Dear Friends,                                                                                    not so great Gatsby

“Was I the only one awake in English class that day?”

                             Buffy Summers

Everyone’s attacking Trump for having a “Great Gatsby” themed party at the moment when millions may loose their SNAP benefits. And they’re absolutely right, keep it up, don’t let anyone forget!

A couple of other things, though. When Nicolle Wallace (MSNBC) referred to the Trump gang as the “Marie Antoinette Administration”, the Rev himself (Rev. Al Sharpton, that is) stood up for the much maligned queen, saying she never knocked down half of Versailles to build a huge ballroom. Also, since we’re on the subject, she didn’t say “let them eat cake”, she said “qu’ils mangent de brioche”, which is quite different.

And then does no one else remember that The Great Gatsby is not a celebration but a passionate denunciation of luxury, wealth and privilege? Of course no one expects Trump to know that, nor that his supposed favorite musical Les Mis is a celebration of the People against Autocracy.

Maybe it’s worth just a moment’s thought, though (not more): is ignorance really enough to explain all this? Could it be that Trump’s unconscious is secretly rising up against him? That would be some return of the repressed! Ok, not likely, but you’ve got to have a dream.

Love and solidarity,

            Bobby

P.S. Buffy was actually speaking of William Burroughs, but the point still holds (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Season 4, episode 19, if you’re interested).