100 Bullets (aka 100 Painful days)

“We are all born ignorant, but one must work hard to remain stupid.” ― Benjamin Franklin

With 100 days until the next U.S election those of us clinging to those quaint, unfamiliar notions of hope and optimism could be forgiven for adding belief to that list. Hope, optimism and belief, concepts that were universally understood if not accepted in the ‘beforetimes’. Before the growing phalanx of black and brown bodies murdered at the hands of law enforcement officers (all over the world). Before the horrifying Covid-19 virus irrevocably changed the modern world and revealed to all of us- as if we needed confirmation - the criminal ineptitude of some of the world’s leaders that has led to the virus exacerbating peoples’ suffering exponentially, particularly the vulnerable. And of course, before the particularly toxic although sadly predictable tragicomedy that is the Trump presidency. A lifetime ago, when reality coalesced with reason, consensus and evidence it was possible to believe in the prospect of better times and hopefully, you’d be able to capitalise on them. And personally, even though the 2 most venal, bumbling, philandering and incompetent men on earth were running (in to the ground) the countries that most affected my life, I was positive about the future. I still am.

Then along came 2020, replete with the 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse and even the most privileged of us felt helpless at best while the world caught fire. Here in Britain and America we watched helplessly as the world’s two legitimate dumb blondes turned disasters in to crisis, respectively mishandling their Covid-19 responses to varying catastrophic degrees and responding to calls for racial justice with vapid soundbites and in the case of Adolf Twitler, secret police and fascistic pronouncements. But conversely, this is why there is an upsurge in if not hope, optimism and belief, then certainly urgency, action and conviction. Americans in particular are recognising that taking action with conviction and impressing on their fellow citizens just how urgent the situation is, has the galvanising effect of creating hitherto unconscionable alliances and demonstrating that there are so many more decent people than there are not. The Lincoln Project and Republican Voters Against Trump in particular seem to have captured the political zeitgeist and much more importantly, appear to be irking the “Stable Genius” more than anything else in his life. And there’s a lot to get him upset, even if he weren’t a sociopathic man-baby with a casual disregard for anything beyond his own id. For any Trump readers of a particular…disposition, I don’t mean his identity.

Scratch that – all Trump supporters.

Which leads me to my key point. Today, with 149,000 people dead (and counting), with faceless, nameless ‘security forces’ snatching Americans from the streets in unmarked cars, with the POTUS actively stoking racial fears and tensions whilst STILL refusing to denounce Vladimir Putin and Russia for the bounties on American soldiers – with all of this in just the past 2 months – NO Trump supporter can reasonably say that the Emperor they worship so devoutly has any clothes. It’s easy to support a ‘Law & Order’ agenda - if what we’re seeing can be referred to as such – when the targets are those scary brown people and their leftist, agitator brethren. Perhaps not so easy if the rubber bullets were being aimed at armed militia protesting that a piece of cloth covering their mouths and noses was an assault on their freedom. Such wilful, cognitive dissonance means that it’s pointless cataloguing the myriad transgressions, crimes and plain imbecilic things that this spiteful, insecure and tiny, tiny, little man has done during his presidency. In fact, in his life. From stealing from his own charity, a fake university, numerous bankruptcies and multiple (alleged) sexual assaults to coercing international allies for political favours, Government shutdowns, children in cages, cosying up to dictators and the endless stream of racist, misogynistic, vulgar tweets, he has revealed himself. And as such, so have his supporters.

At this stage if you still support him, you’re a racist, transphobe, homophobe, misogynist or part of the 1%. Maybe you’re all of the above. But there is nothing else. Protecting religious freedom? Holding a bible upside down after assaulting your citizens exercising their 1st Amendment rights hardly seems very Christian. Oh, the economy you say? Before the pandemic hit with all the force of a new Russian Hoax, President Covfefe had added $6 trillion to the deficit – and that was in a period of growth! The fact that people were working 2 and 3 jobs to keep the wolves at bay whilst the remaining Trump’s policies further disintegrated the welfare safety net of the vulnerable seemed irrelevant because it wasn’t happening to you. Well, it’s happening to you now. Millions unemployed because the economy was built on services, credit and international brinkmanship. The trade war with China that was ‘good and easy to win’ has been anything but that, and has exacerbated the economic impact of the virus on multiple communities. That doesn’t sound like economic genius to most objective people. But to Trump voters, objectivity is a weakness that must be purged. Blind loyalty is ostensibly the key criteria and it seems a healthy dislike of black, brown, gay, trans and poor people is encouraged. If you tick all of the above, you’re likely a leading GOP candidate.

I say it again – if you support Trump, you’re a racist, misogynist, homophobe, transphobe, the 1% or an idiot.

But there’s great news. Increasingly, it appears that there are fewer idiots around than at any point in the last 4 years. The protests, riots aside, are supported by a veritable rainbow coalition of people form every walk of life. Unlike his crappy wall which struggles to deal with a stiff breeze, Portland’s residents have shown how strong walls can be by erecting a ‘Wall of Mums’ and a ‘Wall of Vets’ to protect peaceful protesters from over-zealous federal forces. That’s badass. The aforementioned unexpected allies such as the Lincoln Project have shown Democrats, so often tepid and afraid of making mistakes that they invariably do nothing, that to dare is to do. It’s true that people see what they want to see, but the truth is increasingly undeniable. And the ever-present coronavirus, that intractable foe that Trump can’t tweet away, can’t lie in to submission and can’t ignore as much as he tries, will force more and more of his acolytes to have another look at their emperor. And the shock of seeing this guy naked should be enough to bring some of them onside. And that’s all we need. Besides, if any Trump supporter confronts you and derides your intelligence you now have the perfect riposte – person, woman, man, camera, tv.

Optimism. Hope. Belief. They’re a great foundation, especially as there are increasing reasons for each of them.