What a time to be alive! I learned today that modern technology gives us the ability to track the (former) queen of England’s casket as her corpse makes its way to Edinburgh for her final rest. I’m guessing this is the same technology Obama utilized to track vehicles before he blew up that wedding in Yemen. Too soon?
As some Brits continue to mourn the loss of their monarch, some Americans are mourning the anniversary of the attacks on September 11, 21 years ago. These losses are always accompanied by unseen consequences. In the queen’s case, it means everything from stamps to currency to passports will need updating, as they all feature her image. It means her son ‘Sausage-Finger’ Charlie will finally wear the crown. It means British bootlickers will now sing “God Save the King” instead of “God Save the Queen”.
In the case of 9/11, the consequences are felt to this day, from the ever-expanding surveillance state to the continued campaigns of violence and xenophobia against anything deemed non-American. We may have progressed past calling them “freedom fries”, but for some, memories of that day are still vivid, and the legacy of the attacks remains prominent.
Side Items
Marvel announced plans to introduce an Israeli superhero named Sabra to their cinematic universe. For those thinking, “oh how nice, a hero named for hummus”, I urge you to do a simple google search. They named their new superhero after a massacre of Palestinian refugees and children. It’d be like opening up a flying roller coaster and calling it “The 9/11 experience”
Keep an eye on the elections in Italy, as their government looks to be taken over by right-wingers. Generally, when a political party has to describe itself as “post-fascist” it doesn’t bode well for minorities and impoverished communities
Today in “the ethicist”, the New York Times asks and answers the question on all of our minds, “Is it OK to Take a Law-Firm Job Defending Climate Villains?” The NYT article is quite lengthy, but I simplified it for the sake of my dear readers. Yes, it is ok to take the job. No, you can’t pretend to be a good person anymore