by John Walters
From MAGA To Gaga
Yes, another old white guy is the new president. And yet yesterday was wholly remarkable and entirely refreshing. A palate cleanser (as well as a palace cleanser). It’s almost incredible to believe that the inauguration of the 46th president, Joseph Biden, took place on the same site where only two weeks earlier thousands of insurrectionists attempted to overthrow the presidential election.
Unbelievable days in which we live.
Two weeks ago, MAGA was breaking glass and beating cops. Yesterday, Lady Gaga was singing the national anthem on that same ground.
The previous president promised to “Make America Great Again.” All most of us hope that his predecessor does is Make America Good Again. Good, as in decent, kind, trustworthy, neighborly. We’ll all settle for that, no?
American Beauty
I didn’t know who Amanda Gorman was when yesterday dawned. I sure do now. If you have not already, give yourself to these 5 1/2 minutes. Again, looking back just two short weeks, a young woman from Colorado inside the U.S. Capitol, in the House chamber, was giving an oration in which she declared, “I call bullcrap!” And then yesterday this young woman from California delivered this creation of her own words.
Here’s her interview with Anderson Cooper from last night…
Feel The Bern
Nothing said “Watching my granddaughter’s soccer game in mid-November” quite like this photo snapped of Senator Bernie Sanders yesterday. It’s the picture that launched a thousand memes…
This…
…and this…
…and of course, this…
Heaven-Sent
I’ve been thinking about something for awhile now, but I haven’t made the time to type it up. So I’ll attempt to do so now. The timing of this is ideal as today marks the first anniversary of the first reported coronavirus case in the United States, in Washington.
I’ll attempt to make my argument in the form of a geometry proof. Please bear with me, as it’s been about 39 years since the last time I wrote out a geometry proof.
THEORY: The coronavirus was heaven-sent.
STATEMENT: An overwhelming number of Christians and evangelicals voted for Donald Trump.
STATEMENT: Christians and evangelicals believe in the power of God to directly influence events.
STATEMENT: An overwhelming number of Christians and evangelicals have seen Donald Trump as a savior of sorts, an instrument of the Lord to save the USA.
STATEMENT: Donald Trump wins the presidency if not for the coronavirus (I cannot prove this but I feel very confident in saying it).
STATEMENT: Donald Trump did not need to lose the presidency because of the coronavirus.
STATEMENT: The coronavirus was and remains a crisis (an immensely deadly one), but it also offered President Trump a unique opportunity.
STATEMENT: President Trump failed to seize that opportunity.
STATEMENT: It is not, nor has it ever been in Donald Trump’s nature, to roll up his sleeves and do the work. It is in his nature to make himself a priority, and in the case of the coronavirus a year ago, his priority was that he not be blamed for it.
STATEMENT: The coronavirus, contrary to what Trish Reagan believes, is non-partisan.
STATEMENT: If Donald Trump had only been willing to behave as a true leader should, to be honest with us and ask us to sacrifice (wear masks) for the good of all, he would’ve not only retained his base but even won over those who did not vote for him in 2016.
STATEMENT: Alas, it was never in Donald Trump’s nature to lead. It is only in his nature to analyze something as to how it affects him. In the moment, he ascertained that the coronavirus would derail his campaign.
STATEMENT: It is not in Donald Trump’s nature to be honest. Hence, confronted with the prospect of the pandemic in the election year, he simply lied about its gravity, or refused to listen to the experts, simply hoping that if he told enough lies or ignored it enough, it would vanish like E. Jean Carroll without a friendly New York City-based editor.
STATEMENT: If you believe in God and His ability to directly influence events, then He threw down the coronavirus not as a means to derail Trump, but as a means to test him. WHO ARE YOU? WHAT ARE YOU ABOUT? Politically, the coronavirus could have been an incredible triumph for Donald Trump if only, out of character, he had been able to think and behave like a true leader.
STATEMENT: The coronavirus did not derail Donald Trump. It merely exposed him for who he is. And since it is not something borne of man or a Democratic strategist, he had no one to blame but himself.
STATEMENT: The Lord works in mysterious ways.
I was at my office yesterday for my once/week escape from my home work place/kitchen table but was able to see the bulk of the ceremony. I luckily clicked onto CNN’s live feed a few minutes before the Bidens came down the stairs. I did miss seeing the hordes of people you usually see at these things (excluding 2016’s…..) but still thought this Inauguration was pretty damn good! Biden’s speech was impressive (although if this stress on “unity” means NOT going after the bastards that participated AND/OR instigated/paid for the insurrection, then he will lose me forever!) That young poet was VERY impressive, as was Gaga once I got past her ‘Hunger Games’ outfit.
The past 3 months had been so stressful worrying about what stunt the Sociopath & his minions would pull next that I did not truly celebrate that a WOMAN was going to be our VP until the night before the Inauguration. I started tearing up during her swearing-in. This is a BIG DAMN DEAL & LONG OVERDUE!
I liked the TV show last night too as it was MUCH better than I’d feared of a “virtual celebration”. Of course, how can you go wrong with the host being the one man most of America agrees is a good & decent man? 🙂 And great musical start with Springsteen & I even loved the Katy Perry ‘Fireworks’ dissolving into the REAL fireworks over our nation’s capital. (Yes, I teared up there too!) And John Legend was the best I’d ever heard him.
For the rest of this week I will TRY to just revel in the relief of not feeling anger/despair/disgust 24/7 after 4 loooooong years & not think about the GOP-NAZIs still in Congress & in state political offices around the country. And how CLOSE WE CAME to losing it all.
And congrats if you still own NFLX! It had a banner day yesterday after its earnings report.
Since you own a smaller number of stocks than myself (i.e your investments are more concentrated) you may not have experienced this but excluding last Friday, the past month at my stock account has been DAWN OF THE DEAD. Yep, things that had been in the red for so long I was beginning to believe might never turn around had started “MOVIN ON UP”! It’s interesting that my ‘Big 3″ that was responsible for the bulk of the lifting until October or so has mostly just been treading water since & the ZOMBIES have, er, come alive to keep things moving to new peaks.