Not looking good...
The USA is not going to split, nor stop being.
A small bunch of goons throwing handfuls of their own shit at the walls egged on by a giant orange dictaphone which (through a strange quirk of cultural history) also happens to be president of the USA.
Weird, but it will all blow over and normality of a sort will soon be restored
Not sure it will. It's not just the storming of the Capitol but the bombing in Nashville, the sabotage of C19 vaccines. There's something deeper changing there.
Weird, but it will all blow over and normality of a sort will soon be restored
I fear you are too trusting of the institutional longevity of norms.
it's not over, those twats have always been around
Probably have a deeper look at what twats can say. The Constitution has been amended before.
A small bunch of goons throwing handfuls of their own shit at the walls egged on by a giant orange dictaphone Dictaphone?
No, I was thinking of an actual dictaphone, or something like it. Vague rectangular shape with a droning voice. Maybe I should ask someone on twitter for a more correct meme
#4, #5
No, I've no doubt there are deep discontents in the US (and elsewhere), of which this is symptom. But I can't see this particular movement going much further and (tiny violin time) the most immediate consequence will be the fracturing of the Republican party and the political right in America
The worrying thing as others have pointed out is the degree of complicity from the security and police. Whether this is because they see the Trumpites as their own, or just that they're not sure whose orders they're meant to be following, is harder to say. Probably a bit of both.
I can't see this particular movement going much further.
If was a single movement whose raison d'etre evaporated when the charismatic leader was dethroned. But the forces at play form a broad spectrum, from the almost legit mainstream politician through free marketeers, libertarians, original constitutionalists and religious nuts to fundamentalists, flat earthers, the anti-science, anti-vax, truthers and apologists of hate. Then you have the really dangerous fringe.
The appeal of Trump is that he gave all these groups permission, status, airtime and the ability to counter argue with alternative facts. They're emboldened and are not going to simply melt away.
The worrying thing as others have pointed out is the degree of complicity from the security and police.
But exactly how do the security forces counter the overwhelming firepower of a flag on a stick?
Four people did die.
I think it's a little harsh to come close to regretting that they didn't kill more in the interests of racial equality.
"dictaphone: noun. a telephone used for tweeting by one who would be a dictator."
otherwise, you are a lucky country when your fruitcakes are too incompetent to lead or carry out anything like a successful coup. this guy is president of the US, with strong popularity with many in police forces and the armed services. and the best he can come up with is to send a mob of partiers to the Capitol with no leader and without a plan for what to do after the party. what did trump think would happen? that the mob would move into the offices and start legislating?
Lenin is laughing hysterically. I hope our fruitcakes keep giving him cause to laugh.
I think you're right, brooklyn
While most people in America still have something to lose, this kind of thing will remain a minority interest. Looks to me like the high watermark of Trumpism, rather than its opening salvo.
Whether something similar but more dangerous emerges in its place is still an unknown. My guess is much depends on whether the US is able to reverse the trend of the last 30 years and start closing the income gap (same applies to the UK and most other western democracies)
I'm slightly saddened that Hugo and Fidel aren't still around to see it. They'd probably have laughed themselves to death.
45 Percent of Republican Voters Support Storming of Capitol Building: Poll
https://www.newsweek.com/45-percent-republican-voters-support-storming-capitol-1559662
Interesting array of flags on show: Knights Templar, Confederate, Iranian monarchy and MEK(!), Israel, apartheid S.Africa, South Vietnam.