For all its flaws, I love the internet. Social media and other sites keep us connected with each other and, if you know where to look, can provide us with a constant source of levity and light.
That’s important in an increasingly dark world, wide web or otherwise. You don’t have to be the managing editor of a newspaper to know that headlines across the globe can be pretty bleak.
It’s why in recent years I’ve personally chosen to follow news sources that prioritize facts, like Watermark, and have actively worked to engage with more people and pages which hope to lift our spirits. Thankfully that grew a lot easier after our nation blocked its commander-in-tweet.
Minus a few family members still somehow mourning his loss, my social media feed these days consists largely of loved ones and others who share my passions in life.
That includes actors, artists and authors I admire, changemakers trying to make this country a better place and plenty of pages about plants and adorable animals.
Who doesn’t love videos with penguins or a duck befriending a dog? It’s been great for my mental health.
I also follow a number of comedians, either aspiring or those in actual practice, whose various one-liners tend to go viral. One recent tweet that made me genuinely laugh out loud simply read “thinking about how scared the founding fathers would be if they saw a Furby.”
It’s funny because it’s true. The talking robots were first popularized in 1998, and per my research – thanks again, internet – the toys were designed to resemble a “hamster or owllike creature.” An army’s worth of more than 40 million units were sold during its initial production alone.
The Furby is a thing of nightmares. Beneath its set of dead eyes is a beady, plastic beak, ready to emit its shrill and robotic “Furbish.” Their native tongue is used less frequently as time goes on, however, as the creature adapts to speak in more than 20 different languages. Horrifying.
I appreciate humor with a point and the tweet was also timely. It went viral in response to the Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade, the decision that had secured abortion rights in America since 1973.
“We hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled,” the conservative court’s majority opinion reads. “The Constitution makes no reference to abortion, and no such right is implicitly protected by any constitutional provision, including … the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
“That provision has been held to guarantee some rights that are not mentioned in the Constitution,” it continues, “but any such right must be ‘deeply rooted in this Nation’s history and tradition’ and ‘implicit in the concept of ordered liberty.’”
I’m no Constitutional scholar, but the document’s predecessor – the deeply rooted Declaration of Independence – asserts that Americans have the unalienable right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That should certainly include someone’s right to make decisions about their own body.
Even if it didn’t, it’s easy to recognize that the Constitution was created by imperfect men in 1787. Men who look nothing like the majority of Americans 235 years later and who would fear even the technological advancements of a Furby were they alive today.
On that last fact we may agree, but I draw the line at interpreting their words so literally. Doing so fails to serve the very people the Constitution was designed to protect.
The reversal of Roe undermines the liberty of every American. It is a devastating blow and disservice to this nation, but I still have hope. We can fight back.
We the People – of 2022, not 1787 – can make a difference at the ballot box this year. Every election matters, as trite as the statement’s become, so please make sure you and everyone you know is registered to vote.
In times like these it’s also important to rely on one another. In this issue we detail new efforts from Central Florida’s Peer Support Space to open Florida’s first LGBTQ-focused respite, a growing part of the modern recovery movement.
The sixth annual Tampa Fringe Festival will also offer an escape from July 28-Aug. 7, presenting peace and love in celebration of the region’s performing arts scene. We detail the shows by or for the LGBTQ community from this year’s outing.
In news, Zubrick Magic Theatre celebrates its first year in St. Petersburg and the city’s current and former mayors endorse Eunic Ortiz for state senate.
Watermark strives to bring you a variety of stories, your stories. Please stay safe, stay informed and enjoy this latest issue.
