Before I go any further, I have a confession to make to my readers. I love all forms of music, and I especially like to understand the reason behind why various pieces of music were written. Visit Music I Love and Why. There are two caveats about music and me. The first is that I can’t sing or play any instrument. The other caveat is that my musical mindset goes back decades. Any of the popular music of today came after my formative musical years. Do you believe me? Ask me to name a popular singer today, along with one of the songs that the singer made famous. Both Biden and I are in our 80s, but we aren’t senile.

Enter last Valentine’s Day’s essay about Taylor Swift. I grew up in Mt. Lebanon, which is located in the South Hills of Pittsburgh. And if the Steelers aren’t playing in the Super Bowl, I generally don’t watch the game. However, I did happen to read about Taylor Swift booking a flight from Japan to watch her boyfriend, Travis Kelce, play for the Chiefs during the Super Bowl. Because of that, I watched a couple of minutes of the game and noticed the TV camera zero in on Swift cheering on the Chiefs. That is the only thing I’ll remember about the game, but I won’t forget their post-game kiss.

I mentioned in that article that I knew the name Taylor Swift and that she was a popular singer. However, again, I couldn’t name a song that she made famous. Therefore, I turned my attention to learning about the person, and by happenstance, I came across a commencement speech that she gave at NYU in 2022.

Her speech and delivery style fascinated me, but what intrigued me was her one-liner to the graduating class. “The scary news is you are on your own now, but the cool news is you are on your own now.” Talk about a statement that still resonates with me. That one-liner also caught the attention of Ti Ti, my granddaughter. Ti Ti is a student at Gusto University in Yangon, Myanmar.

A couple of weeks after the kiss, Swift was making news again. She wanted everyone on Super Tuesday to vote. “Today, March 5, is the presidential primary in Tennessee and 16 other states and territories. I wanted to remind you guys to vote the people who most represent YOU into power. If you haven’t already, make a plan to vote today,”

Taylor Swift

I read an article in The Guardian about whether Taylor Swift could swing the 2024 election by backing Biden. Having Swift back Biden rattled Fox News. Their talking heads wanted Swift to stay out of presidential politics. Fox News has issues with anyone other than Donald the Dumb. They don’t want a female singer telling people how to vote. Their warning is sexist, and only Fox’s talking heads are informed enough to express their ideas about whom to support.

What fascinated me was that The Guardian’s article quoted a poll result that found, “Her fanbase is staggeringly large, with 53% of Americans saying they are fans and 16% identifying as ‘avid fans’ of Taylor Swift.” Fox News doesn’t have a fan base of 53%.

What Donald the Dumb doesn’t like about Swift is that she is an outspoken female with over a billion dollars in net worth. The Donald owes the courts half a billion dollars and is being charged $115,000 daily until he antes up what he owes. I wonder whether Trump considered asking Swift for a line of credit to cover his expenses. After all, Trump is the greatest president since Lincoln.

Swift offers her fans, especially female fans, a paradigm of what a person should be as opposed to Trump. In two weeks, Trump is facing in the Manhattan state court charges related to rush money payments to Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal. Swift’s mindset is that women are more than sex objects. E. Jean Carroll was awarded $91 million related to a sexual attack by Trump. Think about the choice of role models women have...Swift or Trump. As for men, would you want your daughter to follow in the footsteps of Swift or Trump?

Steve Biko, the black anti-Apartheid activist, said, “The most potent weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed.” What Taylor Swift is doing is helping the next generation of women to be freer and achieve more equally than their mothers’ generation.

Trump responded to Taylor Swift, “There’s no way she could endorse Crooked Joe...and be disloyal to the man who made her so much money.” Listen to Bill Maher’s analysis of Trump putting Swift down.