01 November 2022

The crucible... will American democracy survive?

Steve Bannon says Bolsonaro "can't leave office" after losing the election in Brazil. (Bolsonaro himself has said nothing, and some of his allies have accepted Lula da Silva's victory, so I guess that means Brazil is more democratic than the US, since our former guy, with Bannon's help, did not do that). Does anyone honestly believe Bannon has information, or any cause to believe, that the Brazilian election was anything but essentially fair? It was close. But counting votes actually isn't all that hard, and other advanced countries which have a fundamental respect for the rule of law do it all the time. Almost 2% in an election of millions of votes isn't that close, and a forensic analysis would assign essentially 100% to the validity of the outcome. It was indeed much closer than the 2020 presidential election here. So what is Bannon, the quintessential Trumper, actually saying? Simple. They don't believe in elections. They believe in their power. Elections are useful for idiots who believe in them, when they win. If they don't win, roll out the Big Lie, because power is everything

This is not American. Those who support this are traitors to our country. Simple as that. 

Rachel Maddow (who, whether you like her or not, is a patriot), said yesterday that this election, "top to bottom" is about whether we will still have elections, and democracy, or not. And "not" is force and violence. The kind of force and violence, like the attempted kidnapping of Nancy Pelosi and attempted murder of her husband, committed by a Trumpist lunatic, that people like the absolutely disgusting Kari Lake (Trump candidate for Governor of Arizona) thought was real funny. The same Kari Lake who, when asked if she would accept the results of the election were she to lose, refused to say she would. She kept saying, I will respect the results when I win

I say again, this is not American. It's just not. Not all Republicans think like this. But the de facto leader of their party, the increasingly deranged Donald Trump, does, and his rallygoers are now openly embracing the absolutely insane and out and out fascistic QAnon conspiracy. (Trump's podium is now emblazoned with the QAnon slogan "WWG1WGA," which I refuse to even explain (look it up), and he speaks over the creepy fascist song they all swoon over). 

If you believe in prayer, pray for our country. If you don't, please, please do everything you can to ensure everyone you know who believes in fairness, in democracy, in the Constitution, as a guiding principle, hell, just in civil order and the rule of law, actually votes next week. Because a whole hell of a lot is at stake. It's not primarily about policy, although of course there's a lot to say about that, too. It's about whether the winners of elections take office; whether there is any honesty or rules of the road to our government. The very continued existence of America as a republic is being threatened. 

If you think this is hyperbole, or hysteria, I'm sorry, you are just not paying enough attention. Political violence has increased over 100% since Trump was dragged kicking and screaming from the White House after losing the election. Over half the candidates in his party openly endorse the Big Lie and refuse to acknowledge the validity of our electoral process. If you are familiar with historical precedents, such as Italy in 1921 or Germany in 1933, the parallels are absolutely terrifying. Wake up, my friends. It is time to take this threat very, very seriously indeed, because if we lose the civil order and orderly transition of power our foreparents fought for so fundamentally, there will be an enormous amount of pain and death before it can ever be recovered. 

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