There was a time when US politics wasn’t a race to the bottom. It was considered rough then but compared to now it was a prom night. People tried to look good, rather than just more maniacal than each other. Hasn’t been that way for a long time, and if the Pelosi assault is anything to go by it’s getting worse.
Never mind any or all of America’s problems. Never mind the world falling to bits and everyone going broke or broker on a daily basis. Egos and big money are far more important.
Nor is sanity much of an issue. Hate is the currency, and you get paid for hating people. Pick a hashtag on Twitter when you enter #Democrats. You’ll get a drop-down menu saying #DemocratsAreEvil, #DemocratsAreDestroyingAmerica, and #DemocratsAreTheProblem.
#Republican gets almost identical drop-downs. Well, nobody has ever accused PR trolls of originality. Or sanity. Tearing the country apart is just business to these cattle.
That all this hysteria has done so much damage is predictable. Turning hysteria into a national way of life, however, seems to have a few drawbacks:
You’re seeing nothing but paid political statements. No more, no less. The insanity is the catalyst for failure. People are making big money by turning every issue into a no-go zone.
There are no demands on politicians to actually achieve anything. Trump’s tenure involved tax cuts for the rich, new tariffs paid by US importers, a few metres of wall, and lots of golf. True heroism, right?
Biden’s tenure has mainly been negotiations with Trump lackeys. The green budget was an achievement, but you’d never notice in the ever-dissembling media. FOX News coverage of Biden is child psychology at its most basic, and it’s continuous.
Voter fraud is the Republican catchcry, overlooking the fact the Republicans didn’t at any stage seriously contest any of the election results except verbally. Fun issues are cuts to Medicare and Social Security. How unpredictable. Everyone but them should be poorer and unable to pay for anything.
Nobody knows what the Democrat catchcry is. They might get some interest with “Sanity! Now!”, perhaps. The lack of a single clear message, Communications 101, is being flagged, but a week out from the mid-terms, nothing much is happening.
The stench of QAnon continues, although it’s been almost completely written out of the script as an actual entity these days.
Super PACs are doing fine. God’s Gift To Money Laundering seems fat and happy. Apparently organized crime and the dark net have condescended to participate in bankrolling them, according to some sources.
Meanwhile, the nation struggles to find the money for daily basics. It’s like the country is determined to keep machinegunning itself in the foot, while that foot is in its mouth.
…So while Vlad and the Lads, that famous Russian boy band, mutter about the use of nukes in Ukraine, and literally every other festering, unmanaged global issue goes on, this is the state of America.
Happy?
Somebody must be very proud to have turned America into a totally dysfunctional mess.
I wonder who that person is?
It may well be you.
Apathy is its own reward. These guys are getting away with anything and everything, and nobody’s calling them to account on any subject in the language.
Believing in politics is exactly like believing in the Easter Bunny just a lot more naïve. You don’t even get Easter eggs, unless you lay them yourself.
Call it what you will. Believe in it until you’re red, white, and blue in the face and equally broke 10 years from now. This started with Reagan and it’s just got worse since. 40 years later, what’s changed? Some gizmos and a lot of added verbiage.
This is a truly nauseating subject. Until America’s politics reach potty training level, nothing will change.
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Disclaimer
The opinions expressed in this Op-Ed are those of the author. They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of the Digital Journal or its members.
