WTF, America?
Nov. 9th, 2016 08:42 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
snorkackcatcher... look, when we said we wanted you to elect Trump so Brexit!UK would no longer be thought of as the stupidest, most xenophobic nation around, it was a joke.
There are various scenarios around in which Trump being full of shit means it's not as bad as it could be, but they involve him not actually doing anything of importance -- either because he treats the job as a gigantic ego-wank and lets his subordinates do all the actual governing, or because he does something which gives the Republican party the excuse to apply a swift impeachment backstab and install Pence (although it would have to be something spectacularly bad for them to brave the wroth of their base and do that).
And of course even in those best case scenarios, the Republicans still have a triple lock giving them a free hand to do what they want as far as policy goes. I assume it's going to be goodbye Obamacare, hello all sorts of ghastly ideas. Sucks to be American either way, but as for the rest of the world's point of view -- you voted for that, you deal with it, just don't start a fucking nuclear war.
Of course, it offers a yoooge boost to right-wing triumphalism world wide, so the next round of elections in Europe are going to be fun too (if you enjoy seeing just how fucked up things can get). The quote that struck me was from Marine Le Pen’s "most senior strategist, Florian Philippot", who tweeted: "Their world is collapsing. Ours is being built." He might as well have added "Tomorrow belongs to us!", just to get the full vibe.
It's easy to draw comparisons with the 1930s. The problem with that is that it feels like an overreaction, and probably -- hopefully -- is, but presumably in the 1930s it was an overreaction too right up to the point at which it wasn't, and it's hard to tell the difference without the benefit of hindsight. However, if you're looking for analogies ... well, after Brexit, I tried to think of some other case in which a nation had deliberately chosen long-term self-harm for really dumb reasons, but the best I could think of was the cattle-killing movement in the 1850s Cape. As for this ... well, how about the same part of the world a century later, the 1948 South African general election which has a number of wince-inducing parallels? That one worked out well, didn't it?
The older I get, the more I feel like "people are shits" acts as a necessary and sufficient explanation for many things.
My sympathies for my flisters in the US, most of whom I assume had sense enough to vote Clinton.
There are various scenarios around in which Trump being full of shit means it's not as bad as it could be, but they involve him not actually doing anything of importance -- either because he treats the job as a gigantic ego-wank and lets his subordinates do all the actual governing, or because he does something which gives the Republican party the excuse to apply a swift impeachment backstab and install Pence (although it would have to be something spectacularly bad for them to brave the wroth of their base and do that).
And of course even in those best case scenarios, the Republicans still have a triple lock giving them a free hand to do what they want as far as policy goes. I assume it's going to be goodbye Obamacare, hello all sorts of ghastly ideas. Sucks to be American either way, but as for the rest of the world's point of view -- you voted for that, you deal with it, just don't start a fucking nuclear war.
Of course, it offers a yoooge boost to right-wing triumphalism world wide, so the next round of elections in Europe are going to be fun too (if you enjoy seeing just how fucked up things can get). The quote that struck me was from Marine Le Pen’s "most senior strategist, Florian Philippot", who tweeted: "Their world is collapsing. Ours is being built." He might as well have added "Tomorrow belongs to us!", just to get the full vibe.
It's easy to draw comparisons with the 1930s. The problem with that is that it feels like an overreaction, and probably -- hopefully -- is, but presumably in the 1930s it was an overreaction too right up to the point at which it wasn't, and it's hard to tell the difference without the benefit of hindsight. However, if you're looking for analogies ... well, after Brexit, I tried to think of some other case in which a nation had deliberately chosen long-term self-harm for really dumb reasons, but the best I could think of was the cattle-killing movement in the 1850s Cape. As for this ... well, how about the same part of the world a century later, the 1948 South African general election which has a number of wince-inducing parallels? That one worked out well, didn't it?
The older I get, the more I feel like "people are shits" acts as a necessary and sufficient explanation for many things.
My sympathies for my flisters in the US, most of whom I assume had sense enough to vote Clinton.
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no subject
Date: 2016-11-09 11:02 pm (UTC)Unfortunately, I don't think Trump even needs to start a nuclear war to fuck things up for the rest of the world; four to eight years of climate change denial is bad enough by itself.
no subject
Date: 2016-11-09 11:22 pm (UTC)Yes, that's true. although we're already past several points of no return there and improvements require politicians worldwide with enough backbone for coordinated action, so I guess we were looking at disasters anyway. Remember when things seemed bad but progress felt possible, instead of the sickening feeling that we maybe really are headed into one of those catastrophes that used to be sci-fi disaster porn?
no subject
Date: 2016-11-13 07:50 pm (UTC)That's kind of what I've been thinking lately, too--I really feel that a lot of the stuff that is reportedly said by politicians can be compared to Germany pre-WWII, and that's a very disturbing idea.
no subject
Date: 2016-11-17 02:31 am (UTC)Right?? Italy, France, Hungary - I'm really worried about what happens next.
It's easy to draw comparisons with the 1930s. The problem with that is that it feels like an overreaction, and probably -- hopefully -- is, but presumably in the 1930s it was an overreaction too right up to the point at which it wasn't, and it's hard to tell the difference without the benefit of hindsight.
YES. Thank you for articulating this so well! I see some quotes or ideas and I think "that is so 1930s" and then I laugh at myself for buying into lefty apocalyptic scenarios, except that in 1932 the idea of the final solution would have seemed crazy. And Trump's rise, in particular... it's been so unbelievable to see all these gatekeeping institutions crumble. Well, thank god for Parliamentary democracy, because for all its flaws it does shield us from a certain brand of demagoguery.