I don't watch many TV shows. When I do watch TV it’s mostly sports or news. Mostly boxing in all honesty. However, when I do find a show I like, it normally becomes an obsession. The Sopranos, The Wire, Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad are all shows I obsessed over and have seen every episode of multiple times. Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown was another.
I was late to the show. Cooking shows aren't my thing and it often hurts watching travel shows because I've always dreamed of traveling the world and seeing all these places and haven't had the opportunity. One day I stumbled across an episode of the show and I was hooked. The appeal of Bourdain came from a few places:
He really knew food and was able to find local dishes in international locations that viewers would be interested in.
Bourdain mixed in history, politics and culture into his episode. Not in a boring and nerdy way though. As a commenter remarked, Bourdain did stuff like you used to only see on PBS, but it was fun.
Bourdain exuded a modern cosmopolitanism and way of being an American on an international stage. Not the clueless American, not the Ugly American, not the American with a million dollars in the bank who doesn't even own a passport, not the American who only leaves the country while in the military, not the Americans afraid of the rest of the world; but an American comfortable in all parts of the world. An America seeking to bridge gaps, open to different understandings, an American using his position to give others a voice, and an American who showed his fellow citizens you can go to the Global South and the destination doesn't have to be Cancun.
There was a political dynamic to Bourdain that was powerful. It wasn’t dogmatic, preachy, or hysterical like we see on Twitter, with weekly protesters, or academics who are only taken seriously by NPR listeners. Bourdain didn't have a stated political mission. It was through his actions we saw the political- we can be Americans and be global citizens, respect and learn from everyone, and understanding at home and abroad is superior to conflict.
Anthony Bourdain was just a cool motherfucker. An old New York cool. A cool Brooklyn hipsters will aspire to and will never achieve. Coolness is like punching power in boxing or pitching speed in baseball. You're either born with it or you aren’t and things can only be tinkered with. If you're cool people wanna be your friend. They also want to have sex with you. In the case of Bourdain the coolness allowed him to also teach. Many can't teach to millions, even though they have a lot to say, because they're just too damn boring.
If you're interested in knowing more about Bourdain I reccomend listening to Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography by Laurie Woolever. Dozens of people are interviewed and some read for the book. You learn about the family, upbringing, early life, and career of Bourdain. Not all is flattering. Like all of us he was complex and he was somewhat of a searcher. He had his vulnerabilities, struggled with relationships and women, was addicted to heroin, and utimately committed suicide. The book is tough because you know it ends in tragedy.
I was really bummed out when I found out Bourdain killed himself. He had everything. Was living a dream life and loved by millions. Yet, humans are complex, and everyone struggles. His suicide makes a little more sense after reading this book. A little.
Give Me Liberty: The True Story of Oswaldo Payá and His Daring Quest for a Free Cuba by David E. Hoffman
This was a great read and I learned a lot about Cuban history, the reality of life under Castro, the mechanisms of the police state and their influences, the Catholic Church; and the amazing life and struggles of Oswaldo Payā. I wish more people would read this book and especially those who glamorize Communist rule in Cuba and the history of Fidel Castro and Che Guevara. No one who is truly interested in human rights and freedom can have a positive view of the police state they created.
Melting Pot or Civil War? by Reihan Salam
Inflammatory title. Good book. Salam, the son of Benagli immigrants, grew-up in Brooklyn, makes reasonable and rationale arguments as to why we need a more structured, orderly, and organized immigration system.
Some key takeaways. Salam presents the fact that most Indian immigrants come from the upper-class and educated segments of that society. When they are touted as a success story and glowing profiles emerge of tech CEO's there isn't the recognition most came to the US and landed on third-base. Children of wealthy parents tend to do well. Immigrants from poor backgrounds, coming from the lower economic classes of their societies, often struggle. There is no rationality in equating the struggles of the children of undocumented Salvadoran immigrants living in poverty with the children of Desi doctors reared in middle-class suburbs under some monolithic BIPOC immigrant narrative.
Immigrants can both have negative or positive impacts on the societies they fled. However, Americans are far too narcissistic to think about the consequences large-scale immigration has on the countries people left.
Salam argues America simply needed more immigration when the place was less crowded and there was a huge demand for unskilled labor. Not in an era where working-class Americans pay hasn’t risen in two generations and the standard of living is in decline.
He argues American immigration policy should mirror Canada and Australia and be "needs based".
Salam notes the border situation is unsustainable and likely to negatively impact poor and working-class Americans. It's unlikely the situation will have a negative impact on someone with a PHD in poetry living in San Francisco or Williamsburg or to a corporate executive at the country club.
Salam points to the example of his parents in Brooklyn. When they arrived their were few Bengalis so they were forced to develop a business and professional network, along with friendships, with English speakers and non-Bengalis. Once the Bengali community rapidly grew he noticed people were assimilating less and ghettoizing.
He notes second and third generation non-Black immigrants who are educated and in the middle-class marry white Americans at a very high-rate and many then identify as white. In the case of the Latino community this creates a divide of Latino identifying people of a lower economic class and a white ex-Latino/ somewhat Latino class that is flourishing economically. Not mentioned by Salam, but this is exactly what happened throughout Latin America.
Salam also makes the great point that normative American culture influences immigrants heavily; but their kids in turn influences American culture (especially in places like NYC) and this is a positive thing. American has never been static and different waves of immigrants leave a permanent influence (pizza and tacos were once seen as exotic). He also addresses the reasons immigrants would rather struggle in expensive major cities than live for much less in Rust Belt towns with few opportunities.
Salam argues we need a one-time amnesty, a guest worker program, and then transition to a structured needs-based policy. Very reasonable. Far too reasonable for the right-wing angry MAGA populists to embrace and not performative and nonsensical enough for the progressive left to embrace. Very little will change. Washington isn't functional enough to approach immigration in a rational manner.
Roe v. Wade Overturned and Abortion Politics
Abortion isn’t an issue I’ve written a lot about over the years. As a man I never really felt comfortable talking about it. No man has ever got pregnant, no man will ever get pregnant, and men can’t have babies. Trust science (not your ideology). Men don't have babies. Cut the silly shit.
I’ve never really fully worked out my position on abortion. I’ve generally thought of myself as pro-life (even if i’m technically not). Perhaps this has been influenced by faith. The Baptists of my childhood were opposed to abortion and the Muslims I was most influenced by held similar views. I would be lying if I said I was upset over the Supreme Court decision overturning Roe. I’m not. I'm not sure I’m happy with it either.
I believe that everyone who wants to terminate a pregnancy will still do so. If they're middle-class they’ll do so with much more ease. You’re also gonna see an explosion of corporate wokeness paying for abortion and funds to travel to other states. Hey, we don't wanna lose you for six months to a year like we did Becky, this career can be your real pride and joy, have a nice little trip to Chicago and take care of our mutual problem.
If there is a lack of funds then women will resort to less safe means that can easily be found online. I don't see how you can make someone have a baby that doesn't want one. Therefore, I think there has to be safe and legal abortion in the first trimester. After that I believe abortion should be legal in only special circumstances. This is in line with European norms. (The American map now includes thirteen red states I believe)
America is a society that has a very weak social-safety net that doesn't do a lot to protect children. This is combined with being a society where the institution of the family has been decimated. This is part of the abortion debate.
Another aspect in the abortion debate opponents don't discuss is white people generally don't wanna have a lot of kids. Sam Alito has two kids. This is common for many white pro-lifers. Some don't want kids until their late 30's or 40's when they may not even be fertile. This won't change with any laws. Some don't want any. And non-whites once assimilated into America, or upon entering the middle-class, tend to also have small families due to how society is now structured. Have 2 kids, they move away, you see them once or twice a year, they throw you in a nursing home where a CNA is beating your ass for the last 20 years of your life, then burn your body because a burial is too expensive. American family values.
I’m detached from normative white America. The people I’ve been around in my adult life tend to have a lot of children and see them as a blessing and not a burden. I love kids and always wanted a big family; but due to my mistakes and shortcomings too late in the game for that. I don't have friends who love Donald Trump; but I also don't know any parents who want a drag queen twerking for their kids.
Yet, until I win the lottery and i’m able to galavant the world like Anthony Bourdain, surround myself with beauty, and never see snow i’m stuck here in America. I’m part of this society. A society I think has a bleak future as our political system collapses from the nationalist and authoritarian movement of Donald Trump on the right and the aspiring authoritarian populists on the left of the Justice Dems who are growing in number. The center isn’t holding and once it collapses the rule of law will go with it. There are no incentives, book deals, or retweets in bringing people together. Rage, fear, and hysteria sells. The future of American politics will look a lot like Venezuela and Brazil and these may be best case scenarios. It may look like Libya. Many Republicans are seemingly no longer interested in accepting the results of democratic elections (when they lose) and many Democrats appear to not only no longer believe in the institution that desegregated schools and neighborhoods- many also want violence against Supreme Court Justices (and churches).
How will this play out politically in 2022 ? Too soon to tell.
Side A you have record high gas prices that are hurting Americans, inflation causing more pain, the haphazard Afghan pullout, chaos at the southern border, crime in the streets hurting the poor and vulnerable the most, an administration that is horrible at messaging, and a President that is damn near 80 and quite frankly doesn't appear to be all that lucid at times. Don't worry Dems if you take a beating in mid terms you got a VP with about the same favorable ratings as pineapples on pizza, a small town Indiana mayor, and a Bronx socialist leading the back bench!
Side B you have Americans, particularly women, upset over Roe being overturned, outrage over the January 6th hearings, and the threat of Donald Trump coming back in 2024, and the belief Americans aren't crazy enough to vote for people like Eric Greitens and the expanding MAGA Squad. Many Dems believe the Supreme Court decision to be a gift that will save them from what was all but a certain Red Wave in November.
Time will tell…
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Bourdain, Books, and Abortion Politics
I also admit that after my experience with the leak, I was completely dreading the decision being released because Twitter was going to be an over-the-top festival of yelling. I assume my followers knew I was against it because I actually RTd a post with cursing. But otherwise I posted things that came across my email and was unrepentant in implying that I was going to treat this as a religious liberty issue, this was a Friday, and I was not going to be in front of a PC for 7 hours.
(This is my husband's name by sheer accident but technically I can still have babies and the people in my religious community think of a lot of kids as a blessing too.)
A pollster who I have every reason to believe was with the Steve Roberts campaign called me and asked what was the most important issue facing the country and I said the sharp division leading to lack of faith in democracy in large part because of this. Linda Greenhouse is not far left by any stretch of the imagination and was still able to say, "They did it because they could." These 6 justices are going to do a lot of things because they can for as long as Thomas can hang on. We will be lucky if they do not leave constitutional law and the state of our democracy where it was in the 1930s by the time they are done.