A related but wild story:

If you shop at Fred Meyer on 85th…. Say hi and be extra friendly to the checker ’Eddy’. 😃 Yesterday while checking out with my groceries, eddy was my cashier and he was incredibly friendly and shared some of his story with me.

He’s 73 years old and was retired from the military on the east coast before… but after taking care of his wife with Alzheimer’s for 13 years, she passed away. Then when the war in Ukraine started he sold his house, car and every possession he owned to donate to Ukrainian charity’s. With his little money he had left, he bought himself a one way ticket to help Ukraine during the war. While there he said his age hindered him a lot and many of his friends there suggested he find a way to come back to the US. His in- laws pooled together enough money for a one way ticket to WA state and helped set him up in a studio apt. He got the job at Fred Meyer to pay his family back and in his words, with a laugh “can you believe I pay $1750 for a tiny shoebox?! ”

He kept referencing Fred Meyers probation period of 90 days and how he hopes they keep him after it’s up , he says he’s slower then other cashiers but wants to give the “customer a wonderful experience so they keep coming back”. Anyway… if you see him- give a smile, a hello or if you aren’t in a hurry - maybe let a manager know how awesome he is. I keep thinking about his story and wanted others to be aware so they can maybe brighten his day with some friendliness if they ever cross paths with him.

Propaganda is far from harmless. It gets the impressionable and vulnerable to mutilate their lives just for a whiff of that feel-good righteousness. I don't believe in Hell, but sometimes I wish it was real so all the people who propagate these narratives could burn forever.