1018 America has Balkanized

“Balkanize” is one of those highbrow words most people aren’t quite sure what it means but they know it when they see it. If you think Seattle is some foreign country with culture, customs & traditions that hold little or no relationship to your own, and which you even suspect to be hostile, then that’s about as Balkan as it gets. California has achieved that status, and the old industrial cities in the East, along with NYC. The people who live in those places, and seem to embrace that lifestyle, have their own costumes, sexual preferences, and odd religions. They appear vaguely familiar, like characters out of movies and television, but you can’t imagine what you’d have in common to talk about if you met one; you’re not even curious. A lot of them are hiding in their houses, afraid of everything, wearing facemasks for no reason, and insisting everyone everywhere get mandatory vaccinations against rumors. They watch Fake News, and listen to people who are obviously lying, yet don’t seem to notice. Luckily, you think, they live someplace far away, and you’re pretty sure you never want to go there; like the Balkans.