Rori O'Keeffe

rookee75@gmail.com

A thought for my fellow journeyers:

The new narrative of the right, I've noticed, is downright scary. Is the following an accurate characterization of the new right, or is it satire?
"Women have been oppressing men. People of colour have been oppressing white people. LGBTQ people are oppressing straight people. Political correctness is nothing more than a concerted effort to advance those people's agendas. If democracy leads to rule by the weak, stupid and perverted, then to hell with it. Dictatorship is the best and surest way of enshrining the status of the the male, the white, the straight."
I wish I could say it's just satire, but observing the multitudes of right-wing voices on social media, as well as paying close attention to the American GOP's ultimate fulfillment of Reagan's dream, it's obvious that Americans are flirting with catastrophe. Beware modern conservatism: It's nothing but authoritarianism, pure and simple.
How long will it be before Canadian conservatism becomes infected with this virus? Not too long, I don't think. The same well-moneyed forces are at work here as in the U.S. Expect a sharp shift further to the right if the Republican party takes control of both chambers in the next U.S. midterms.

What are whites, men and straight people afraid of? I think the common denominator of their fears is the challenge of having to compete for jobs and status in an inclusive society. Most are insecure because they are woefully unprepared psychologically to compete on a level playing field, having been sheltered by generations of unearned privilege. Soothe them, don't make them feel worse about themselves (think of Hillary's poorly-considered reference to the "basket full of deplorables." That comment may have cost her the election. It proved to many that liberals just hate the uneducated and mostly poor white people of the country.)

Whatever you do, don't try to make them feel inferior. That is central to their fears about themselves in an increasingly inclusive social environment. It's important, because if the U.S. goes down to dictatorship, then most or all the other democracies will as well, and civilization will expire in a global Orwellian nightmare. There are so many scathing things I could say about these democracies, but they are almost paradises compared to what a future of dictatorships would be like.
Please be kind, unwind.


Peace.

Read more of this interview.

Twitter: @rookee75

300 poems    a young womans first time    abandonment    action against terrorism    alcoholism    american empire    anger    artistic poems    authoritarian behaviors    authoritarianism    autumn in the mind    avoiding boys    awareness    bachelors    bad government    bad habits    barbarian    berserker    berserkers bare naked babes    bi women    bisexual    blind trust    bobs eyes    brutality    buff    canadian and american politics    canadian youth romance    capitalism    cathartic poetry    centrist politics    challenging personality quiz    change    childhood friends    choice    coming out    coming out of the closet    coming out story    cool fairy tales    corruption of ruling elite    crucifix as a sword    cruel prophecies    dark poems    death of a loved one    dejavu    democracy    despair poems    destiny    dictatorship    dignity    distraction    dominatrix    donald j trump    donald trump    dracula    dubious consent    edgar allen tadpole    electoral democracy    enslavement of the free    environmental stewardship    erotic humour    erotic poems    evolution    extinction    fairy tale    fairy tales    fate    feminism    first love    flaws    fools    fools cemetery    fools gold    free verse    freedom    frog    fun personality quiz    global    government incompetence    gratitude to a friend    growth    guitar and loved man    happy memories of youth    haunting poem    healing poem    hedonism    heros journey    hetero couples    high school memory    high school parties    hope for humanity    inspiration to struggle    inspirational poem    ironic poetry    irony of being the fool    isis    laughing at death    laughter and sex    leaderless    leaving the closet    lesbian    lesbian coming out story    lesbian lovers    lesbians    liberal democracy    liberty    life    loss of democracy    loss of old friend    lottery and electoral democracy    love    love lost    love poems    loved one remembered    lover    lovers    loyalty    manipulative psychopath    mass unconscious    materialism    matriarchy    megalomaniac    memories    memory    memory poem    misogyny    misplaced trust    murder plot    mystical blue    narcissism    necessity of change    neoaristocracy    nihilism    nihilistic power    november 13 2015    ocean cruise    old friends    old memory    opportunity for redemption    pansexual    paris    participatory democracy    particle physics and society    passion to live    passionate lesbian poetry    patriarchy    playing doctor    poem    poems    poems 2013 2018    poems about friends    poems with dual meanings    poetic imagery    poetic justice    poetry    poetry about injustice    pole dancing    political correctness and censorship    political poetry    power of love    power of reason    precocious maturity    prince    prince charming    prophetess    prostitute    protege    psychological projection    psychopathic sister    quick personality quiz    quiz    radical right    rape victim    reassessment    reconciling a painful memory    redemption    regret    regrets    religious fanaticism    religious prophecies    religious psychopath    reliving the past    representative government    repression    rescue    resource depletion    rhyme    rori okeeffe    school chums    sense of entitlement    sex obsession    shapeshifter    smoking weed in high school    spider as monster    spider as warning dream    stealing kisses    student of life    survival    survival of humanity    tadpole    teacher and pupil    terrorism    the queen the spy and the troll below    the tricks and the treats    tiger    time as an illusion    toned    totalitarianism    tragic loss    treachery    trump    vampire    vlad the impaler    war    woman of pleasure    women in love    world in flux    youthful curiosity   

...and 8 more

• Insomnia (A Poem) on July 04, 2013
  
  I see a question in this - what is sanity? Taken in plain meanings or metaphors, this poem is memorable. Hugely entertaining!
  
• Too Little Too Late on July 04, 2013
  
  Very well written and evocative, and the characters are drawn as sympathetic with considerable skill. However, I found it to be ultimately quite predictable.
  
• Burdened on July 26, 2013
  
  It is a story that hurtles to a crushing finale - as memorable a short piece as I am likely to read.
  
• Half Baked on July 31, 2013
  
  A witty title and a revealing look at a young woman who seems even more interested in helping others than herself. A very human portrait of suffering and compassion - it has helped me see more than I could before.
  
• Coinage on Aug. 02, 2013
  
  A clever and to-the-point story that, along with the description's promises, also delivers an angle on the frustrations of living with "big" government.
  
• Stuck in a Hotel Room Closet on a Friday Night on Aug. 02, 2013
  
  A very suspenseful and intriguing story with enough humor to keep it entertaining. I liked the portraits of the characters.
  
• Hell and the Devil on Aug. 05, 2013
  
  Some interesting ways of depicting the evils of the world, with many powerful lines in it.
  
• Just Friends on Aug. 07, 2013
  
  Seems like it's all in here - beauty, seduction, curiosity, advancement, friendship, discovery, love, and romance. A beautiful story that's written just the right way.
  
• The Man on Aug. 07, 2013
  
  "The Man" is a powerful story of what goes on daily around so much of the world, yet is virtually ignored by the mainstream media. I would most strongly recommend this short piece.
  
• Timeout on Oct. 15, 2013
  
  This story is well written, timely and to the point. The wealthy character seems to have the observed arrogant attitude of so many - kudos to the man who found his watch!
  
• Smashwords Style Guide on Nov. 04, 2013
  
  Even though I don't use Word - I use another document software - I found the guide amazingly helpful in figuring out what it is I have to do to properly format. It's a lengthy read with lots of info I don't need YET, and if you're patient enough to write a book, you'll have no trouble handling the Style Guide's labyrinth of directions and suggestions. This book seems to have everything covered.
  
• Shoah: Remembering the Forgotten on Nov. 21, 2013
  
  Well researched and vividly rendered, the words in here can teach us to think before we act - and always remember a time when the world seemed to have no conscience, and God did not seem to care. The humanity of the victims is in stark contrast to the inhumanity of the perpetrators - it's brilliant. I hope to see more from this author.
  
• Love Notes on Jan. 18, 2014
  
  Lovely poems with universal themes. I really enjoyed it.
  
• Crossing the Rubicon: A Tale of Julius Caesar on March 31, 2014
  
  Written compellingly as though she herself were actually a witness to the events, one of history's biggest turning points is rendered in a manner that makes the story both surprising and human. I'd love to see a sequel.
  
• Through the Windows on Sep. 09, 2014
  
  I loved the fusion of classic and contemporary imagery. Very enjoyable.
  
• Life in a Book on Sep. 09, 2014
  
  Poignant without being too sweet or too bitter. I liked it.
  
• The Conversation on Sep. 09, 2014
  
  Touching and very nicely done.
  
• My Lying Bathroom Mirror (F) on Sep. 09, 2014
  
  ...and I have bafroom scales that can't add. Loved it.
  
• ISIS: The New Power on Oct. 23, 2014
  
  Totalitarianism is never justified by faith, scientific accomplishments, or superficially pristine behavior. As an apologia for ISIS and related movements in the Muslim world, this book failed for me.
  
• Hot Summer Breeze on a Cold Winter Night on Oct. 23, 2014
  
  There's a lot of power in these poems, and their overall darkness and truth leave me wanting more. Superb.
  
• Evolution Favors People Who Don't Believe in Evolution on Nov. 20, 2014
  
  A quick overview of recent population trends. Do trends continue indefinitely, however?
  
• Chaste on Nov. 20, 2014
  
  Weird, wry and pointed. I liked it very much.
  
• The Definition of Insanity on Nov. 23, 2014
  
  This poem is a poignant and beautiful expression of life at the edge of darkness. I would recommend it to anyone who wants a glimpse of actual insanity. Thank you, Marissa.
  
• The Visitor on Dec. 04, 2014
  
  Wendy Beach writes with all the authenticity of one who has been there herself. Compact and powerful, this short story is as moving as a story can be.
  
• All 28 Freckles on Dec. 04, 2014
  
  These poems are lucid and evocative memories of who we once were...and still can be.
  
• Air Of Midnight on Dec. 10, 2014
  
  Very enjoyable...a dark poem with a bright ending, and surprisingly atmospheric given the sparseness of the language.
  
• Political Correctness - The New Fascism on Jan. 09, 2015
  
  They are the pious hypocrites of secularism, a sort of counter-bigotry thought police who do much to undermine issues of tolerance and acceptance. They have disgraced the civil rights legacy with their fanatical opposition to free speech. While I don't think that the politically correct are the greatest menace to democracy, their opposition to basic freedoms may prove to be another nail in the coffin of liberty. This brief essay could have gone much farther in exploring their character and the similarity of temperament they share with historical totalitarians. That is my main criticism - it is too short to be a compelling exploration of the left-wing authoritarian's mindset in contemporary democracy.
  
• Ten Things Worse Than Rape on Feb. 06, 2015
  
  Is rape a political act, as some insist? The notion is grandiose compared to the mundane criminality of sexual perverts. I like this poem because it looks at rape for what it is to the individual, rather than as some sort of unified aggression by the male gender against the female. As a liberal sort of person who battles the PC's on the far left and conservatives on the right, I very much appreciate hearing this voice of reason on a delicate subject.
  
• Gossamer Wings and Other Things on Aug. 22, 2015
  
  Originality at its best. Beautiful images and evocative imagery make this a memorable and unique book.
  
• My Oldest Memory on Jan. 21, 2016
  
  Well-written and troubling at a time when the casual use of intoxicants seems to be expanding. Some politicians may want to read this before they facetiously promote and legalize the use of pot. (Note: This reviewer is Canadian.)
  
• Fuckery on June 11, 2016
  
  Fuckery is amusing, nonsensical, and bare-naked honesty. Amy is a victim without the vice of self-pity, and this volume of poems is like junk food with lots of sauce. In the end, I wanted more from this young poet, and I'll keep a copy in my library. I hope to see more honest and twisted work from Amy in the future.
  
• Scientific Poems: Vol1 Collection on June 12, 2016
  
  The poems with political/scientific overtones work well enough, but I found the language dehumanising in the more personal ones. My favourite is Those Who Love Chemicals - it seems to be the right fusion of scientific language and human reality.
  
• Eternal Ice on June 12, 2016
  
  By turns honest and wonderful, these poems leave questions unanswered in just the right ways. The sentiments are authentic and human, and the pace is enjoyable.
  
• Insight on June 12, 2016
  
  A little predictable, but very well written.
  
• A Crooked Shadow: From Five Old Wives' Tales on June 19, 2016
  
  Witty, amusing and down to earth. I liked it very much.
  
• The Eight-Headed Dragon on June 19, 2016
  
  A great ending to a story that is timeless in its meaning. I enjoyed it very much, and I look forward to seeing more work from this author.
  
• Irezlie on July 14, 2016
  
  A story, in poems, that casts a woman as the cursed destroyer of men. Without giving the two offered endings away, the curse feeds on the unspoken doubts in Irezlie's mind, until the curse is resolved. A wonderful tale with clear but unexplained meanings. (I preferred Ending Two.)
  
• A Pollie's Progress on Oct. 07, 2016
  
  Australia has political incorrectness in all its forms! Never quite serious, these poems will have you searching your Aussie slang dictionary and relaxing with plenty of laughs. Show A Pollie's Progress to your Australian friends, then run!
  
• The Slap: A Metaphor on March 27, 2018
  
  The war on self-abuse is a failure. A good metaphor.
  
• The Ugly Truth About Self-Publishing on April 22, 2018
  
  What I would add to this book of stark warnings for would-be authors: If you were going to become a serious writer someday, you would have altered your plans, ambitions, education, lifestyle, and your very spirit when you were quite young. Becoming an actual author is a humbling process of self-imposed sacrifice and suffering. It is not a career choice for anyone who expects it is easy or glamorous. People should write because they love to write. An honest look at what they have written would inform them if anybody at all would read it. Self-publishing is more like Facebook posting than actual authorship, and this lucid book spells that out in clear detail. If you are not a serious writer, then please don't quit the day job, and above all, don't waste your money on all the "help" you'll be offered.