Middle of the Road

“The middle of the road is no private cul-de-sac

I can’t get from the cab to the curb

Without some little jerk on my back”

Middle of the Road – The Pretenders

During the Ariel Sharon reign, the Israeli Defense Force (the IDF) was particularly prone to brutal attacks and incursions into Palestinian refugee camps.  Steve Bell, the Guardian’s acerbic cartoonist, penned one of his better ones back then.  It showed an Israeli tank heading toward a tent and shack location in Lebanon.  The back of Ariel Sharon’s head stuck out of the turret.   Scrawled on the tank read the words, “Vote Sharon, Your Middle of the Road Candidate.”

The phrase “Middle of the Road” enjoys a certain prominence in American political parlance.  Biden is the middle of the road Presidential pick for the Democratic Party.   He apparently knows how to work with his esteemed colleagues across the aisle, a synonym for a fence sitter or bullshit artist dealmaker.  Some argue that this is a necessary skill.  But honestly, it is just an example of another two-faced hypocrite walking both sides of the same old potholed street.   Joe Biden is well practiced at this.

“Middle of the Road” often gets expressed or mixed up with the notion of unity.  Who doesn’t call for unity in the time of this upsurge against the police?  I want to be clear here, I want our side to be united, steadfast, uncompromising, militant, articulate when necessary, principled, generous, caring, all of these things.  I wish for their side to implode, to be fractured with incompetence and in-fighting.  I don’t want unity with their people unless they decide to join us on our terms.   Even then, they would have to prove themselves.

Prayers and pleas are forthcoming for unity.  Trump is criticized by the mainstream (the middle of the road) because he does nothing to advance their cause of national unity.   Just what do they think he is going to do?  They have obviously learned nothing about the man, despite his rule of over one thousand days.

Often, the sideline critics of the current rebellion miss the point.  They cannot or will not describe the uprising as a righteous break from the world as they know it.  The consumption life, with its fixations about private property, shopping, creature comforts, and the like has become irrelevant when compared to the daily confrontations all across the country.

The unity that is occurring might be temporary (hopefully not), but it is mind-boggling to witness.   The kids who are in the streets of Seattle, Portland, Brooklyn and all of the many other places each night are not worried about unity, they are already united.  It is virtually impossible to portray their make-up as either black or white only.  These crowds are a true mish-mosh of all colors.

And the unity is not only one of the rainbow variety.  Whether the protestors are from more comfortable backgrounds or from more miserable poverty, they reflect a coming together of youngsters who speak on behalf of the have-nots or are indeed the have-nots themselves.  This voice is unmistakable.  While there might be plenty of hand-wringing about the ruination of plate glass windows and Foot Locker stock, this is a small price to pay for the calculated deprivation of so many.  The plusses far outweigh the negatives.

There is little room for the middle of the road position in this insurrection.  Those who seek it have nothing worthwhile to say.

“When you own a big chunk of the bloody third world

The babies just come with the scenery”

Middle of the Road – The Pretenders