Subcontinental Divide

Moral Absolutism

Divided We Stand - or Die

Subcontinental Divide by Ahsen Jillani

As of this writing, 11 people I knew are dead of Covid.

Five were fully vaccinated. Some were in their 40s and had no health issues. The last few weeks, I’ve been angry, and have argued with people on both sides of the issue. Ultimately, both sides hung up on me. That’s where we stand, while the rest of the planet is begging for vaccines and vaccine developers are protecting their patents and missing production deadlines (remember the AIDS days and the same scenario?).

I spent the last several years criticizing the far right for their rigid and radical behavior. But my job entails a lot of political copywriting and I have to force myself to listen to talk shows and podcasts on both sides. Frankly, all of them make me sick to my stomach. The political machinery in this country is so massive and influential now that their battlefield is international. Their agendas can extend into the trillions of dollars. Their influence can make or break entire nations.

As a person doing marketing for political clients, I have learned over two decades that the amount of corporate power in politics is virtually unlimited. The landmark 2010 Supreme Court decision Citizens United v. FEC gave corporate entities the power to pump unlimited amounts of money into political campaigns using nonsense SuperPACs and other means. The result has been that you can’t even trust your own brother in the political arena. Somebody has probably set up a PAC called Help My Brother PAC and given him $10,000,000 to introduce a bill in congress to build a sewage treatment plant and a coal mining operation next to your grandmother’s nursing home.

I developed a natural bias over the last few years toward the right wing. There was open and blatant prejudice toward people of color; there was embarrassingly rude behavior toward international allies; there were weird and insane tweets about anyone who dared cross the mighty leader. But today, I am more relaxed and objective listening to the talking heads on both sides. They tend to report their own brand of garbage propaganda nightly, with facts that change shape from one hour to another on the same channel.

One side is standing on streets carrying “My Body-My Choice” signs demanding free access to abortion. Another side is standing on another street with the same signs arguing about the government not forcing vaccines and masks on them. I have argued with folks on both sides. It is not an easy argument. American individualism and concepts of liberty do not require allegiance to the government or even your neighbor. That is a right you enjoy. On the other hand, Supreme Court precedent dating

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