The Whimper

2021-01-07

some hastily-written, unedited, and useless thoughts on the Past Few Days

0) as always, everybody calm the fuck down.

1) most commentary and reactions have been historically fatuous and grossly hyperbolic. it was an important and fascinating moment, but probably less of a tragedy than, say, the Challenger explosion, and less of a watershed than Watergate. it was almost certainly beneficial (read on).

2) this was not a "coup". this was not an "attempted coup". there are tanks in coups. the military is involved. politicians die. *unexpected long-term results emerge from coups*. this was stupidity. this was philadelphia rioting after losing a super bowl. this was literal hooliganism. use the correct words. coups are politically motivated. this was a riot. these people didn't think they were going to change the government; they thought they'd get to be assholes without repercussions. now, fuck all these yahoo pieces of shit for rioting, but i've seen literal calls for "reeducation centers". GTFO with that tankie horseshit. say you dig the idea of a GULAG and be done with it.

3) one woman was shot by police; three people died of being dumbasses. fuck 'em. many are being arrested. there was not a "complete lack of response". with that said, this is the Capitol, and they ought have been machine-gunned or flamethrow... flamethrowed? of course, at that point, you have an actual crisis on your hands. so if you're not gonna use automatic weapons, you need either (a) boots on the ground or (b) to violate right to assembly. the lack of (a) was at best a catastrophic fuckup, and at worst -- and, sadly, most likely IMHO -- intended. probably prosecutable. unlikely convictable. don't bother wasting the time, money, and most importantly platform. we have a chance for him to be driven from public acceptability, a gift of the endgoal of four years' bitching. fuck that dude best, by ignoring him forever. everyone who's pointing out that a (34 year old) Hitler was made Chancellor ten years after the Putsch forget that he spent two years pontificating in the Munich Volksgerichte and scribbling, a martyr, in Landsberg Prison.

4) i speak with many people across the political spectrum, more so (i gather) than most. i suspect this was the inglorious whimper that marks the end of Trump-worship. Trump was loved for two things: his presumed willingness to use force (and the vicarious feeling of empowerment enjoyed by so many frustrated working-class, as if he might drop a guided bomb onto the Asian factories that had replaced their union jobs), and his vile appeal to white tribalism by a shrinking white majority that sees itself as more deserving and righteous than those of color, one that feels denied the small explicit assistances that seek to address centuries of generally less explicit privilege. well, that strongman just had his Capitol overrun with barely a magazine emptied in response. motherfucking longhairs took the Capitol podium. one of them might have been a furry. he might have egged it on, but he's not celebrating what would be, by any measure, a tremendous victory on the part of his Y'all-Qaeda forces. i've seen that "he's Commander-in-Chief; he ought have been defending the Capitol to his last bullet." i've seen shock and dismay; i've seen Trump recognized as a big fat pussy jabronie by people who've worshipped him for years. something like half the country is waking up with a terrible hangover today, for they have gazed into the abyss, and they have seen themselves therein, and they are having some come-to-jesus moments.

some remain assholes incapable of redemption, but that's the price you pay for not killing everyone who looks at you cockeyed. the great red blood-dimmed tide is receding.

they'll post BLM whataboutism rather than answering your smarmy Karen Kalls to "denounce"--this remains America, sorry--but trust me, a great many True Believers are feeling real embarrassment and sadness.

try to be empathetic rather than scolding. be glad that this sorry period has ended. can't you feel a brand new day?

5) when you post two carefully chosen images of unrelated events, and grin like a simpleton and ask "SEEEEEEEEE? this proves my point", know that i am wincing, and actively hating you, and praying that your student loan is not forgiven: you clearly never learned a goddamn thing about critical reasoning or anything else.

6) if you expressed horror about BLM riots, but not this, you're a tribal asshole and probably an uninteresting person. if you expressed horror about this, but not BLM riots, you're a tribal asshole and probably an insufferable person. they were both eruptions of emotional energy turned destructive, and both ultimately ineffectual. nothing changed other than money has to be spent cleaning up. no matter how righteous the cause of the child, it helps no one to throw a tantrum, kicking legs in the toy aisle. the CVS never did anything to you. fuck destruction of value.

pro tip: the proper response to both was mild derision and dank memes.

7) i have always believed -- and reasoned, examining the data -- that America is the best country in the world to live in as a dynamic, value-generating, white (or indian, or east asian) person. we must simplify this to "dynamic, value-producing person". something must be done to bring a larger share of the best blacks and hispanics seats at the table. i'm unsure what that is.

8) most everybody has it pretty bad. this is indeed a disturbing universe. happiness is an elusive and fleeting thing. blacks, on average, have it worse than most, just about anywhere you'd want to live. being pissed off about this is not only valid, but natural. it ought upset everyone. it's unjust. if we would all admit this to ourselves, i think a great many problems would be solved. it's not a big ask. c'mon you cracker assholes, be honest with yourself for once in your lives.

9) as always, everybody calm the fuck down.