We as Americans are so sorry that you, citizens of the world, had to witness the spectacle of our electoral process under fire, and more importantly that you had to see Americans whose behavior is completely unacceptable. That’s what it was, people completely out of control, an unbridled mob. Completely unacceptable and contemptible.
The events of this week, nay the events of the past two months, have sent an unfortunate mixed message about what democracy stands for. Maybe even that it doesn’t always work. Authoritarian governments around the world will be trumpeting this unfortunate example for years to come, and use it to justify their assumptions of uncontrolled power. But that’s not true. Democracy, embedded in our society, has and will triumph. The military didn’t seize power. Most of the protesters eventually went home – they weren’t shot on the steps of the capitol. Jails aren’t overflowing. Congress came back and completed its mission – to certify the election results. An of greatest importance, the transition will happen in two weeks.
What are the take-aways from this nasty, ugly experience? Georgians reiterated early last week that Americans for the most part have faith in their election process. That it works well and fairly, even if some folks don’t sometimes like the results. That our legal system, no matter who appointed it, works. That nothing, not even a national election, can be “stolen”.
There are, however, some other ugly truths as well. One is that lies repeated endlessly will be believed by some. Fortunately, not all, or even most. That social media must police itself better, because otherwise, the consequences can be extremely serious, even fatal. We all, particularly in a free society, have an obligation to sort out fact from fiction. That not everything put out on the internet is gospel. And that the old saying, “liar, liar, pants on fire” doesn’t always happen. If it did, Donald J. Trump would have erupted into a fireball long since, golf clubs and all.
America may never achieve total justice for what happened. In a perfect world, Rudy Giuliani would be peering out from behind bars, perhaps even sharing a cell with DJT Jr. and that protester dressed up like a reject from Valhalla. That Senators Hawley and Cruz, along with Representative Gohmert, will not only be voted out of office but will be banned from ever holding public office again. That the guy who put his feet up on Speaker Pelosi’s desk will be sentenced to years of cleaning service with a mop and dustpan on Capitol Hill. That Donald Trump will not only be banned from all social media, but also won’t be able to get telephone service either, and his presidential portrait will be hung in the basement among the waterpipes. That the Trump Organization will have to pay back every cent to the Secret Service for all of the Trump offspring jetting around the world or hunting endangered species. That a Trump pardon will be as useful as a Confederate dollar bill.
Not that I am vindictive at all. From all this, there are scraps of proof that God needs a laugh once in a while. Reports are emerging that a gun-toting guy from Alabama misdirected his taser, shot himself in the privates, and had a subsequent heart attack. Or the other story that has come forward of the woman that was trampled by the crowd, who happened to be carrying a flag that read “Don’t Tread On Me.” Who said there’s no such thing as divine humor? America will simply have to forget that the last four years ever happened. We’ll pretend it was like an appearance of Brigadoon, and that we can go directly from the Obama to the Biden administrations, passing “go” and collecting $600. This mercifully ending presidency will forever be remembered for, and tainted by pandemic and storming the castle as much as for cronyism and incompetence, pretty much as we remember Warren Harding fondly for the Teapot Dome Scandal or Senator Joe McCarthy for the fine job he did with Communists.
So, to the world of fairness and decency, to the world where we’ve tried to promote democratic principles and root out human rights violations, to a world where national populations decide their future collectively through laws, through dignity, equity, and respect, we are deeply, deeply sorry for what you’ve been forced to see and hear this week. Please know that America will try harder in the new year.
I'm Thinking...No! 