Election 2020

[entertainment]

i always get a sense that when they do this stuff it's like a social event for establishing a new point of no return.

there's an existential desperation to it. they're nervous that when the trump period comes to an end their entire collective identity is going to dissipate. it's a about taking those steps together that means that there's no way back, a mutual reassurance that their fun will continue.

 

[entertainment]

of course the people that showed up wasn't a threat to democracy but there was a taste of one implicit in how it happened

 

[luka]

That's a nice take.

 

[Slothrop]

My thought last night was that it looked less like a genuine coup attempt and more like a bunch of fuckwits larping a coup attempt, if that makes sense.

 

[luka]

Reminds me of the implausibly photogenic 'Black Panther' cadre in the BLM who all turned out to be actors.

The literal read is that these actors are employed to play the part of protestors by interested parties (who? why?) which is a not unreasonable assumption.

But it's also about how the political theatre offers fairly niche economic/exposure opportunities for a range of bottom feeders, albeit fairly short term ones eg Baked Alaska, if you can stand out from the crowd and become the hero of the week. Based Stick Man.

And it's also about how the camera homes in on those trained in presenting themselves to the camera and thus further fictionalises our mediated view of the world.

 

[luka]

My thought last night was that it looked less like a genuine coup attempt and more like a bunch of fuckwits larping a coup attempt, if that makes sense.

The interesting thing is that everything looks like that now. Nothing looks real. Nothing is real. Everything is a kind of play acting. Possibly because everything is staged for the cameras. A further escalation of what McLuhan noticed with the satellite, the satellite makes all the world a stage.

 

[Mr. Tea]

My thought last night was that it looked less like a genuine coup attempt and more like a bunch of fuckwits larping a coup attempt, if that makes sense.

For one thing, coups usually (always?) involve the military, and thankfully Trump has spent years insulting and denigrating the military.

 

[john eden]

Yes this is worth mentioning:

Trump’s popularity slips in latest Military Times poll — and more troops say they’ll vote for Biden

About half of troops surveyed for the poll said they have an unfavorable view of the commander in chief.

www.militarytimes.com

 

[DannyL]

Hard not to find the Dems a bit spineless in all this. Early days I know, but it seems likely there's the possibility of copycat actions and escalation. Surely they should be taking a harsher line.

 

[john eden]

The Dems aren't in power. You can insist they do this and then be a Starmer fanboy because his lack of opposition is all clever triangulation and process leading up to the next election.

 

[john eden]

Well, I mean you could do that, obviously.

 

[luka]

But also it's going great for them. Pence has consciously decoupled from trump or whatever the term is and his supporters are hopelessly tarnished

 

[luka]

He's banned from social media which has effectively gagged him....

 

[john eden]

Lisa McKenzie (who I have many differences with) was on twitter saying this is all a "give Trump enough rope to hang himself" moment.

 

[john eden]

So in a sense it doesn't matter what the Dems do - it is squarely a problem for Trump and the Republicans. (Except that Trump is now also a problem for the Republicans).

 

[Corpsey]

Do you think if we cloned Shakespeare he could write a really good play about Trump?

Trump isn't a tragic figure, of course - he's not a great man with a single flaw. It's almost the opposite way around.

 

[craner]

Do you think if we cloned Shakespeare he could write a really good play about Trump?

Trump isn't a tragic figure, of course - he's not a great man with a single flaw. It's almost the opposite way around.

No, but I'm sure David Hare will find it impossible to resist writing a really shit one.

 

[DannyL]

The Dems aren't in power. You can insist they do this and then be a Starmer fanboy because his lack of opposition is all clever triangulation and process leading up to the next election.

They're coming into power and they could be vocal about the lack of police presence/arresting those involved/Section 25 to remove Trump and so on. I don't necessarily approve of what Starmer's been doing - still trying to make sense of it tbh.

 

[john eden]

They're coming into power and they could be vocal about the lack of police presence/arresting those involved/Section 25 to remove Trump and so on. I don't necessarily approve of what Starmer's been doing - still trying to make sense of it tbh.

They could do all these things but I don’t really understand why they would. Short of a coup this plays well for them as @luka said. let the Reps fuck it all up and then Biden comes in and does the whole heal the nation piece and ensures that a few obviously Nazi dudes are arrested for domestic terrorism.

 

[luka]

the arrests will definitely be interesting. Hanging to see what happens with them.