Wasn’t some of the commentary in last week’s (April 2) Leader a doozy? First there was “Out of Balance” columnist Marcia Kelbon, the supposed science-based engineer who lost the race for District 24 state representative, rejecting mounds of peer-reviewed scientific research on gender to deliver the classic trans exclusionary, so-called “feminist” party line: Trans women are biological males, and they have no business playing on women’s sports teams.

Preceded by four paragraphs intended to soften the blow, Kelbon’s culture wars column is a classic case of “other” erasure. First, she claims to “embrace gender-different youth,” then throws them under the bus by denying them the right to use the restrooms and participate on the sports teams consistent with their gender identity.

Next, she declares that the natural phenomenon of intersex is a “condition.” Those of us who burst open the closet door before the American Psychological Association declassified homosexuality as a disorder in 1973 understand full well the shock treatment implications of Kelbon’s statements.

Then there was Republican precinct leader Lisa Farr’s exercise in alternative reality. Stopping short of calling George Soros’ legal contributions to Indivisible evidence of the International Jewish Conspiracy — it’s no longer PC for Republicans to do so, given Donald Trump’s claim that he is the “best friend” that Jews like Soros and me have ever had in the White House. Farr suggests that it would have been far better to support Elon Musk’s DOGE assault on services, jobs, and human lives than join millions of others in protest on April 5. As to Musk’s million dollar checks to Wisconsin voters who endorsed the Republican candidate for the Wisconsin Supreme Court, or funding delays and cuts to things like the National Institute of Health’s Alzheimer’s research that many of us count on, she remained silent.

Going from Farr’s column to a Facebook post from Julia Cochrane of the Winter Welcoming Center / OLYCAP board that decries the termination of “LIHEAP,” the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, by DOGE, the contradictions between claims and realities came to the fore.

I think back to the dual realities that Emily Randall, our freshly elected representative in the U.S. House, referenced during her recent packed-to-overflowing Town Hall at Blue Heron Middle School. To paraphrase Randall, there was a time when we usually agreed on the facts. Not so today, when political debates and no longer rooted in facts. So much internecine warfare is not about listening; rather, it’s scripted talking points that were created to go viral on the internet.

“It’s more extreme than I could have possible imagined,” Randall said. “The rules and facts are very fungible. ...SNL cannot write more ridiculous scenarios than we have now.”

Randall’s Town Hall was as inspiring as it was disturbing. Inspiring because she is so in tune with what so many of us are feeling and wanting. Disturbing because she, like her fellow Democrats, does not know how to effect change other than by educating and doing all she can to stop voter disenfranchisement and any possibility that Trump may declare martial law and suspend elections. (Kudos to the attendee who raised this possibility in his question.)

Some feel that Randall has not gone far enough. A newbie in Congress, she has not spent over 25 hours filibustering on the House floor. By her own admission, she’s “much more comfortable in a bridge-building place and having thoughtful conversations rather than yelling. I may not yell, but I spend hours a day trying to determine how we can protect our democracy long into the future.”

No one can force anyone to be other than who they are. We all have our limits, and many of us are feeling our age. We may have turned out in large numbers on April 5 to demonstrate our unity and defiance in the face of Trump’s decimation of America and the planet, but there is no clear path forward other than to protest, resist, and speak the truth while we organize, organize, and organize still.

One thing to do locally is vote in the Port Townsend Food Co-op board election. The last day for Co-op members to vote is April 10. With four board seats open, we have the power to effect change.

There’s a lot at stake. At its heart lies the old Board’s outrageous closed-door removal of Cameron Jones from its ranks, without due process. Then there are equity issues, issues with Co-op bylaws that render the Board somewhat impotent, and workplace safety issues. On the latter, I’ve seen the 2023 and 2024 OSHA reports. There were three injuries in 2023 and 12 in 2024. For the number of people the Co-op employees, this is a disturbingly high number. I await a presentation to the Board about what can be done.

For some Co-op members, a major focus is on removing Israeli products from the store’s shelves. Many candidates support a membership-wide vote that would reconsider the Co-op’s prohibition of boycotts against a country’s products. With many kosher and Passover items now sourced from countries other than Israel, thanks to pressure from the Jefferson County Palestinian Solidarity group, the whole megillah is about six Edward & Sons products: four ice cream cones (two gluten free & two organic), and two organic breadcrumbs/panko. Total sales for all six products were just over $3,000 in 2024.

Co-op GM Kenna Eaton, who readily supplied this information, has worked with other staff members to find alternatives that meet the Co-op’s laudable ingredient standards. They have yet to locate them. As much as I share the pain and fury that motivate this campaign —Netanyahu and Trump’s intensifying genocidal campaign to destroy the Palestinian people and remake Gaza must be stopped — I have a hard time believing removing ice cream cones from Co-op shelves will make a bit of difference.

The It’s My Co-op Too campaign, which began after Jones’ dismissal, has endorsed Liz Arp, Alicia Dominguez, Seth Hunt, Ocean Mason, and Suzanne Wilson. After attending the live presentation with all 11 candidates, my sole reservation is that some candidates are so concerned about saying the right thing without doing harm that they could end up paralyzed by process and unable to effect change. No one is a “bad” candidate, but my person faves, given the challenges at hand, are Alicia Dominguez, Ocean Mason, Hank Walker, and Suzanne Wilson.   

By next column, I will have covered an audio show in Chicago and be poised to cover another show, symphony and opera in Berlin and Munich. Those trips will enable me to dialogue with innumerable folks about the state of America, our planet, and our future. I can’t wait to share what I learn.

Jason Victor Serinus is a critic of culture, music, and audio. A longtime advocate for rights, equality, and freedom, he is also a professional whistler. Column tips: jvsaisi24@gmail.com