Diversion, Courtesy of a Rock Star and a President

There was something about the confluence of events in the last few weeks that set a perfect stage for the magic of a Bruce Springsteen and Barack Obama pairing on a podcast.

*Rolls out welcome mat*

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First, a rewind.

As Texas dealt with a recent winter weather catastrophe that cost and jeopardized lives, I was disgusted and flabbergasted with the behavior of so many people. Sure, some of those people were Republican politicians in Texas who are supposed to be leaders but instead turned out to be the snakes we knew they were.

But I was more disappointed in a lot of Democrats. As I scrolled social media and came across post after post from Texans who were actually suffering and scared and needing to express themselves, one Dem after another scolded them for how they (presumably) voted. On one Twitter thread I saw a person dealing with no heat, electricity or water respond that she’d voted blue, only to have people challenging why she lives in a red state in the first place.

What the hell is wrong with you people?

She and so many others, sitting in makeshift tents, cuddling with babies and pets to stay warm (alive), no way to leave on icy roads, wondering about the status of nearby elderly relatives…