After the 2020 election, but before the January 6th assault on the Capitol, an editor told me to stop writing about Trump. I was told it was just the same column over and over. At the time, I was gobsmacked by current events. I cited the unprecedented behavior of the then Commander-in-Chief in seeking to overturn an election declared free and fair by election boards and more than 60 state and federal courts. I said I couldn't bring myself to ignore history as it was happening.
After January 6th, I heard nary another word.
I got an unexpectedly heavy outpouring of positive response to the recent story about BraverAngels.org due to its collegial, peace-seeking nature. I'm only sorry that I can't find uplifting stories like that every week. However, our country is facing unprecedented (will we wear that word out before Trump departs the stage?) threats of political violence, is awash in bot-driven propaganda on social media where so many Americans now get their news. Much of the lying originates in Russia, China, and Iran. We are also enduring an onslaught of rumors, innuendo, and outright lies from a right-wing media infrastructure that is on fire with accusations, all unfounded, about a stolen 2020 election and accusations that Joe Biden is a criminal who stole the White House. All of that nonsense has been thoroughly and repeatedly debunked, but around 30% of voters whose wish to remain uninformed has been granted, say they believe it, so while I'd rather write about sunshine and blue skies, I feel an ongoing responsibility to use this space to call out the lies and the lying liars who tell them (thanks, Al).
Some of the nonsense is driven by craven ambition and fear. For instance, Nikki Haley, whom I'm trying really hard to like, afraid of upsetting the Trump core, couldn't muster the key reason for the Civil War—she just couldn't say "slavery." That's some loyalty-via-calculation for you. One assumes she's not actually as stupid as her tortured response, leaving loyalty and fear of retribution as the logical answer. But as is always the case where her master is concerned, loyalty to Donald Trump is a one way street: He's running ads in Iowa absolutely slamming her.
Now there's a Washington Post Poll and article on how the Former Guy's minions, thanks largely to Fox News viewing, have forwarded the idea that January 6th was actually instigated by the FBI. The Post poll says that 39% of Americans whose first news source is Fox believe this wildly inaccurate conspiracy theory that Trump keeps repeating in his stump speech (right after he proclaims himself the winner in 2020…again). File it under "tell a lie often enough and it becomes the truth." Only 16% of CNN and MSNBC viewers believe that, and only 13% of those who get their news the old fashioned way, from newspapers and the major networks, believe it. Finally, a full 44% of Trump 2020 voters think the FBI instigated the insurrection.
If you think political violence is on the rise, you are correct. In the last week alone, multiple state houses had to be evacuated due to bomb threats, election workers everywhere are under threats of violence if they continue to do their unpaid, civic-minded, nonpartisan work. Same with school board representatives, public health officials, judges, and prosecutors.
"SWATing" has become a well-worn tool to disrupt the lives of ordinary citizens as well as public officials. If you're unfamiliar with the terroristic practice, it's when a nefarious coward anonymously calls 911 and falsely reports a shooting or other violent crime with the intention that an armed law enforcement response will frighten unsuspecting people when their homes are surrounded by all sorts of tactical equipment like armed personnel carriers, sharpshooters, and robots. Their houses are bathed in spotlights, and police demand residents come out with their hands up.
Meanwhile, the lies, oft repeated, pile up. Trump: "Under Crooked Joe Biden, Christians and Americans of faith are being persecuted like nothing this nation has ever seen before. Catholics in particular are being targeted and evangelicals are surely on the watchlist as well." This is laughable, not just because a majority of Americans are Christian and not under any threat, but also because Biden is an observant Catholic, and would surely speak up if his religion was threatened.
There's a fan-produced video that the Trump campaign is reposting like mad. It's called God Made Trump, which if you haven't seen and need a laugh, I commend it to your attention. You'll be surprised to learn how pious the former guy is. I especially like the part about how he goes to church every Sunday, and works 100 hour weeks (I admit that in my own case, golf is in fact work). The maker obviously lives in one of those states that legalized the recreational use of hallucinogens.
I hope enough of us are sober enough to distinguish fact from fantasy before it's too late.
©2024 Jon Sinton
No comments:
Post a Comment