Charlie, a couple of things:
1.) I too am sorry to hear about Pete's passing. Losing a person as meaningful to you as your best friend is one of the hardest things anybody can experience; whether they be two-legged or four.
2.) Love you and this newsletter, but please STOP saying that people like Bannon have "no coherent agenda beyond de…
1.) I too am sorry to hear about Pete's passing. Losing a person as meaningful to you as your best friend is one of the hardest things anybody can experience; whether they be two-legged or four.
2.) Love you and this newsletter, but please STOP saying that people like Bannon have "no coherent agenda beyond destruction". I constantly hear people say that Bannon and others in the GOP apparatus (Tucker, Hawley, and Cruz, etc.) "believe in nothing" or are all simple nihilists. That is very, VERY much untrue. Yes, they do not believe in "the rules of the road" such as honesty, dignity, and fair play. It is true that they do not believe in the fundamental goals and values of our liberal, democratic republic. Yes, they deploy nihilistic means for power and influence. But they absolutely have goals and values which they hold dear to their core.
They believe with everything in them that their christianity, straightness, and/or whiteness make them superior to other people. They believe that these qualities entitle them and their brothers and sisters-in-arms to a near monopoly on the powers of state and cultural mores. They believe that their values must be upheld above those of others and therefore critical rules, ethics, and norms for which democracy requires in its citizenry - especially its leaders - are optional at best and menaces at worst. It would be far less dangerous if all they cared about was power or fame or wealth in a more generalized form. If that were the case MSNBC could just offer Bannon twice his current salary and he'd be willing to put on a pussy hat and say "birthing people". But he would not do that; none of them would do that, not for all the money in the world.
Why? Because they are true believers with agendas that could not be built on anything less than absolute faith. They may not yet have figured out all the nuances and mechanics of what this new version of government and society look like, but they know that it must be carried out by white men with crosses on their lapels. And above all, it must not contain a single hosting of Drag Queen Story Hour anywhere in this land.
Charlie, a couple of things:
1.) I too am sorry to hear about Pete's passing. Losing a person as meaningful to you as your best friend is one of the hardest things anybody can experience; whether they be two-legged or four.
2.) Love you and this newsletter, but please STOP saying that people like Bannon have "no coherent agenda beyond destruction". I constantly hear people say that Bannon and others in the GOP apparatus (Tucker, Hawley, and Cruz, etc.) "believe in nothing" or are all simple nihilists. That is very, VERY much untrue. Yes, they do not believe in "the rules of the road" such as honesty, dignity, and fair play. It is true that they do not believe in the fundamental goals and values of our liberal, democratic republic. Yes, they deploy nihilistic means for power and influence. But they absolutely have goals and values which they hold dear to their core.
They believe with everything in them that their christianity, straightness, and/or whiteness make them superior to other people. They believe that these qualities entitle them and their brothers and sisters-in-arms to a near monopoly on the powers of state and cultural mores. They believe that their values must be upheld above those of others and therefore critical rules, ethics, and norms for which democracy requires in its citizenry - especially its leaders - are optional at best and menaces at worst. It would be far less dangerous if all they cared about was power or fame or wealth in a more generalized form. If that were the case MSNBC could just offer Bannon twice his current salary and he'd be willing to put on a pussy hat and say "birthing people". But he would not do that; none of them would do that, not for all the money in the world.
Why? Because they are true believers with agendas that could not be built on anything less than absolute faith. They may not yet have figured out all the nuances and mechanics of what this new version of government and society look like, but they know that it must be carried out by white men with crosses on their lapels. And above all, it must not contain a single hosting of Drag Queen Story Hour anywhere in this land.