Disorder In The House

~ snakesinthegrass2014
Source: Getty Pictures via Politico
Source: Getty Pictures via Politico

Disorder in the house
There’s a flaw in the system
And the fly in the ointment’s gonna bring the whole thing down

The floodgates are open
We’ve let the demons loose
The big guns have spoken
And we’ve fallen for the ruse

(Warren Zevon)

Thinking…. thinking hard.

Okay, okay, hear me out with this: I’ve changed my mind. I don’t like the situation in which we find ourself, but as a natural born American citizen (you know, the “regular” kind), I am enacting my inalienable right to make a quasi-citizen’s arrest. Or whatever comparable equivalent Rudy Guliani later tells me is legal.

We can do that, right?

Whaddya say… let’s just suspend the rules and have a total do-over. High school student councils, college senate bodies, school boards, liquor control commissions, etc. all reverse course and change their minds on a regular basis. Hell, even our U.S. Congress does it chronically. I’m pretty sure I have five friends that I think would agree to this, and I bet you’ve got almost as many. This could actually burgeon into something real if we put our minds to it. Trump’s a businessman; he should understand the concept.

I mean, take Nordstrom’s for instance. They’ve always been gracious about accepting the return of an occasional shirt, even when it may have been worn twice and had a tiny stain on the cuff courtesy of a gin and tonic cherry. If an actual profit-minded business can overlook a customer’s foolishness, surely the Electoral College can do the same for us citizens also.

Apples and oranges, you say, eh?

Oh, all right, fine. I see eyes rolling out there. But hey, I’m at least trying to explore some ideas. All I see elsewhere are people standing on the Supreme Court steps fumbling with microphones, singing songs, and asking where the “real people” are. My ex and her divorce lawyer made for a more potent loyal opposition than the Democrats are at the moment.

Folks, I don’t think you need my telling you that we’re in a heap of trouble right now. I can even see it on Jared Kushner’s face. The man looks like a doe in the headlights.

It’s only two weeks and already the junta is flexing its muscles. I’m not quite sure exactly who they’re looking for, but they’re making an absolute mess of things at the airports and ship terminals for arriving passengers. They say it’s not religious-based, but try telling that to the Jewish family who were held for more than six hours after disembarking from their Royal Caribbean cruise in Port Canaveral, Florida last weekend.

Note to self: cancel any shopping excursion plans to St. Thomas, stat.

I now belatedly feel the Bern, truly I do. I hope he understands that I was just being playful when I said he reminded me of my Uncle Shlomo, the one relative in my family who everyone avoided at holiday meals because he talked long and loud, and food particles shot out of his mouth like projectiles. Bernie, you’re no Uncle Shlomo. Seriously, I love you, man. Just say the word and I’ll even embrace that whole budget-busting education plan of yours. For all I know it’s probably cheaper than building a wall.

Not Uncle Shlomo Source: Yahoo News
Not Uncle Shlomo
Source: Yahoo News

What’s most galling for me as I ponder the next two, three, or four years (my bet is two, but I’ll defer to Vegas) is just how much vitriol our ears and eyes will have to process as we filter the daily news. Hostility and partisan mudslinging have long been staples in government, of course. Still, except for some notable exceptions (i.e. Newt Gingrich in the nineties), we expect those in leadership positions to at least fake the part of acting like a statesman.

However, even that pretense is now out the window.

When Orrin Hatch of all people refers to his Democratic counterparts as “idiots,” I know there is zero chance of comity. A recent Washington Post article caught my eye because it warns of a permanent condition called the “New Rudeness” (suggestion: skip down towards the end of the article for the pertinent part).

Look for variant versions of “lock her up!” to be uttered by actual members of Congress and not their supporters at press conferences and forums for the foreseeable future.

Earlier today I learned as I drank my morning coffee that last weekend the president pretty much hung up on Malcom Turnbull, Australia’s prime minister. Apparently Mr. Tump kept hearing things from the prime minister that he wasn’t interested in hearing, so he just ended the call. Good one, Mate.

And as I feared in an earlier post, the administration is now taking aim at Iran. I think we can anticipate a forthcoming round of snark and bombast in the form of tweets about their Supreme Leader. It’s hard not to visualize American naval forces in the Persian Gulf involved in some kind of armed conflict in the not-so distant future. I pray I’m wrong.

Actually for someone who’s not very religious, I’ve been praying quite a bit lately. Or whatever your might call prayer at 3:00am when I lay in bed with my mind going to the most extreme places of angst. My pension, cut! Social Security, cut! Health insurance, “accessible“!

Source: Clipart Panda
Source: Clipart Panda

I suddenly miss my previous dreams where I would stand buck naked at the corner bus stop reading a newspaper. I’ll write a detailed post about that sometime if you’re interested. Just ask.

So two weeks in and we’re all on the edge of our seats. I sure as hell haven’t got any coping mechanisms for you, so I’m afraid you’re on your own. If you’re a naturalized U.S. citizen, or you’re here on a green card, I do recommend that you stay put. Call or Skype your loved ones abroad because you’re pretty much stuck in place for now. But, hey, don’t sweat it. The rest of us are too. Pull up a chair and watch the chaos.

Until next time…

36 thoughts on “Disorder In The House”

  1. What I fear most is that we will get immune to it in order to preserve our sanity. It’s hard being constantly outraged. Wonder what the Trump voters think now. We’re paying for the wall and war looks likely. Is that what they signed up for. Wonder if they still think he will open the coal mines again.

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    1. I read an article today that said his supporters are tickled pink; that they are frustrated the rest of the country isn’t giving him a chance. It’ll be interesting to see how many of them feel when they begin to see the proposals made to Medicare, Social Security, etc. And so it goes…

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  4. Okay. I want to hear about the dream….buck naked at the bus stop reading a newspaper. Hm…I always thought it was “butt naked.” Isn’t your butt kind of hanging out? I don’t know what a buck is….other than a deer (or maybe a “dangling participle” of sorts?) LOLOL
    We all need a laugh.

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      4. Hehehe I’d recommend the East as it’s treelined streets unless you want CBD then Parkville or East Melbourne is nice both can walk to the city and period homes . Or you can go hip with cafes and what not Brunswick , Fitzroy, North Melbourne etc

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  7. We downunder, loyal friends (and sometimes, I’m afraid, smartarse critics) of the US, have been feeling really quite concerned and upset for our US brethren. But there’s always a complacency when it doesn’t really impact on yourself. The call between Turnbull and Trump you mentioned has changed that. People are bemused. Why would he insult and (essentially) give the bird to a small but committed ally?

    The US Presidency reminds me of the Pacific Trash vortex. It is disgusting, nauseating, scary and huge. You’re appalled, yet cannot look away. And you don’t even really understand how something so noxious came into existence.

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    1. Helpful words of solidarity and understanding, Bruce. It absolutely galls me that he would treat an important ally like that. Never mind our own cultural ties, the military and intelligence ones are still vital! And indeed, it’s hard to look away. My small consolation for relief is that I don’t watch the evening news every night now (I still read the papers, though). I’d go mad otherwise!

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  8. Remaining aghast by the never ending horrors of current politics, I became focused on your prediction of a ‘two-year term.’ According to The Independent, the current US President is ‘highly likely to face impeachment within the next 18-months’. So your two-year prediction is pretty close. We can only hope for some calmness and sanity before then.

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      2. I couldn’t stand Bush II, but I never worried about him having the codes. Ditto Cheney and quite frankly Pence too. But I *do* worry about Trump having access to those codes. Pence would be horrifying, I agree. But not from a national security standpoint. Sigh.

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    2. I really don’t see Trump as being at all likely to be impeached. Sure, he might commit some seemingly impeachable offense, but, the Clinton impeachment taught us all that that is not what is required for impeachment. The primary requirement for impeachment is that the US House of Representatives be controlled by the opposition party. And that is not currently the case, nor will it be the case for a long, long time, due to GOP control of the states and their resultant grip on the Gerrymander Machinery. The GOP House will not impeach Trump for any kind of offense, no matter what Trump does, that is pretty much guaranteed – they are afraid of Trump’s Know Nothing base. The one and only reason they might impeach him is that they realize that, unlike Pence, he is not a True Believer, and they decide they want a True Believer in the White House. Hence, President Pence. Choke on that one for awhile.

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  9. If only we could do it over… how many who sat on the sidelines would go to the polls? How many who voted for one of the alternative candidates would actually cast a vote that mattered? How many who voted for DT “just to shake things up,” would reconsider what that actually could mean for the country and the world? I won’t be pulling up a chair, I’ll be marching in the streets.

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    1. I do think that over time — and not much time — that those who ended up voting for Trump (not supported him, but held their nose and voted) will end up seeing that it was a poor choice. His supporters will never be convinced otherwise, but I feel there are significant numbers who voted for him out of desperation that will ultimately (finally?) get some clarity. Marches will certainly help in that department, but I’m more convinced it will be the new policies that adversely affect them.

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  10. I have never in my life been this in tune with American politics. I guess I really just have Facebook to thank for that. The kind of crap people are saying to each other in the name of God is making me cringe daily. Trump is the easiest kind of person to manipulate. His ego is so huge, his skin is thin, and his inflated sense of himself are just tools to other people who will shepherd him into doing things that benefit the wrong kinds of people. The fact that no one on the religious right are able to see just how dangerous this kind of puppeteering is BLOWS.MY.MIND!!

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    1. I know. That’s what really gets me. I really don’t think his supporters fully understand exactly what they’ve bought here. To think that Trump actually cares about people who struggle to make ends meet (he’s previously called them “losers”) is a fantasy. He’s used working class Americans and their struggles to raise hope, expectations, and testosterone levels. Not that liberals haven’t done that to a degree with minorities and labor unions. But not in such a blatantly false and transparent manner.

      I do feel that ego, famously thin skin, and narcissistic personality will ultimately do him in. But after how much damage is done I have no idea.

      And, yes, what Facebook has wrought. Sigh.

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