Part I: The Regular PeopleSetting: A corner booth in a diner. The TV overhead shows a breaking news segment announcing Trump’s re-election victory. The place is buzzing with excited or tense conversation. MAGA Republican (Regular Person) (Slaps the table with excitement)“It’s about time! I’m telling you, this victory means we’re finally gonna stop all that ‘woke’ nonsense. No more DEI mandates forcing people to hire based on skin color or gender identity. We need merit, not quotas!”Democrat (...

Part I: The Regular PeopleSetting: A corner booth in a diner. The TV overhead shows a breaking news segment announcing Trump’s re-election victory. The place is buzzing with excited or tense conversation. MAGA Republican (Regular Person) (Slaps the table with excitement)“It’s about time! I’m telling you, this victory means we’re finally gonna stop all that ‘woke’ nonsense. No more DEI mandates forcing people to hire based on skin color or gender identity. We need merit, not quotas!”Democrat (...

I’m not gonna bullshit you. I’m no Trump disciple. I’m not out there marching with MAGA flags or chanting conspiracies from some cosmic underbelly. Hell, the man’s last four years left me feeling like I’d swallowed a hornet’s nest on a daily basis. But here’s the thing—and it’s a big, nasty thing, bigger than my personal politics or your neighbor’s righteous activism: people WERE dying in Gaza. Not figurative, not hypothetical, not some cable news cycle filler. Real, honest-to-God human souls...

I’m not gonna bullshit you. I’m no Trump disciple. I’m not out there marching with MAGA flags or chanting conspiracies from some cosmic underbelly. Hell, the man’s last four years left me feeling like I’d swallowed a hornet’s nest on a daily basis. But here’s the thing—and it’s a big, nasty thing, bigger than my personal politics or your neighbor’s righteous activism: people WERE dying in Gaza. Not figurative, not hypothetical, not some cable news cycle filler. Real, honest-to-God human souls...

Sometimes I’d rather listen to four hours of “Mustang Sally” than another douche canoe “expert” pontificate about Jesus or UFOs or whatever new cosmic asshole theory is trending. But here’s the thing: I actually like Billy Carson. Yeah, that guy, with his pseudo-academic babble about ancient aliens and cryptic texts. Part of me cringed at the obvious bullshit, but part of me was like, “Fuck it, I’d rather explore Atlantis with a delusional dreamer than hear one more sermon from a Bible schola...

Sometimes I’d rather listen to four hours of “Mustang Sally” than another douche canoe “expert” pontificate about Jesus or UFOs or whatever new cosmic asshole theory is trending. But here’s the thing: I actually like Billy Carson. Yeah, that guy, with his pseudo-academic babble about ancient aliens and cryptic texts. Part of me cringed at the obvious bullshit, but part of me was like, “Fuck it, I’d rather explore Atlantis with a delusional dreamer than hear one more sermon from a Bible schola...

I’m telling you, the best part about chasing a dream the size of a whale (a fucking killer one) is that wild, sleepless rush you get when you realize noodling may not be allowed on this trip. There’s something primal in it—a sweet, exhilarating danger, like leaning over the edge of a rickety ladder, staring down into an abyss of hardwood, and daring the paint gods to give you something too big to tame.People will try to talk you down. They’ll say, “That fish is too big; you’ll snap your rod,”...

I’m telling you, the best part about chasing a dream the size of a whale (a fucking killer one) is that wild, sleepless rush you get when you realize noodling may not be allowed on this trip. There’s something primal in it—a sweet, exhilarating danger, like leaning over the edge of a rickety ladder, staring down into an abyss of hardwood, and daring the paint gods to give you something too big to tame.People will try to talk you down. They’ll say, “That fish is too big; you’ll snap your rod,”...

Now for what most of media are not saying about Jimmy Carter. This is the man who genuinely did not give a fuck about “his brand,” who refused to sell out and join the slick ex-presidential club that makes money hand over fist by dipping into corporate pockets. This allowed him to speak truth to power when it was called for and he did so many times. Carter was all about humanity, not his bottom line. The man was living proof you don’t have to lose your fucking soul to be in politics.Even out ...

Now for what most of media are not saying about Jimmy Carter. This is the man who genuinely did not give a fuck about “his brand,” who refused to sell out and join the slick ex-presidential club that makes money hand over fist by dipping into corporate pockets. This allowed him to speak truth to power when it was called for and he did so many times. Carter was all about humanity, not his bottom line. The man was living proof you don’t have to lose your fucking soul to be in politics.Even out ...