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TITLE : AND WE HAVE COME TO THIS
In a discussion regarding the then state of affairs, we referenced a paper written by the eminent scholar, Daniel Patrick Moynihan, titled “Declining Deviancy Down”. Borrowing from a theory in criminology, Dr. Moynihan drew parallels to how a community may, as the tide of crime expands and persists, actually normalize it as being acceptable behavior. Seeing this emerge in our political world, we referred to this behavior as being an ever spreading disease One must now ask the question, in assessing the current status of things, particularly the political landscape, have we descended to the level of thinking that what we see all around in terms of clearly deviant, dystopian behavior, should be treated as the norm.
Led by a confirmed narcissist and pathological liar and actively supported by QAnon disciples, the GOP has been and is presently engaging in a concerted drive toward eliminating our representative republic and replacing it with a kleptocracy, with a focus on securing and maintaining all the political and economic power there is to be had.
Beginning with a campaign littered with half truths, outright lies and rhetoric specifically geared to fears propagated by the far right, the disease began to not only spread but gain traction, especially in the deep red states. The country was witness to what can only be described as the singularly most corrupt regime – one refuses to call it an administration – in our nation’s history, all the while pounding out the message that the other side of the aisle was planning to overrun the country with a socialist agenda, taking away all our freedoms and the “Big Lie’ that a GOP loss would be only due to fraud and the rigging of the election. Sadly, somewhere in the neighborhood of twenty-seven per cent of the voting population believed it all. The regime, being propped up by far right elements in congress, and the right wing media, continued to spew conspiracy theories hammering at the fears of the less than informed and fundamentally politically ignorant.
The messaging from this regime also had a singular target – the main stream media, especially the well established press. Using quote from Stalin himself, the leadership continually referred to the press as the “ enemy of the people” who refused to push the regime’s “ Big Lie “ , Hitler’s favorite strategy mantra.
Over time, the plague intensified and, as more and more baseless and brainless conspiracy theories surfaced, the fomenting of disruption mounted and a volcanic explosion was imminent. The body politic was now witness to not only the rhetoric but the actions of the GOP and its cult followers, setting up not only the centralizing of power but orchestrating the stacking of the courts and other systems, insuring the lack of accountability for their actions.
The national election was finally here and, after months and months of hammering the “Big Lie”, the GOP cult leader candidate lost. And not just lost, but their candidate lost the popular vote for a second time and by over seven million votes.
Immediately, the rants began and the “ Big Lie” became the mantra of the party and its followers and a season of continued screaming about rigged elections was in full sway.
Behind the scenes, the party was plotting and planning on how to overturn the election and place their candidate – the cult leader – back in the White House. Clearly, we were in the throes of a movement to overthrow the government.
There being absolutely no evidence on any level to support the Big Lie of voter fraud, the movement became more and more focused on the end numbers of the election, the electoral college votes and their counting in joint session of congress, set for January sixth 2021.
On that date, the volcanic eruption happened. In Washington D.C, as the final Electoral Vote count was about to commence, a mob of thousands stormed the Capitol, destroying much property, calling for the hanging of the vice president and the assassination of the Speaker of the House, killing several and seriously wounding hundreds of law enforcement. Inside, numerous members of the senate called for the rejection of the election results and in the House, over one hundred and thirty members voted in like fashion. For the first time, the peaceful transfer of power was not to be and a full scale insurrection was on display.
The aftermath of this is far too convoluted and complicated to discuss here. However, when you take into consideration the run up to, the events surrounding January sixth and the continuing aftermath, there can be no dispute that our very system of government – that representative republic constructed in the mid eighteenth century – is on the verge of collapse and the modern GOP is clearly and squarely to blame.
The following months saw the increase in intense activity among the conspiracy theorists and, with the mid term elections fast approaching, the GOP drive is to push candidates who one, subscribe to the Big Lie and two, are blindly loyal to the cult leader. The end agenda is to eventually control all state and local elections and to have, according to the Kremlin playbook, the White House occupied by an authoritarian dictator. There is now even serious talk about revising the Constitution in order for it to fit the kleptocracy agenda, an agenda all led by a demented sociopath.
We have come down to this. A country, with all its faults, still has been the bastion of freedoms has now been taken over by a crime family mentality bent on destroying a system and replacing it with an directorate more closely aligned with fascism than with a representative republic. The objective is an authority which cannot accept any argument, any disagreement or, for certain, any questioning of its precepts. The entity of the American Experiment is doomed unless and until a right thinking, truly patriotic public with rise up and reinstates what should be a government of the people, not of the kleptocrats -a return to regular order, as noted by the late senator from Arizona.
It all will come down to the vote. In spite of obvious suppression of voting rights, it will be contingent on a voting pubic which must be awakened to the reality of the tyranny at hand on the part of the GOP and will turn out to vote for a functioning government. Understand this one’s fear of the outcome. Dies Irae prope adest !