Friends and family who know how much I detest President Trump try to draw me into arguments about how much worse the Democrats are. I tell them to please please please not waste one moment of their precious, limited, God-given time on earth trying to get me fired up to defend the Democratic party. They're just as bad as the Republicans.
I had to look up the quote about a foolish consistency being the hobgoblin of little minds. For some reason, I thought that it originated with a politician; maybe Woodrow Wilson. But it was Emerson. Anyway, not all consistency is foolish. Among the many things that are bothering me about the poisonous political climate of 2020 is the inconsistency of partisans who blithely dismiss crimes committed by their own party but scream with outrage at crimes committed by the other. Why on earth is any political interest group, any candidate, any office-holder worthy of such blind, stupid devotion that people are willing to twist logic, reason, and truth to accommodate their prevailing political narrative?
That is what’s bothering me in general. Here’s what’s bothering me in particular.
Regarding the Supreme Court:
I’m sad at RBG’s passing. I hate that she thought that abortion access meant freedom for women, but she did a great deal for women’s rights in the workplace that a lot of people in power would like to undo.
HOWEVER. Dying wish or not, no SCOTUS justice gets to set the terms for the appointment of her replacement.
Amy Coney Barrett is fine. She’s brilliant. I don’t like her positions on immigration or guns, but stop screaming about The Handmaid’s Tale every time a pro-life or religious woman speaks in public. It's stupid. Just stop it.
Do I think that Trump has the right to replace RBG? Yes, Look at the Constitution.
Do I think that Trump and McConnell are shitty and terrible people for announcing their intention to replace RBG before her body was cold? Yes. Yes, I do. It could have waited a few days.
Is there any difference AT ALL between Obama appointing Merrick Garland in 2016 and Trump appointing Amy Coney Barrett in 2020? No, there is not.
“But wait! Obama was at the end of his SECOND term, and Trump is at the end of his FIRST term!”
So what? The Constitution says that a President can serve one four-year term or two four-year terms. It doesn’t say that the last year of the second term doesn’t count. Try again.
“But wait! That was a Democratic President with a Republican Senate! This is a Republican President with a Republican Senate!”
Again: So what? Refer to the aforementioned Constitution, which does not outline separate rules of behavior for Senators when the President is of the same party as the Majority Leader vs. when he is of the opposing party.
Those are both bullshit, nonsense, specious arguments. Obama had the right to appoint his nominee, and the Senate was required to consider him.
In fact, that was the Democrats’ position in 2016. Oddly enough, they now believe that a Supreme Court appointment in election year should wait until after the election.
How is it possible to take any of these people seriously?
Regarding “fake news”:
If the NYT stories about Trump’s tax returns, and his hush money payments to porn stars and the $200 million dollar gift (not $1 million loan) from his father; and the Atlantic story about Trump’s insults to service members are as completely fabricated and made up as he claims, he not only CAN sue, he SHOULD.
The NYT alone has a lot of money. If he sues and wins, maybe he’d actually BE a billionaire!
But truth is a defense against a libel claim.
If he doesn’t sue, then we can be pretty sure that the stories are true.
Regarding tax returns and emoluments and profiting from the office of President:
Would you like to see someone like Jeff Bezos or Mark Zuckerberg or BIll Gates become President? I wouldn’t.
If one of the aforementioned gentlemen were to declare their candidacy, would you be interested in seeing their tax returns? I would.
What do you think would happen if Jeff Bezos declared himself as a Democratic Presidential candidate, and the Republicans demanded to see his tax returns?
Would he say “Oh my goodness, of course, here you are--full disclosure.”
OR would he say “HA HA HA HA HA! That is hilarious. Tax returns. You’re adorable.”
I think I know what he’d say.
What do you think would happen if Bill Gates declared himself as a Democratic Presidential candidate, and the Republicans insisted that he place all of his investments and interest in Microsoft in a blind trust, and have no involvement with the company during his term in office?
Would he say “Of course! One job is enough for me! No time for Azure and Office365 and Windows when I’m trying to run a country!”
OR would he say “HA HA HA! Wait, you guys are serious? Get the fuck outta here.”
I think I know what he’d say.
The whole reason why guys like Gates and Zuckerberg and Bezos didn’t used to run for President is that they don’t like to disclose their financial dealings, and they don’t want to stop running their businesses.
Thanks to Trump, they don’t have to do either now.
Oh, and Bezos? He has about 50 times as much money as Trump--more than enough that he can hire a whole team of forensic accountants who will hide his financial tracks so thoroughly that the NYT will never find them.
Regarding racism:
There’s no reason to fight to preserve Confederate monuments, other than racism.
Trump claims to hate losers and traitors. What is a Confederate general, other than a loser and a traitor?
He knows who the Proud Boys are. Come on. COME ON.
Biden made the comments about not wanting to raise his children in a “racial jungle” many years ago.
So what? Still racist.
And by the way? When BIden said that “You ain’t black” to black people who don’t support the Democrats, that was also hideously racist. Who is he, or anyone, to tell black people how to think or vote?
And that wasn’t years ago. It was this past summer
Still, Trump is worse. Way worse. The “good genes” compliments to the white crowds at his rallies are a pretty non-subtle way of saying “I like this crowd because it’s white as the day is long.”
Regarding the damn 'rona:
Democratic governors and local leaders have done a horrible job of managing this, and the mandatory lockdowns have done much more harm than good.
It’s more than OK to question just about everything about the COVID-19 pandemic.
Is it really possible for a Trump rally to be a super-spreader event, and a BLM protest to be completely safe and COVID-free?
Come on. COME ON.
I support the protestors and their right to protest. But that doesn’t mean that truth and logic don’t apply. A gathering is a gathering.
If we really do see a vaccine before Election Day, I would sooner inject bleach directly into my veins than subject myself or my family to that vaccine.
I don’t really trust any vaccine associated with this disease.
And I am not anti-vaccine. At all.
Anthony Fauci is not evil. He’s also not a great hero and savior of humanity. He’s a bureaucrat. And Donald Trump has one person to blame for how powerful Fauci has become.
Speaking of Donald Trump, why do Trump supporters who oppose lockdowns and masks and social distancing give him a pass in all of this? He’s the President. Why didn’t he do better? A little bit of leadership and a small demonstration of good faith might have made a difference.
I’m not ready to call this a conspiracy. But if and when it’s ever proven to have been one, then I promise you that both the Republicans and the Democrats will have been party to it.
You know, this is a very long post, and I'm just getting started. It's been a very long year, and a very long election season. Partisan politics is itself a plague and a scourge; but the two major American parties are the most virulent plague and the most hideous scourge. None of these bitches, R or D, is worth one shred of tribal loyalty. Not one shred.
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