time comes. That’s all the advice I got for you at the moment.

The Vision Thing: An American United Popular Front


by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

Given that the MAGA New Right has it’s paramilitary group The Patriot Front, the center-Left needs it’s own organization. Not one bent on street violence, but a political organization that would promote the defense of liberty and democracy by facilitating a wide-range of political groups making common cause against the rise of fascism in the United State.

Now, this idea is sort of moot. What is the Democratic Party at the moment but a united popular front of various center-Left groups that run under the rubric of “Democratic Party?” I guess I want an formal organization that would put AOC in the same room as various NeverTrumpers where they would game out a collective, united reaction to the shitstorm we face in 2024 – 2025. Something with the specific goal of getting people like Liz Cheney talking to AOC face to face in public about their united desire to save the failing Second American Republic.

U.S. Representative Liz Cheney (R-WY) delivers an opening statement during the opening hearing of the U.S. House (Select) Committee investigating the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, on July 27, 2021 at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC. During its first hearing the committee, currently made up of seven Democrats and two Republicans, will hear testimony from law enforcement officers about their experiences while defending the Capitol from the pro-Trump mob on January 6. (Photo by Jim Bourg-Pool/Getty Images)

And, yet, again, I don’t know how much good it would do if you really think about it. By definition Cheney is now a RINO in the eyes of both the Republican base and the Establishment. Trump is the Republican Party and the Republican Party is Trump. We’re so far beyond the event horizon for tyranny that there’s little, in real terms, that a United Popular Front could do.

The ideal is still appealing to me because it would be nice to have some formal mechanism for holding the line when we’re faced with autocracy or civil war in 2024 – 2025. Such an organization would be an instant lightening rod for the MAGA New Right, of course. Anyone participating would get death threats, and go only knows what else.

So, lulz? This is one of my ideas that is good on paper but probably is meaningless in practice. And it’s not like anyone listens to me anyway. I just needed to get this off my chest because it seemed interesting, like it had potential to help things as we prepare for 2024 – 2025.

American Anocracy: Traditionalists & My Hysterical Doom Shit


by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I was wrong about Trump. I was so busy focusing on what was clear — that he was elected by people who thought he was an autocrat, that I totally missed how lazy and stupid he was. He talked a good autocratic game, but he was not a Great Man. He was simply an avatar, a vessel for white Christian rage over the secularization and browning of America.

And, really, it’s not that I want Traditionalists to say that I’m “right,” what I want is them to change their fucking minds and to make common cause against the fucking MAGA New Right fascists that they’ve aligned with instead. But that’s just never going to happen until America’s slide to autocracy becomes personal.

That’s where their abstract fears about being “canceled” for just being conservative meet my concrete fears about running afoul of President Pompeo (or whomever) at some point when our transformation into autocracy is complete. The Traditionalists in my life are notorious for debate nullification. If I made a very valid point against their alignment with the MAGA New Right fascists, they simply tell me “no it won’t” or “that’s bogus.”

They know what they believe and fuck you, lib.

All of this is very frustrating to me because American Anocracy, this twilight period before we either have a civil war or turn into a Russian-style autocracy is the moment in time when Traditionalists could make common cause with libtards like me and PREVENT me having to get up close and personal with a weaponized ICE agent at some point post-2025.

But Traditionalists simply do not take my ranting about the dangerous America — and I — face, seriously. They think it’s just more of my “hysterical” fears that were wrong about Trump and are wrong now. And I know what’s going on — they love, love, love MAGA’s policies and they don’t like the idea that MAGA could be “on the wrong side of history.”

So, again, fuck you lib.

The thing we need — a united, popular front against MAGA made up of Traditionalists, Leftists, Liberals and NeverTrumpers just isn’t going to happen. Traditionalists because of negative polarization and and extensive permission structure are now all-in with the MAGA New Right. They so affixed to the MAGA New Right that, in the end, if Trump does what I believe he will do, which is run again, they will YOLO it and for him AGAIN for no other reason than they simply hate Leftists and don’t believe they have any other viable option.

In other words, they’re Good Germans who will vote for Herr Hitler because he promises to make the economy strong and, besides, he’s not REALLY serious about hurting Jews, is he?

We’re fucked. We’re totally fucked. The thing that Traditionalists assume, that they will be able to get all the policy goodies they want without any backlash or consequences, simply isn’t going to happen. Either we have a civil war or we turn into a political clone of Russia and I die at the hands of an ICE agent.

I know that sounds like just more of my “hysterical doom shit,” but that’s what I believe. And, again, I don’t want Traditionalists to say I’m “right” in the end, I want them to stop being fucking fascists.

But that’s not going to happen.

‘Muse’ — #Lyrics To #Pop #Ballad

Again, just letting off some creative steam. This is never going to become a song, but I like the quick hit of creativity of seeing how fast I can write lyrics that tell a story.

Muse
Lyrics by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner
Please give credit if you produce or perform

Should I write you a song
maybe right a few wrongs
or should I paint your face
with smile done with grace
our love is lovely as can be
because I know in the end
you’ll always be my
muse
muse
muse

you inspire me to greatness
as my muse, muse, muse
I would be a fool
not to thank you for gift
of being my muse, muse, muse

whenever I face a block
you drop into my bed
tell me of something you’ve read
I’m instantly inspired
to write a new song or even
a novel if I have the time
you’re my muse, muse muse

you inspire me to greatness
as my muse, muse, muse
I would be a fool
not to thank you for gift
of being my muse, muse, muse

(bridge)
don’t you fret
not one bit
I’ll always give you credit
even if we won’t talk
because of a snit
calm your fears
’cause you’re my muse

you inspire me to greatness
as my muse, muse, muse
I would be a fool
not to thank you for gift
of being my muse, muse, muse

Existential Angst Over Britney Spears


by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I should just shut up about this, but it bothers me. The reason it bothers me is, when something is self-evident and people question it, it makes me doubt reality and I get angry. Reality is very important to me. Anyway, I was accused of being “sexist” for simply pointing out what I feel is pretty clear — Britney Spears would benefit from switching up her image some.

Still gorgeous as ever.

She’s a gorgeous woman as-is and my comment was said “gently’ and from a place of compassion for her continuing troubles. I really feel for her and her mental health issues and it’s a real tragedy what she’s been forced to go through.

I just think that she, like any other pop singer in the modern era, might benefit form an image make over. It has nothing to do with her weigh, or gender, or whatever else the fuck might lead you to think I was being “sexist.”

She’s pretty much looked the same way for about 20 years and Xtina — her direct peer — has constiantly changed her image every so often. So, why not Ms. Spears? As such, I struggle to understand why was I was being sexist, by definition, to suggest Ms. Spears do something similar.

It really bothers me that someone would suggest I’m sexist because that’s just not how I perceive myself. Anyway. I just had to get that off my chest.

Having A 5 Novel Series Means You Can Flip The Script & Stay In-Universe



by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I’m really beginning to enjoy the ability to bounce around these five novels I’m working on at the same time. The last few days, I’ve been running kind of hot creatively and the idea of pretty much starting from scratch with the second novel is a relaxing way to flip the script and stay in-universe.

I’m beginning to toy with the idea of going through and figuring out the plots and outlines of all them before I go back to writing. That would be a way to come back to the first novel with fresh eyes after without wandering off into a new story.

As I’ve said before, I’m really digging deep into my personal history to write these five novels. Should I sell them and they become popular enough that a lot of people read all five, oh boy. I’m kind of running emotionally naked through these books and it will be kind eerie to hear people talk about different elements of the series knowing they’re pretty much critiquing my personal life.

Anyway, like I said, I was kind of in danger of wearing myself out, fixating on the first three chapters of the second draft of the first novel. So, I’m going to switch gears for a little while and figure out the plots and outlines of the other novels before I come back to the second draft of the first novel again.

And, of course, I really, really, need to read a lot.

‘Safe Space’ #Lyrics To A #Pop R&B Song

In my mind, this would be put to the type of music that Jhene Aiko sings her songs to. I really like her vibe.

Safe Space
Lyrics by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner
Please give credit if you produce or perform

I have a safe space for you babe
Next to me under the sheets
Of my warm, warm bed
It’s up to you and your head
If you come and play or stay away
But can always know you have a
Safe space
Safe space
Safe space

A safe space is waiting for you
By my side with a smile
You will never feel fear again
While your legs are tangled with mine
The sheets between us intertwined
Just remember babe the warmth you’ll feel
In your safe space
Safe space
Safe space
Safe space

(bridge)
The world is a terror
Scares each one of us it’s true
But don’t feel blue babe
Together we’ll make it to the truth
Holding each other safe
In our safe space

Safe space
Safe space
Safe space
Safe space

‘4:30’ — #Lyrics To An R&B #Pop Song

Just screwing around. I like the idea of someone not knowing if 4:30 a.m. is late night or early morning.
4:30
Lyrics by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner
Please give credit if you produce or perform

Is it night or is it morning
Light another cigarette
‘cause I don’t know and I don’t care
All that I know is you were my love
Now I’m up all night with fear
Thinking maybe it’s all over

it’s 4:30 a.m.
and here I am again
looking at the clock
and worried
about the day to come
4:30 a.m.
4:30 a.m.
4:30 a.m.

I’m in mourning this morning
For our love that may have ended
But I’m not sure as to our fate
Will it finally be rubbed out
With a tug or will it return
Like in the past when a hug

(bridge)
By 4:30 p.m. you could be back
Tell me it was all a lie
Your love has returned
As have you into my bedroom
Then I awake at 4:30 a.m.
And you’re gone again

it’s 4:30 a.m.
and here I am again
looking at the clock
and worried
about the day to come
4:30 a.m.
4:30 a.m.
4:30 a.m.