Final Straws

When you elect for the highest office in the land a feces-flinging “damned dirty ape” (as Charlton Heston famously said), you really can’t be all that surprised when he shits all over your political process. What did you expect would happen?

What depresses, nauseates, and outrages me is what it seems to have taken (and who knows if even this is enough). As final straws go, the business of the Orange Goblin claiming (and, indeed, very possibly truthfully) that he cops feels and steals kisses with impunity pales in comparison to the sheer evil he embodies.

Once again we demonstrate that the big picture is beyond us; it’s the little things that capture our attention.

And, I suppose, referring to The Donald’s captured bus comments as “the little things” will generate outrage in some corners. So let me say: I do not in any way dismiss or reduce sexual assault. (Indeed, I’m on record otherwise.)

There does need to be some perspective. The truth is, Bill Clinton may not be a hell of a lot better when it comes to sexual behavior with women.

Or, at least, that was once true. I have a feeling Bill Clinton has genuinely grown and settled and maybe even repented. And he has done much good in the world to balance his sins.

Trump is still the childish ignorant misogynist he always was. He seems to be a genuinely evil man. Or an insane one.

And therein lies my problem.

Trump is talking — bragging to a younger man (who is connected to the Bush family) — about copping feels and stealing kisses. And walking into beauty contest dressing rooms unannounced.

Back in the 1950s there were viewed as annoying, boorish, crude, and childish. But not particularly threatening. Not in the bodily sense, anyway. It was the stupidity of boys (think Porky’s).

Now we view that behavior as criminal. In young males, we try to stamp it out, suppress it, or (best choice) cure it.

A decent education about — and involving — strong women is crucial here. Civilized, educated people do think differently, do see the world differently.

The point is that Trump is still a badly raised child of the 1950s. His childishness was never corrected, always allowed (“the rich are different”).

We can believe Trump was more than bragging, and there are reports from women he put the moves on, but — so far — no claim much beyond copping feels and stealing kisses.

Again, I hate that it sounds like I’m minimizing his behavior, I’m not. Inappropriate contact is, exactly as the terms says, inappropriate. What I’m saying is that there is a qualitative difference between illegally crossing a sovereign nation’s borders and storming one of its key cities.

(And there is an allegation that Bill Clinton did storm someone’s city!)

My problem is that crossing borders is not what should disqualify him from running, let alone being nominated, let alone actually being President of the USA.

• That he’s a constant liar does.
• That he’s never sorry and can’t apologize does.
• That he is incapable of turning the other cheek does.
• That he’s using racism does.
• That he uses childish insults does.
• That he is often utterly incoherent does.
• That he won’t release his tax returns does.
• That he won’t release he medical records does.
• That he insulted a war hero and a Gold Star family does.
• That he insulted a disabled reporter does.
• That he uses and abuses the media does.
• That he’s stupid and ignorant does.
• That he’s a con man does.
• That he’s a business fraud does.
• That he’s a charity fraud does.
• That he has no experience at all in public service does.

Many of those things have been on display since the beginning, and many of them are — on their own merits — disqualifiers in any sane world.

In many cases, it’s not the beginning of his 2016 campain [sic], it’s the beginning of his occurrence as a public figure! He’s been mocked for what he is all along.

This train wreck of a Presidential run is a lot of things, but one thing it shouldn’t be is surprising.

The GOP created the conditions and did nothing when a clear and present evil monster hijacked those conditions. Even now, many of those craven, miserable excuses of politicians can’t repudiate and repent their error.

(Just imagine how pissed off Ted Cruz must be. If he’d only waited one more week to sell out his principles and alienate his long-time supporter, Glen Beck.)

The Christian party? The party of family moral values?

The irony is palpable.

The party of being a fucking embarrassment, more like.

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Our weird fascination with sex, and our apparent inability to accurately process big issues or matters of character, has turned this straw into a final straw.

Well, fine, so be it. For want of a nail, I guess.

Drill, baby! Drill!

And I’m not the first to notice that you apparently need to have daughters or sisters or mothers or wives to be officially offended by Trump’s comments. So many of their disclaimers start off: “As the father of [insert female family members here]…”

We get caught up in the sexual aspect and are left at sea by fundamental issues of character and principle.

Mitch McConnell (one of my votes for most awful politician ever until Trump came along, but even still) issued a statement that starts: “As the father of three daughters…” And then goes on to fail to repudiate Trump or remove his endorsement.

Paul Ryan is, likewise, trying to navigate between doing the right thing and not pissing off Trump voters too much.

We hit rock bottom quite some time ago. Thanks to Trump, we’ve gotten out the heavy drilling equipment and are now working our way down through the bedrock.

And you know what the Christians say is “down there”…

(Oddly, some use the same phrase for genitals. 🙂 )

Update: As an indicate of what a gender division this is, check out this post on fivethirtyeight dot com. It has (bigger) versions of these striking charts: