Tag: We Are So Fucked

Forget Joe Rogan — Let’s Talk Howard Stern


by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

This is going to be extremely lazy. I’m not getting paid, but I am getting drunk as I write this. Anyway, I’ve always respected Howard Stern’s interviewing ability. He’s probably one of the best interviewers in the media today. AND YET. He’s got a real problem — he has within the last 10 years, maybe more recently — used the n-word on multiple occasions.

If I was getting paid to write this, was not drunk and knew anyone was actually going to read this outside of my usual randos and stalkers, I would look up instances of this on YouTube, but, lulz. Anyway, the point is, Joe Rogan — who I’m not fond of — is rightfully getting all this shit for using the n-word, when Stern is out there using it all the time, too.

What the what?

I can remember the first time I heard him say it. I was so taken aback I couldn’t listen to him again in the same way. But I don’t know, maybe he and South Park are the two last remaining pre-“Cancel Culture” pieces of media that can still get away with some really objectionable shit.

With Stern, some of it has to do with who is his core audience — the Blue Check liberals who would be the most likely to lead the charge to “cancel” him in the first place.

Anyway. Lulz. This bourbon is good.

The ‘Frothy’ Right


by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

This is one of those times when I wish someone was paying to write this post. If that was the case, then I would spend the energy necessary to paint a clear picture of what is going on with this subject.

But, as it is, lulz. Here’s my half-assed, somewhat lazy write up.

See, there is an element of the Right that is way, way, way over stimulated about their fascist inclinations. To the point that they say and do some batshit things in bad faith that even THEY know are dumb. I mean, Dean Cane was involved in a skit at CPAC (I think) one year that was based on the emails of the two FBI lovers that Trump hates so much.

Then there are all these other instances — usually featuring Jesse Kelly — where the froth of the extreme, extreme Right is so dumb and ridiculous that you know that even they get kind of embarrassed by it all soon enough.

Anyway, it’s all very, very dumb. But there’s an audience for such bullshit.

Daydreaming Of A ‘Traditionalist’ Party


by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I have seen a lot of Twitter liberals have some hope that we might see sort of “constitutional conservative” party that would, in effect, give Traditionalists somewhere for enough presidential election cycles until we get the whole autocracy – anocracy – democracy thing sorted out within the context of the browning of America.

Sad to say, I just don’t see that happening.

It’s delusional and gives the non-Blue Check rubes false hope.

You can’t have a successful party when the only people who support it are the people who are in it. I mean, I can count on one hand the people who would make up the leadership of a Constitutional Conservative Party on one hand. (As an aside, I would call it what it is — the Traditionalist Party. It rolls off the tongue a lot better than Constitutional Conservative.)

But, let’s say the Traditionalist Party ran a Pence / Cheney ticket. How successful might it be? That is a very good question. I honestly don’t know. But it probably would be doomed to failure. The reason is Trump (and supporters of the January 6 Insurrection) have such an absolute death-grip over the Republican Party that I just can’t see much happening.

It all goes back to the fear of the browning of America. That trumps — no pun intended — every other argument. That’s why Traditionalists decided to support Trump — insane tweets and all — in the first place. We’re past the even horizon when it comes to tyranny.

And, in the end, all the Blue Check Twitter liberals who got all excited about this dumb political idea will be the first to leave the country for other, more stable nations — should we have a civil war or finally slip peacefully into autocracy.

My Hot Take On Jonathan Chait’s Hot Take On Ross Douthat’s Hot Take On The Rise Of American Authoritarianism

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I saw this by Jonathan Chait and had to comment.

Even if it were true, a two-party democracy that rests on the authoritarian party never losing isn’t very safe. As democratic safeguards go, it’s the equivalent of the rhythm method of contraception. Its only real advantage is that it allows conservatives to avoid acknowledging a choice between their party and democracy. Maybe things will work out and they can have both!

This is the crux of the issue facing American politics at the moment. We have one party that doesn’t believe in democracy (Republicans) and one that is blissfully unaware of what they’re up against — Democrats.

So, here we are. The only question we have at the moment is, first, are we going to have a civil war or autocracy. Second, the question is, how bad is either one of those choices going to get. Will we bomb ourselves into oblivion if we have a civil war, or will we become a Russia-level autocracy before it’s over with.

Just assuming that the center-Left will continue to win elections forever is not exactly a great way to ensure democracy. So, we’re in trouble. The next few months will become more and more bumpy.

Addressing Traditionalist Arguments


by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

Both Sides
In this argument, Traditionalists say they’re forced to take the side of the MAGA New Right because “both sides” are now extreme and they would rather there be a white fascist Christian ethno-state than a Leftist government that forces the “woke” agenda down people’s throats. And, of course, something something 2nd Amendment and something something abortion, something something transgender athletes. The flaw with these arguments, to me, is, well the Nazis. There’s a big difference between the de facto assholery of the “woke Leftist mob” and the de jure attacks on freedoms that come as part of any autocratic state. Form follows function, as they say. (This is where the “bogus” argument comes in.)
Debate Nullification (The ‘Bogus’ Argument)
The “Bogus” argument is when a Traditionalists just pretty much says, I don’t care what you’re saying, I don’t believe it and fuck you. They say, in effect, that they’ve made up their minds — they’re throwing their lot with fucking fascist racist bigots and there’s nothing you can say to change their minds. Then you either just stop debating politics or you start screaming at each other.
Being Attacked Just For Being Conservative
This is actually a valid argument. This is actually happening. But I would suggest they use traditional politics to get what they want — by say, changing their general political views and working within the changing demographics of a democracy — than simply burning everything down in a racist, bigoted hissy fit.

My Hot Take On Crooked Media’s Ben Rhodes’ Hot Take On Trump’s Electoral ‘Trap’

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I’m a fan of Ben Rhodes and the whole Crooked Media team, but I’m in the middle of listening to the latest Pod Save America and I have to take issue with something he just said.

He apparently wrote in The Atlantic that Trump has set something of a “trap” for center-Left people by making them aware of white identity politics, etc. This, in turn, makes us angry to the point that we alienate the people who would otherwise help us win elections.

I have two things to point out about this.

One is, we’re now an anocracy, to the point that we can no longer work with the assumption that elections will be free and fair in the first place. The 2020 elections could be, in fact, the last free-and-fair national elections that the United States ever has (unless, of course, we have a civil war and sort things out that way.) So, it’s difficult to win elections — no matter what your policies are — when the whole system is run by people on the local and state level who have heeded Steve K. Bannon’s call for an “administrative coup.”

Even if we get past that particular situation, the people that Rhodes is talking about that could be appealed to — people I call “Traditionalists” — no longer believe in democracy anymore. They’re all-in with the fascist MAGA New Right because they’re deathly afraid of white people being in the minority.

So, I just don’t see traditional politics being a viable option anymore for the center-Left. Either be prepared for a civil war or get out of the country. I don’t want a civil war and I think, in the end, many, many, MANY wealthy center-Left people — like Ben Rhodes — will ultimately leave the country.

That’s our future. Listening to Crooked Media through a VPN because fucking fat fuck President Mike Pompeo destroyed America. Good luck.

Trump Is Above The Law

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

The following is an example of how Trump always says the quite part out loud — then NOTHING HAPPENS.

Scenario: How An Invasion Of Ukraine May Play Domestically In The United State States


by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I love to run scenarios, so here’s one about how the American domestic political system might handle a major war in Ukraine. I think the first thing we have to appreciate is how fucked up America is right now. Much, if not all, of our problems with COVID comes strictly from how everything, EVERYTHING, is seen through absolute lens of partisan politics.

This does not bode well for what might happen within the United States if faced with the biggest land war in Europe since WW2. A lot depends on how long the war lasts. If it’s a quick “love tap” on the part of Putin that lasts only a few weeks, then the “rally round the flag” affect would last long enough that we wouldn’t really have any problems.

But if Putin is nuts enough to try to take a huge portion of Ukraine and the war begins to drag out for months or years, then all bets are off. It could be that the United States really is so divided that not even doing something as basic as defending democracy as part of being the lynchpin of the post-WW2 global order is something we can do effectively anymore.

It could be that the war lasts the more the two sides scream hysterically at each other like they do everything else and, well, we — and the Ukrainians — will be fucked. The United States will not only be barely able to help Ukraine, we’ll barely be able to do our job as part of NATO.

All of this, of course, would embolden China in regards to Taiwan. Then we might have TWO major regional wars taking place, which, of course, would be marketed as WW3. Then throw in the DPRK wanting to get in on the action by shooting of ICBMs and testing H-bombs and, well, things would grow very unstable globally very quickly.

I only say all of this because it seems as though the United States is so absolutely divided that there’s no one issue — not even one about life and death like a pandemic — that we’re willing to put aside our political differences long enough to address. Doesn’t exactly make me feel too secure going forward into a potential major war in Europe.

The MAGA New Right’s Power Grab



by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

One reason why I’m growing ever-more alarmed about what’s going on in the United States is how insatiable the MAGA New Right is. They are demonstrably ascendant and will get everything they want via politics, and, yet, they STILL are angry and STILL see violence as a viable means to an end.

The need to create a white Christian ethno-state is white hot now within the MAGA New Right. They will stop at nothing to get it, even though they are obviously well on track to getting it through traditional political means. There is a spectrum to all of this, of course, with Traditionalists focusing more on both-siderism and “election integrity” and the MAGA New Right thinking that liberals are “forcing” them to radicalize.

So, as I keep saying, it definitely seems as though if there is going to be a Second American Civil War, it will be when Blue States — starting with California — get sick of the MAGA New Right’s bullshit and begin to leave the Union. Then the US Military implodes and WMD are seized and we bomb ourselves into the Stone Age with our eyes wide open. That, in turn, causes WW3 and then the question is, will humanity survive at all?

The key issue is will, when the real crisis comes in 2024 – 2025, will the center-Left simply fold? Is that how this is going to play out? We slip peacefully into autocracy without even so much a grunt? From what I can tell of my complicit Traditionalist relatives, they won’t stop at anything until the autocracy is here. They will, in fact, be the backbone of American Autocracy.

And they won’t give a shit until things get personal for them, specifically. In other words, not until I get snatched off the street by ICE agents — or name a weaponized portion of the government — will they sit up and take notice. But, by then, it will be far too late to save me.

Is Putin Right About America?


by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

America is so absolutely divided at the moment that one has to believe that that division must be one of the things that Putin is using to weigh his invasion of Ukraine. And, just talking to my Traditionalist relatives, it definitely seems as though thinks are about to play out as I fear.

The American center-Right will grow hysterical about the United States having no business defending Ukraine, while the center-Left will grow hysterical that we absolutely need to defend them. How this would work out in real terms should there be a major war between Russia and Ukraine I don’t know. It will be interesting to see if the United States is just too divided to give Ukraine any coherence defense.

The fascist MAGA New Right is ascendant and one could make the argument that all Putin has to do is be patient. All he has to do is bide his time and by 2024 – 2025 the United States will either collapse into civil war or turn into a very inward looking autocracy that doesn’t give a shit about the outside world at all in the first place.

It’s definitely going to be interesting to see what happens. We don’t even know for sure that there’s going to be a war between Russia and Ukraine in the first place. I always get stuff like that wrong. So, it could be that all of this saber rattling on Putin’s part is just an elaborate ruse on his part to get attention. Only time will tell.