Weird. And Damn Proud of It

Someone tries to insult you with a label? Defang it by embracing it

The label weird has one of the two U.S. presidential candidates on the defensive. That campaign dislikes the label intensely but has no idea what to do about it.

Probably because the candidate heading the campaign takes himself way too seriously and is far too insecure to allow an insult to roll off his back.

His former opponent, on the other hand, did something smart, eventually. Not long after he took office in 2021, his detractors hurled the phrase, “Let’s go, Brandon!” as an insult.

Finally, when this candidate launched his re-election campaign, “Dark Brandon” emerged wielding laser red eyes. Its utter absurdity unmasked, the slur faded away, its power to sting extinguished.

That is how to handle an insult. Embrace it and make it your own. When those who opposed women’s right to vote tried to belittle them with the label suffragette, the aforesaid suffragists did not bat one little eyelash. They embraced the insult and kept right on agitating, lobbying, and demonstrating until women won the vote in 1920.

Right on, sisters.

If someone calls me weird, I reply, “You got that right.”

Let me see, now. How do I rack up my weird points? I talk to the dead—and they talk back to me. I talk to my physical body—and she talks back to me. I believe I was abducted by aliens or time travelers (not sure which) and experimented on—in a past life.

I also believe I have lived multiple physical lifetimes. Self-exorcised what some might call demons (plural). And I have communicated with a being some would term an extraterrestrial—over multiple physical lifetimes.

Yup. That’s weird. And that’s me. I’m writing about all that in my fictionalized autobiography of multiple past lifetimes, Stoneslayer.

And I’m okay with it because, frankly, what others think of me is none of my business. They have power over me only to the extent I give them that power.

As Eleanor Roosevelt so wisely pointed out, “No one can make you feel inferior without your permission.” Just replace the word inferior with weird. The same principle applies.

Lest readers think I support the presidential campaign freaking out about being called weird, I do not. My reaction boils down to, So. You can dish it out but you can’t take it.

Classic hallmark of a bully.

My real point to this word salad is about we, the electorate. Our political candidates resort to juvenile name calling and get away with it because we aren’t demanding anything better from them. Or from ourselves.

Name calling just isn’t enough. Even rendering the Brandon insult impotent could not save the candidate’s reelection prospects. Childish insults alone won’t cut it. Not when our nation’s future and well being is at stake.

This country seems to be stuck in endless loop of Animal House. That was the stupidest film I ever wasted good money on and, even worse, time I can’t get back, when it came out in 1978.

Yet it has a 91 percent positive score on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s pure trash, and the (mostly male) people in the film behave, well, worse than animals because, theoretically at least, the people know better.

Culturally, the United States is one big frat house and acts accordingly. I never attended an American high school, so a lot about popular culture in this nation just does not make a lick of sense to me.

But I do know this. Unless we up our game when it comes to politics and running this country, we are in big trouble. There are multiple vested interests financed with unlimited cash trying to turn this country into some sort of corporate-run fascist state.

And that is happening on both sides of the political aisle. Both major political parties play footsies with these covert interests.

Unless we, the citizens and voters, wake up, do some thinking, and insist that our politicos provide specific details on how they plan to use their power. Demand to know whose money is fueling their campaigns. Insist they uncover the hidden agendas and influencers.

And then use our votes and voices to compel government to act for the benefit of the many. Not the secret billionaire few.

Or, we can keep on toga partying right off the cliff and crash-land in corporate serfdom. Could it be 1024 all over again?