CSotD: Cold as ICE
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An excellent piece by Telnaes that can be taken a couple of ways. Certainly, the brutality of the lawless attacks has damaged our freedom, but you can also take Liberty as a personification of the American people and those who wish to be American and interpret the attacks as happening to all of us.
An eagle, or Uncle Sam, wouldn’t include the immigrants as effectively. We’ve spent the last century-plus glorifying the concept of immigrants and refugees seeing the Statue of Liberty as they sail into New York harbor despite the plain fact that not everyone arrives either by ship or through that port.
We invented the myth of the First Thanksgiving as an embodiment of the friendship of the established inhabitants for those who might come seeking freedom. And, oh, BTW, to fill jobs in our growing mines and factories.
This was part of a view of American history I call “the virus that spread from Plymouth Rock,” since the Jamestown colony was already more than a decade old when that friendly feast happened or perhaps never did.
And Spain had begun establishing settlements here as soon as Columbus landed, but our kids don’t learn about the extensive and important Spanish settlements in the West until the land had become part of the United States, or until the virus reached that part of the country.
Not only does history not happen until the white folks arrive, they have to be the right white folks, and the Know-Nothings of the 1830s and 40s were quite sure that Catholics, and especially Irish Catholics, were not who belonged here. The burning of the Charlestown Nunnery was only one of the attacks on the wrong kind of people by a group that had surprising political success peddling their bigoted program.
And, by golly, didn’t they come back about 75 years later.
And again 75 years after that.
The Know-Nothing Party is long gone, but the current crop of nativists creates their own mythology, and I wasn’t surprised this morning by a report on social media that another bullet has been found, proving that Kirk’s murder was part of a conspiracy, though there was no mention of a grassy knoll.
Though speaking of conspiracy theories, I got a laugh when it happened that I saw Whamond’s cartoon just before I spotted this on social media:
Humor is an effective tool against hate, though you have to be cautious, since bullies don’t like being made to look revealed to be stupid.
Bagley’s accusation is very effective at comforting the afflicted, but likely not so good at afflicting the comfortable, given that a substantial number of the bullies think the January 6 events were a good thing, even as they put “Support the Blue” stickers on their bumpers.
They should understand the second panel, but the combination doesn’t click for them. Which is how we got to where we are.
Again.
They do hate, but don’t see themselves as motivated by hatred. Telnaes paints Noem as the evil reincarnation of Aimee Semple McPherson, which is probably unfair to McPherson, who was certainly flamboyant and religiously extreme but politically fairly moderate.
The thing is, Telnaes did not make up some bizarre phrase to stick in Noem’s mouth: Rather, she used the journalist’s sneaky trick of quoting her directly and accurately. Kosplay Kristi was speaking of sending ICE to the Super Bowl, under the impression that a lot of lawn workers and motel maids will be shelling out six grand each to watch Bad Bunny.
I have the responsibility for making sure everybody goes to the Super Bowl, has the opportunity to enjoy it and to leave, and that’s what America is about.
In case you wondered what America is about. It’s about going to the Super Bowl, enjoying it and then self-deporting. Or something.
You can’t copyright a book title, but I don’t think David Halberstam’s estate has to worry about anyone writing about this administration and calling it The Best and the Brightest.
It would all be hilarious if it weren’t so unspeakably, incredibly brutal and cruel. Part of the problem is that, while people being dragged out of their cars and beaten in the streets should be appalling, when seen on TV it seems to be happening to someone else, somewhere else.
I’ve seen a demonstrator hit in the face with billy clubs less than 10 feet from me, and it’s a whole lot different than seeing it on television. She was screaming in pain and fear and her face looked like bloody liver as they dragged her away, but I really think you had to be there, because three months later I watched the Chicago Convention on TV and it was the same town and the same cops, but it just felt like TV.
On the other hand, once budget cuts begin to double insurance premiums, and to simultaneously limit what financially-burdened hospitals are able to provide, the impact of a less physical, more organizational cruelty will hit more people more directly.
Unfortunately, the midterms are likely to be over before the worst of it has struck, which sounds heartless, but if it’s going to happen, it ought to at least have some strategic value.
One piece of cruelty that is beginning to hit a wide target is the flood of layoffs triggered by the shutdown. Trump once more proves that you can be clever without being intelligent, because he’s threatening to fire workers in revenge for the shutdown but had the good instinct to order the military paid, although they weren’t supposed to be.
The threats could bring a few legislators to heel, but there are lots of young families in the military and letting them starve or lose their housing would be directly felt.
“Crocodile tears” is a wonderfully well-chosen metaphor.
It’s odd to look back on Nixon nostalgically, but being on his enemies list was more of a compliment than a threat. It meant he didn’t like you. He might decide to have your phone tapped or order your taxes audited, but you didn’t have to worry about your family’s safety.
Those were the good old days.
Keep the faith, baby.
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