Midrange Weekly March 15
Your Weekly Round Up On What’s Got The Midrange Staff’s Attention
Midrange Staff @midrangeyvr
Hello and welcome back to Midrange Weekly. We hope the disorientation and umbrage that comes from losing an hour of sleep with the conclusion of daylight savings is offset by it being pretty darn nice outside. While no one is really sure what the function of such an arcane temporal practice is anymore, we’re pretty sure we still blame it on the farmers, and really what more explanation could you possibly need? It’s been a big week on the COVID front all around: America has stepped up its vax game remarkably, Vancouver is now allowing larger outdoor gatherings, and the hypothetical joys of explaining to irate elderly people that they still have to wear their mask despite being vaccinated is now a reality. Summer’s gonna be wild, hold on to your butts.
I Don’t Know If Coming 2 America Is More Or Less Than The Sum Of Its Parts, But I Liked It
One of the weird phenomena of the over saturated, content starved era of myriad steaming services is the escalation in long dormant franchises or properties getting sequels no one really asked for. While this was a trend that always sporadically occurred in traditional cinema ( Mad Max: Fury Road, Blade Runner 2049 ), the advent of low budget streaming films have led to an increase of more low stakes films getting the treatment. Everything from Top Gun to Space Jam is getting a sequel. The Shining got a sequel! Despite the actually impressive results or promising potential of some of these I just rattled off, it certainly exacerbates that cynical derision we all feel that Hollywood is a bottomless cesspool of regurgitated ideas with increasingly diminished returns. While yes that is true, it shouldn’t deter you from watching Eddy Murphy’s Coming 2 America. Sure the movie isn’t exactly great, but that shouldn’t stop you either!
Set- good lord has it been 33 years- after the absolute banger of a classic comedy Coming To America, Eddy Murphy reprises his role as the regal if somewhat befuddled Prince Akeem of the lavishly adorned and prosperous nation Zamunda. At the death of his kingly father played by James Earl Jones (please pick a deity of your choosing to thank that he is still alive), Akeem ascends to the throne, but most also consider his own eventual succession. This is a somewhat complicated matter, especially in the politics of a modern context as all three of his children are women, who are barred by law and tradition from assuming the throne. Akeem is well aware of the out-dated and dogmatic sexual politics of the matter but is too taciturn to defy the legacy of his predecessors and the wishes of his father. So when he learns that after all these years he has a long lost son still living in America, whose inception is the result of one his misadventures from the first film, he sees an opportunity to fulfil his royal mandate through this newly discovered boy. Also there’s a military coup at some point maybe happening. Lot’s going on!
Of course this is all really a flimsy excuse for Akeem and his ornery, perpetually annoyed sidekick Semmi (played by Arsenio Hall who just like last time steals every scene he is in) to once again go to America- just like in the title! That would all be totally serviceable if the loveable duo actually spent much time in the USA. Unlike in the original, barely any time is spent showing Akeem bumble around Queens, which enamoured him so deeply last time. This film’s only reason for existence is to rehash old nostalgia from the 80s, which sounds great, if it actually did that; but in this case not so much. Despite two sojourns in the film and ample opportunity to revisit the pinnacle of a fish out of water story that was the original, the film opts to supress Murphy’s comedic opportunities instead. The most we get is a brief scene upon meeting his son where he is draped in gratuitous NYC souvenir paraphernalia.
One could look at this optimistically, arguing that it’s not relying too much on the crutches of its nostalgic predecessor in favour of a more forward looking story. Unfortunately for most of the film such an endeavour doesn’t work in its favour. For too long it struggles mightily to define Akeem’s misplaced son Lavelle (Jermaine Fowler). Coming 2 America aimlessly bounces around the characterization of Lavelle, unsure of what kind of person he is, or his role in the film. Is he a brilliant mind, never afforded a fair shot due to institutional racism and immiseration? Is he a duplicitous con artist, that may just have an under nurtured heart of gold? Upon attempting to fulfil the role of his seemingly royal pedigree the film can’t decide if he and his potentially co conspirator of a mother Mary (Leslie Jones) are scamming the royal family, or if he is feeling isolated and distressed by the enormity of the situation thrust upon him. Considering how much time the film spends on his princely trials- scenes that build character, but not the type that contributes to his arc, and are thusly wasteful diversions- you’d think the film would have a clear plan for him.
While the still burgeoning relationship between Lavelle and Akeem circumvents the fun of Akeem and Semmi dicking around in New York- which was awesome last time- the film remains over stuffed nevertheless with a lot of the gags from the original. Not all of them land with the same sardonic and surreal wit of the first one. Way too much screen time is afforded to the superlative way in which royal hygiene is administered. The barking lady scene from the original film returns with a vengeance, its misogynistic overtones much harder to laugh away this time. The film tries to juxtapose Akeem’s ignorance in the crude bit aspirational ways of the American dream with Lavelle’s displacement in Zamunda, but with the obvious realities of a far more globalized world, there isn’t much space left to draw contrasting humour from the idea anymore.
That being said, Eddy Murphy’s unparalleled comedic skill never really came from situational humour, but his fidelity in character work, and in that sense Coming 2 America is still a blast. While the time spent in America is brief, the film manages to spend as much time as possible in that same derelict time capsule of a barber shop from the original, still populated by the same, now ancient employees and regulars- all played by Murphy. Their curmudgeonly political incorrectness but extemporaneous and sage like wisdom is still great. The overtly sexist preacher is back (Murphy again!), once again putting more effort into his own self-deprecation to malign such problematic thinking and he’s still fun as hell. Arsenio Hall as Semmi follows Murphy’s lead, just as defiantly annoyed as ever that he has to deal with any of this. No matter what setting you put them in, the characters big and small still shine.
What’s more impressive is just how many small and superfluous roles by new comers to the film carry on this legacy. Morgan Freeman as the hypnotically articulate eulogizer at the king’s funeral is a welcome addition. Trevor Noah doing his best impression of a talking head CNN analogue is one of the film’s best surprises. This movie even has an En Vogue/ Salt N Pepper duet. The sheer breadth of wonderful cameos or bit parts is emblematic of just how much good will and respect Eddy Murphy rightfully commands in Hollywood. Who wouldn’t want to do a movie with him, especially in the wake of his surprisingly sincere and moving Dolemite Is My Name biopic. It’s relieving to see how much his career has recovered from the dramatic missteps of the early 2000s.
While the cameos and bit parts are fun, they also serve to underscore how much more meaningful content is effectively and tightly inserted into this film’s efficient run time. Even with an overstuffed roster of characters; Akeem’s oldest daughter who feels brushed aside by the inclusion of her half brother entering the royal arena, Lavelle’s buffoonish uncle (Tyler Perry), and Wesley Snipe’s delightfully Bowie-esque turn as the flamboyant, marauding general being just a few, the film affords nearly all of them meaningful moments. Queen Lisa (Shari Headley) whom the film goes to some length to make you forget was also from Queens is eventually won over by the unruly but magnetic sprit of Mary in a tender moment where they just get kinda drunk. Semmi and the Uncle are mortal enemies of the childish variety at first, but then discover their kindred connection in their role of concelergie to their respective loved ones. Most enjoyable and moving off all, was an extended moment of introspection and advice from Akeem’s former boss when he was an undercover every day poor dude- who is also his father in law- Cleo (played by John Amos who I’m so glad returned from the first one). Despite the decades in between the two films, the warmth and paternal good will Cleo had to learn in regards to Akeem persists and it’s wonderful seeing him earnestly try to help Akeem see what’s best for him and his family.
Despite the stumbling in the first half of the film, Coming 2 America really clicks when it establishes equilibrium between the roles of Akeem and Lavelle. It actually does a surprisingly admirable job of balancing them both as main characters. Long uninterrupted sequences of just one of their journeys through the story, and then the other’s are connected by interstitial fibres of them awkwardly getting to know each other. The film is just as much about Lavelle learning the lessons Akeem did from the first film in his own way, as it is about Akeem learning all new lessons. That those lessons they both struggle to intuit are tied together at the end in a satisfying way is rather endearing. It’s quite a feat that the film is concluded with a such a neat little bow on everything where things work out for everyone, even the ostensible antagonists. It once again speaks to Murphy’s charisma and how it influences the entire production that nearly every character in the film eventually just succumbs to his optimism, and is all the better for it. The right people end up together, the right person becomes the royal heir, even the duplicitous general isn’t that bad in the end. Like the endless make up Murphy went through just so he could pretend to be an old barber making a fairly simple joke, the layers the film adds to the most basic of morality plays makes Coming 2 America more engaging that it should be. -Tristan
The Trouble And Symbolism Of Private Schools
In a week that saw the US pass substantial legislation for its lower class with its sweeping $1.9 trillion dollar pandemic relief fund, I was startled, but not shocked, to read that within this aid package, $2.75 billion had been earmarked for private schools.
From The New York Times:
Tucked into the $1.9 trillion pandemic rescue law is something of a surprise coming from a Democratic Congress and a president long seen as a champion of public education — nearly $3 billion earmarked for private schools.
More surprising is who got it there: Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the majority leader whose loyalty to his constituents diverged from the wishes of his party, and Randi Weingarten, the leader of one of the nation’s most powerful teachers’ unions, who acknowledged that the federal government had an obligation to help all schools recover from the pandemic, even those who do not accept her group.
The hypocritical reasoning behind this decision is absurd. It’s as if the federal government decided to help the poor while also giving money to private country clubs. Have they forgotten what the word private means? Do they not understand the slippery slope they’ve just created?
It’s funny how private companies champion for capitalism when things go well, but when they go bad, it’s socialism all the way. You can’t have it both ways. This is why I’ve never accepted the notion of bailouts. True capitalism has to be embedded with the reality that some survive and succeed while others fail. But you have to let them fail or the system doesn’t work.
This allocation for private schools goes against the very idea of what these schools aim to be.
The irony of this news is that The Atlantic had just published a scathing expose decreeing how bad private schools are for society just two days prior. Titled Private Schools Have Become Truly Obscene: Elite schools breed entitlement, entrench inequality — and then pretend to be engines of social change, author Caitlin Flanagan details her struggles as a former private school teacher, the lessons she learned along the way, and why she sees their existence as a detriment for equality and empathy in a world sorely lacking in both.
“However unintentionally, these schools pass on the values of our ruling class — chiefly, that a certain cutthroat approach to life is rewarded. True, they salve their consciences with generous financial aid. Like Lord and Lady Bountiful, the administrators page through the applications of the nonwealthy, deciding whom to favor with an opportunity to slip through the golden doors and have their life change forever.
But what makes these schools truly ludicrous is their recent insistence that they are engines of equity and even “inclusivity.” A $50,000-a-year school can’t be anything but a very expensive consumer product for the rich. If these schools really care about equity, all they need to do is get a chain and a padlock and close up shop.”
Throughout her essay she recounts her own experiences as well as countless others who’ve had to deal with parents who are unbearable and “gaining an ugly new sense of power.” To want the best for you child is a noble goal every parent should strive for. However, all private education does is just entrench inequality.
“Forty-seven percent of the winners of “class legacy prizes” — academic awards given to students in each class — attended private schools. This is why wealthy parents think it’s life-and-death to get their kids into the right prep school — because they know that the winners keep winning.”
If rich parents were forced to shepherd their children to public schools, their goals and drive to make sure their sons and daughters received the best education would drive up funding and quality for everyone involved. It would also help to ensure a greater integration of rich, middle class and poor students. This undoubtedly would aid in fostering empathy and friendship from all walks of life, something this world needs more of.
It’s unfortunate Senator Schumer caved and allocated these funds for private schools. It again, sets a bad precedent. Where are these rich parents when these schools need them most? The hypocrisy here is laughable.
The following quote sums up everything that’s wrong with allowing private schools to exist.
In a just society, an education wouldn’t be a luxury item.
-Jamie
What Biden And The Democrats Can Learn From The COVID Bill
This week democratic lawmakers in the Senate and House Of Representatives passed a massive 1.9 trillion dollar COVID relief/stimulus package. The legislation was promptly sent to President Biden’s desk where he signed it into law. It’s the most significant expansion of America’s social safety net in a lifetime. While its passage is not without compromises and let downs- most notably Bernie Sanders near herculean efforts to get the $15 minimum wage hike were ultimately scuttled by the byzantine authority of the Senate Parliamentarian- It’s nevertheless impressive how much is actually included in the package. Beyond direct resources going to vaccination distribution, testing, and treatment of COVID-19, the bill also includes protection for unionized pensions, billions in support to indigenous communities and their lands, a cap on income towards health insurance costs, billions in state resources, and an extension of federal employment insurance to September. Most importantly, beyond the specifically COVID target aspects of the bill, a suite of additional benefits will be afforded to families directly geared towards childcare. This will potentially raise more than half of all children in America out of poverty, making it one of the most ambitious measures taken towards that goal since the FDR’s New Deal. This is big, big stuff.
Despite the obstacles, uncertainty and razor thin margins of its passage, this is the democratic system actually functioning as intended. A popular piece of legislation that had a widely polled positive approval rating was drafted, debated, voted upon, and codified into law in fairly efficient manner. It will make substantial and noteworthy material changes to many Americans’ lives. That this seemingly perfunctory execution of the legislative branch’s jurisdictional mandates is so remarkable speaks to just how broken the institution has become, especially over the Trump years. The negative and hyper-partisanship of the last decade, and the increasingly obstinate reliance on the dogmatic and racist filibuster has grinded meaningful work in the legislature to a halt. The asymmetrical animus on the republicans’ part, not just of their democratic colleagues, but of democratic representation has rendered many functions of the senate and the house impotent. It’s a big deal that Biden and his allies on the hill pulled this off.
However this is far from the only legislative win Biden needs to accomplish in his term. He and the democratic caucus have a number of other huge lifts to pull off in the form of climate change policy, immigration reform, voting rights, and gun control. The fragile and uncertain manner in which the COVID bill survived the legislative process will lead Biden and his advisors to draw many divergent observations and lessons from the process. It’s important for Biden and the democrats to understand and internalize the right lessons, and apply them moving forward.
GO BIG, THERE’S LITTLE TO NO DOWNSIDE
This should be a lesson drawn in tandem from current events as well as from the Obama administration. When it comes to stimulus spending, go big with your numbers. One of the biggest mistakes of Obama’s first term, when working on a stimulus deal to pull the country out of the hole from the 2008 mortgage meltdown was allowing his ambitious plan to get whittled down and reduced due to negotiations with the republicans. As a result the package wasn’t nearly enough to perform all the curative measures the American economy needed. It stopped the financial haemorrhaging yes, but all the economy could do was limp along rather than bounce back. It’s impressive in our current scenario that what was originally proposed as a 1.9 trillion dollar plan has remained largely that. The efficacy of this plan will likely be more pronounced, and despite the inevitable republican attempts in terms of spending, there will be little blowback. Most democrats and liberal progressives adhere to the financial tenant of deficit financing in times of crisis, and with the republican party more and more animated by useless grievances and culture wars, there just aren’t that many true deficit hawks left in the electorate outside of a few aging senators. And due to the egregious financial irresponsibility of Bush’s foreign adventurism and Trump’s useless tax cuts for the rich, there’s few if any republicans left that can in good faith argue for a balanced budget being more paramount that actually helping people; especially since deficit spending went down under Clinton and Obama.
THE PEOPLE ARE ON THEIR SIDE, ACT LIKE IT
If the morally onerous practices of bad faith conduct and opposition are the corroded nucleus of the republican party, that doesn’t mean that conversely the dems must extend the most congenial of olive branches to them just to prove their ethical superiority. Too often are democrats anal-retentively obsessed with the optics of their proposed legislation being viewed as bipartisan. It’s a pre-emptive tactic that they hope can prevent would be detractors from saying they’re ramming through a list of liberal policy goals with little consideration for the will of the people. Having republican representatives on board with any bill would obviate this critique, so goes the reasoning. However the underlying math behind the issue reveals that simply isn’t required. Putting aside the objections of the GOP reps, an impressive 70% of the electorate across both parties support the bill, including a plurality of just republicans. Furthermore in the face of arguments that by getting the bill passed with a 50/50 vote strictly across party lines that would imply half of the country’s will is being defied, it’s worth remembering that the 50 democrat senators represent 42 million more people then the 50 republican senators. Republican objections for the sake of bipartisanship have no bearing on the fact that the majority of Americans want this to happen. Which leads us to our next point.
DON’T BOTHER NEGOTIATING WITH REPUBLICANS
As long as the Democrats in the senate have their own caucus in line and on board with a piece of legislation, just ignore the republicans. Biden negotiated with them over this bill, even meeting with key representatives from across the isle on the matter before he conferred with the top dems as a show of good will. It got him exactly zero republican votes in the senate. They don’t care about good will, they don’t care about bipartisanship, they only care about obstruction. Republicans are too fiercely committed to sabotaging and spiting legislation of any kind, no matter what the contents or ambition, so long as it as democratic initiative. They will prioritize such intransigence even over the well documented wants and needs of their own constituents and base. Stop wasting time on them. Like I said, with a 50/50 senate split, this only works if the entire democrat caucus is on board, which brings us to our next point.
REIGN MANCHIN IN
Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia is widely considered to be the most conservative, right in the middle of the center, democrat in the senate. Despite his party affiliation he often shows his antipathy for progressive policy goals and sides with the republicans on issues of legislation or nominations. He tells his colleagues that in the fairly conservative state of West Virginia, it’s a miracle at all a democrat is elected to the senate and he has conducted himself accordingly- they are lucky he’s even there. And with a 50/50 senate spilt and the aforementioned institutional obstructionism from the republicans, not a single dem vote can afford to be lost on future bills. This puts Manchin, as he would view it, in a very nice position. Every bill will live or die based on his approval of it, therefore he specifically can demand all manner of changes lest he vote thumbs down, torpedoing the whole thing. Senate Majority Leader Schumer and Biden need to sit Manchin down and tell him his calculus is wrong. With the majority being so slim, no one senator can vote no on something and hide behind the possibility that others may have done the same and therefore their vote is not pivotally detrimental. If the COVID bill had failed, it would be very possible that it would be entirely his fault. Flash forward to 2022 and the dems lose their majority for not delivering on their key campaign promises, and once again that is potentially all on Manchin. Furthermore, they need to disabuse him of the notion he is operating to the fullest progressive extent his constituents will allow him to. Pointing again to the ubiquitous approval of the COVID bill, similar support is there for climate and immigration reform. America is more liberal than the GOP apparatus would have you believe; it’s voter suppression, not ideology that keeps the GOP competitive. Biden and his leaders should threaten Manchin with a primary from the left for his next election. If he wants to continue his time in office for another term, he needs to get in line.
FIGHTING FOR NEW BEINFITS IS HARD, TAKING EXISTING ONES AWAY IS IMPOSSIBLE
This is probably the most crucial lesson to learn here. Like any major policy or change to the social or economic fabric of America, representatives had to fight like hell to make the COVID bill happen. The New Deal, voting rights, desegregation, the Affordable Care Act- they were no different. Once they are in place though, that’s it- there’s no going back. Democrats worry that if they push their luck too much, try and make too many policy changes, that should republicans retake the house or senate in 2022 they will punish them severely out of spite and undo all of the work. But that’s just not feasible for the republicans. A well documented observation at the intersection of political and social science is once a person is given something, they won’t want it taken away. Americans are about to receive a second round of stimulus checks (the first coming from Trump’s tenure) and receive a huge boost in child payment benefits. After a couple years getting used to that, if the republicans tried to negate it they would get slaughtered electorally speaking and they know it. We can see this dynamic in play as recently as 2017 when the republicans in the senate were in a position to obliterate the Affordable Care Act but blinked. Hell even conservative messiah Ronald Reagan was a staunch opponent of Medicare at its introduction back in 1961, decrying it as a socialist handout, and now it is the holy grail of government programs for both parties. Everything the COVID bill does for Americans will soon be normalized. Once that happens, there’s no going back no matter what the make up of the senate is. Biden should remember this for future policy goals. -Tristan
Good News: Rental Assistance Is On The Way For BC’s Low Income Community
Two weeks ago I discussed the problematic issue of sky high rents and not enough assistance for individuals living on welfare here in Canada. The Tyee reported that individuals who are on social assistance receive a mere $375 per month for rent. Rents for many SRO’s in Vancouver often start at $500 and can be as high as $1,600 per month. The squeeze was apparent, thus why we have tent cities.
This past Monday, however, it was reported by the CBC that rental assistance is on the way for many struggling to fill the gaps of what they are given and what they are forced to pay.
From the CBC:
A joint federal and provincial government housing program announced Monday aims to help pay the rent for up to 25,000 people in B.C. living in vulnerable situations.
Ahmed Hussen, federal Families, Children and Social Development minister, says the 10-year, $51 million Canada-B.C. Housing Benefit will provide financial assistance to top-up monthly rent payments for those who can’t make ends meet.
Hussen told a news conference the average benefit to participants across Canada has been about $2,500 a year, but the payment amount in B.C. can be increased depending on rent costs and household circumstances.
David Eby, B.C.’s minister responsible for housing, says the benefits will be provided to households currently not eligible for the province’s Rental Assistance Program or Shelter Aid for Elderly Renters.
This is fantastic news to hear. A great step to helping those who need it most.
As well, you add this to the already approved measures Vancouver City council enacted this past November to buy 105 SRO’s so as to safeguard them as social housing and we’re looking at some of the most ambitious and hopeful legislation for the poor in decades.
Bravo minister Eby and his team for getting this done. -Jamie
FLUX FIVE
This Week:
Hegovia Juarez “Gran Vals” 2011 Best Of
Finley Quaye” Even After All” 1997 Mavrick A Strike
Dum Dum Girls “Trees And Flowers” 2012 End Of Daze
Michael Fakesch “Blackbird” 2007 Dos
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band “I’m Glad” 1967 Soft As Milk
Enjoy! - Mick
Things From The Internet We Liked
Levitation Presents Another OSEES Live Show With Proceeds Going To Charity
Miss live music yet? We sure do.
In the meantime, as we await being liberated from the grips of this pandemic so as to enjoy the sounds of live tunes once more, the group behind the Levitation Festival have dropped another upcoming “live” show from California Psych legends the OSEES.
Announced earlier this week. Catch the premiere on Saturday, April 10th. The band is donating proceeds from this show to 5 Los Angeles charities combating homelessness and food insecurity.
An excellent cause. A killer band. Excellent merch. What’s not to love.? Do check it out.
You can find out how to stream the show and all the information you’ll need here.
Just Some Absolutely Wild Drone Footage
Twitter User Jeremiah Owyang has uploaded some truly spectacular drone footage of navigating a bowling alley by Jaybyrdfilms. You’d be forgiven for not realizing this level of control and precision was even possible in navigating a camera drone. This blew us away and it might do the same for you.
Incredible drone footage, perfectly sequenced bowling alley, wait till end.
— Jeremiah Owyang (@jowyang) March 9, 2021
by jaybyrdfilms https://t.co/EVxtJn70UM pic.twitter.com/vtrHTdKqvn
Ben Got Vaccinated
Twitter Comedian Ben Marshall documents his exciting experience getting vaccinated. Well, getting injected with something. Someone should call Ben a doctor. Not the one he went to.
I GOT VACCINATED!!! 🙏🙏 pic.twitter.com/HASanyAiNh
— Ben Marshall (@notbenmarshall) March 10, 2021
Why SOPHIE’s Wild Banger Immaterial Matters
Over at NYT, consistently excellent author Alexandra Kleeman has written a moving and persuasive piece on why the late SOPHIE’s alt house epic Immaterial is worthy not only of an incredible artist’s legacy, but of the times itself. Highly worth your time to read her thoughts.