Another four years

The nightmare has begun, another four years. How depressing. I felt fairly certain that it would happen, the only glimmer of hope when Kamala's candidacy rocketed out of the gates in August. Had the election been held there and then I had felt there was a chance. The Republicans had no answers, their entire campaign had been based on Joe Biden's age, they were high and dry. But they rallied, and somehow this crook of a man has just entered the White House again. Just think about Donald Trump's first term, and think about the things he and his clan have said and done since then. Any sane voter would have sent him and his odious family packing. But this is America.

I have a little skin in the game of course and it pains me that it should have come to this. The brilliance of turning the GOP of tea parties and country clubs into a baying mob of halfwits should not be underestimated. It's actually quite sensational. Whether he is all hot air or whether he does systematically dismember and neuter American democracy remains to be seen. He has already told his first lie, which is when he pledged to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution whilst taking his inaugural oath. Who sees that happening? Look forward to a flurry of Executive Orders later this evening, they're well publicised even if some of them are hugely impractical. But he has four years in which to dismantle centuries of good work and he's starting tomorrow.

On the eve of the inauguration I note that Melania has launched her own cryptocurrency. How very presidential. These days I suppose we should expect nothing less, and I have no doubt that all over the Midwest supporters will be parting with their hard-earned wages in order to further enrich what is essentially a dynasty of con artists. And all in the name of patriotism. Meanwhile Biden has felt moved to issue pre-emptive pardons for people who stood up for the rule of law on January 6th 2021, as well as for members of his family (beyond Hunter) for fear that the incoming administration will pursue them out of spite. I can see it happening, it is all part of the normalisation strategy. 

So another four years of hatred and lies beckons. The morals of tech CEOs need to be mentioned at this point. Through sheer greed, all of them already being richer than God, they have pivoted to Trump and will allow their platforms to spread his message of disinformation and division for the next four years. Fact-checking is so 2024. They're a big part of why we're where we are now, and it boils my blood to see them all lined up at the Capitol today in front row seats. So all those people who barely leave their houses and whose grasp of current affairs and geopolitics is essentially nil will now dominate the conversation unimpeded by anything as inconvenient as the truth. Conspiracy theories and bullshit are the new currencies. Well, and the $MELANIA of course. 

And as for Musk, a special place is reserved for him. What a dick, what a monumental bloated piece of shit. People should remember he's unelected, and the only thing that distinguishes him from one of the bedroom vigilantes is money. Lots of it, and money talks. He must be delighted at how easy it has been, a wad of cash and a few sycophantic words keenly lapped up by the world's second-largest egomaniac and he's been given the keys to the nation. To see him on a polictal stage and being given a role is an outrage. It's hard to say who will do more damage, but I think I dislike him even more than I dislike Trump. My hope is that he'll get bored and go back to rockets or whatever the next dalliance is.

But back to Trump. American illiteracy is going to shape the world, make no mistake. Putting this man in the White House has global implications that will touch us all. He is a man with no morals, with fewer guard rails than before, and with a much bigger chip on his shoulder than last time. His ego and temper is going to get us all in trouble. And he's surrounded himself with people who won't stand up to him, have you seen the list of nominees for all of the critical posts? Wow. And I suspect that this time it won't be the revolving doors shit show that it was last time, they've wised up now.

My biggest worry in all of this is that there are younger Trumps out there (and I don't mean the shifty sons, I mean please no) who will take up the baton in 2028. This is how politics in the USA works now. Trump may only have eight years as President across two terms, but everything has changed now and forever. I just don't know how we get back to decency and common sense. What does that path look like, and who will lay it? The Democrats? Ha, don't make me laugh. They are also part of the problem, whether they can see it and do something about it is what we all have to cross our fingers for. Realistically they've got two years. Hopefully they've already started.