Can we finally just do away with the notion that there is anything close to impartiality in politics? There used to be the illusion of nonpartisan politics, but that was mostly because compromise and reason could prevail, because people held their elected officials to a higher standard. That was all before the internet and news as entertainment. It used to be that a lot of the people who really got involved in political issues and discussions were people who made an effort to understand issues and politics. Sure, there were always loudmouths, and there was always a segment of the population who didn’t really understand the complexity of the issues, who you could rile up and get to vote against their best interests. You used to have to read a reputable newspaper or watch real journalism on TV to get your politics, and it used to be a slog for most people to sit through. A lot of people ignored the political part of the paper, or the Washington segment of the news. There was integrity involved in reporting the news, and not just anybody could do it. Now you have anyone who can make a blog or buy a domain name for ten bucks pretending to be journalists. You have a propaganda channel like Fox, or a biased channel like MSNBC informing people, and a whole segment of the population crying that The New York Times, The Washington Post, or CNN is fake news. We get our news from soundbites and memes, and don’t even bother to check its accuracy. If we get news that we don’t like, we just change the channel or go online and look for something that tells us what we want to hear.
As a result, impartiality is completely nonexistent in politics.
Yesterday, we saw Republican Senators dead set on rushing a nomination for the Supreme Court, doing their best to suppress any evidence that might hurt their nominee, and putting party before country, or even common sense. You saw what turned into a battle of ideology between both parties, rather than finding an impartial judge to sit on the highest court in the land and make rulings based on the Constitution. The death knell for impartiality sounded when you saw a judge, someone who is sworn to be impartial and uphold the law, launch into a screed about conspiracy theories on how the Democrats are sabotaging him as some form of revenge. It was a mockery of the system and process, of the senate hearings, of the law profession, of the Supreme Court itself, yet the entire Republican party is fine with it.
And of course, you can go online today and read an equal amount of stories in complete disagreement with each other on what happened yesterday. Some of it is opinion, and stated as such, but a lot of it is presented as actual journalism, as fact, and that is sad. You can find something somewhere from any dubious source that will tell you exactly what you want to hear, and there is nothing impartial about that at all.
So it is time we just admit that impartiality doesn’t exist anymore, if it ever did. At best, blatant bias and partiality was kept to a minimum by decorum and common decency, but no more. In fact, it doesn’t seem to exist in another place where it is vital, in law enforcement and in court, and some people seem to be quite happy about it. It doesn’t exist in education anymore, where schools are teaching biased curriculum and altering history. It doesn’t exist anywhere, and I don’t know how we move forward as a society and a nation without it when so many of our most important institutions depend on it.
Republicans are even more horrible than I thought. They do not care for women, or even view them as people. They had their minds made up before one word was even spoken. They had to have on outside woman come in to do their questioning, because they didn’t even trust themselves to speak to a woman, an abuse victim, without somehow betraying their misogyny and contempt. Republican politicians and their constituents are anti-women, pure and simple. Everything about their policies, their attitudes, their words and actions, shows it. If yesterday didn’t prove that to you beyond a shadow of a doubt, you are just too obtuse, brainwashed, self-hating, stupid, willfully ignorant, or misogynist yourself to see or admit it.
Republicans don’t care about the truth or the country or its people. They are hell bent on putting Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court because he will further help our treasonous president and the wealthy. They are pushing him through because they want to control women’s decisions about their own bodies, even though that issue was put to rest decades ago and is only important to a segment of their base that they pay lip service to for votes.
They are hypocrites. They talk about law and order, but they are constantly trying to discredit the justice department, and quash any calls for independent investigations into their criminal activity. You saw yesterday, when an accuser welcomed an FBI investigation, and the accused and his handlers did everything they could to avoid one. Who do you think is telling the truth, someone who wants as much light as possible shined on the issue, or someone who wants to keep it in the dark?
They are belligerent and combative, and they think that shouting and hysterics equals strength. They act like little children, throwing tantrums and shouting down opponents rather than trying to defend their position with reason and intelligent arguments. When you resort to that, you are basically admitting you have no compelling argument for your position or behavior.
Republicans are not very smart. I was struck at how dimwitted most of the Republican senators seemed yesterday. They seemed incapable of expressing themselves well, they seemed incapable of critical thinking, they seemed incapable of doing anything other than repeating the same tired talking points. They didn’t seem like they could understand simple ideas or statements. They just seemed old and dumb and sad, when they weren’t pouting and crying and yelling about having to explain themselves. At the risk of sounding like an elitist(who am I kidding, I am totally going to sound like an elitist), it’s no wonder they appeal so much to the uneducated and white trash in this country. They are mostly idiots who present themselves as classy and respetable. I was never a fan of Republicans, but there used to be a good portion of them that I at least respected on some level. There used to be some of the best and the brightest on their side, but now they all seem like hucksters and used car salesmen, who appeal to a bunch of blowhard losers.
A bunch of people who suddenly got interested in politics when Trump appeared on the scene are now tired of politics. There was a whole contingent of people who voted for Trump, some who were voting for the first time in their lives, because he simply seemed like a voice for them. Disillusioned with politics, stuck in a world that was passing them by and seemed to be getting worse day by day. They might have gotten their information from biased sources and propaganda, and it might have appealed to some racist or xenophobic tendencies, but they were not religious zealots or white supremacists. They were just somewhat naive when it came to politics and socioeconomic issues.
They are out, though. They want no part of it anymore. I noticed when Trump met with Putin, that they seemed to throw in the towel. Suddenly all the formerly political people on my feed who supported Trump were posting about how they were sick of political posts and wanted to go back to talking about music or movies or cats or whatever they were into before they got sucked into the whole political circus.
On the flip side, the same 30% or so that shows up in polls and supports whatever Trump and his cronies do, no matter how horrible, never really go away. Every other category in polls goes up and down, and changes with new information and actions, yet that 30% seems to always remain. They will simply dig in their heels, and stubbornly refuse to budge, from their positions or their mistakes. They are pretty much enemies of the state. They don’t care about the Constitution, they don’t care about rights or equality, they only want someone to pay for what they see as the downfall of our nation. They are wrong, and they are horrible citizens and people. They are outspoken fascists at worst and good Germans at best, and they are dragging us all down because they are so easily manipulated.
Some good news.
There are still a lot of people out there who are outraged, and will not accept this kind of garbage. They understand the issues, and they believe women when they say they were assaulted. They see through all the bullshit and the cheap tricks these thieves and liars throw at them. They are dead set on taking this country back from cretins and fascists, these crooks and shills infesting our government. There are still a lot of people out there, rich and poor, famous and unknown, who know what’s right and will keep fighting for it. Who will guard our country and our freedom and our ideals.
It is important to remember that regardless of the outcome, all is not lost. The Republicans have hurt themselves more than they helped their cause. Most people cling to this idea that a Supreme Court justice cannot be removed, but that is not true at all. When Democrats are back in control, they can impeach and remove Kavanaugh if so inclined. It would set a dangerous precedent, no doubt, but it can be done. If his accusers seek justice, he could end up on trial for attempted rape, and then it would be hard for Republicans to fight impeachment. The Constitution is an amazing document, and has served this country well for centuries. The Founding Fathers prepared for nearly every situation, and made it flexible and open to interpretation so it can adapt to whatever times we live in.
I have even more faith in my country and its people after yesterday. I saw so many smart, clever, funny, and enlightened responses to a horrible situation, so I am not discouraged about what is happening right now. I am outraged. I am frustrated. I am disgusted. But I am hopeful, because I see the big picture and the long game, and you should, too. If there is one thing history shows us, it’s that this country swings wildly from left to right and back again, and it will continue to do so. History also shows us that even though there are bad periods, we still progress. Look at the last century, and all the turmoil and strife and misery, but then compare it the progress we have made, and we have made so much. No one ever said it would be easy.
There are still a lot of people out there who are outraged, and will not accept this kind of garbage. They understand the issues, and they believe women when they say they were assaulted. They see through all the bullshit and the cheap tricks these thieves and liars throw at them. They are dead set on taking this country back from cretins and fascists, these crooks and shills infesting our government. There are still a lot of people out there, rich and poor, famous and unknown, who know what’s right and will keep fighting for it. Who will guard our country and our freedom and our ideals.
It is important to remember that regardless of the outcome, all is not lost. The Republicans have hurt themselves more than they helped their cause. Most people cling to this idea that a Supreme Court justice cannot be removed, but that is not true at all. When Democrats are back in control, they can impeach and remove Kavanaugh if so inclined. It would set a dangerous precedent, no doubt, but it can be done. If his accusers seek justice, he could end up on trial for attempted rape, and then it would be hard for Republicans to fight impeachment. The Constitution is an amazing document, and has served this country well for centuries. The Founding Fathers prepared for nearly every situation, and made it flexible and open to interpretation so it can adapt to whatever times we live in.
I have even more faith in my country and its people after yesterday. I saw so many smart, clever, funny, and enlightened responses to a horrible situation, so I am not discouraged about what is happening right now. I am outraged. I am frustrated. I am disgusted. But I am hopeful, because I see the big picture and the long game, and you should, too. If there is one thing history shows us, it’s that this country swings wildly from left to right and back again, and it will continue to do so. History also shows us that even though there are bad periods, we still progress. Look at the last century, and all the turmoil and strife and misery, but then compare it the progress we have made, and we have made so much. No one ever said it would be easy.
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