BARF CHAMBER

OCTOBER 27, 2024 -Today was Trump’s much publicized rally in Madison Square Garden. I was there . . . well, not exactly, but I watched a video of his complete appearance. The content and delivery inspired the title to this post.

As Trump “speeches” go, a portion of it was actually a speech, but most of the hour-and-18-minute ramble was delivered in his usual crass, wandering, inarticulate style. In light of the Republican mantra that Democrats are “the big spenders” (and therefore, the cause of all of our economic problems), he was handing out truckloads of cotton candy—free this, free that, no tax on tips, overtime pay, or social security benefits; deductions for car loan interest (on American-made cars, ignoring the challenge of determining what constitutes “American-made,” given that on average 40% of car parts are imported; an even higher percentage if Canada isn’t considered a foreign country); tax credits for family caregivers; and lower taxes on manufacturing firms. Of course all of the candy would be handed out only if the red team controls Congress. If the candy materializes . . . did anyone in his crowd wonder what effect all these sweets would have on the federal deficit?

He promised “ending inflation” and cutting energy costs by 50% within one year of his inauguration solely, we must infer, by way of “drill baby drill,” With this we are reminded that Trump is in contemptuous denial of global warming and climate change—and in denial of global energy markets.

Then again, Trump touted his tariff plans. Did anyone in the Garden worry that such a policy would cost American consumers billions and tilt us into recession?

Predictably, Trump then plowed into the fields of fear: Venezuelan criminal gangs, murderers, et alia; the usual scapegoating. Did a single person in the Garden not hold Trump responsible for derailing the bipartisan legislation that would’ve addressed a threshold challenge of illegal immigration: the shortage of immigration court judges and border patrol agents?

And again, Trump called journalists “enemies of the people.” When I heard this, a chill ran up my spine. We’ve heard repeatedly directly from Trump, what he intends to do about our “enemies from within.”

None of this nonsense was new. It was emblematic of the entire Trump phenomenon: after a decade of patent lies and other outrages, what’s another lie or outrage? What’s more distressing, however, is that a sizable chunk of the citizenry expect and applaud the outrages.

Arguably, what was most offensive about the show was the warm-up act: a comedian whose Dickensian name—Tony Hinchcliffe—was unknown to me. This guy, this kid, was obscene and offensive. Whoever thought it was a good idea to allow this guy on stage demonstrated horrible political judgment.

After broaching the issue of immigration, he asked the crowd, “Where are my Latinos?!” A swell of applause followed, presumably from Latinos. “See,” Hinchcliffe said with the voice of a seventh grader, “we have so many of them because of the wide-open border.” (This line was not greeted with applause.)

To add icing to the insult, he then said, “I welcome migrants to this country with open arms.” He then held up his hands and arms not in a welcoming fashion but to demonstrate resistance and opposition. To top it off, he added, “Latinos love makin’ babies too,” followed by obscene references.

If that wasn’t enough, he said, “There’s a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean. I think it’s called Puerto Rico.”

And in touching on Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and the conflict between Israel and Hamas/Hezbollah, Heathcliff’s—I mean, Hinchcliffe’s—comment was, “Who cares?”

Good grief. And roughly half the electorate is ready to applaud and actively support this revolution against truth, decency, civility, and integrity? Whether Trump wins or loses, will we ever recover from this?

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© 2024 by Eric Nilsson