A Developed Taste

On and on and on, for more than ninety mins, he driveled hatred, racism, and bigotry; sputtered treasonous proposals.  They cheered every drivel and sputter.  Rose enthusiastically to their feet time after time.   Their adoration of their magus on full display to the world.  

Europe, all the free world, shuddered with the memories evoked; looked away in disgust.  To paraphrase FDR’s quote, this state of the union speech and its reception will live in infamy.

How in the world did such a despicable bastard get to be president of the United States?  How in the world did they get to the United States Congress?  By way of the vote.  Saying that something is wrong in the very soul of America.  And, being fair, in a lot of other countries’, also.

By now, Trump is a known commodity to any one who cares to know.  

But, who are they?  A good many are ardent Make America Great Again Trump supporters (MAGATs) — are members of the cult.  Itself, a mind boggling phenomenon.  A demagogue and his cult, memories of Branch Davidians, Jonestown, and Nazi Germany are enough to make anyone shudder and look away. 

All will tell you that they are ‘conservative’.  A big tent these days that may or may not include a lot of things; a term being redefined as we speak.  Self defined in the case of today’s Republican Party. A definition that often includes advocacy for: Reverting to some fictional status quo.  Reversing all the progress of the past ninety and more years; especially in regards racial equity. May include: Imposition of sectarian tenets on society.  Rejection of science.  Rejection of reality.  Rejection of facts. False equivalences. Rejection of democracy. The policies of Viktor Orbán. Imposing cultural norms. White Supremacy.  Libertarianism. All of which are conveniently encompassed in Heritage’s project 2025 now subscribed to in toto by the Trump Administration.  

A veritable coalition of regressives.  To paraphrase Lincoln: All of whom had something to cheer for some of the time and some of whom had something to cheer for all of the time.

Thirty percent of American voters self-identify as Christian Nationalist or sympathizers thereto.  More than enough by themselves to seed any coalition.  A cult of its own within the MAGATs cult within a coalition of Trump supporters.  Most of these thirty percent advocate most of the policies listed above.  Christian Nationalism itself is the very antithesis of our founding principles.  Is a jarring metric of how screwed up so much of America is.

The oligarchs, seeing these groups as manipulables, put up the grease.  The quid in return for protection, for getting to call some shots.

Pretty much how the despicable bastard got elected.  And, how they got to Congress.

When and why so much of America developed a taste for crap is a long story.  One much about the Big Lie, or, more accurately, Big Lies.  A story that, like all stories, begins at the beginning.  

First one must lie to oneself.  From the first greedy bastard’s justification/rationalization, slavery  was premised on a lie.  The one that begat the Big Lie.  the one and same that gave us the most egregious flaws in the Constitution. That in-turn led us into an ever so costly Civil War.

A Big Lie and a Civil War that never ended.  That were perpetuated, allowed to fester; never came to grips with.  Abetted through the years by:

• Andrew Johnson 
• Rutherford B. Hayes
• Woodrow Wilson
• Richard Nixon
• Ronald Reagan
• States Rights
  • America’s Educational System
• Grandma’s knee
• Right wing radio
• John Roberts
• Social media

Responsible for a culture based on the Big Lie.  A culture responsible for most of the above long list of advocacies now occupying the Republican Party tent.  Where first, one lies to oneself.  In the critically acclaimed “Eyes on the Prize” documentary series, we see those lies disintegrate in the daylight of national television.  Only to rise again.

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Repeated, no matter how outrageous, over time Big Lies become more and more accepted as the truth.  Even by the media.  A phenomenon often abused by politicians.  Examples include:

• Government should be ran like a business
  • When: The reason for existence for a business is to make money for its owner(s).  
  • And: The purpose of government is to provide a long and growing list of essential services for we the people, the nation.

• Government is rife with Waste and fraud
  • Most effective with low-information voters. 
  • Used to give tax cuts to the rich

• Wealth equates intelligence
  • When there is no correlation

• Inordinate respect for wealth
  • Really screws up government and society