Daily Jam - What's the Frequency, Kenneth?

This column was originally published in 2018, and it's tone is just as apt today.  Apparently it doesn't matter who is in office if the whole fucking system is shit.

Everyday this waking nightmare continues anew.

Everyday this horror show gets worse and worse.

Everyday my fear of what this country and this world may have in store for my sons grows and grows.

Everyday is an exercise in managing impending panic attacks.

Every. God. Damn. Day.

And so I try to do what little I can, donating what money I can spare to charitable or righteous causes here or there, amplifying the sounds of protest, and giving the proverbial finger to the awful powers that be. And in the little breaks between panic and alarm, I write blurbs about pop music, escapist fare with a smattering of nostalgia and humor.

I don’t know what else to do. So, until we take to the streets to burn this whole thing to the ground, I guess I’ll just keep on writing.

I remember when I was young, I used to get horrible social anxiety (of which I never spoke about to anyone) that often led to many a night or weekend spent home by myself. It was probably at its worst when I was in junior high school. I was shy and quiet and admittedly weird, and it was just so much easier to hang back, to remain disconnected. But then somewhere along the line when I got to high school, I opened up a little bit. I lifted my head. I made more friends. I went out. And most importantly, I tried. I swallowed my panic and I tried. And I was so much better for it.

So now, I need to make myself do the same thing. And so do you. We need to control our panic and we need to try. We need to get out there. We need to protest. We need to organize. We need to scream and shout. We need to disrupt. We need to burn this whole thing to the ground.

Anyway, here’s “What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?” by R.E.M.