Can you hear the tumbrels?

This morning, in a high school parking lot, I saw a giant “Trump, Pence: Make America Great Again” decal in an old pick up with new paint, new rims, new tires and of course, a great big lift kit.  I wanted to quit being a 44 year old mom, find a marker, and write “make America stupid again” over it. But my grown-up and cynical self behaved and just went on with her day. 

Until I came in from hanging out with my chicken posse and found that my friend Alicia had summed up exactly how cynical I feel about being an American these days in a post about (and I can’t believe I’m typing this) The Kardashians.  I am not a fan. I don’t know why we continue to make stupid people famous. But, I didn’t need to be a  fan to appreciate her words.   I’m passing them on in hopes that you’ll do the same:  

Look out, I’m getting my rant on.  I tried to ignore it but I’m just so irked.

“Ms. Kardashian West, a reality television star, was robbed at gunpoint of jewelry worth at least 8 million euros, or nearly $9 million. She was alone in a luxurious apartment in the Eighth Arrondissement” NY Times. 

Others estimate the haul at $10 million.  That’s the number I’m going to play with -you know I’m riled up when I break out a calculator.  One ring was 4.5 million. One.  And we won’t even go into where diamonds come from or how they get to her finger. 

This woman, who is rich for nothing more than being famous and marrying someone equally rich for just as little, was robbed.  She was travelling with $9-10 million dollars in jewelry.  That’s just what she packed for her trip.  How much jewellry do you pack when you travel and how much do you leave at home?

Let me show it to you in real people numbers.  The average American salary is about $52,ooo/year. I don’t come close to that, do you? I help people for a living!  That’s 192 working people’s annual income-neighbors, relatives, friends buying homes, raising families, saving for retirement.  The average student loan debt is $35,000 (mine’s almost twice that).  That’s 286 educations in pretty rocks.  286 teachers, nurses, plumbers, people who actually contribute to and directly impact your life.  

She went there on a private jet (how does one even google that price tag?), stayed in an ultra exclusive hotel that costs I’m guessing about a year’s average american income, to attend  fashion week, the apex of conspicuous consumption and the jet set.  This doesn’t include her clothes or luggage.  

When her husband heard about this he walked out of his show – where he gets about, low end, $250/head.  He immediately hopped on a private jet, and flew to France himself.  

I was trying to ignore this because quite frankly I believed these people need to be ignored. But as I typed those words it occurs to me they are a symptom of a disease, a serious disease, and therefore should not be ignored.    We have parasites!  This is Versailles and every other out of touch dynasty that was rightfully (albeit brutally) smashed.  I’m not satisfied with entertainment “cake.”   This is bullshit. 

–Alicia Dohn (Sheesha❤)

We are Americans!  I don’t know how it happened, but we’ve found ourselves under the thumb of a bored aristocracy again. (If that confuses you, ask a history teacher, and enjoy your wall.) No, we don’t have a monarchy with a court of attendendents and hangers-on hoping to be granted a favor from a royal. Instead, we have a group of people that we’ve deemed important by virtue of their beauty, fame, athletic prowess, record sales, and wealth.  This aristocracy 2.0 runs around with their crews, posses, homies, fams, BFFS, entourages, etc. doing anything they want, hurting anyone they want, not respecting or valuing anything but their own wants and needs.  This new aristocracy  is the 1%: the ones whose net worth is so large we can’t even fathom it; the ones who couldn’t survive a week on what most of us do in a year; The ones so many admire as if they were actually royalty! I have to agree with my friend, Kim and Kanye may as well have “let them eat cake” tattooed somewhere where the paparazzi will be sure to see it, because I hear a rumbling in the distance.