TSTO In A World of Division…We Rise Above and Sail On…

My wife and I elected to watch the final game of the World Series in a neighborhood sports bar.  It just seemed like the right thing to do. This was a historic night (and yes…for the grammar police, it is A, not AN), and it was the kind of thing that should be shared with as many other baseball fans as possible. It’s like watching fireworks on the 4th of July (or perhaps Guy Fawkes Night in Blimey)…it is cool on your own, but FAR more fun when you can hear the collective “Ooooos” and “Ahhhhhs” from the crowd around you.

As is almost always the case in these situations, there was one guy, a rather largish guy, in a Cleveland jersey stretched tautly over his “pony keg abs,” who was loud, boisterous and hilarious (no doubt fueled by the three pitchers pf beer I watched him consume over the course of the game).  When the Cubs went up by three in the middle of the game, he screamed, “I HATE this game!!!” When the Indians tied it up (twice) he screamed, “I LOVE THIS GAME!” Every close call, every strikeout, every change of sides all brought out a booming exclamation from this guy who was in a sea of Cubs fans. And we all LOVED it!  We all groaned collectively at the rain delay, one voice unified by an interruption in what was to be one of the greatest Major League games in history. We were all there…as fans. Our camaraderie overcoming our differences.

I made a side comment to Deb, that if we were here watching election returns next Tuesday in the same bar, it was doubtful that everyone would have the same, jovial, “let bygones be bygones” attitudes.

And, then I thought about THIS place…and realized what a minor miracle it has been that even with prompting from the very game we all love, we have risen above the general fray of “Politicus Horribillus” to remain a community. We are open to all who seek TSTO knowledge, support, and entertainment… with no borders.

The TSTO writers have certainly done their best to stir the pot…and create division. But, we aren’t taking the bait!

There have been PLENTY of thinly-veiled political references.

Like this bit of dialogue…

Even though our town is being ravaged by monsters, I am the only Mayor that is fit to see us through it. Just like I saw us through my ballot box-stuffing scandal, my bribery scandal, and another of my scandals you’ll hear about next week.

 I’m getting kind of sick of all those monsters. That fish guy made a huge mess at Moe’s this afternoon. That’s Barney’s thing.

Another Springfield job taken by these monsters. I say we throw them all out! Zero amnesty! Make Springfield great again!

Or This…

Quimby’s got a point about all these monsters in town. They don’t gamble, they don’t drink – what kind of freaks are they?
Yeah, we should build a wall to keep them out. Plus think of the jobs it would create for the local wall builders’ union.

Or this in Act III

With all this tension between cast members, I’m suspending filming indefinitely. Art is supposed to bring people together, except for the art that tears people apart. Like the drawings of religious figures or any “Marmaduke” cartoon. Hollywood monster or human, we all need to join together and save this town.

 I’m envisioning a lone hero, human, early thirties, facing an angry monster horde. His guns shoot stars and stripes of red, white, and blue and the monsters run away like the spineless cowards they are. We’re only using the monsters that don’t have spines. At the end, we have an art card reading “Quimby for Re-Election!” We even paid extra to make sure it’s all spelled correctly.

This is terrible! You’re just using hollow patriotism and fear of people who are different to manipulate voters into supporting a political campaign!

That’s exactly what we’re doing. The movie is called “Hollow Patriotic Manipulation” for a reason!

And Finally…

Now that I’ve seen Hollywood monsters as people, it’s kinda hard to still be mad. I guess we owe you monsters an apology. Especially about that wall stuff, which kind of sounded far-fetched to begin with. I mean, wasn’t Mexico supposed to pay for it?

Forget about it. It was this afternoon. It was a different time. At least we can all agree those feral monsters need to be exterminated.

Like I always said. We’re stronger together. Now that we’re okay with you guys, I hope I can count on your vote. Or multiple votes.

OK. We get it.

But, the fact is…one of the most amazing things about our community here at TSTOAddicts, is that there ARE NO BORDERS!  We have one of the greatests examples of “the melting pot” of international culture that one could ever imagine.  People from more than 110 countries come here almost daily, perhaps to escape the mayhem and viciousness of politics, and we get along.

Yes…there are is a bit of “autocratic authoritarianism” by the mods to “keep it non-political.” But it works!  Alissa is a benevolent dictator when it comes to politics…and it has served this place well.

It is hard to ignore the craziness (trust me…I have fought my cranky instincts to the point of being bruised head to toe with self inflicted wounds). But with just days left, in what hopefully will be the LAST Presidential election with this level of insanity (I’m hoping we all learned some lessons in “be careful what you wish for” on both sides), WE…the PROUD, INCLUSIVE, ADDICTS of TSTO, rise as a shining example of how to “get along” when the rest of the world is doing its best to fall apart.

I am proud to be a member. Just a few more days. We can get through this!!! And our reward, after weeks and weeks of grinding and determination?  A Shipwreck.

I’m not really sure if this is meant to be a political metaphor or not. But, I prefer to think that as is often the case, the writers and the programmers aren’t sitting in the same room, or perhaps even the same building, and something as obtuse as suggesting that our reward for current political action will result in a shipwreck is way above their pay grade. I don’t give them credit…because I don’t think they are that smart.

However…WE will continue to sail the balmy seas of togetherness…drawn together by our ability to escape to the “Island of TSTO” that gives us relief from even thinking about such heady things.

There are no borders…no citizenship tests…no restrictions of age or gender.  We are all just here to tap…

And so it shall be…as long as there is a TSTO!!!

For those looking for my personal take on the election, and how I am voting,
go to CrankyOldGuy.com