Silly Socialites and the Contrarians Small Town Tour 2024

I don’t know that I’ve mentioned this, but I grew up in a small town. Small towns are “interesting,” and that would be something good you could say about small town life. There isn’t much to do in a small town because no one can afford to keep an entertainment center open for the dozen or so kids that might live there. Potlucks at the fire hall or the lodge can be the most exciting thing to take place for weeks at a time. Churches become community gathering places for this or that level or pecking order within the town itself. The most overriding aspect of small town life is that everyone knows your business. And there is always a cantankerous person or two who have some cantankerous friends who collectively are known as Contrarians. They perennially oppose The Silly Social Club who are the progressives in town. You know the ones. They’re the ones who want street lights, stop signs, and paved roads.

The thing is that the Silly Socialites and the Contrarians are both severely limited in terms of meaningful social interaction and cultural diversity. They simply don’t know how to relate with anyone who doesn’t understand the stories of significant events which makes their small town what it is. Change can be threatening to folks with little to no experience with coping with change and new ideas. There is not a whole lot of small town experience which doesn’t fit in the Methodist, Baptist, Unitarian, or Catholic Church in town. Even if they have to go to another town to find enough people of their brand of “ism” to support a church building and the pastor. The pastor probably has to travel to two or three churches every Sunday just to make a living.

In such an environment, exciting things are hard to come by. Everyone waves with their peculiar wave when you pass them on the road. Everyone nods in agreement about the latest stupid thing Washington has done. Everyone has pretty much the same needs and accomplishments with some exceptions, whom you would not encounter seated at a table in the Dew Drop having coffee at 7:04 every morning, rain or shine. But there will be a group of folks sitting there every day reminiscing about the significant events past and present of life as they know it. The Contrarians show up at school board meetings and rant and rave about how they think kids should be raised, but all the kids in town hang out in a place that everyone knows is where the kids hang out and try smoking, drinking, and depending on hormonal conditions, sex.

It’s an environment where everyone knows everyone else’s vices, which are kept more or less under control, and are tolerated, ignored and never mentioned. Well, not out loud. Folks go along with the vice winking, nodding, eyebrow raising, looks of knowing and “tomorrow is a new day.” Once that vice is identified in a person, that person carries that vice into the next life as far as what small town knows about that person. Their vice can be acknowledged and completely forgiven if that person is forever considerate of his neighbors in good times the same as in bad times.

You know, from that perspective I can see how Don Poorelone is accepted. It’s for the same reason anyone with a vice is accepted and even celebrated. It’s because that guy reminds everyone that he is always thinking about his neighbors in good times and in bad times, whether that is something that really takes place or not. The reason everyone lives a new day is because last night they were right there with him in his vice. Not every night like him but, you know… He’s one of us. He understands we all need a touch now and then.

I understand how those small town folks could easily see Don Poorelone is one of them. But the reason those small town folks trust the Don is because their own elected leaders feed them the same bullshit that the Don feeds them. The thing is, they know better and that means they have to lie to all those small town folks who are content to live their lives in peace and honest understanding of each other, no matter what church anyone attends. They expect county commissioners to discharge their duties to the current and future economic growth and development of the county. It’s acceptable to do favors for friends within reasonable limits. We all have churches and lodges to show our allegiance to, after all.

About as far into government as small town folks ever have to venture is the Highway Patrol, the Game Warden, The Sheriff and Beatrice down to the court house. She’s been there since it was built and knows where all of everyone’s records are and why those records are where they are. Even the judge depends on her to know what’s what and who’s who when he comes in for something official. For all intents and purposes, Beatrice is the deep state and actually runs the county government and doubtless will for the next couple of administrations, at least. Beatrice has been the google search engine for the county and is pretty much essential to the entire county no matter which party is in charge in the county or in the State for that matter and the only thing that really changes with the Feds is who the AG agent is this time.

Far off places like Ukraine are on the news or on YouTube but there’s a lot of crap on YouTube, you know. What folks might know about Ukraine is the Got Talent lady who draws stories with sand is from there, isn’t she? While that level of geopolitical understanding is something I can understand and even offer assistance to neighbors so they can increase their awareness of the concept that a geopolitical reality is really quite common as reality concepts go, but I may not be able to convince them that it can possibly affect what they know about government, which might be limited to Beatrice down at the courthouse.

I don’t know that I can fault those folks from back home in a small town for how they think and why they think that way, but I would like them to know that things probably won’t change down at the court house all that much unless Don Poorelone should repeat. Then there would be a real and valid question about the need for Beatrice or even the court house. Anywhere public meetings can be held may be closed. If there is a church building left open it will no doubt house the keeper of the fatherland’s catechism.

Pay attention, folks. Sinclair Lewis is often credited as telling us a long time ago that when fascism comes to America it will come wrapped in a flag and holding a cross. Wanna buy that bible that Don Poorelone is hawking, do ya?

I don’t know about you, but I kind of feel about the same way as Billie Holiday concerning Don Poorelone and The Bannonites. I really do not think I’m interested in that snake oil they’re selling.

There ain't nothin' I can do or nothin' I can say

That folks don't criticize me but I'm going to do

Just as I want to anyway

And don't care just what people say

If I should take a notion to jump into the ocean

Ain't nobody's business if I do

If I go to church on Sunday, then cabaret all day Monday

Ain't nobody's business if I do

't Ain't Nobody's Business If I Do by Billie Holiday

This blog was first published on April 23, 2024.

The Wright’s View is a blog written by John Worthington and is presented by The Business of Forging Agreement.

For additional content in a daily email format, I invite you to subscribe to “The Wright’s View” on Substack. I write about the folly of the current political goings-on from outside of what the media presents in the hope of giving anyone who reads my blogs another vantage point to see beyond the minutiae of the everyday.