Werewolf! There Wolf!

Some thoughts on America, Joe Biden, confusion, and Young Frankenstein.

Amid all this absolute political chaos of the past few weeks since the first Biden/Trump debate, I’ve been thinking a lot about one of my favorite scenes in the Mel Brooks/Gene Wilder classic, Young Frankenstein. Igor (played by the hilarious Marty Feldman) has just picked up Gene Wilder’s Dr. Frankenstein (pronounced Franc-En-Steen) from the train station. They, along with Teri Garr’s Inga, are traveling through the backcountry of Transylvania, en route to Frankenstein’s Castle, when Wilder hears a wolf howl in the distance. He looks at Garr and informatively says “Werewolf!” To which Feldman points to the forest and responds, “There wolf.”

I love that after years of watching this movie and having seen it dozens of times, I still smile just writing out that paragraph. The dry confusion that the characters constantly put each other through still stands as some of the best comedy ever performed. But I didn’t sit down to write about how much that scene in Young Frankenstein makes me laugh. I think the reason it’s been on my mind recently is because it’s a great example of how utterly confusing the current political climate is, and of course, my twisted brain goes to the safe place of Young Frankenstein to draw comparisons.

But sadly, there isn’t much comedy going on in politics these days, at least none that I feel comfortable laughing at anymore. I’ve been wanting to put some thoughts down about the current presidential race for some time, but I haven’t been able to catch my breath, politically speaking. Since the debate a few weeks ago which was the beginning of the end for Biden, there was the tragic assassination attempt on Trump, the Republican National Convention, or as I lovingly refer to it, The Circus of Sycophantic Insanity, then Biden got Covid, and today the news of Biden exiting the race and endorsing Kamala Harris as the 2024 Democratic Presidential candidate.

That’s a whole lot of bonkers.

I have no interest in attempting to break down each of those events other than to sincerely say that as a registered Democrat, I’d gladly vote Republican if the candidate was a decent man and the Democratic option wasn’t living up to the moral standards that I hold myself, my neighbors, and the President of the United States to. However, that’s not the case today, but I would like to reflect on just how dang confusing all of this has become.

And by confusing I don’t mean that I’m not able to follow what has happened, what’s going on, and the trajectory of where we’re going. But I feel like I can identify with the perplexed look on Gene Wilder’s face riding in the back of that hay wagon. It never occurred to first-time voter me that I’d ever feel sad about a President leaving office, and now I’ve felt that way twice. Obama was the President I wish was my neighbor so we could be friends and borrow oatmeal from each other when we ran out late at night. And I’ve always seen Biden as a respectable continuation of the ideals and morals that Obama established for the first time in my living Presidential history.

Today’s news of Biden dropping out numbed me. My sister texted me first, and I immediately responded with some weird joke about the news anchor’s last-minute makeup job after also being caught by the surprise news and was probably having Sunday biscuits and juice on their day off. And then the sadness hit at the thought of the 50 years Biden has served America ending in an admission of personal defeat. But I sat with it for a while and realized that no, he’s actually continuing to meet the moral standard that I expect from someone in his position. Biden is acting with absolute integrity and selflessness in putting the country above his own personal pride.

Confusion aside, when I first started writing this and riffing on the Young Frankenstein wolf reference, I thought the obvious parallel was to equate Trump as the man who’s a wolf confusing all his followers into thinking that he’s actually human. But now as I wrap this up, I think it’s actually Joe Biden that’s the wolf, which is also confusing because of the way he has presented over the last few weeks. But he’s running on a wolf-like innate instinct to do what’s needed for survival. But not his own survival, but ours. The country’s. Amidst his physical weakness, he’s standing stronger than Trump ever appeared to be after getting shot. And often, the strongest thing you can do is what’s hardest in your mind to overcome. But the “doing” of that thing is most likely so easy to put into action. So much so that it can be confusing at how easy it is. It may only take a handshake, or a smile, or even just some words. But knowing what is needed and then putting that knowledge into action is the strong move. And that’s a strength that I hope America can appreciate and work its way back to someday. Biden strength.