Those Gosh-Darn Communists!

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2080

Abstract

him. Unable to say anything without sounding snarky, I just nodded and got back to my work.</p><p id="fe5e">I understand his viewpoint from a logical perspective. He was older than my father, solidly in what is considered the Baby Boomer generation, and he had grown up under the specter of communism as a force against democracy. Additionally, the term “socialism” hadn’t gained the level of notoriety it has today, so I’m pretty sure he just grabbed the term that he was most familiar with.</p><p id="e7e8">Still, to my mid-20s brain, this was one of the most hilarious things I’d ever heard. I immediately told all of my friends about how dumb this guy was, and they all thought it was hilarious. What kind of old nutjob thinks the communists are rampant in America, fighting against voter ID laws?</p><p id="3176">For a while, I even started blaming everything on communists. Did your guy lose his election? It was the communists. Did your car break down? Communists. Stub your toe? Those gosh-darn communists are at it again!</p><p id="fa3c">Now, of course, I recognize how dangerous this line of thinking is and how right-wing outlets like Fox, OAN, and NewsMax push this sort of rhetoric without any basis in facts. At the time, though, it was hilarious. I wonder what happened to that guy.</p><p id="2c7c">Honestly, he probably voted for Trump.</p><p id="4d89">If you liked this, please subscribe to my publication, Thing a Day. I publish something every day on a variety of topics, so you never know what you’re going to see!</p><div id="b744" class="link-block"> <a href="https://medium.com/thing-a-day"> <div> <div> <h2>Thing a Day</h2> <div><h3>In which I write one thing each day.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*eDMwsybTKAuurmHy6-tfoA.png)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><p id="6eb0">Here a

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re some other things I’ve written:</p><div id="252b" class="link-block"> <a href="https://aninjusticemag.com/you-are-not-required-to-give-credence-to-bad-faith-arguments-512ea5ae8ee4"> <div> <div> <h2>You Are Not Required to Give Credence to Bad-Faith Arguments</h2> <div><h3>When the other side only engages in bad faith, you’re better off saving your sanity</h3></div> <div><p>aninjusticemag.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*Kv6GGhvpwAz62PRh)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="414c" class="link-block"> <a href="https://aninjusticemag.com/freedom-of-speech-doesnt-mean-freedom-from-consequences-3ba178d7a23f"> <div> <div> <h2>Freedom of Speech Doesn’t Mean Freedom from Consequences</h2> <div><h3>Or: Why I love watching racists get their comeuppance</h3></div> <div><p>aninjusticemag.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*-dKjPMwWhERzSJdS)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="e7ea" class="link-block"> <a href="https://aninjusticemag.com/i-dont-know-how-else-to-explain-that-you-should-care-about-other-people-cb4eb062b3e6"> <div> <div> <h2>I Don’t Know How Else to Explain that You Should Care About Other People</h2> <div><h3>The difficulties of explaining empathy to those who have none</h3></div> <div><p>aninjusticemag.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*XQnKLN2BEsOZg6kr)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div></article></body>

A short story about a former coworker’s strange beliefs.

As I’ve mentioned, I used to work in a produce department. There was an interesting array of people working with me, including several “lifers,” or people who had started working at the store very young and had never had another job. This was a union store, so the wages were solid and a person could do that, once upon a time.

One of those lifers was a crusty old guy who wasn’t in the best health and retired a bit before I left. I don’t remember his name, so we’ll call him Steve.

Steve, as I said, was a crusty old fart with crusty old opinions, and being a young, Obama-supporting liberal, we didn’t agree on much. So, we generally didn’t talk much about politics.

Still, that didn’t stop him from getting my attention one day with a conspiratorial look in his eyes. “Hey,” he started, “do you think you should have to show your ID to vote?”

I wasn’t sure where he was going with this — at the time, voter ID laws weren’t a major issue. However, I had a feeling it was going to be an interesting ride, so I shrugged and responded “sure.”

His face lit up like it was Christmas. “You know who doesn’t think you should have to show your ID?” I had no idea where he was going, but I didn’t have to wait long, since he didn’t give me time to say anything.

“Communists.”

I stared at him in utter shock. This man literally thought that communists were fighting against voter ID laws. He was beaming at me, as though he had just revealed a secret bit of knowledge that a deity had granted to him. Unable to say anything without sounding snarky, I just nodded and got back to my work.

I understand his viewpoint from a logical perspective. He was older than my father, solidly in what is considered the Baby Boomer generation, and he had grown up under the specter of communism as a force against democracy. Additionally, the term “socialism” hadn’t gained the level of notoriety it has today, so I’m pretty sure he just grabbed the term that he was most familiar with.

Still, to my mid-20s brain, this was one of the most hilarious things I’d ever heard. I immediately told all of my friends about how dumb this guy was, and they all thought it was hilarious. What kind of old nutjob thinks the communists are rampant in America, fighting against voter ID laws?

For a while, I even started blaming everything on communists. Did your guy lose his election? It was the communists. Did your car break down? Communists. Stub your toe? Those gosh-darn communists are at it again!

Now, of course, I recognize how dangerous this line of thinking is and how right-wing outlets like Fox, OAN, and NewsMax push this sort of rhetoric without any basis in facts. At the time, though, it was hilarious. I wonder what happened to that guy.

Honestly, he probably voted for Trump.

If you liked this, please subscribe to my publication, Thing a Day. I publish something every day on a variety of topics, so you never know what you’re going to see!

Here are some other things I’ve written: