A Peaceful Way Out

“Ain’t but one way out, lord I just can’t go out that door.” That’s a line from the old Elmore James/Sonny Boy Williamson II song One Way Out. You might have heard the Allman Brothers’ version of it. It’s about a man who has been with a woman and panics when he sees another man approaching the house because, “it might be your man, I don’t know.” There’s only one way out of the house and the protagonist doesn’t know what to do.

This song has been stuck in my head a lot lately, only not for the normal reasons. It’s a great song, certainly earworm worthy, but it’s really just the title that’s keeping it stuck. My dad always says that We Gotta Get Out of This Place was incredibly popular while he was deployed in Viet Nam even though, lyrically, it had nothing to do with the war. People just really didn’t want to be there. It’s kinda like that. We’re in a situation where there’s seemingly just one way out. And I don’t want to go out that door.

Of course, the situation I’m talking about is the current regime in the US. We’ve only been here for nine and a half months now, but we desperately need a way out. It’s getting more desperate by the day. And the only way out I see is violence. But violence in anathema to me. So, I really want to find another way out.

Why is violence the only way out I can see? That’s kind of a hard question to answer. I think it boils down to the constant comparisons of Trumpism with Fascism. All of the actual fascist governments that I know of, with one exception, were eventually toppled by violence. That’s what World War II was.

Now, the one exception I mentioned was Francoist Spain. They had a fascist government until 1975, when Francisco Franco died. So, it wasn’t political violence in that case, but it was the death of the dictator. I suppose that is another way out, but it boils down to waiting. It doesn’t feel active enough. Trump may die soon, and he may die in twenty years. We have no way of knowing and that’s no way to mount a resistance.

So, I want a way out that doesn’t involve violence or death of any kind. I want a way out that is true to my values. I’m having trouble finding viable options, though. Protests don’t really do anything beyond making the protesters feel better. For all the talk about the late-night talk shows, it’s not like we’re one or two comedians away from true freedom.

The one way out that people talk about most is voting. I encourage people to vote, but I’ve lost faith in the power of the vote. We’re still a two-party system. The Republicans are evil, and the Democrats are inept at best. There’s barely anyone to vote for. And once the elected are in office, they can’t get anything done. The system is broken.

Boycotts and strikes come up from time to time as ways out. I actually think these options have more potential than voting at this point. The big problem is that most of us, and I really mean most, are nowhere near in a position to boycott or strike. I know for me, and I think I’m fairly typical, if I decided to strike, my money wouldn’t last a full month. As for boycotts, I haven’t shopped anywhere except the grocery store in over a year. It’s not like I can boycott the grocery store. Strikes and boycotts take a lot of resources that we just don’t have.

There’s also the problem of organization. For strikes and boycotts to be effective, they need to be large scale. A few people here and there won’t make a difference. Given the number of MAGAs there are, it’s unlikely that we could get the scale we need.

Secession is another way out that comes up. I’ve written about this before. The first problem is that it would probably cause violence. The Civil War was about slavery, but it also established a precedent that states cannot just opt out of the union. It would also be a logistical nightmare. It just doesn’t seem plausible.

And after that, I’m all out of ideas. Through the front door is violence and all the windows seem to be painted shut. I don’t know what to do. I’m tired of waiting. I feel trapped. If anyone has any ideas, please let me know.