Game of Thrones (From a Leftist Perspective)
On radical self-love
Sometimes, the most radical act of self-care is to take a break.
But it’s hard for me to slow down. It feels like even one day without my activism leads to so much preventable suffering in the world.
A day off means I call out from my job at the Test & Trace Corps distributing Delta-8 vaporizers and gummies to New Yorkers in need. It means nobody moderates #means-testing in the Olivia Rodrigo Discord. It means one less person DJing out the window at 7 p.m. to thank essential workers in the Guitar Center Pro Audio section. It means the world waits one day longer for my chocolate-caramel-nougat dessert that is semi-safe for dogs depending on their size and metabolism. It means Tantric Shabbos, which I host weekly at the Pratt Institute Chabad, is canceled. Someone has to pick up my shift as a volunteer docent at the Fairway olive bar.
So, yeah. It’s hard to make time for myself.
But this week, I was sidelined after testing positive for a novel coronavirus (Not the one everyone is talking about.) I finally slowed down and was able to watch 50 hours of Game of Thrones in a 72 hour period.
And, yes. I am watching it from a leftist perspective.
Game of Thrones is a show about the rich tapestry of humanity. Everyone is welcome in Westeros: crazy ahh white boys, homosexuals, castrati, incestophiles, empaths, sadists, wargs, warlocks, white walkers. There’s a fat kid who can’t stop talking about baking pies. There’s a Black guy in like four episodes of Season 2. There’s an artsy middle-aged he/they:
Viewed leftistly, Game of Thrones is an allegory for United States politics in 2021.
The realm is reeling after the reign of “The Mad King” (Donald J. Trump) who committed the ultimate sin: disrespecting norms. The Seven Kingdoms are spiritually unmoored after abandoning the old gods (traditional family values) for radical, dangerous new religions (mindfulness and social media).
The man who destroyed the old king (Doug Emhoff) is engaged in a forbidden tryst with a high-key sexy She.E.O. (Kamala Harris), but neither can keep a handle on their evil, sexually prurient child (Ella Emhoff). After a period of infighting, the shadow ruler of Westeros, a no-nonsense, silver fox DILF (Joe Biden), finally takes the throne. While the commoners (unverified accounts) suffer and struggle, the capital is gridlocked by a power struggle between a secret cabal of insiders (the global financial elite 😉). Quietly pulling the strings is a sexless eunuch who loves to gossip and can’t stay out of drama (Pete Buttigieg).
But as Westeros concerns itself with pointless civil wars, danger looms. A brave, charismatic woman (Dua Lipa) with connections to a previously powerful bloodline (the Hadids) marries the most fearsome, powerful, muscular warrior in the kingdom (Charlie Sosnick). With his talent for horseback warfare (stand-up comedy) and a grand vision (his first ever capsule collection), they conquer the world together. But then he dies tragically (nobody helps Charlie manufacture his first ever capsule collection) and she amasses an army of unmatched loyalty (her Brazilian stans). She conquers the world with her secret weapon that was largely thought extinct (70s disco influences).
But to the north, an even greater threat is forming. After centuries of quiet, an incredibly powerful race of snow people stands poised to attack (the Quebecois). And there is a squire named Podrick with quiet confidence and unreal pipe game (also me).
My period of self-care turned was like the bonfire which hatches Daenerys’s dragon eggs. I started out tired and lifeless. Now, I feel energized, fierce, and powerful. Though I had to put my other activism on pause, I was inspired to launch a new project that I really, really believe in. I am So. Damn. Excited.
Today, I am launching Lajilat (Play), the first ever masturbation-positive Dothraki language e-zine about self-love. Check it out here.