America’s Democracy in an Era of Collapse
I worked on a new parable this week, one I think you will like. But not discussing the elephant in the room (you know, the one who should be leaving) felt disingenuous. And yes, I know we still don’t yet know exactly what will happen. When I started writing this earlier in the week I imagined far worse scenarios. That Donald J. Trump would end up winning the Electoral College, either outright, via recounts, a Supreme Court intervention, or even the defection of some Electors. Now, I’m less worried about that, but do still worry that his continuing anger and rejection of long-standing norms. (As of Monday morning he has yet to acknowledge Joe Biden as winner, nor have lead Republicans, and instead retweeted some Fox News clips that suggest he will fight on.) And I worry that Trump will sow such civil unrest (either now or over the next four years) that America’s fracturing democracy is potentially shattered. But the bigger underlying question that I’m grappling with and continues to bother me is Considering how much is at stake, why was this even close?
A liar — or more correctly a bullshitter (that is a philosophical term meaning: one who doesn’t care if the words coming out of his mouth and mind are lies or not) — has served as President of the United States for the past four years. This person holds science and Earth’s laws in utter contempt. He rolled back years of…
