A Pre-existing Condition

America’s Immune System Is Shot

January 7, 2022

The disgraceful, disquieting events of January 6, 2021 did not materialize out of thin air, or even one badly dyed man’s fat little fingers. Yes, Turmp, et al did plan this ahead of time, but this tragic, domestic terrorist assault had deeper roots. The Ratpublican Party has been long at work dismantling democracy. It is just that before they elevated a racist, authoritarian conman to their party’s pinnacle and ultimately to the presidency of the United States, they managed to carry out their slow-motion-insurrection with more panache, gradually, like a hemlock-laced morphine drip. Rapacious gerrymandering. Broad-based, relentless voter suppression. Hey, at least they stopped burning crosses.

A Pre-existing Sedition

The Republican Party is a long-festering pre-existing condition in American society. Just as pre-existing conditions led to tens of thousands of COVID deaths because getting infected by the virus was the last straw for many a weakened immune system. So America was already struggling to breathe, suffering with brain fog, and a debilitating fever due to the insidious Ratpublican infection, long before the bizarre Orange Virus almost wiped out the national immune system of America’s body-politic – the one that is meant to protect the nation from rampant racism, fascism and terminal stupidity. Usually, once an infectious agent is detected and identified as a dangerous vehicle of disease, appropriate action is taken to avoid serious illness and/or death.

This time was different. Instead of seeking proper medical help, America became like conjoined twins, with one of the twins being resolutely suicidal. Preferring to drink disinfectant and dine on rat poison to stop the infection. Finally, mostly by virtue of time, the acute infection has been subdued, but the underlying, pre-existing condition remains dangerous. Democracy in the U.S. is on life-support. And America’s immune system is more compromised than ever, at least in my lifetime.

“Those who stormed this Capitol and those who instigated and incited and
those who called on them to do so, held a dagger at the throat
of America and American democracy.”

Cue The Crickets

Ratpublicans were eerily silent on the first anniversary of one of the darkest days in American history. Guilty conscience? Fear of angering their Artificially Orange Deity? Busy planning their Coup, Part II? They even gave their white whitewashing propaganda machine the day off. Several sedition celebrations were cancelled at the eleventh hour for some reason, including the one planned by the guy who put the hit out on America one year ago. Getting their hair done? Cowardice? 

Not one single pathetic boot-licking, ass-kissing, ego-stroking Ratpublican senator showed up to show support for reality, democracy and the rule of law. Apparently, 30 of them were attending a colleague’s funeral; 20 of them were just absent without reason. Why do they hate America?

A Momentary Lapse Of Treason?

Even Dick “I Shot A Man In The Face Just To Make Him Apologize” Cheney (himself no stranger to committing treason) managed to get up out of the fake wheel chair he used as a prop to avoid standing up for the inauguration of America’s first black president to accompany his daughter – the lone currently-serving Ratpublican to show up to her workplace to honor this somber day. The younger Cheney’s only other fellow House 1/6 Committee Ratpublican Adam Kinzinger could not be there at the Capitol commemorating this day because his wife was about to give birth. I hope that baby, and so many others recently arrived or about to do so, are able to experience at least the amount of democracy that we have lived under so far. Such as it has been – imperfect, indeed greatly flawed in many ways, sometimes moreso than others – but still, at least in principle, of, by and for the people. In principle. Which is now in great peril of being something considerably less so.

Even uber-partisan, shameless dirty trickster Karl “Turd Blossom” Rove chimed in on the right side of history in an op-ed, “To move beyond January 6, 2021, we must put country ahead of party.” Yeah, right. Naturally Rove immediately went on to scold/blame Democrats, adding, “For Democrats, that means resisting their leadership’s petty habit of aggravating partisan fault lines by indiscriminately condemning all who came to Washington that day.” That, of course is, 1) not happening at all, and 2) the corroded pot calling the kettle black. I guess old, disgusting habits die hard.

Ted Talks (Out Of Both Sides Of His Mouth)

Lyin’ Ted “Cancun” Cruz, helped incite the sedition last January 6^th and was seen as on the side of the traitors. On January 5^th Cruz said, “We are approaching a solemn anniversary this week, and it is an anniversary of a violent terrorist attack on the Capitol.” I guess the Texas Twit thought his comments would not be noticed by the world at large because last night he was called out by Fucker Carlson on his nightly racist revival. Naturally, Ted’s Silly Putty spine sagged and he begged Carlson’s forgiveness, saying “The way I phrased things yesterday was sloppy, and frankly dumb.” Dumb? Nah. Pathetic? Sure. Gutless. Unquestionable. You do you, Ted. Just, please do it somewhere else, where no one ever has to know about it. 

I. Mangrey grasping at straws.