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I disabled comments on a post on Instagram yesterday, something I don't do normally. I had posted an anti-Trump item and specifically said that anyone bothered by our disapproval of our national embarrassment is welcome to unfollow, but that I wasn't interested in their comments on the matter. Naturally, the handful of his fans who are following us on Instagram felt compelled to comment anyway.

Having no interest in hearing from them, I turned off the comments. One of them complained that I did it due to a lack of "bravery." No. I'm not afraid of hearing from Trump's fans; I'm simply not interested. There is a difference. If I were terribly concerned about Trump fans unfollowing us I wouldn't have posted it. Even this post isn't for them. If you're one of them and reading this while mentally composing a rebuttal, just move on — I'm still not interested.

I know it might seem like running an online business selling graphic goods is fun and easy, but mostly it's stressful and difficult for reasons I'm not going to get into here. The best part of the job is connecting with like-minded people and putting out a product that makes them feel seen and understood. When I post creative content with this brand I'm saying "I feel this way, and if you feel this way, too, let's be a community." I don't do it to raise the ire of people that don't share my worldview.

If I had my druthers I wouldn't devote all this mental energy to what's really a national crisis. I want to make art about sarcastic cats and cute devils, but my creative output is a direct result of what's on my mind, and my mind is on what a problem we have in the White House.

I was plenty anxious and depressed before the Trump situation developed, but I didn't wake up every day living under past administrations — of any ideological strain — thinking the occupant in the White House was probably going to get a lot of people unnecessarily killed while he uses the office for selfish personal gain. The world already has so much bad in it; we don't need a leader who recklessly and needlessly makes it worse.

I'm also troubled by the number of people who are okay with any of this. I refuse to even engage with the premise that this situation is at all acceptable. I don't particularly enjoy these arguments that devolve into personal insults. If anything, I'd rather have a reasonable exchange of ideas with people who share my idea of basic decency...but the fact is that you can't be reasonable and decent and still support Trump.

Note that I don't say "vote" for Trump. We've all made mistakes before — we're human beings, after all, and making mistakes is kind of our thing. We should all acknowledge and accept that we all deserve a mulligan now and then, and there are plenty of Trump voters who are no longer Trump supporters, so it's important not to paint with too broad a brush when we talk about this amongst one another from the center-right through the far left of the political spectrum. If you're a working class or middle class voter who voted for Trump in 2016 out of frustration with the status quo or disdain for Hillary and in the heat of the moment made a glaringly obvious error in judgment and now regret the turn our country has taken since then, guess what? You can do something about that in approximately 11 months.

On the other hand...if you're still 100% behind your guy and wish he'd pull an Emperor Palpatine and dissolve the Senate (and House, and Supreme Court) ahead of election day and rule indefinitely as an authoritarian autocrat? I'll defend your First Amendment right to that stance, but that does not mean I have to listen to your misguided, profoundly racist whataboutism and equivocation, especially when you comment on my posts and ads. Despite social media's clear role in the erosion of our political discourse over the last decade, you are precisely why the blocking of accounts and the deletion of comments exist as features on those platforms.

To wit: here is just a sampling of a few of the bad faith comments on my post before comments got disabled, along with my responses to them:

"You're capitalizing on hating Trump."

Right, because I'm a sneaky, low-key, cynical capitalist hypocrite, is that it? Look, I'm "capitalizing" on my creative output because I'm an artist and that is what artists do when they are trying to make a living as professional creatives in a capitalist system. My creative output is influenced by my life experience, and my country being turned into a total shit show is my current life experience. Implying that I only pay lip service to regulating capitalism because I live and work in a capitalist system is completely unfair. I want a heavily regulated capitalist system. I don't want to live in a country where CEOs make 312 times the average worker's wages. I want to live in a country where all of my fellow citizens can afford healthcare, child care, time off, housing, food, electricity, etc. I want to live in a country where every working adult is guaranteed a living wage and the ones who can't work are still afforded basic fucking dignity and security. Because I believe in being the change I want to see in the world, I have made it a priority to pay living wages to my team, and I am happy to decrease my own income to do it. So no, I'm not secretly a craven money-grubbing cynic who just claims to hold these values because it's profitable and that profit is all I care about.

"If you hate capitalism, move to Venezuela or Scandinavia."

The situation in Venezuela is much more complex than communism vs. socialism vs. capitalism. I largely agree with how Scandinavian countries are run, but I live here. I want my country to be better, and so do most Americans.

"What you do isn't art, it's bullying Trump."

I can't even begin to respond to this ludicrous claim. I mean I could, but I won't because any remotely reasonable person reading this understands why it's not even worth it.

"Unfollow!"

Fine, good, unfollow. No need to announce it. I don't care. If our creative content isn't for you, that's fine. Go find something else to follow. I'm guessing you followed us because something you saw in our creative output spoke to you. If you don't like that the person making the art you find interesting has thoughts and opinions that may not always align with your own, you're going to have a tough time as a consumer of creative content.

Artists have thoughts and opinions, and we express them. That's our whole thing; that's where the art comes from. As a group we tend to lean left politically. To even be the kind of person that's capable of a lot of creative output, by definition you'd have to be open to new ideas that often challenge our preconceived notions — in other words, progressivism. Conservatism isn't necessarily the opposite of new ideas — it has its time and place, both in politics and out — but by definition it denotes slowing forward momentum, so it's not really a worldview that's very compatible with creativity and exploring new ideas with an eye toward a better, brighter future. Sure, still life portraits of fruit have their time and place — dental office waiting rooms need a pop of color, too — but for the most part, capital-A Art is inherently political and always has been. If you want to consume creative content, you have to accept that it comes with the creative people who make it.

I know I'm largely taking aim at Trump supporters here, but my fellow progressives aren't off the hook, either, because you have left me plenty of trolling comments too — mostly claiming that I'm not progressive enough. This shit needs to stop. We are on the same side. Sowing division with people who mostly agree with you is not productive or helpful. Being a purist won't get rid of Trump. If you want the world to be more to your liking, you get out there and support whoever the fuck gets the Democratic party nomination — whether they were your first choice or not — and you do the same damn thing all the way down the ticket. No staying home and pouting, no voting third party, no making write-ins for pie-in-the-sky fantasy candidates (as much as I'd love to support a John Waters/Dorothy Parker ticket). Joe Biden isn't my first choice, but if he gets that nomination I am going to support him without reservation.

You also need to stop talking shit about how artists like me aren't "real" progressives because I don't donate 100% of my income to charity or my customer-submitted photos don't have enough diversity in them. To the latter point, they are literally photos sent to me by customers. I can't force them to be an exact equal breakdown of gender, race, disability, body type, gender identity, etc. If you want more people that look like you in my feed, buy a goddamn shirt, snap a selfie, and tag me with it! You need to stop harassing other progressives on Twitter just because they support Warren and you prefer Bernie. Neither candidate is perfect; no one is. Every serious contender for the nomination has baggage in their wake, but they also represent a major improvement over the status quo.

I'm not a perfect progressive, and neither are you, and neither is Bernie or Jill Stein or whomever it is you hold up as the ideal. Living a 100% ethically pure existence is literally impossible. We can pick apart any effort to do the right thing, but it's not helpful. I don't talk about my progressive values in some cynical way because it sells. I talk about those values because they are dear to me and they are values I try my hardest to live up to every day. I felt this way before I started Boredwalk and I have no doubt I will always feel this way. I am doing my best, and I try to see that in other people wherever it is remotely reasonable to see that.

Some people, like Donald Trump, aren't trying to be their best; they're selfish and narcissistic and don't care how their choices affect other people. They lack empathy and they don't use the position they have to do anything to try to make things better for anyone but themselves. Those are the people I have a problem with.

If you share my belief that human rights matter, that people having their basic needs met matters, that taking care of our planet matters, and that compassion is a virtue, then I celebrate you trying to do everything in your power from where you are in life to try to work towards those ideals and I hope you'll do the same for everyone around you — even if they aren't perfect. If you don't share those values I do hope you'll change, but in the meantime I'm not here to cater to you with my creative content.

Peace, love, and fighting the good fight,

- Meredith

Welcome to our weekly Boredwalk Community series, where we ask Boredwalk fans fun questions! This week we're talking to Jessica S. of Raymond NH, showing off an Antisocial Butterfly shirt.

1. What's your actual day job and what's your dream day job?

My day job is working in the office of a special education school. I would love to be a party planner or have a bakery, though. (Ed. note: SpEd is super-important, though, and we appreciate your work in that field. We'd also be happy to taste test your baked goods, though. Om nom nom.)

2. What's your biggest pet peeve?

Smokers.😝 Especially when they throw cigarettes out car windows.

3. If you could have any super power what would you choose?

The ability to read minds. Then I wouldn't have to wonder...

4. What experience do you most want to cross off your bucket list?

Going to England or being debt-free. (Those two things *might* be at odds with one another. Here's hoping you strike it rich!)

5. Clear up a misconception (about your job, where you are from, some other topic you know a lot about.)

The youngest child in a family isn't always a spoiled brat. I should know, since I'm the sixth of six. (Hmm. Something tells me you might be biased...but it's not like I can cross-check this with your siblings, so I suppose we'll have to trust you.)

6. Where can the rest of the Boredwalk community find you?

Instagram: @jcsntgo

Welcome to our weekly Boredwalk Community series, where we ask Boredwalk fans fun questions! This week we're talking to Kiani G. of Spanish Fort AL, showing off an Elect More Scientists shirt.

1. What's your actual day job and what's your dream day job?

I was an Assistant Professor of Biology until May, when I quit to become a full-time candidate for Congress (AL-01). My dream job is to be the host of a public access children's science show. Sort of like a new take on "Mr Wizard." (Ed. note: I want both of these things to happen!)

2. What keeps you up at night?

Climate change and the fact that our federal government isn't doing enough to protect the world that my children will live in. Ditching plastic straws is great, but we need a major overhaul of federal policy.

3. What's the most useful piece of advice you've ever received?

Early is on-time. On-time is late. And late is unacceptable. Thanks, Dad.

4. What experience do you most want to cross off your bucket list?

Right now, all I want is a full night's sleep. But, one day, I'd really like to hug an elephant. (Both admirable goals.)

5. What is a surprising fact about you?

My motorcycle was hit by a car in 2010. I was told that I would never walk again. 10 months later, I was walking. 10 years later, I'm running (for office.) Moral of the story, kids: Don't text and drive. (Wow. Yeah kids, don't do that.)

6. What's a book you think the Boredwalk community should read?

The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs by Steve Brusatte. I really liked dinosaurs as a kid, then I "outgrew" them. Now, my youngest son is obsessed with dinosaurs, and teaching him about them has reminded me of how much I loved them, too. This book is a reminder to adults about why we all liked dinosaurs so much as kids — because they are amazing! (They really, really are!)

7. Clear up a misconception (about your job, where you are from, some other topic you know a lot about.)

Alabama is a beautiful state. It's worth fighting for.

8. Where can the rest of the Boredwalk community find you?

KianiGardner.com
Facebook: @VoteKiani
Twitter: @kianigardner
Instagram:@kianigardner

Welcome to our weekly Boredwalk Community series, where we ask Boredwalk fans fun questions! This week we're talking to Catherine L. of Bloomington IL, showing off a Maybe Tomorrow Satan Shirt shirt.

1. What's your actual day job and what's your dream day job?

I work as a corporate researcher and manage a small corporate library. I hope someday to be a full-time book blogger! (Ed. note: You can do it — we believe in you!)

2. What experience do you most want to cross off your bucket list?

A trip to The Hague, Netherlands. (The city in general, or the International Court of Justice most often associated with the city? WE NEED SPECIFICS, Cat. We want to know if you're merely tip-toeing through the tulips or if this is some sort of grim tribunal situation.)

3. If you could have any super power what would it be and why?

Teleportation. I would save so much time and money if I never had to use cars, trains, or planes! (Teleportation is coming up a lot as an answer to this question...🤔)

4. What's a book you think the Boredwalk community should read?

The best book I read this year was The Testaments by Margaret Atwood, but you should definitely read The Handmaid's Tale first!

5. What's your biggest pet peeve?

People being rude in public. (THIS! Save your worst impulses for the privacy of your own home like a grown-ass adult, folks.)

6. Where can the rest of the Boredwalk community find you?

On Twitter @Cat_grl6

Welcome to our weekly Boredwalk Community series, where we ask Boredwalk fans fun questions! This week we're talking to Heather L. of Riverside NJ, showing off a Death Metal Shirt shirt.

1. What's your actual day job and what's your dream day job?

My day job is in Customer Service for a national furniture manufacturer. My dream job is to be a powerwasher by day, kitten wrangler by night. (Ed. note: I completely understand the desire to be a nocturnal kitten wrangler...but powerwasher by day? This poses more questions than answers, Heather. What will you be washing? How much power is needed?)

What experience do you most want to cross off your bucket list?

I would love to visit another continent (I've never been off North America.) (As someone who has, be forewarned: people are dicks EVERYwhere.)

If you could have any super power what would it be and why?

Teleportation - no more traffic ever! (Having spent over three hours  in the car running work errands I can definitely get behind this.)

You can curse your nemesis with a minor annoyance for eternity; what do you choose?

The perpetual feeling that they're just about to sneeze. (Brutal! It's tough to look metal while you're stifling a sneeze.)

5. What's your biggest pet peeve?

LOUD (human) CHEWING. You're gross; close your mouth. Animals chewing is cute and funny, though.

6. What's a life pro tip the Boredwalk community needs to know?

You can (and should!) make yourself happy without stepping on someone else to do so. (Words to live by!)

6. Where can the rest of the Boredwalk community find you?

On Instagram @Aur0ra888 and/or @therealhousecatsofnewjersey

No new designs this week, as we're all working hard to get your orders printed, packed up, and shipped out as fast as we can (within reason.) In the meantime, admire our classic Be The Strange You Wish To See In The World design printed on one of our soft, cozy, and warm hoodies! It's a fitting complement to this week's podcast episode, which is a little on the strange side.

This week we peel the curtain back on how businesses feel about Black Friday & Cyber Monday (hint: we hate them), share a review, discuss the mechanics and consequences of ghost humping, lament the fact that a raccoon with delusions of grandeur has a more successful art career than we do, and read your Question of the Day comments. I also rant about laugh tracks for a bit. Enjoy!

I am hoping to get at least one new design completed for next week, but in the event that does not happen, don't fret! Meredith and I will still be making time to write (presumably) funny emails, post (hopefully) entertaining Questions of the Day on Facebook & Instagram, post (decidedly droll and dour) musings on Twitter, and record a new and innovative podcast episode ("new" in the temporal sense; "innovative" in the sense that we will be saying things into microphones we've never uttered into microphones before. Every episode is limited edition!)

Speaking of limited edition, as I mentioned above, this week we elected to embarrass ourselves even more than usual by streaming our recording of the podcast on Instagram Live! If you're on Instagram and are interested in being part of this ill-fated experiment, be sure to follow us! It was an inauspicious first step to be sure, but we'll do it a few more times to see if we can't get our act together and really buff it to a shine (or at least a moderately acceptable dullness.) What could possibly go wrong?

We also talked a bit about our new Ambassador program and the benefits thereof, give you our wishlist for the holiday season, and — speaking of wishlists — properly announce our new wishlist feature. That all probably sounds pretty boring...but that's only because I left out the parts about free merch and easy money. You'll have to listen to hear the juicy bits!

Finally, I hope you've had an OK week. Doesn't have to be amazing or great or even just good. I just hope that you're doing OK and have had a similarly OK week. Let's all keep those expectations manageable, delight in the instances wherein they're exceeded, and try our hardest not to spiral too deeply into self-hate when they fall short of the middle. I know: homework? Boo!

Peace, love, and grudging personal growth,

Matt

Welcome to our weekly Boredwalk Community series, where we ask Boredwalk fans fun questions! This week we're talking to Ariel M. of Warrenton VA, showing off a Someday We'll All Be Dead shirt.

1. What's your actual day job and what's your dream day job?

I’m a wildlife specialist, but I’d rather be a stay-at-home dog parent. (Ed. note: you and me both!)

2. What's your biggest pet peeve?

Whistling! (You and Charlynn would get along smashingly. Maybe.)

3. If you could have any super power what would it be and why?

Telekinesis because I’m lazy AF. (I love this answer.)

4. You can curse your nemesis with a minor annoyance for eternity; what do you choose?

A popcorn kernel stuck in their throat. (Savage!)

5. What's a surprising fact about you?

I’ve wrestled an alligator. (Whoa! I did not see *that* answer coming.)  

6. Where can the rest of the Boredwalk community find you?

On Instagram @airmixon

On Twitter @arielmixon

Welcome to our weekly Boredwalk Community series, where we ask Boredwalk fans fun questions! This week we're talking to Amanda J. of Orlando FL, showing off an Antisocial Butterfly Shirt.

1. What's your actual day job and what's your dream day job?

Actual job: Behavior Specialist
Dream job: Professional Wine Taster (Ed. note: I've been struggling as an amateur for decades...)

2. If you could have any super power what would it be and why?

I'd be a jumper so I could travel through time and space while sipping wine.

3. You can curse your nemesis with a minor annoyance for eternity; what do you choose?

Eternal hiccups...actually, I'm not sure I could do that to anyone. (You're a much kinder person than I, then. I've got a hiccup-enemies list a mile long, and I'd curse them all without hesitation. But good on you for being a decent human being!)

4. What's the most useful piece of advice you've ever received?

My mom always told me "Just do the best you can do — that's all anyone can expect from you." (Ed. note: she sounds like a smart cookie.)

5. What's a life pro tip the rest of the Boredwalk community needs to know?

Although glasses make people look smarter...they literally had to FAIL a test to get them. (Touché!)

6. Where can the rest of the Boredwalk community find you?

On Instagram @slidermuzz

Welcome to our weekly Boredwalk Community series, where we ask Boredwalk fans fun questions! This week we're talking to Cheryl C. of Burlington KY, showing off a Y'all Need Feminism Shirt.

1. What's your actual day job and what's your dream day job?

I'm an administrator at a fast food chicken restaurant, but my dream job would be to work as a writer.

2. What keeps you up at night?

The current political climate. (I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels this way!)

3. What experience do you most want to cross off your bucket list?

Traveling is my favorite thing ever, so I would like to visit some castles in Scotland, Ireland, or Germany. I would love to visit the Maldives as well.

4. What's the most useful piece of advice you've ever received?

My mom always told me "Just do the best you can do — that's all anyone can expect from you." (Ed. note: she sounds like a smart cookie.)

5. Clear up a misconception (about your job, where you are from, some other topic you know a lot about.)

I'm a retired teacher, so I'd like to explain to people that teachers do more work FOR FREE than any other profession, and with zero respect. Did I also mention that they're underpaid? (Preach!)

6. Where can the rest of the Boredwalk community find you?

You can find me on Twitter @mom2kian

I'll be honest, folks: I'm running on fumes as I'm typing this. It's been an exceptionally trying week here at Boredwalk HQ, so you'll have to excuse me for not being my normal..."palatably sardonic"...self.

What's fueling our melancholy this week?

Well, the crazed landlord at the office trying to block access to our office on the busiest weekend of the year isn't helping. Neither is the arrival of our seasonal depression and the departure of daylight saving time.

On top of that there are our beloved — but nonetheless surly and snot-projecting — feline housemates racking up vet bills, and other designers' thinly-veiled (and utterly inferior) attempts to knock off our design work. In and of itself another "designer" biting our concepts is far from something new, but the fact that the designer in question is based just 90 minutes away from us and is someone we actually have helped out in the past is particularly galling. Oh, well. Maybe this creativity-challenged gutter muppet will get what's coming to them...but probably not.

As dour as the above description is, this week's podcast episode is still pretty humorous and entertaining! Don't believe me? Listen to it and judge for yourself!

With any luck we'll be back with new designs next week. The good news is that not a single person has ever successfully completed their collection of Boredwalk merchandise, so even if we're still spinning our wheels in the mud you have all these delightful wares to choose from! Until next time...

Peace, love, and tacos,

Matt