For my big 8,000th post a trip to Oz
It has been repeatedly claimed that The Wizard of Oz was inspired by politics of the last decade of the 19th century. It isn’t hard to imagine the Tin Man as industry (needs a heart), the Scare Crow as rural agriculture (needs a brain), and the Lion represents politicians (need courage). I suppose Dorothy represents the innocence of ordinary Americans and the hurricane represents the popular cyclone idea of the day—depicting political change. Of course, this is very generalized, but makes it easy to apply to today.
We are being preyed upon by extreme moneyed interests (lacking heart for sure).
Too many are subjugated and lost their way (off the yellow brick path), pitfalls and scary people abound (poisoned poppies are so apropos considering our opioid crisis, and there is no shortage of flying monkeys thanks to subjugated MAGAts attacking innocent people), not only the climate—but with the pandemic and the powerful heartless moneyed interests all together make an enormous destructive hurricane causing chaos and uncertainty.
Rural America—especially the Red States are going against their best interests so obviously they all need critically thinking brains.
We need our leaders to find the courage to do what they swore oaths to do (listen up Manchin and Sinema).
We need a house (maybe our House of Representatives?) to fall on the big orange wicked Witch of the East. Maybe then his foot soldiers will all suddenly change their loyalties and hand the orange one’s broom over, but we need to convince the others that they already do have hearts and brains—but haven’t been using them properly.
Maybe a house could fall on Fox News, too.