Social Distancing When You've Been Shot, Part One.

I put no stock in religion. By the word religion, I've seen the lunacy of fanatics of every denomination be called the "Will of God". I've seen too much religion in the eyes of too many murderers. Holiness is in right action and courage on behalf of those who cannot defend themselves. And goodness - what God desires - [pointing at his head then heart] is here and here. And what you decide to do every day, you will be a good man...or not. ~The Hospitaler, Kingdom Of Heaven.

Something is going to happen soon, I don't know what form it will take, but something is going to happen that turns the situation we're in here in the United States of America from a public health crisis into a real threat to every life on Earth. Every day, the level of crazy seems to be an order of magnitude worse than the day before, and there are people...actual Americans, human beings...that see the COVID-19 crisis not as a public health crisis that affects every life in this country, but simply as yet another thing they can try to weaponize to get ahead, or in service to their shitty ideals.

First of all, I'll ask again, how exactly do you social distance when you've been shot? How in the hell does anybody expect to fight a war in the middle of a pandemic, and what happens when some yahoo tries to use the virus as a biological weapon? The United States Armed Forces only has one kind of weapon of mass destruction; Nukes. If this country comes flying apart under the stress of this pandemic and the political extremism of "Conservatives" what happens if we have what will very quickly become a nuclear civil war...in the middle of a pandemic?

"Everybody dies" seems to be a feature of these fucking people's plans rather than a bug.

And what, do you suppose, makes me ask these kinds of questions?

The Internet Nazis are at it again, trying to spark a second US Civil War...some idiot was recently arrested in Texas, trying to live-stream a quest to kill a police officer.

Apparently, the current iteration of their bullshit stems from some kind of internet joke, but it's the same old burn civilization down around their ears, Racial Holy War, Revenge of the InCels bullshit that it's been every time this bullshit has ever popped up before.

This is just one incident by some stupid extremist, yes, but it's one incident at a time when...in the middle of a pandemic...conservatism itself has become so suffused with extremism that it's hard to tell the Republicans from the internet Nazis. I mean...it's only been a couple days since a Republican elected official has gone on Fox News to say that all the old people should be willing to die off so that the economy can be restarted and the wealthy can go back to making money. I doubt a whole day has gone by in the last week or so since there's been some dumb ass rally to reopen some state or other, complete with armed yahoos openly carrying military-style semi-automatic rifles.

In the case of this particular asshole, among the screen-grabs that were posted was this little gem, an extremely misogynistic reaction to, basically just being told that he should be conscious of  other people's needs while exercising.

I mean, come on, what the fuck?!

Like I've been saying, there's something about the preeminence of caregivers and healers, of bread-bakers, cat-owners, pot smokers, and video game players that seems to just rub the toxic masculinity types the wrong way. While all the rest of us are just trying to find ways to keep busy, survive, and avoid going stir-crazy there is a certain percentage of these dudes who are mad because we're not all out murdering each other in the streets for no reason.

Except it's not just them, as I've said before there are a lot of nominally religious type conservatives who seem to feel the same way. As I've said, a lot of these people seem to be offended that they're being held to the same level as everybody else, including people of color and the poor. They seem to be particularly angry that people are laid off, or not at work, or working from home or whatever because they seem to think we should all be working even when being out in public might kill us.

Of course, the real reason they're upset is because everybody is getting a real-life lesson in why liberal and progressive policies and things like the New Deal are necessary, and they see that as hurting their political fortunes...as well they should because yeah, fuck these motherfuckers. I'm so far not really losing much by being off of work. Why should I risk my ass for capitalists who could give a fuck about me?

And note, I used to be a conservative. In case you didn't read the snipped Tweet up above there, we've had another spike in cases in my state, the week after that stupid protest in Lansing. Ya know, if these fucking idiots keep this shit up, we're all going to be locked down for longer. In order for there to be any kind of loosening of this stuff...people have to socially distance, mask up, protect themselves and overall act sensibly. These protective measures seem...offensive...to a certain type of right-wing nut *Cough* I mean Republican.

Note that there was once a time when the two terms were not interchangeable. It used to be possible to be a Republican without being a conspiracy theorist or a cultist, or a racist or religious nut or some kind of far-right asshole.

Now? If you aren't one or more of those things it doesn't matter if you're a Republican. You're not Republican enough and that seems to be all there is to it. Once the mob passes judgment, you have no recourse.

But now, even when they're trying not to look like they're crazy, or racist, or some kind of a nut, too many Republicans can't help themselves.

In trying to talk people out of looking like extremists or racists, the treasurer of the Wisconsin GOP dropped in the "State's Rights" civil war argument.

Did he think people wouldn't find out that he said that? I live by the rule of not saying anything online that I wouldn't say to someone's face for a fucking reason.

90,000 men from Wisconsin fought for the Union, and 12,000 of them died. The Republican Party was founded in Wisconsin. How is it that Confederate flags would even be acceptable in that state?!

Could he not resist showing his ass? I mean, it's seriously been my life experience that people who are crazy...not in terms of mental illness but in terms of politics, prejudice, religion or social beliefs...can't wait to tell you how crazy they are. It's like they think you're going to give them some sort of a treat for them telling you.

Invariably, it's like they think they are sharing some kind of of great truth with you, like they somehow missed the last 60 to 75 years of history and all of the societal efforts...that for most of my life came from both sides of the political divide saying that Antisemitism and racism were bad things.

It's like they're just not conscious of what happened to the Nazis, or the Vichy French, or of the fact that Benito Mussolini ended his days hanging from the canopy of an Esso gas station or that Radovan Karadzic spent his days as a New Age quack peddler of herbal remedies after he was driven from power and was eventually found, arrested, charged, tried and is currently serving a life sentence. I mean, fucking seriously why does this same old dumb ass bullshit keep coming back every so often? Is there something wrong with people's brains? Is low-grade mental illness just that widespread?

Oh, and speaking of dumb shit.

Trump recommended that people inject themselves with bleach or Clorox cleaner...and then expose themselves to direct sunlight or ultraviolet lights or something.

I mean, seriously, did the President of the United States tell his followers to poison themselves, today? I mean, come on people, read the warning labels and remember the kind of stuff you got taught in First Grade, for fuck's sake. The fact that it even has to be said "Don't DO this type of shit" tells me we have a real fucking problem.

Where in the hell is he even getting this shit, and why is this fucking moron being allowed to spew this bullshit at a briefing that's supposed to be about providing valid medical information?

What happens when people have to go to the Emergency Room because they drank or injected bleach because they were stupid? What happens when they end up in an E.R. or a waiting room that might be full of COVID-19 patients, and what happens to somebody who has poisoned themselves when they are exposed? Does that make their situation even worse? How do you socially distance when you've been sickened for no damned good reason because the President is an idiot?! If Trump told these people to jump off a bridge, would they do it?! Don't Republicans even have any regard for the lives of their own goddamned followers?!

We are very rapidly approaching the point where modern Republicanism only makes sense, or has internal logic, if its actual goal is the destruction of the United States of America and the death of its people, including Republican voters.

It's like I said the other day; What in the hell are we even doing here, white people. Seriously, what in the hell are we even doing to ourselves. If you wouldn't take a gun and shoot yourself just because some rich man said to, why would you play with fire with this virus crap just because Donald Trump told you it wasn't real, it's no less deadly and far more insidious and long lasting of pain than a bullet in the head and lights out....or bleach and household cleaners eating away at your guts or poisoning your blood, I guess.

And it's not enough to do this kind of shit to ourselves. 

Mitch McConnell and Congressional Republicans want to not help states with Democratic governments?

Are you fucking kidding me?

We're already at the point where due to a lack of Federal leadership there are blocks of states forming to set policy that should be coming from the Federal government and now we find out this stupid bullshit?

Are Republicans seriously trying to split the United States of America into the Democratic States of America and the Republican States of America?

Because that's where that type of shit is headed, on top of a total lack of leadership regarding the overall crisis, deliberate sabotage, the theft of personal protective equipment, and a lack of proper funding set the stage for a whole different set of problems, like Federal Agents being shot by Massachusetts State Troopers or New York Army National Guardsmen when they show up to try to steal stuff. When the country starts to fragment, government agencies and military forces will start choosing sides...and most of the Navy is based in Blue States, for example. This situation will get very ugly, very fast.

More to the point, the big Blue States like California and New York put a hell of a lot more into the Federal budget than they take out, and it's a safe bet that Mitch McConnell's own Senate seat in Kentucky might disappear from under him because the state does, and D.C. itself is a highly Blue area surrounded by more of the same. Where do these fucking people think they're going to go?

I strongly suspect that they have somewhere picked out by now, and some kind of a plan, because all this stuff that's going on only makes sense if they're aiming for the destruction of the United States with intent to grab themselves some kind of a banana republic and steal as much money as they possibly can on the way out the door.

The cruelty, stupidity, and yes, treason seems to be the fucking point.

Destruction for destruction's sake appears to be the goal.

If any of ya'll have any kind of idea for how the hell to socially distance when you've been shot, I'm all ears.

Fuck these motherfuckers.