March 9, 2020
“These are the times that try men’s souls.” (Were women immune?) So began Thomas Paine’s immortal series of
essays entitled “The American Crisis.”
Published December 23, 1776, George Washington had his officers read
this essay as he and his ragtag army crossed the Delaware under cover of
darkness two days later on Christmas night.
Against all odds and common-sense Washington continued to battle far
superior forces. His mission impossible,
his victory was never to be…until he prevailed.
Thomas Paine
America has been many things since 1776. Some have been glorious. Some have been utterly abysmal. Overall, we have been in rapid decline since
the days of George W. Bush and Dick Cheney (Well, okay, since Reagan.), and
have jumped into hyper-speed since Mitch McConnell took control of the Senate
and refused to entertain any thought of compromise or consensus. Ever.
One of the most horrific moments in our history occurred on
November 8, 2016 when the Electoral College installed Donald Chrump as the 45th
and worst president in our nation’s history.
Not everyone knew at the time that he would be the worst, which is the
kind of assessment that usually requires the hindsight afforded by the passage
of time. But this was different. Nothing could have been more obvious than how
bad this man would be as president.
Chrump campaigned as though he hoped to be the worst. He appeared for all intents and purposes as
worse than anything we had ever witnessed, with his overt misogyny and racism,
his staggering ignorance and flagrant lying, yet tens of millions of our
countrymen and especially countrywhitewomen voted for this vulgar, ignorant,
hateful, fearmongering con man. Many of
them were mad that they had to live through eight years of a black man in the
White House.
Side note: The previous most horrific moment was when even
the Electoral College was not enough, and the Supreme Court stopped the counting
of votes before installing our 43rd president, who ended up being the worst
president ever, back when America was still so innocent that we could not
imagine having anything like Donald Chrump in the White House.
It seems that in 2020 we have another tyrant to throw
off. At least the British Crown of yore
had some use, and for a while some affection for their American Colonies. King Donald cares absolutely nothing for the
country under his rule, despite his ersatz patriotism and constant, grotesque flag
groping. His ignorance of and utter
contempt for our laws and our Constitution know no bounds. His degree of empathy, on a scale of 1-10, is
well below zero. He desires to rule with
a tiny little iron fist and a very, very bad uh-brain.
King
Donald the Orange
These are some times that are trying our souls. Fraying our nerves. Corroding our brains. Today’s Benedict Arnold occupies the White
House with the title of President.
America has long needed a new revolution, but few times more
than right now. Bernie Sanders has been
talking about just that for quite some time.
He fought for and rallied millions of Americans to that cause for the
2016 campaign and that remains the core message of his candidacy in 2020.
As Bernie Sanders guides his army through the treacherous
waters of the Democratic National Committee and its primary process, many
people tethered to the status quo insist he has no chance. His message is untenable. His vision for America is delusional. Against all odds and common-sense Sanders
continues to battle far superior forces.
His mission is impossible. His
victory is never to be…until he prevails.*
I. Mangrey resisting.
*Obviously,
it looks pretty bleak for Sanders at this point, but the need for a drastic change
– other than the one foisted upon us by the current Conman-in-chief – could not
be more critical; think climate crisis, economic inequality crisis, healthcare
crisis, ballooning ignorance and racism, etc. Joe Biden offers nothing of the sort. If need be, I will vote for him because he is
not an orange racist psychopath.
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