Independence Day No More

Today is July 4, 2024. Today we commemorate the 248th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence from England. Normally, I would enjoy waking up to listen to NPR and their annual reading of that document. It always makes me proud that we live in a country where the people, through elected representatives, make the laws and run the country, rather than have a sole monarch that makes all of the decisions.

In light of the most recent ruling of the Supreme Court, I am not going to listen to that reading this morning. I fear it would seem hollow to me and might bring me to tears. This country is not the same one in which we lived a mere 4 days ago.

One of the greatest ideas, on which this nation was founded, was that no one was above the law. It was comforting to believe that even the highest official, the President, was subject to all of the same laws that we were. That all changed on Monday.

Now we know that’s no longer true. Now the President can do almost anything with impunity. This changes the relationship between the top executive and the American people. I’m sad and fearful that future commemorations of Independence Day will be more of a nostalgic event, rather than the bright, aspirational event it has been up until now.

I don’t want to lose democracy. If we do, we will suffer and the whole world will suffer with us. At this moment, hope is much needed. At the moment, I feel it to be quite scarce.

Ageism

Ageism is a concept that. when I was younger, I heard the word “ageism” and had a vague concept of what it was. As I’ve gotten older, the concept has gotten clearer. The World Health Organization defines ageism as the stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination against people on the basis of their age. It says it’s the most socially normalized of all forms of discrimination – unlike sexism and racism.

I, now understand the concept better. I on occasion, sometimes feel like I experience. There are times where I will forget some small piece of information that was relayed to me shortly before. There are also times I miss a turn, when driving or don’t immediately understand what someone is asking me or misconstrue it.

When I was younger, people near me understood that those things happen to everyone at times. Now, depending on the people who happen to be around me, they might be quick to think that my small mistakes were of concern. When I sense that someone reacts in an ageist manner, I feel embarrassment and sometimes doubt myself. Part of the reason is that my brother (20 years my senior) developed severe dementia for the last 7 or 8 years of his life. He passed away at the age of 78. I question myself and wonder if I’m fated to follow him in that way. I then have to remind myself that neither of my parents developed it. My dad also died when he was 78, he was fully lucid until then.

I think that when younger people react in a way that could be construed in a way that might seem ageist to some, they are not consciously being ageist, but rather, they are well-meaning and not conscious of how it can affect the subject. Perhaps a little more intentional sympathy would help.

These are examples of what I call “soft ageism”. “Hard ageism” would be more like intentional discrimination against older people, like thinking that they are just “too old” to do certain things. Ageism does exist, both the hard and soft version. They are both fairly prevalent in our culture. I think most people would agree that the hard version is more alarming and hurtful than the soft variety, but I fee that the soft version is much more present and it’s more accepted by society.

With all of that said, I would suggest that we all stop and contemplate our feelings and actions the next time we feel that someone is too old or incompetent when these minor slips occur. We tell ourselves that we have the person’s welfare in mind, but could it just be blind ageism on our part. So, the next time you have those feelings, just pause and ask yourself whether it’s really just concern or if it’s ageism on your part. I know that I’m going to try to do that. Will you?

I Support President Biden

I support President Joe Biden for re-election for President of the United States of America.

Below, I lay out some of my reasons for doing so. Please note, that I’m not bashing any other candidates . If you decide to comment, I simply ask you to be respectful and thoughtful, even if you disagree with me. Let’s all be civil with one another.

RULE OF LAW

Joe Biden absolutely respects the concept of the rule of law.  From what we can see, he has almost no contact with the head of Law Enforcement, Attorney General Merrick Garland. Furthermore, after his son, Hunter, was recently convicted of lying on a mandatory gun-purchase form by saying he was not illegally using or addicted to drugs. The elder Biden has stated, that while he will still love and support his son, he accepts the decision of the jury and will not consider pardoning his son.

COMPASSION

He shows respect for all people. When he disagrees with people or points out bad behavior, he doesn’t resort to personal attacks or calling them names. President Biden understands personal loss. In 1972, he lost his wife and daughter in a car accident. His two young sons were also in the car. They survived. In a flash, he became a single father.

After a young boy wrote President Biden asking him how he overcame his stutter, the President visited with him and shared with him the pain he, himself felt and gave the boy encouragement.

RESPECT FOR DEMOCRACY

Joe Biden believes in the constitution and the concept of democracy for all Americans. At no time has he called for it to be suspended or subverted in any way. He believes that the Constitution lays the groundwork for our society and should be used as the ultimate guide for our system of government.

PROTECTOR OF RIGHTS

Joe is on the side of people who have been discriminated against because of race, gender identity, sexual orientation, race and any other criteria that separates us. He also respects the right of people to make healthcare decisions for themselves. He supports a woman’s right to choose what happens to her own body and make her own choices about her own family.

EXPERIENCE

Joe has been a senator, vice president and now president. He has worked with others, in the government and private sector for the benefit of all Americans. As vice-president and president, he has also worked with foreign leaders for the benefit of all Americans. He is well-respected by the majority of leaders in the world.

NO DRAMA

President Biden is a calm and steady leader. He does not engage in theatrical or histrionics in his dealings with others He has been a calm and steady leader throughout his whole political career.

SURROUNDS HIMSELF WITH GOOD PEOPLE

Jo Biden surrounds himself with good, competent people who, like him, have the interests of the people of America. He makes every effort to surround himself with qualified, thoughtful people who have a similar commitment to the welfare of Americans. He makes sure that those people are capable of making good decisions. We can rest assured that no matter what may occur, we are in good hands.

CHARACTER AND DECENCY

Joe Biden is a good and decent man. His Catholic faith guides him morality. He is respected by people who know him well. One of his long-time former Republican colleagues, in the Senate, is quoted as saying that he is “as good a man as God ever created”.

BELIEVES IN OBJECTIVE SCIENCE

President Biden respects the role of science in the daily lives of people. He understands that scientists don’t just proclaim something for no reason. He understands how the scientific process works. They theorize about why things happened the way they do in the world. Then, they conduct careful tests to validate or disprove their hypotheses. Only those theories that survive to scrutiny of testing and review by scientific peers is accepted as the most likely explanation.

Joe Biden respects the findings of science and considers that information in any decision he may need to make as President. Those people he has in his administration, likewise respect science.

SUMMARY

All-in-all, I believe is the best choice to continue to lead our country.  He’s thoughtful, intelligent, experienced, compassionate, serious and steady. I think he respects all people, even those with whom he disagrees. I believe he best represents the ideals of Americans who love this country and believe in the foundation laid out to us by the founders of this great country.

Miracle Monday

In 1978, comic book writer Elliot Maggin (aka Elliot S! Maggin) published a book called Superman: Last Son of Krypton. This coincided with the release of the movie “Superman: The Movie”. The book was meant to be a tie-in, of sorts, to that movie. The plot of the book has no direct relation of the movie and it tells its own story, told within the continuity of the Superman stories that appeared in the various comics, of the time, that starred the Man of Steel. Maggin was the writer of a great number of them.

As a fan of the various DC Comics of the time, I was elated upon reading this totally original story by a man who soon became my favorite writer of Superman stories.

The story recapped the basics of Superman’s origin, beginning with his Kryptonian father, Jor-El, feverishly trying to complete the building of a rocket ship that would carry him, his wife, Lara and their baby son Kal to another planet before Krypton destroyed itself.

The story continued to the discover of Jonathan and Martha Kent of a freshly crashed rocket carrying a small child. They decided to adopt the baby.

Action Comics #435

In the previous post, I described my reaction to reading the previous issue of Action Comics. The main story was a two part Superman story. This post is about the next issue, which contained the conclusion of that story.

After an excruciatingly long month, it was time for the conclusion of the tale I read weeks earlier. Action Comics #435 showed an obviously infuriated Superman crushing a globe of the Earth (or was it the Earth itself?). The cover exclaimed, “Look out Earth! It’s Doomsday when Superman screams… ‘I Want to Wreck the World!’”.

I had to buy the issue anyway, but if there had been any doubt in my mind, this cover would certainly remove it! Luckily for me, this was just a two-part story and the sweet resolution did come within those pages.

The “backup” story was, again, one starring The Atom and it was entitled, “The Unmasking of the Atom”. It was very enjoyable as I had begun to expect they always were.

The Superman tale was penned by Cary Bates and the one starring The Atom was done by Elliot S! Maggin.

Without even knowing what would be in store for me in the next issue, I did know that in another month, a copy of it would be coming home with me!

I was falling in love with comic books and didn’t realize it. I guess love works like that a lot of the time.

Action Comics #434

In my previous post, I told the tale of how I was infected by a love of comic books. Continuing the story of the progress of the disease, we come to approximately one month later.

Again, I was grocery shopping with my mother. As I passed the comic book rack, I spied the next issue of Action Comics (#434). On the cover, it showed Superman, sitting in a dentist’s chair. The dentist has some pliers in Superman’s mouth and was obviously pulling a tooth. Superman seemed to be in immense pain! How could this be? Superman was invulnerable to everything! How could he be in pain? How did he get in this condition? Well, there was no hesitating… I HAD to purchase this issue! I had to know!

On the way home, I started to read. The main story was called “The Krypton Connection!”. I won’t go into too many details but the situation was caused by two rogue Kryptonians who were plotting against the Man of Steel. At the end of the story, I encountered something surprising and frustrating. This was only the first part of a two-part story! I was going to have to wait another WHOLE MONTH before this story would be resolved! How could this happen? How was I going to survive? One thing I did know was that every trip I made to the supermarket, I was going to be checking the comic book rack thoroughly so I could satisfy my curiosity.

The second story in the book was a Green Arrow store entitled “Zatanna’s Double Identity!”. In it, I got to meet three characters that I didn’t know… Green Arrow, Black Canary and Zatanna. I enjoyed this story a lot too.

The Superman story was, again, written by Cary Bates and the Green Arrow story was written by Elliot S! Maggin.

After an excruciatingly long month, it was time for the conclusion of the tale I read weeks earlier. Action Comics #435 showed an obviously infuriated Superman crushing a globe of the Earth (or was it the Earth itself?). The cover exclaimed, “Look out Earth! It’s Doomsday when Superman screams… ‘I Want to Wreck the World!’”.

I had to buy the issue anyway, but if there had been any doubt in my mind, this cover would certainly remove it! Luckily for me, this was just a two-part story and the sweet resolution did come within those pages.

The “backup” story was, again, one starring The Atom and it was entitled, “The Unmasking of the Atom”. It was very enjoyable as I had begun to expect they always were.

The Superman tale was penned by Cary Bates and the one starring The Atom was done by Elliot S! Maggin.

Without even knowing what would be in store for me in the next issue, I did know that in another month, a copy of it would be coming home with me!

I was falling in love with comic books and didn’t realize it. I guess love works like that a lot of the time.

Action Comics #433

Action Comics 433.PDF

OK… I’m old school when it comes to (DC) comic books. I was born in 1961. Comic books were on the periphery of my life for my earliest years. I would occasionally run across a comic book at a friend’s house, in the barber shop, doctor’s waiting rooms, etc. I would read them and enjoy them but they never were an important part of my life at those ages.

I did enjoy super-hero cartoons, movies and television shows. Since I was born in ’61, I was too late to have caught “The Adventures of Superman” on TV when it aired originally, but luckily there reruns available at various times on one of the local stations (WDRB in Louisville, KY). I always enjoyed super-heroes and especially Superman. Comic books were only a side item until one fateful day.

I don’t know exactly what day it was or the month, but it was most likely in December of 1973 when it happened. I was at the local supermarket (Coonie’s I believe) with my mother, doing some grocery shopping. Near the checkout, I passed by the comic book rack. (Yes, at one time, there were no stores dedicated to selling comic books but rather; they were sold at grocery stores, drug stores, convenience stores and many other places that sold magazines.)

Anyway, as I passed the stand, I noticed a comic book with Superman on the cover. The cover showed three invisible people (we could see their outlines through the magic of Superman’s various vision powers) pulling Superman along, by the cape, through the air. The trio looked to be ordinary humans. What the heck was going on here!? As I said, I had read superman comic books in the past and had enjoyed them, but until that moment, I had never actually purchased one. I thought, “I haven’t read a comic book in a while, it might be fun.”

On the way home, I started examining my new prize. The cover told me that the book was Action Comics #433. Inside, I learned that the story referred to on the cover was called “The Man Who Was Buried on Page 64!”. I won’t get into the story here, but I will say that I enjoyed it very much. The second story in the book starred a character called “The Atom”. He was a hero who wore a colorful, skin-tight costume and could shrink to sub-atomic size. I had never seen this character in a comic book, but I did remember him from some cartoons in the 60s. I especially remember him from the old Justice League cartoons, where he often perched on one of the other heroes’ shoulders as they sped to confront a menace. The story was called “Affair of the Bouncing Chair!”. Again, I won’t go into the story here, but I enjoyed it as well.

I later realized that the Superman story was written by Cary Bates and the Atom story was written by a fellow named Elliot S! Maggin. (They would soon become two of my all-time favorite comic book writers.) Little did I know it, but I was infected by comic books that day and after 50 years, no cure is in sight!