Hola Free Rangers,
In Marc Maron’s latest (and best?!) special, he quite deliberately hits a modern taboo word (or two), and acknowledges that about 2% of his audience will send him an e-mail saying that while they understand his intent, these words used in any way are hurtful in a real way to many people. In this space, we don’t get the sweeping rounds of unsubscribes like we did back in March of 2020, when the filter initially came off (followed directly by the wheels) due that whole… who can remember what. Something between Zohran Mamdani and the portrayal (as accurate as perception and memory allow) of the racist immigrant lady evoked a range of reply that is fairly unusual around here. First, a very sincere note pointed out that just because the racist immigrant lady didn’t have full command of the language doesn’t mean that she was’t a citizen, and a customer/reader felt that I was adding her heavy accent and lack of vocabulary to her crimes. I am aware that one can take a citizenship test in another language, and was discussing her language skills to convey the awkward tension that metastasized from trying to understand her and help her while she was just being a weird, mean bigot, wearing a big creepy smile. As a correction, I absolutely shouldn’t have said there is zero chance she is a citizen. I have unfortunately met citizen immigrants who are racist and anti-immigrant, and even one so who is just a green card holder (from marrying a citizen), who doesn’t seem to realize that he’s next if Stephen Miller gets his way.
Separately from that, along with the usual smattering of encouragement and OMGs re: the tale in question (thanks for reading!), we were surprised to hear from a genuinely sweet, optimistic guy, who I don’t think we’ve seen in the shop since the Before Times, having been a regular for at least a few years prior. Eric was either a nurse or an orderly at a local eldercare facility who was a lover of a well priced organic red that came in a liter tetra pack. He sent us a one liner last week that reads: Unsubscribing from this trash. Voting for a racist like that hate filled socialist? Yea..no thank you. … My reply, to which he didn’t respond is at the very bottom, if you like to have a gander, but first….
This week’s FREE in-store tasting is with our buddy, Myles- not Buddy Miles. We acquire some of our finest low intervention wine from this guy, several of which are long time staples here. Please join us this Thursday, August 21st (5-7pm), for FREE tastes of these French Classics: Laporte Sauv Blanc 2023, which many of you already know as the closest thing to proper Sancerre in the neighborhood and price range; LaPorte Sancerre Rosé 2023, made from 100% Pinot Noir; and Inflorescence Champagne by Coquillette. When someone asks you if you want free Champagne, you say, “yes.” All of the above is 10% off in-store on tasting day only!
And of course, the Sale of Sales rolls on! But only for two more weeks. This week’s additions include some deep cellar cuts of legendary proportion and some chiseled white Burgundy, of only slightly less not-messing-around order, including Eyrie Original Vines Pinot Noir South Block Reserve ’87 and ’94, absolute Oregonian legends. You’ll also find seriously discounted Dal Forno Amarone 2009 and 2010, and Esprit Leflaive Pouilly-Fuisse 2019 and Esprit Leflaive Chablis 1er Cru Fourchaume 2019. Check out the full list of wine & spirits on sale here:
(!) Click here for Sale of Sales (!)
Cheers,
Jack
Proprietor
Free Range Wine & Spirits
P.S. Free Range E-mail Archive
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Hey Eric,
Long time.
I don’t think we’ve seen you in the shop since 2019 or 2020- the last of the Before Times. We didn’t know how good we had it. Did you stop drinking or move away? Remembering you as such a gentle, optimistic guy, I was surprised to hear from you like this, after all these years.
Have you found my writing to be trash before, or is this the first time?
I write every week (for 5 years). They can’t all be bangers.
I’ve been writing favorably of socialism since 2020, is this the first one that you’ve read? We got a lot of unsubscribes back when I was Bernie of bust. So, trying to use ‘socialist’ as dirty word isn’t going to hit here. Medicare is socialism and it’s one of the most popular government programs of all time. Socialism is good. It’s about making sure everyone gets taken care of at least a little bit better than not. I believe that healthcare, housing, and education are human rights that should be universal in this wealthiest country in the history of the world. But I also grew up in the ‘80s with the great red menace held over our heads, and until I did my own reading and thinking, I believed democratic socialism to be akin to Russian communism, which I now understand couldn’t be farther from the truth. I could write book just about this point, but I don’t think a school of political philosophy is what’s really eating you.
You’re more than welcome to disagree with anything I say, but I’m genuinely curious if you can point to something specific that Zohran Mamdani has said or done that is demonstrably hateful or racists? Because I haven’t seen it, and would certainly want to know if I’m supporting a candidate espousing these things. Or is yours just a knee jerk reaction to someone against Palestinian apartheid? I grew up in a reformed synagogue with a pro-Israel undertone, was bar mitzvah’d there, so I understand that viewpoint.
Separately from that, I find Andrew Cuomo to be a hateful bully and a serial sexual harasser (based on his words, policies, and documented actions), as well as a nepo-baby, making him almost everything that is wrong with our country and with political leadership here. But if you vote for him, I’d still have a drink with you and shake your hand, though I would also respectfully try and change your mind. But If you have no factual example of Zohran Mamdani speaking or acting as you have accused, Eric, then the hate you are seeing just might be in the mirror.
If you’d like to talk, you know where to find me. If you’d prefer to stand by whatever is going on with you, well, best of luck with everything, I suppose.
Cheers,
Jack
