Jason - omg.lol Interview Series

Jason

OMG.LOL Interview Series #5: US Politics Edition

Find Jason on omglol: @jasonm

Table of Contents

The Interview

Can you share a bit about yourself with us?

I’m from Pennsylvania and spent many years working in the Hospitality Industry before finding my current calling. I love playing music on a variety of instruments and really just enjoy things in the tech space (building websites, social media, creating problems for myself then having to solve them …). I still live in Central PA with my wife, two cats, and a bearded dragon that we rescued.

What motivates you day to day?

People, mostly. And coffee. As grouchy as I can be sometimes, I enjoy talking with people on any number of topics.

You’ve mentioned you’re involved with politics on social.lol. What does this look like for you exactly?

I’m a County elected official in central PA since 2018 (two different offices). I’m also an elected precinct person and Area Chair for our local Democratic Party. The latter two generally entail coordinating door-knocking (or canvassing), get-out-the-vote (GOTV) initiatives, and petition signing events to get candidates on the ballot.

For the elected offices, I was formerly a Jury Commissioner and currently the County’s Controller.

I see 3 layers to government: national, state and local. In this season where national politics seems to be making a beeline towards constitutional crisis, how best can a normal guy like me get involved? Is there a layer we should prioritize?

I think this is a question a lot of folks are struggling with right now. I would say the priority is ground up as far as immediate actionable items. National-level items will have wide-ranging effects (i.e., the grant funding freeze) and calling your Representatives and Senators is helpful but the resolution to those will be most likely in the courts, which will take time.

Elections happen every year and vary on what offices are impacted. Get involved locally because you can have the greatest reach today. That could mean getting involved with your local political party or adjacent organizations that may not be affiliated with a specific party but are cause-oriented.

You can volunteer with mutual aid organizations. We know the Federal changes will have impacts locally even as the court processes progress. Regardless, though, there are people and organizations in our neighborhoods today that need help/assistance, whether it’s money, hands, or some other form of support, especially for marginalized communities (i.e., immigrants, people of color, LGBTQIA+, women).

Lastly: RUN FOR OFFICE. This isn’t for everyone, of course, but one of the challenges we see today are that some state and local municipalities are supportive of and pushing through agenda items similar to the national-level ones. There has been a concerted effort pre-Tea Party in the US to fill local school boards, councils, etc., to this end and local politics have the greatest immediate day-to-day impact on our lives anywhere from what can be taught in schools (or who can be erased from curricula) to whether or not your municipality will support electric vehicle charging and bike commuting.

How best can we support the work you (or someone like you in our own setting) do?

Again, volunteer, etc., but also reach out to your local elected officials. Find out what they do. Schedule a time or just stop by their offices. Even if they’re not available, their staff will be.

I see lots of sadness and despair online right now for good reason - there is lots of dehumanization of lots of groups going on. Zooming out and looking at the whole, are there any bright spots giving you hope that we can look too?

I think the bright spots are people are mobilizing. A lot of folks are stuck today and that’s OK, too. There’s a lot to absorb and take in on a nearly hourly basis. I think this is a bright spot, too: asking these questions. For a lot of us living in the US, these are unprecedented times and actions. I think the number of people acknowledging and responding to that gives me hope. If we fail to call it by its name - fascism or authoritarianism or both - we take away our own agency in the direction of the US. We can yell into the voids and talk about our despair and there will be moments of feelings of hopelessness but the energy around pushing back does give me hope.

We are all different. Keeping in mind your context and mine (I’m a white cis-het American dude in his 40s) what is one thing you want me to know?

I think people are surprised to learn — given my occupation and general in-person demeanor - that I have multiple tattoos and one of my favorite bands is Drowningman.

What are three favorites? (It can be anything like food, books, media, etc; share a few sentences about each though and each one can be a different category, ie, a favorite food, a favorite book and a favorte album)

Favorite album: The Mysterious Production of Eggs by Andrew Bird. It’s really a perfect album from start to finish (and is a great album to relax to).

Favorite food: Tacos. They speak for themselves.

Favorite book: This changes a lot but today it’s “Before the coffee gets cold,” by Toshikazu Kawaguchi from 2015. It’s beautifully written and hits just about every emotion while reading it. It’s not terribly long and for the avid readers out there can be finished in a day or two.

What is one quote that you can’t get out of your head?

“So we beat on boats against the current borne back ceaselessly into the past.” - The Great Gatsby. (And, while not a quote, the theme song from the 1980s “Night Court” is perpetually stuck in my head.)

How did you find OMGLOL and what are your favorite parts of it?

I’m trying to remember exactly how I came across it. I think I ended up following quite a few people that were on the Mastodon instance at social.lol and ended up subscribing as soon as I got to the site. NO RAGRETS.

Promotion time: What do you want us to know about and check out?

Ah, you know, I’m going to circle back to: look up and get in touch with your local electeds.

What is one thing you’ve discovered that someone else created that you’d like to promote?

Besides OMGLOL (and your site, but if folks are reading this, I think they’ve discovered it). I’m going to go with the 11ty Bundle site (https://11tybundle.dev) by Bob Monsour. It’s a lifesaver if you build sites in 11ty (https://11ty.dev) and so well put together.

Want to contact Jason? Here’s how!

Email: jasonm@omg.lol