Thursday, October 20, 2016

Hurt


(By American Zen's Mike Flannigan, on loan from Ari)
Last night, Donald Trump hurt himself.
     He'd hurt a lot of people both officially and emotionally attached to his snake oil traveling roadshow of a campaign, none of whom are deserving of any pity or sorrow but that's beside the point. He plainly lost last night's debate, which I didn't even bother watching. For the purposes of half-assed punditry, it was enough to just read the analyses of better writers than I in the Yahoo alerts that came streaming into my Android.    
     And this old song, originally by Trent Reznor and Nine Inch Nails, could serve as the epitaph we all need to rehearse when we see or feel the end is nigh and it especially serves Donald Trump in the twilight of his own self-absorbed life.
     However, there's the matter of self-awareness. That's lacking. Self absorption does not necessarily mean self-awareness. A human should at least understand and fully appreciate that epitaph when it's tried on for size in that 11th hour and Donald Trump simply does not have that.
     He hurt himself today, too.    
     Donald Trump did that by telling an equally clueless crowd in Delaware, Ohio that he would respect the election results... provided he won. Then he would deign to accept the presidency that his namesake said would be "a step down" for his father. Sure, running for the highest office in the land involves, as Hemingway said, a "built-in, shockproof shit detector" (or, in this case, a generator) and morally one must always wear hip waders during political campaigns.
     But that wasn't what Junior meant. He knows it, you know it, we all know it. It's the preamble to the old sour grapes tune that Trump sings when he doesn't get what he wants or when his hand is caught in a cookie jar (or, more accurately, up some pretty girl's skirt). "She wasn't attractive enough. Look at her!" And, after Nov. 8th, it'll be, "The election was rigged, anyway. And I never worked a shitty job for just $400,000 a year even right out of college."
     Last night during the third and final debate, Donald Trump told Chris Wallace and the American people, again, that he would contest the election results if it didn't go his way. This would be a first in American history. Not even a scumbag like Richard Nixon contested the results of the 1960 election despite losing to Kennedy by a razor-thin margin. Even though they could have pressed it harder and for legitimate reasons, Gore and Kerry could've contested the 2000 and 2004 elections, respectively.
     But they hadn't.
     Because they were bigger than that. They put this democratic republic higher than their aspirations and egos.
     Donald Trump can't and won't if he doesn't get his way. And a man born to a vast fortune and a man who had grown that vast fortune into a dynasty isn't used to not getting what he wants.
     It could be plausibly said that no major party nominee for President in US history has run a campaign so firmly identified with all the worst elements that American society can inflict upon the world. What Trump is setting up is a civil war, a needless one, that could result in Hillary Clinton's assassination. And if God forbid that happens, that another president or a President-elect is gunned down because that assassin's iconoclastic Godfather told him that woman's elevation to the Presidency of the United States of America was illegitimate, a sham...
     ...then Trump will fade back into the shadows or behind a wall of American flags, hold up his tiny hands and say, "I didn't do it!"
     The equally spoiled and coddled Mitt Romney was genuinely stunned he didn't beat Obama four years ago. Another man used to getting what he wants, when he wants it, how he wants it, still took the news with enough good grace to go into that good night without even breathing a word the contest was rigged.
     Because even a sociopath like Mitt Romney knew that President Obama beat him fair and square.
     Trump has been humbled several times in his life. Two wives divorced him, the second at a time when Trump almost lost his empire and had to get by on a mere $460,000 monthly allowance given him by a Wall Street bank. Only bridge loans and his 12 carat-plated brand name kept him afloat during those less-than-palmy years. You'd think the early 90's would've taught Trump a lesson in humility but you'd be very wrong.
     He went back to dodging his taxes, groping women, attacking and suing people with little or no provocation. Then he bragged about it and is still bragging about it on the most widely-watched television broadcasts of 2016: The presidential debates. And after last night, Hillary Clinton should've sent to Trump's suite a dozen red roses. Ten dozen of them. Because last night, with three weeks to go before Election Day, Donald Trump gave Hillary Clinton not just the White House but the keys to the entire District of Columbia.
     Donald Trump is willing to risk Civil War and having another chapter of American history scrawled in blood to satisfy his ego because he honestly believes in his combovered, double-woven mind that no one can defeat him, that no one should defeat him for the most powerful office in the free world.
     He is now the very definition of a loose cannon. Even after his own campaign manager Kellyanne Conway and his own running mate Gov. Mike Pence said they'd be at peace with the election results either way, Trump is having none of it. And the man who'd months ago called for "2nd Amendment people" to do something about this "rigged" election doesn't care how many people die or who they will be, starting with the President or President-elect. It would be a constitutional crisis unlike any other in American history.
     And if Trump gets his way, he will turn this nation from one of laws into one representing one man, himself, a man fueled by rage, avarice and lust for more, more than the world can reasonably give even in this new Gilded Age.
     Donald Trump is simply a monster, one created by American politicians who write those tax loopholes Trump has used to maximum effectiveness for nearly two decades. The Republican Party owns this Frankenstein monster who's never been, isn't now nor ever will be man enough to take No for an answer even when it's said to him on Election Night 50,000,000 or more times.
     Donald Trump, in the midst of his empire of gold dust, unpaid bills, empty casinos and people he's put out of work through his bottomless greed, incompetence and arrogance, has hurt himself today. He did it last night and he will America tomorrow because of an insult to his wholly unjustified megalomania.

6 Comments:

At October 21, 2016 at 12:26 PM, Anonymous CC said...

What debate?

Three times the country tuned in to what it thought were debates.

Three times it got political reality TV instead.

Had all third party candidates been invited to the show, then you could have called them debates.

Instead, there were more character assassinations than the CIA could shake a stick at and many issues of importance to most Americans were ignored.

What this country has are two abysmal major candidates for president.

And it's supposed to be the beacon of democracy for the rest of the world?

A man who has spent his adult life harassing and touching women, shafting his employees, and ripping off his contractors is apparently worse than a woman who was responsible for the overthrow of at least two governments, imposing criminally austere measures on a third after it suffered a devastating earthquake, and the deaths of thousands of people.

I guess an act hits home harder when the perpetrator uses his own hands than when she simply has someone else do the dirty work.

 
At October 21, 2016 at 10:56 PM, Anonymous CC said...

How did blacks fare under Clinton's husband?

How did women who received public assistance fare when he cut welfare? (Heck, how did a few of them fare literally at his hands?)

Did the wealth gap narrow during Bill's tenure?

If Monica hadn't gone down on him, he'd have cut Social Security and most of the country would have likely deluded itself into accepting it as necessary for the "new economy" because it was Clinton the Democrat who pushed for it and the other Republican wet dreams.

Did Hillary vehemently oppose any of these measures?

Trump happens to be an honest enemy.

The Clintons, on the other hand, are devious friends.

I think we know which one is more effective.

 
At October 21, 2016 at 11:39 PM, Blogger jurassicpork said...

I agree that each is dangerous in their respective way.

But I stand by my words because I know they are true. Perhaps you should reread the post. Because all I can do is repeat myself and I don't like doing that.

 
At October 22, 2016 at 4:51 AM, Anonymous CC said...

Those groups you mentioned above, with Muslims substituting for Catholics, have been harmed by the U.S. and the Clintons have had a lot to do with that.

The difference is that those people don't have a right to vote in the election because they're not U.S. citizens.

Hence, in the eyes of the American establishment, they don't matter.

Since I live outside the U.S., I am concerned about what happens to people around the world who have been harmed by U.S. foreign policy.

So, my priorities are different from those of most Americans.

If only the U.S. could return to its foreign policy of the 18th Century, when it had much less reach and Washington warned of getting involved in foreign entanglements.

I wish more Americans would wake up to how dangerous Clinton will be to the rest of the world instead of simply buying the mainstream media's take on it.

Still, I don't think I'd enjoy a Trump presidency, especially if I should return to the U.S. one day.

I've mentioned before that it may be better for the Dems to lose this year's election than to win it because losing would pretty much close the book on the Clintons' political careers.

The Repubs have been damaged beyond recognition.

The Dems need a house cleaning, too.

A Clinton victory will allow them to put off that day of reckoning for at least another four years.

By 2020, the Repubs may be able to field a saner candidate than Trump and s/he could be even more dangerous.

 
At October 22, 2016 at 2:57 PM, Blogger jurassicpork said...

Well, unlike you, I still have to live here and witness the poisoned fruit this guy will let fall. And I, for one, do not wish to see the birth of a new civil war and blood running in the streets of my country because of some coddled, rich asshole who can't take No for an answer.

 
At October 23, 2016 at 4:41 PM, Anonymous CC said...

The seeds of that poisoned fruit were fertilized at home and then ripened overseas before being re-imported back home.

There is a connection between what Trump and his supporters apparently have planned for the country should he win and what the U.S. has done to other countries since the end of World War II (and even before it for some countries).

The police state that the U.S. has supported and even trained has become increasingly familiar in neighborhoods around the country in recent decades. (Heck, even where I'm living now the previous police commissioner received some training on crowd control in the U.S.) Besides being honed in the old Jim Crow South, the police state came of age in those countries that came under the thumb of the U.S. (You'd better believe the Clintons had something to do with this.)

Trump's refusal to accept the results of the election wouldn't be news to some countries that had the results of their elections overturned by the U.S. and its proxies (either through do-overs, sanctions, coups, or a combination of these) because their preferred candidates didn't win.

Yet, while these things were going on, few Americans knew about them and even fewer bothered to speak out against them.

The chickens have been coming home to roost for a few years already, but only now have more Americans begun to wake up.

I wouldn't be surprised if some of Trump's supporters had personally meted out such punishment to the inhabitants of those countries when they served overseas in the military or the State Department.

Now they'll get to showcase their skills much closer to home if Trump wins.

 

Post a Comment

<< Home

KindleindaWind, my writing blog.

All Time Classics

  • Our Worse Half: The 25 Most Embarrassing States.
  • The Missing Security Tapes From the World Trade Center.
  • It's a Blunderful Life.
  • The Civil War II
  • Sweet Jesus, I Hate America
  • Top Ten Conservative Books
  • I Am Mr. Ed
  • Glenn Beck: Racist, Hate Monger, Comedian
  • The Ten Worst Music Videos of all Time
  • Assclowns of the Week

  • Links to the first 33 Assclowns of the Week.
  • Links to Assclowns of the Week 38-63.
  • #106: The Turkey Has Landed edition
  • #105: Blame it on Paris or Putin edition
  • #104: Make Racism Great Again Also Labor Day edition
  • #103: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Toilet edition
  • #102: Orange is the New Fat edition
  • #101: Electoral College Dropouts edition
  • #100: Centennial of Silliness edition
  • #99: Dr. Strangehate edition
  • #98: Get Bentghazi edition
  • #97: SNAPping Your Fingers at the Poor edition
  • #96: Treat or Treat, Kiss My Ass edition
  • #95: Monumental Stupidity double-sized edition
  • #94: House of 'Tards edition
  • #93: You Da Bomb! edition.
  • #92: Akin to a Fool edition.
  • #91: Aurora Moronealis edition.
  • #90: Keep Your Gubmint Hands Off My High Pre'mums and Deductibles! edition.
  • #89: Occupy the Catbird Seat/Thanksgiving edition.
  • #88: Heil Hitler edition.
  • #87: Let Sleeping Elephants Lie edition.
  • #86: the Maniacs edition.
  • #85: The Top 50 Assclowns of 2010 edition.
  • #(19)84: Midterm Madness edition.
  • #83: Spill, Baby, Spill! edition.
  • #82: Leave Corporations Alone, They’re People! edition.
  • #81: Hatin' on Haiti edition.
  • #80: Don't Get Your Panties in a Twist edition.
  • #79: Top 50 Assclowns of 2009 edition.
  • #78: Nattering Nabobs of Negativism edition.
  • #77: ...And Justice For Once edition.
  • #76: Reading Tea Leaves/Labor Day edition.
  • #75: Diamond Jubilee/Inaugural Edition
  • #74: Dropping the Crystal Ball Edition
  • #73: The Twelve Assclowns of Christmas Edition
  • #72: Trick or Treat Election Day Edition
  • #71: Grand Theft Autocrats Edition
  • #70: Soulless Corporations and the Politicians Who Love Them Edition
  • Empire Of The Senseless.
  • Christwire.org: Conservative Values for an Unsaved World.
  • Esquire's Charles Pierce.
  • Brilliant @ Breakfast.
  • The Burning Platform.
  • The Rant.
  • Mock, Paper, Scissors.
  • James Petras.
  • Towle Road.
  • Avedon's Sideshow (the new site).
  • At Largely, Larisa Alexandrovna's place.
  • The Daily Howler.
  • The DCist.
  • Greg Palast.
  • Jon Swift. RIP, Al.
  • God is For Suckers.
  • The Rude Pundit.
  • Driftglass.
  • Newshounds.
  • William Grigg, a great find.
  • Brad Blog.
  • Down With Tyranny!, Howie Klein's blog.
  • Wayne's World. Party time! Excellent!
  • Busted Knuckles, aka Ornery Bastard.
  • Mills River Progressive.
  • Right Wing Watch.
  • Earthbond Misfit.
  • Anosognosia.
  • Echidne of the Snakes.
  • They Gave Us a Republic.
  • The Gawker.
  • Outtake Online, Emmy-winner Charlotte Robinson's site.
  • Skippy, the Bush Kangaroo
  • No More Mr. Nice Blog.
  • Head On Radio Network, Bob Kincaid.
  • Spocko's Brain.
  • Pandagon.
  • Slackivist.
  • WTF Is It Now?
  • No Blood For Hubris.
  • Lydia Cornell, a very smart and accomplished lady.
  • Roger Ailes (the good one.)
  • BlondeSense.
  • The Smirking Chimp.
  • Hammer of the Blogs.
  • Vast Left Wing Conspiracy.
  • Argville.
  • Existentialist Cowboy.
  • The Progressive.
  • The Nation.
  • Mother Jones.
  • Vanity Fair.
  • Salon.com.
  • Citizens For Legitimate Government.
  • News Finder.
  • Indy Media Center.
  • Lexis News.
  • Military Religious Freedom.
  • McClatchy Newspapers.
  • The New Yorker.
  • Bloggingheads TV, political vlogging.
  • Find Articles.com, the next-best thing to Nexis.
  • Altweeklies, for the news you won't get just anywhere.
  • The Smirking Chimp
  • Don Emmerich's Peace Blog
  • Wikileaks.
  • The Peoples' Voice.
  • Dictionary.com.
  • CIA World Fact Book.
  • IP address locator.
  • Tom Tomorrow's hilarious strip.
  • Babelfish, an instant, online translator. I love to translate Ann Coulter's site into German.
  • Newsmeat: Find out who's donating to whom.
  • Wikipedia.
  • Uncyclopedia.
  • anysoldier.com
  • Icasualties
  • Free Press
  • YouTube
  • The Bone Bridge.
  • Powered by Blogger