WE SHOULD NEVER FORGET 2020 —HOW COULD WE FORGET 2021

Back around 2005, a book came out titled “ 1968 – The Year that Rocked the World “. The author was Mark Kurlansky. Accepting that the author was a bit opinionated on aspects of the discussion, it did present the turmoil that was 1968 as well as the other side of that coin – the flower power, the women’s movement, a total change in views on sex and an overall attitude change on several issues. However, of interest here was the turmoil. We saw several assassinations and riots that followed in many cities. We saw the increased intensity of war in Viet Nam and the Tet Offensive. Resulting from that were regular demonstrations against the war, particularly because there was increasing doubt as to the legitimacy of it from the start. The division in the country was widespread, harsh and highly political, resembling the  allegations from the far right in the McCarthy era, seeing a communist  takeover plot behind every conversation or demonstration that questioned the government’s war policy and the mess in Southeast Asia. For certain, 1968 was a year the events and trends of which are still having some influence to this day. However, while that may have been the case decades ago – and it surely was – as noted in a recent installment, 2020 was a year we should never forget and 1968 pales in comparison to the year 2020 and the start of 2021.Throughout the year, the Republic has been plagued by unbridled corruption inside the beltway and particularly inside the White House. Between the strange and ridiculous spouting of outlandish conspiracy theories and the staunch adherence to what can only be described as cult politics, the blatant incompetence exhibited by the regime, among other matters, while it did not cause the pandemic, most certainly was the primary cause of its uncontrolled spread.

Earlier we discussed the direction of the GOP and how the outgoing regime paved the way for its agenda of self enrichment and that of the upper ten percent. That hundreds of pieces of legislation never saw the light of the Senate floor vote is beyond unacceptable. That the continuing chaos within the cabinet with absolute loyalty to the cult leader being the key litmus was frightening, demonstrated by nearly seventy- three percent being dismissed as they failed that litmus test. It all made a complete mockery of our system of government agencies and the responsibility to effectively govern.As noted, this did not all start in 2015 or with the Russian supported election of 2016. More likely, it got its first deepening roots in 2010. The lead up to 2020 was therefore, out in front, right on the Capitol steps and the lack of strong leadership on the democratic side of the aisle allowed the agenda to move forward and government, as we know it, slowly but surely came to an end.

Enter 2020. By now, the Red Hat cult had been fully indoctrinated by constant lies and a flood of outlandish conspiracy theories and the occupant of the White House, the undeniable leader of the cult, pounded the far right media and the bully pulpit with the message that if the party lost the 2020 election, it would be because it was rigged, the product of widespread voter fraud, especially in those states which utilized mail in balloting. This was the “Big Lie” of 2020.Then, while the country was and still is being ravaged by the most deadly pandemic in more than a century, with the death toll exceeding three hundred thousand, the regime continued to call it all a hoax and focused its attention squarely on the alleged “ rigged election”.[ For the record, the incumbent lost the election by a margin of 306 to 232 electoral votes and  lost the popular vote by a margin by near seven million votes.] And then the real insanity began.

One need not recount the myriad of failed court cases brought by the GOP and its loyal attorneys. They ranged from state courts, through federal courts and all the way up to the U S Supreme Court – all failing as without merit. Neither does one need to recount the antics of the cult leader’s personal attorney and his blatant violation of law and ethics. What one does need to recount are the speeches by the cult leader and his personal attorney on the morning of 06 January 2021 – the day the Senate was to verify the election by counting the Electoral College votes on the floor of the Senate, with the Vice President presiding.
Both these speeches strongly urged, indeed, commanded the cult followers to storm the Capitol and make the disloyal members of congress pay for their disloyalty.  Spurred on by this conspiracy based rhetoric and paired with the same lunacy coming from the inside congress over the past four years, our Capitol was attacked, vandalized and, as per  the mantra that the election was rigged, the mob voiced their aim to kill the vice president and hang the speaker of the house. On the fringe, a group actually set up a gallows.

The result was clear. The Republic had turned into an autocracy and the far right lunatic fringe has essentially taken over, under the leadership of the very occupant of the oval office. It is often said that fear and ignorance will win every election. We have gone far beyond that stage and are now, as dramatically witnessed, at the point of actual civil war. This is indeed fact and one must return to 2015 to see the seeds of this final stage of the near total collapse of the Republic.

A Russian supported and influenced election, a candidate who clearly exhibited serious behavioral disorders, an advisory team adhering to the mantra of “ the destruction of the administrative state”, a congress bent on securing its power rather than governing and an electorate which, in addition to swilling conspiracies and disinformation like gatorade on a hot day, had the mental attitude of accepting the deranged agenda of the cult leader as normal made the perfect storm for destruction, rocking the very foundations of our system of government as well as our system of societal interactions. 

The future is shaky at best and 2021 has a dangerous beginning. The damage inflicted on this Republic by the trump family and its loyalist allies is considerable and perhaps some even irreparable. The recovery will be slow and most difficult and once again, we may well see an obstinate congress still obsessed with its own agenda or securing power. Let one hope that 2021 fares far better along down the road than it did in its beginning.