Don't Let The F-U-N in Fundamentalism Fool You!

Rodney King // David Koresh // Bart Simpson // X-Files // Brian Grazer // J.K. Rowling

Yo…

A story of two trailers; trust me this is all gonna make sense…

Trailer #1: Waco: American Apocalypse
This week Netflix released a trailer for their upcoming documentary Waco: American Apocalypse. A 3-part docuseries about the 1993 Waco, Texas combat when cult leader David Koresh faced off against the federal government in a 51-day siege.

(The early 90s were wild: the Rodney King video on March 3, 1991, LA Riots in 92 and Waco in 93...which prompted the Oklahoma City Bombing in 95.

We’ve witnessed the birth of the viral video way before social media. Going viral was never a good sign. In many ways it still isn’t a good thing.)

This Netflix docuseries coincides with the 30th anniversary of the federal massacre. Of course I remember this harrowing happening and watched CNN like it was a long episode of COPS.

This isn’t a #SetTheVCR recommendation; if you wanna watch this: Netflix on March 22nd.

I’m sharing because of what stood out in the trailer…Branch Davidians pushed back against the narrative of wild sex and grooming children.

See?

One of the former Koresh-believers says: “The whole time we were having sex, it was a Bible study.”

Meaning the public narrative (which was issued by federal agents also quoted in this trailer) was…inaccurate. Is that…right?

30 years later…I believed children were at risk; that and the stockpiling of weapons is what drew the attention of the federal government. If there were weapons violations by all means apply the law. Beyond that…did the Justice Department or the FBI lie to us? Were children in danger?

(By the time the siege concluded: 76 Branch Davidians, including 25 children, two pregnant women, and David Koresh had died. If the impetus was to protect children; the FBI did a lousy job.)

Until I saw this trailer…it never occurred to me to question the narrative of the drama. (Now…I’m expecting the journalists involved in this documentary to be as sound as a pound. They talked to federal agents and interviewed Branch Davidians so hopefully a cogent picture of the cult and its activities emerges. You can talk about sex on Netflix in a way you can’t talk about sex on CNN in 1993.)

This isn’t a government conspiracy rant or "They" lied to us or any of those go-to positions. The thread I’m pulling on…is trust.

I’m brutally stingy when it comes to trust, especially online. I grew up in the 80s and I was told repeatedly there was a link between video games and violence. There is none.

I was told repeatedly TV is the boob tube. Again no link to violence or the dumbing down of children. Sesame Street was developed for underprivileged 3- to 5- year-olds…to help em prepare for kindergarten.

And yet early Simpsons sparked “Controversy Over Bart Simpson: 'Underachiever and Proud of It'” according to the LA Times in this 1990 article.

How many kids have died on Halloween from chewing on razor blades disguised in apples?

Most of my life I have repeatedly heard organizations, churches and influential people including many politicians cry wolf. (We just went through a lot of this during the pandemic. People were microwaving mail and that made no logical sense. I really hope that was just an urban legend and not actually true; though I suspect it was true.)

So yeah based on my 80s track record I have a hard time trusting the established narrative.

There’s a fantastic moment from the X-Files; classic 90s paranoia:

Deep Throat: “Mr. Mulder, why are those like yourself who believe in the existence of extra-terrestrial life on this earth not dissuaded by all the evidence to the contrary?”

Mulder: “Because, all the evidence to the contrary is not entirely dissuasive.”
Deep Throat: “Precisely!”

Beyond crying wolf; I’m reluctant to exchange my curiosity for the simplicity of a popular narrative.

In A Curious Mind: The Secret To A Bigger Life Imagine Entertainment co-founder and movie producer Brian Grazer describes a career-long regimen of “Curiosity Conversations” with the world’s most fascinating people across broad disciplines. This has not only fueled his curiosity but helped him build one of the most accomplished producing resumes of his generation.

Dude calls up accomplished individuals across many different fields and has lunch with them. Smart way to use his position in life.

His wealth and status afford a deeper dive in curiosity rather than say…a typical working class person on Twitter. I know Brian Grazer is doing his homework because he’s spoken about it and used it in his film work.

Homework coupled with his wealth and status gives him more grace. He can still be wrong about a lot of things but knowing he’s doing his homework, staying curious and asking questions…means I will always listen.

It doesn’t mean I hafta agree. I mean…he makes Hollywood movies…how often is the science right in a Hollywood movie?

I’m super stingy with online trust because it’s an environment where everything is so artificial. It’s like going to a strip club and believing you’ve made a special connection with one of the ladies or that you have good game. (You didn’t…)

I am my own bodyguard online; for protection I often reject or dismiss popular narratives as they’re laced with irrationality or lack nuance. I don’t want to microwave my mail.

Which bring us to the second trailer.

Trailer #2: J.K. Rowling: American Apocalypse
This is fascinating!

Behold the trailer for The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling; which began on Tuesday, February 21st at the usual podcast places.

The heart of this podcast series is a conversation with J.K. Rowling and Megan Phelps-Roper.

Megan is a former member of the Westboro Baptist Church (yeah that "church") who are known for their corrupted commitment to fundamentalism. To pair a (former) fundamentalism enforcer with J.K. Rowling to discuss her experiences with fundamentalist reactions to her comments/her work is…truly fascinating.

(Fundamentalism is about power and control…it’s never about rap music or sex scenes on TV or J.K. Rowling’s trans comments…fundamentalism is a method of inserting yourself into the culture to control it. It’s backseat driving basically.

Now you can…also control the culture by you know…making music and writing books: look at the massive impact Marvel movies have had on our culture since 2008. Creativity is difficult and the final product may not find the right people. With fundamentalism there’s always a viable market; that’s why The Simpsons’ “Won’t somebody please think of the children?” is always funny. (Note: that’s the catchphrase of the reverend’s wife…of course it is.)

Here’s the thing: I don’t have Harry Potter feelings (never read the books; never saw the movies) and I don’t have J.K. Rowling emotions.

However being active on Twitter has saddled me with her narratives. Collateral damage in that culture war is so irritating; I know who J.K. Rowling is; the problem is…I don’t know who you are.

So to trust an online stranger who is yelling about something J.K. Rowling tweeted is weird.

It’s not that I am blindly going to accept J.K. Rowling’s tenets at face value or believe that she is infallible; rather she’s not a stranger. With her there is no stranger danger. Her track record of Work has earned a listen. Just as I pointed out earlier with producer Brian Grazer.

An online stranger’s loud reaction to J.K. Rowling’s tweets holds no value. I dunno their agenda or their interpretation or their track record or why they feel their tweet is a legit response.

And that’s where I find myself.

Trust breaks down when there’s a failure of imagination.

When your solution to J.K. Rowling is to ban books or to burn books this is a failure of imagination. And I simply cannot trust you. If you have decided that she is a legit problem then you have to rise to the occasion to somehow creatively solve it.

This is a remarkable opportunity to tell new stories and present new ideas. This is inspiring. Well; it should be. Clearly for many it’s not.

New stories, new ideas…new responses requires a humility and again…a spicy curiosity. Instead these occasions are met with unbridled arrogance. There’s not a lot of humility in getting a book banned. You have to be pretty arrogant and pretty confident in your warped perspective to present that as an “effective” solution.

Fools have banned books and writers for centuries. It’s not like it’s suddenly going to work now. To recognize this latest writer is a problem automatically means mining the past. What’s the track record of book bans? Do book bans increase sales? Do they impact the writer emotionally?

Trust breaks down when there’s a failure of imagination. Far more than shouting fire in a crowded theater and the dampening of curiosity…the lack of imagination irks me.

Notice I haven’t properly defined what J.K. Rowling said, yet. All of this preamble comes before the inflammatory comments. It’s the busy assembling of vital ingredients on the cutting board before the cooking happens.

So for me…and so many others yes: a slow podcast reflection directly from the source is immensely valuable.

That’s the start of the conversation. That’s why I’m making a tea and excited to push play on The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling.

I hafta listen...actually listen which means not talking or tweeting about what J.K. Rowling is saying. If she’s wrong she’s wrong and that’s fine...that’s human nature.

I have a distinct advantage because I’m not bringing any flawed narratives to the podcast. Speak...openly and honestly, without interruption and we can go from there. It’s the same approach I’ll employ watching Waco: American Apocalypse. Perhaps children were in danger and the FBI did the right thing. Maybe.

I also don’t hafta react either; I have no obligation or responsibility...this is pop culture not some moral injustice. I can hear what J.K. Rowling has to say then go take a nap. That might be better as it’ll reduce the discord. Those are the rich freedoms I treasure that fundamentalism reduces.

This is the long way to say yo: what do you have to say? Speak now or forever hold your peace.

p.s. Oh and yes that’s Kat Rosenfield in the first episode of The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling. She’s been a My Summer Lair guest twice; super dope lady. I like hanging out with her and getting into it. Gotta give her a high-five and a first bump for her insights on this podcast.

Tuesday was Nina Simone’s 90th birthday!

Sadly she died in 2003. One of my favourites from her...is Sinnerman. An African-American spiritual about a sinner attempting to hide from divine justice on Judgment Day.

Nina sings:
Well I run to the rock, please hide me
I run to the Rock, please hide me
I run to the Rock, please hide me, Lord
All on that day
But the rock cried out, I can’t hide you
The Rock cried out, I can’t hide you

The Rock cried out, I ain’t gonna hide you guy
All on that day
Later: “But the Lord said, “Go to the devil” and... “So I ran to the devil, he was waiting.”

Oh Snap!

Always wondering how curiosity killed a cat who supposedly had 9 lives…
Sammy Younan
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Sammy Younan is the affable host of My Summer Lair podcast: think NPR’s Fresh Air meets Kevin Smith: interviews & impressions on Pop Culture.