Baffled, befuddled, bewildered…
I woke up this morning in a bit of a debate hangover. Things felt out of focus and I was trying to process what I had seen and how I felt about it. All the words were there, I just really needed to sort them out in my brain.
I needed caffeine. Specifically Diet Coke (surprise) and it was actually an afterthought that I even grabbed my camera. But there I was, alone with my thoughts and my favorite carbonated beverage when I overheard two gentlemen discussing the debate. W.W. (that is what he asked me to call him) had handwritten notes and had clearly given great thought to his observations.
Upon introducing myself, they were gracious and minced no words. W.W. was ‘Alt Right’ and clear on what that means.
Now it may seem counter-indicated, but my time with W.W. helped. This entire exercise is based on the thesis that public discourse has diminished as people feel unable or unsafe sharing their political thoughts and concerns at home, at work, in their communities. Here were two friends, carving time to discuss and review their thoughts and willing to share them with me.
Did I understand it? Maybe not. But at least we were talking,
Post Script – I tried last night to locate the Will Rogers quote and was not able to verify it. However, when reviewing my notes, I discovered a W.W. quote that he had expressly asked me to share, and I want to keep my word,
“Realists have no friends” W.W., Needles CA