Aretha Franklin — Susan Corso's Blog

Day 55 The Veruca Virus; or, I Want What I Want When I Want It

I am beginning to think I live in a country, maybe even a world, populated by Veruca Salts, and that we are being battered by yet another virus. For those not in this particular know, Veruca Salt is the supremely spoiled British girl in the Roald Dahl classic Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Julie Dawn Cole brought her to stunning, whiny, tantrumy life in the 1971 film starring Gene Wilder redubbed Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. You know which one I mean, She of the “IwantitNOW,Daddy!” refrain. Maybe the world isn’t overrun by Verucas, but there are enough Verucas, and their wheels are squeaking loudly enough that it’s giving me pause, and a little bit of a headache. “It’s the economy, stupid,” says the Lincoln-wannabe in The White House. “The economy. The economy. The economy.” Maybe if he keeps saying it loudly enough it will drown out every other voice, the voices of reason.

PandemicSusan CorsoMay 5, 2020metaphysics, coronavirus, COVID-19, #GlobalVaccine, Aretha Franklin, The Veruca Virus, Veruca Salt, Willy Wonka

Day 54 Hollow Reassurances; or, Who’s Zoomin’ Who?

The congressional district that Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Democrat of New York, represents is the hottest of the coronavirus hot spots in the entire country. Her policy positions, she said, have only been affirmed by the damage the coronavirus has inflicted, disproportionately, upon lower-income populations. In a Fox News Town Hall, the Arrogance-in-Chief said, “At some point we have to open our country. And people are going to be safe. We’ve learned a lot. We’ve learned about the tremendous contagion. But we have no choice. We can’t stay closed as a country. We’re not going to have a country left.” In that same conversation, Mr. Trump upped his death toll numbers; we’ve already long surpassed his original estimate—all the while assuring us that we will be safe.

PandemicSusan CorsoMay 4, 2020metaphysics, coronavirus, COVID-19, #GlobalVaccine, Aretha Franklin, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez