LOSERS IN LOVE

 

Only President Harding reached a larger
audience than me.

This ridiculous blog, which can't even decide which font to use from piece to piece, has at least one regular reader in England. This is proof beyond doubt that my influence reaches 3,000 miles, even if it's only as wide as his domicile.

So it is to that loyal reader I address this essay, which may provide a point of view that he might not see on TV or the internet. I don't live in Washington, which can often skew one's opinion of current affairs. As an outsider, I'm immune to "what should happen", and veer closer to "open your eyes, dummy".

And so I beg you, don't be fooled by those optimists who believe that once our Gangster-in-Chief is ensconced at his personal Spandau Prison -- otherwise known as Mar-a-Lago -- that his influence on American politics will suddenly diminish like a runway model's weight during Fashion Week.

How do I know this? My eyes tell me so, when they see this domestic terrorist in the Capitol putsch earlier this month:

That is the flag of the Confederacy -- which officially ended 156 years ago. This joker isn't the only American who proudly waves the Stars and Bars, originally carried by soldiers defending the right to own dark-skinned humans as free labor. Go to any right-wing "freedom" march and you'll see more Confederate flags than you will high school graduates.

I would wager, in fact, that the Confederate flag is seen more in 2021 than at any time since the Ku Klux Klan's heyday a century ago. In fact, it may be displayed now more than in the Civil War itself, even if their heroes Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee wanted it put away, never to be flown again.

Then there's the other symbol that keeps returning whenever the name "Trump" is spoken in reverence: 

I hate be one of those cranks who say, "When I  was growing up..." -- but when I was growing up, History teachers made sure to drum the fact into you that the swastika was the symbol of the most hideous political movement ever.

"Pssst. Over there, behind the door."

And yet swastikas and other Nazi regalia are proudly worn by "patriotic" Americans willing to break federal laws for their leader -- of whom they've been known to shout "Hail Trump!" as they thrust their hands in the air Hitler-style, and wear "Camp Auschwitz" hoodies. You remember, the folks who Ivanka Trump calls "American patriots" and her dad loves -- and which, technically,  makes Jared Kushner a collaborator. (Really, doesn't he give off the vibes of someone who'd sell out Anne Frank?)

There are more Nazis in the lower left corner of the
poster than my daughter saw in any text book. And
they're actors.

Now, unlike the Confederacy's loss, Germany's shellacking occurred a mere 76 years ago -- close enough that there are Americans who remember it, Yet  I don't exaggerate when I say that my daughter learned more about World War II from watching the 1940s Sherlock Holmes DVDs than she did in school.

Ergo, if the Confederacy and Nazi Germany can still find a following after all this time, the Trump movement theoretically should thrive in the Republican party for many years to come.

Now, Mitch McConnell will likely say that the Trump fans I've talked about here aren't real Republicans.  All I can tell you is that the people holding Confederate and Nazi flags are likely not registered Democrats. 

I bet Trump didn't expect his neck in the rope.

Mitch, however, can take heart in this recent headline: Far-right extremists call for the execution of 'coward' Trump after he asks for calm following riot. That should relax the Republican establishment... right?

To conclude: there's a sizable contingent of Americans who support slave-owners, Nazis, and Donald Trump. Or, to put it more succinctly, they identify with losers. Not enough to constitute a majority -- but a lot more than could fill a beer hall.

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