The Dada Apocalypse

“Gee, Brain. What are we going to do tonight?” “The same thing we do every night, Pinky. Line our pockets, appoint bad judges, try to wreck the Post Office, and …”

The last time the Republicans were in power they lined their pockets, appointed bad judges, tried to wreck the Post Office, and committed genocide-through-plague. The time before that they lined their pockets, appointed bad judges, tried to wreck the Post Office, and started and lost a pointless war. Next time I suppose they will line their pockets, appoint bad judges, try to wreck the Post Office, and – what, I wonder?

If I were the Post Office, I’d be scared.

Nothing makes sense. There are factions: nationalists, theocrats, kleptocrats, white supremacists. Donald Trump is his own faction and is fighting most of the others. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Paul Gosar attempted to found a white supremacist Congressional caucus. None of them have coherent programs. If they gain power they’ll probably kill a lot of people. Black people, women, they won’t go back to their corners. If things go sufficiently badly, we will see the breaking of the union. All the people who have not been fighting, who have been relying on the legislature and the law courts, I suppose they’ll eventually take up arms, and there are lots of arms to take up.

I hate that the Democratic leadership participated in the process that brought us to this point. They have finally gotten the idea that deals with il fascisti are a bad idea – but so late! They gave up the Supreme Court with so little fight and gave so many concessions to the fascists. They gave the country to the rich and, as I wrote in 2010, “The problem with this approach is, sooner or later there's nothing left to give to the rich.”

I hold out some hope for, if not a complete victory for my side, at least something overall positive. But there is always the possibility of a loss. And I have no idea how to plan for one – I can’t even imagine what a loss will look like. “Mere anarchy is loosed on the world.” Theocracy, plutocracy, dictatorship, …? What is this, the Dada apocalypse?