Banter Bites

Hate Having To Address This

How do you fight hate? Well, first, you have to admit it exists.

BANTER BITE BACKSTORY: Whether it's flags at half-staff, people rallying across the country (great photos), articles in newspapers, emotional reports from televisions journalists (or all of the above), we're now aware of the extent of hate crimes against Asians in America, although we may each have different perspectives …

Since childhood, Red has always been guided by her warm and fuzzy personality and her genuine inclination to be nice to people, not to mention her conflict avoidance tendencies. And even though we grew up in New York, we were still sheltered from people who were "different", which became more evident to Red when she went to school in "the South." Once she started traveling internationally, and then lived overseas in Europe and Southeast Asia, she learned about other cultures and people, developing a better understanding and respect for their beliefs.

Black, on the other hand, doesn't "do nice" and can be extremely blunt (she sometimes will disagree with someone just for the "sport" of it). She admits that she's opinionated about people, and can be impatient or intolerant. However, she'll quickly clarify that means individuals, not a race or group of people. Her reactions are always based on that specific person's words or actions, not on characteristics of their identity. That's why, to her, hate crimes are not only morally wrong, but illogical.

So, although we view hate crimes from different perspectives, we're both outraged and saddened to learn about hate crimes in America against Asian people, and think that President Biden said it best,

At this very moment, so many of them – our fellow Americans – they're on the frontlines of this pandemic, trying to save lives, and still, still, they're forced to live in fear for their lives just walking down streets in America. It's wrong, it's un-American, and it must stop.

If you’re looking for a reason not to mow, there’s logic behind letting it grow …

BANTER BITE BACKSTORY: As is often the case, Red hadn’t heard of the latest trend, “No Mow May,” which is all about lawn maintenance (or the lack of it) until Black started sending her articles about it.

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It’s hard to imagine one holiday celebrates … spring, women’s fertility, workers, and labor rights. But it shouldn’t surprise you that even though it dates back thousands of years, we each “dance around” different aspects of May Day.

If you’ve never thought about May Day, don’t worry, most of us haven’t.

BANTER BITE BACKSTORY: Red appreciates that some holidays have historical significance, some have ancient traditions, and some are opportunities for one of Black’s unexpected, but often amusing and clever, comments, but May Day checks all those boxes.

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Spring’s supposed to be full of optimism as it represents a new beginning, with longer days, the trees and flowers blooming, the birds chirping, and a general feeling of rejuvenation. So, whose idea was it to rudely interrupt it with Tax Day? And the fact it’s April 18 this year instead of April 15 (when we ran the article below in 2021, we got two extra days) hardly makes it any less, well, … taxing.

This quote is perfect, except that we don't know who said it, "People who complain about taxes can be divided into two classes: men and women."

BANTER BITE BACKSTORY: It's probably a safe bet (yes, the IRS even has specific rules on how to handle gambling income and losses) that no one looks forward to Tax Day, but it would be easy to make assumptions that how people approach this potentially stressful day would be impacted by how much, or how little, money they make …

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