Musings On Jan 6th

 The discussions on social media about the debate reminded me, yet again, how upset I am that so many people ignore Jan 6th.

I truly believe it should have ended Donald Trump's career, and find it absolutely disgusting that he is instead the Republican candidate for president.

It feels like everyone really ought to know why that is, already, and so I don't really care to try to argue or explain it any more.

And I've been wondering if that's really the right idea.

So here goes.

A peaceful transition of power is important. The violence that comes when two sides go to war hurts pretty much everyone.

Historically - well, in Roman times it eventually seemed like anyone who had a loyal cadre of troops was a good candidate to become Ceasar. Sure, they sometimes 'adopted' a talented general or found other ways to change rulers, but all often it came down to fighting.

A hereditary monarchy, although very problematic for reasons I'll touch on shortly, reduced that. 

It clearly laid out who should inherit, and so fighting broke out when a) a particular candidate was a terrible ruler (which wasn't that uncommon, because it seems like it only takes a generation or two before whatever talent led someone to be considered great wasn't passed to their descendents. Or maybe it's that they didn't have the inclination or temperament, and would rather go raise corgis or something... but alas, you're the heir and you have to rule regardless. Which I think generally is when you get some great advisor or courtier to do all the hard work of actually governing while the monarch farts off somewhere) or b) no clear heir is left or c) the heir is considered too young or weak and/or some other aristocrat thinks they have a chance and starts something.

And then we get democracy.

Most Americans at least superficially acknowledge that a meritocracy is better than a hereditary aristocracy.

I say 'superficially', because we don't really have a true meritocracy, but it's hard for people who have worked hard and succeeded under this system to accept that. It's much easier to blame others for being 'lazy', or just jealous, or whatever excuse allows them to believe that everything is fine the way it is (really) and that no changes really need to be made. It's a bit arrogant and shallow but it's all too human, as we've repeatedly seen throughout history.

A meritocracy would not have so many legacy students in our 'elite' colleges. Nor would it allow so many systemic disadvantages for those not lucky enough to be born with parents who can help pay for college, or any other number of things that people have pointed out repeatedly. 

Anyways, democracy has it's issues, but the peaceful transition of power is not one of the disadvantages. And although 'winning an election' is not the same skill as 'governing a nation', the ability to run a campaign ensures at least some modicum of skill. Or at least that there are people around the candidate with skill.

It also helps prevent the ossification and stagnation that comes when entrenched powers block off everyone else's chances to rise through their own efforts. (This normally is tied to historical experience with aristocrats, with Napolean and the way the French Revolution cleared out incompetents and allowed more competent people to rise... but those are not solely the province of their system. Again, it's all too human for people in power to try to secure that power... and in the process lead to that ossification and rigidity that often precedes the decline and fall of a nation.)

Democracy forces the government to be responsive, because if you don't you'll lose elections. You're supposed to be able to change the system from within, so that you don't need a violent revolution to overthrow it from without.

Anyways. Getting back to the peaceful transition of power... a lot of that relies on both sides accepting the results of the election, and agreeing that if they lose an election the solution is to run a better campaign in the next one.

Choosing not to is a bit like when some asshole decides to drive on the shoulder of a highway to get past a jam. They might think they're some sort of brilliant out-of-the-box thinker, but if everyone does it the highway just gets clogged even more, and it's hard for emergency vehicles to get through and actually clear the cause of the jam.

In other words, it's the short-sighted thinking that says 'if I refuse to accept the election and fight, I can gain power' and doesn't care that it will kick off a new normal where every election is contested and fighting becomes the way the person in charge changes. (They may not see it right away, or even in their lifetime, but it happens nonetheless. Which is why it is supposed to be univesally condemned as a disqualifier for ruling. At least, in a society where there are better options available.)

Before I go too much further, I did want to touch on why so many Republicans seem willing to throw democracy aside, and are acting as though they can't just try again in the next election.

To be honest, I'm not really sure how many feel this way. I hesitated to say 'Republican', but under Trump this is truly what the party has become... and it has to do with race.

See, it's been a while since I've seen articles about the 'browning of America', but the demographic trends haven't really changed. We're reaching a point where white Americans are not going to be the clear majority. They're still the largest of all the different races, but if enough non-whites work together they can outnumber them.

And the difference is even more stark when you look at the children:

In 2021, 36.3 million children were White (49.4%); 18.9 million were Hispanic (25.7%); 10.1 million were Black (13.8%); 4 million were Asian (5.4%); 596,000 were America Indian/Alaska Native (0.8%); and 158,000 were Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander (0.2%).

To a certain sort of person, that's terrifying. They're scared, frankly. I mean, I'm a bit annoyed about how we have to worry about their insecurity and all that, but I get that that's what it is.

Even if they're not outright racist, there's still some unconscious bias that can affect attitudes. Like that study that showed how support for welfare and other such policies changed when people were reminded of those demographic trends. (I suspect it's an us vs them mentality or something. That instead of thinking 'these will help all of us' they start thinking 'these will go to those other people'. As if we aren't all Americans living together in the same country.)

To some of them, if they don't do anything drastic now, they feel like they won't have the chance to do so later.

(I would heap more contempt on them for letting their fears rule them so shamefully, but it doesn't really serve any purpose beyond venting so I'll move on.)

Democracy only works when both sides agree to let elections determine who rules, and we now have far too many people who aren't willing to do that.

But it's (poorly) hidden, so that people can pretend that's not the case. All Trump's lies about the 2020 election allow people to continue to support him and claim that they're the real patriots.

If Trump actually cared about the Constitution, and America, he would never have made those claims unless he had proof. Proof that he could back up in court. (His complaints about the courts being against him are not supported by anyone who actually researches the issue and just feed the lies, undermining the legal system and legitimacy of the current government in the process. It's very frustrating to see people latch on to the stupidest claims online in order to continue to believe in him. Even more so as he goes on and on about election fraud, when a) the fraud has never been on a scale large enough to change an election and b) quite a bit of it is Republicans who get caught. Because there are systems in place to catch that sort of thing. Checks, for example, to see if a voter died before election day and couldn't have actually voted.)

But let's leave aside the way his constant lies undermine trust in the system. Let's look more directly at January 6th.

It doesn't actually matter thatTrump once used the term "peacefully", saying, 

"I know that everyone here will soon be marching over to the Capitol building to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard"

And not just because he used the word 'fight' twenty times, and as wikipedia sums up he also

He called upon his supporters to "fight much harder" against "bad people"; told the crowd that "you are allowed to go by very different rules"; said that his supporters were "not going to take it any longer"; framed the moment as the last stand; suggested that Pence and other Republican officials put themselves in danger by accepting Biden's victory; and told the crowd he would march with them to the Capitol (but was prevented from doing so by his security detail)

Why? Because none of those people would have even been there if he hadn't stirred up questions about the election.

We have had Congress count the electoral college votes for over 200 years, and we've even had the Electoral Count Act of 1887 (ECA) and similar legislation meant to ensure disputes are resolved well before then. (Apparently the details can be confusing, but I think the intent is clear. You're not supposed to be guessing at who won the electoral college votes when they're counting the votes on 6 Jan. Disputes should have been resolved by the states themselves well before then.)

Furthermore, he made the claim that Pence could have actually changed the results, and pressured his Vice President to reject the results.

I'm not even getting into the fake electors, or him pressuring someone to 'find' enough votes to change the results.

I think anyone who actually pays attention would come to the same conclusion - Trump deliberately created a situation where his supporters attacked our democratic processes.

He should have been impeached, he should have been brought to justice, and if Republicans had any patriotism or any principles that would have been bipartisan.

We all know it was not.

Instead, I watched as people waffled, and that lying piece of shit who shouldn't ever be trusted with power was somehow made the Republican candidate for president.

I don't like hearing how vehement I've become, but I am honestly just disgusted at the entire state of affairs.

I'm disgusted with the entire Republican party.

I'm disgusted with the media that was able to harp on Biden's bad debate for weeks and yet doesn't say shit about the candidate who betrayed his oath of office and attacked the foundations of our nation.

And I'm disgusted that far too many people keep giving him a pass.

And while I'm sure there are some of his supporters who will get violent when he loses the 2024 election, I would rather deal with that now then deal with the inevitable violence that would come if power hungry idiots think he's showing them a successful way to gain power.