JANUARY 7, 2021 – When poop hit the fan yesterday, I was in the dentist’s chair, looking at the TV screen affixed to the ceiling. The hygienist—in full riot gear—peered down at my gaping mouth. CNN played above. Five minutes into my appointment all hell broke loose . . . on the TV screen.
“Uh!” I grunted, as my eyes nearly popped out.
The hygienist stopped. “Sorry! You okay?” she asked, her voice muffled by multiple layers of PPE.
“U-hu-hu,” I signaled reassuringly over the equipment stuffed in my mouth. The hygienist resumed her work.
Thirty minutes later she was done, as was Congress. “Look what’s happening,” I said, pointing at the screen.
She looked upward, and said, “Oh God!”
* * *
All evening I joined millions of others watching (vertical) TV in the aftermath of our version of Prise de la Bastille. What did it mean? Plenty, according to cable news. It was red meat for media, obscuring bad news on the war(p) front and good news (if you’re a Democrat) out of Georgia.
In broader historical terms, what’s the significance of yesterday’s Trump hooligan rally? The question left me tossing and turning overnight. Only by the dawn’s early light could I see the simple, disappointing answer: “We don’t know and won’t until the future unfolds.”
So it is with every “flash bang” in history. The first questions are the ones of traditional journalism: “who, what, when, where, and why.” But in our day those basic elements are overwhelmed by opinion.
As I reflected on the crowd of mostly unmasked, white males besmirching the American flag by waving “Trump/2020” and “Don’t Tread on Me!” flags . . . not to mention Confederate and Nazi flags . . . I realized that the jury of history has just begun protracted deliberations. What’s unclear is how people will react long-term to yesterday’s ruffian display.
Was it a big deal? Of course. But of far greater consequence beyond our immediate horror will be what ensues—good and bad—over time. And only time will tell.
Shortly after the resumption of order, I was struck by reactions on the part of two Trump supporters with whom I’m well acquainted—one, a family member; the other, close enough to be an honorary one. The former reacted by answering an earlier text from my wife, who’d asked, “So, you’re okay with this—Trumpian terrorists storming the capitol?!” His reply: “Of course not, but what about the rioting and burning by protesters last summer?” My wife and I shook our heads at her brother’s “incorrigibility.”
The other Trumpster (he’s known Trump for years; did business with him) sent an unprompted text with a very different reaction. His exact words: “I’m embarrassed to have been a Trump supporter in view of what’s going on in Washington. Unbelievable. Very disturbing and disgusting. I’m very disappointed with POTUS. He’s psychotic!! And I always hated sore losers.”
How will the rest of those 75 million Trump voters react? Only time—and the 75 million —will tell.
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© 2021 by Eric Nilsson
