At long last we can be proud to have humans leading our nation again.
At long last we can finally breath again.
The memorial event last night was deeply moving. Listening to Kamala Harris and Joe Biden, I wept uncontrollably to hear such humanity, intelligence, morality, and compassion coming from our leaders.
It’s a thing to consider from many angles. This was the first time we grieved as a nation, the first time our government acknowledged and mourned the 400,000+ who have died from covid-19.
Did you know that, of the 70-85 million who died in the six years of WWII, 407,000 were American soldiers? That’s nearly how many covid-19 has killed in this country in just one year.
Do reflect on that for a moment.
As you’ve probably heard, each of those 400 lights stands for 1000 dead Americans. How many might not have died if only we had had a responsible competent government?
§
Another angle to consider is how the previous administration ended in flames — in outright thuggery and insurrection. In addition to covid-19, there is obviously a mental disease that’s infected millions of Americans.
Watching a fortnight ago it occurred to me that one almost needs “demonic possession” to explain invading and shitting in the Capitol building. It’s horrific to imagine what they might have done had they gotten their hands on any Congress people or Mike Pence.
I can’t fathom why there would still be doubters after four years, but one would like to believe this ending makes it clear what a bad star this was to follow.
But at long last, tail between his legs, this loser has now literally “gone south,” although a more appropriate phrase might be “slunk south” or “fled south.”
Regardless of the phrasing, the POS POTUS, inarguably the worst in our nation’s history, ended as he began and as he was. A creature with no honor, no honesty, no grace, and absolutely no character — an evil monster.
I will never be able to fully believe how many were fooled. His ignorance, his stupidity, his incompetence, and his evil, were all on full display the length of his public life. (‘Member the Central Park Five? ‘Member birtherism? ‘Member his campaign?)
Mental disease, demonic possession, jaw-dropping stupidity,… some combination? It really stuns me that we put up with an administration that literally ended with insurrection against our most sacred political idea — the notion of a democratic and peaceful transition of power.
The notion that used to be our brightest star.
§ §
But at long last we can finally turn the page. We again have leaders we can respect and honor (even when we don’t agree with them).
Today is the last day this country has never had a woman serve as Vice-President! (Let alone a woman of color or Asian descent.) Go USA!
At the very least, we have humans, not demons, in the driver’s seat again.
And that is a very good thing.
We can breath again.
Stay Inaugural, my friends! Go forth and spread beauty and light.
∇
Logos con carne 
January 20th, 2021 at 9:56 am
Remember when we used to worry about foreign fanatical radical terrorists?
January 20th, 2021 at 9:57 am
All seems calm and well in hand. Fingers and toes crossed for a day that goes exactly as planned with no surprises.
January 20th, 2021 at 2:44 pm
So far, so good! Flawless, even.
January 21st, 2021 at 9:47 am
The revolution will not be televised because, in fact, there wasn’t anything to televise.
It would be expecting too much for this all to fade away as the country moves forward, but maybe it’s not too much to hope the tide has changed. Maybe things will start to flow another way now.
That said, pimples on our political ass, such as Ted Cruz and that Hawley guy, continue to irritate the body politic. (The nerve of an asshole like Cruz even showing up at the Inauguration…)
January 20th, 2021 at 7:02 pm
Eight hours; the peace and calm continues as the evening festivities commence!
January 20th, 2021 at 11:37 am
We have a new President and Vice-President. That was quite overwhelming. (I’m gonna have to extra hydrate and take some salt tablets. Or better yet, beer and pretzels! It’s a new era; time to party!)
January 20th, 2021 at 11:38 am
I agree, Amanda Gorman and her poem stole the show!
January 20th, 2021 at 2:34 pm
The next year will be spent erasing all the evidence of Dickwad’s administration, cleaning up the trash, putting the wheels back on the country. It’s cliche’ but, what a train wreck that idiot left.
January 20th, 2021 at 2:43 pm
A train wreck where the train was hauling dumpster fires, and the dumpsters were on fire because they contained flaming steaming shit storms.
“Oh, the humanity.” 😮
January 20th, 2021 at 4:38 pm
I think I was holding my breath for the last several days, hoping we’d get to this point without some last malignant dump from the sociopath in chief. It’s good to have the adults in charge again. Biden isn’t perfect, but he’ll at least try to do his job well.
We’re not out of the woods yet, but at least the new guides care about getting us out, and won’t be lighting all the trees on fire.
January 20th, 2021 at 7:07 pm
Four frustrating years of forest fires. Yeah, it’s pretty sweet to put that crap behind us. An imperfect adult government is orders of magnitude better than whatever that infantile POS was. The difference between zero and something.
January 22nd, 2021 at 5:29 pm
Yay for Biden: Make politics boring again!
January 23rd, 2021 at 11:18 am
You know what’s funny is that my high school friend, who voted for four more years of that POS, the last time (perhaps literally) we talked asked if I was “excited” about Biden — the implication that he was personally “boring” being a reason not to vote for him.
But, firstly, I was extremely excited about the possibility of ending the horror and would have voted for the canonical corpse over four more years. Secondly, it’s not a reality show, we’re not picking favorites, we’re picking leaders, and qualifications (if not character) are supposed to matter. Thirdly, and more importantly, there was obviously no other choice for any real American (let alone real Christian or woman, both of which my friend is). I can come to no other conclusion, since she definitely isn’t stupid and always seemed to me a sensible practical person, that there really is a kind of mental disease involved.
(Demonic possession is really a good metaphor, but that might be due to watching a lot of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. An odd show I can’t make up my mind about.)
Sorry to rant on, but I’m really disturbed about my friend. Literally the oldest friend I have. Or had. I don’t know what to think.
January 23rd, 2021 at 8:29 pm
No worries about ranting…trust me, I get it.
I have quite a few Republican friends myself. Actually I think it’s close to half. In general we don’t talk about politics, at least not much, but I doubt they changed their mind about the POS. I don’t want to bring it up, but that in itself is awkward lately. How can you not talk about an attempted coup? I guess we avoid each other for a while and blame it on Covid. The thing is, if I find out in definite terms that they haven’t changed their mind about the POS, I’m not sure how I’ll feel about them. On the flip side, I’m sure they don’t like seeing me going to a Biden inauguration block party, and I’m sure they make it a point never to look at my blog.
So I hear you. I’m equally mystified. How can otherwise normal, intelligent people continue to rationalize what has happened, what they’ve unleashed? Imagine if a troop of Bernie supporters did so much as stand quietly in protest in front of the capitol—they’d be calling it a commie armageddon.
And I’m all for keeping reality TV shows far, far, far away from real politics. At this point I really will be pleased to see politics become boring again. But I doubt it’s over. The dictator wannabe is tenacious.
The thing that pisses me off is that liberals still have to play to the middle while the right gets to be as extreme and insane as they want to be. And now if I want to be a good little leftie, I’m supposed to be head over heels in love with Biden and start spouting all the same empty “unity” rhetoric. How can there be unity when I can’t even find common ground—reality—with my close friends?
January 24th, 2021 at 10:09 am
“How can you not talk about an attempted coup?”
Yeah, that’s the problem I have with my friend. I don’t know how to have a conversation that doesn’t start with, “See?! What were you thinking?!?!” And then demanding a full explanation, and, of course, no explanation could ever be satisfying, so it’s an impossible conversation.
And, as you say, if they haven’t changed their minds, does one want them in one’s life? That’s definitely the other side of the coin. I’m not sure the conversation even matters anymore.
My friend still subscribes to my blog (by email). Not sure if she reads it, though.
“At this point I really will be pleased to see politics become boring again.”
Whatever else, there is the sweet water of radical normalcy. Or at least it seems radical now. But, as you say, it’s not over. The disgruntled far-right remains disgruntled.
“How can there be unity when I can’t even find common ground—reality—with my close friends?”
Exactly. The situation is decidedly asymmetrical.