From a mechanical perspective, my mind most frequently conceptualizes America as a toilet. However, watching the drama unfold in the Suez Canal got me thinking that a ship, although clichéd, is appropriate as well. Moreover, it’s a bit more optimistic since toilet water either festers or gets flushed into the sewers and septic tanks of history.
The question, therefore, becomes steering. That’s a “who” sort of mental exercise. Would you presume that the helmsman of a boat named Zimbabwe would take it anywhere but the bottom of the sea? Would you expect a ship called Mexico to be found in any condition besides drifting listlessly with all hands lying dead, like the opening scene of a horror movie?
One envisions more pleasant destinations for The Heritage America than perdition, if we could get somebody to steer it better. It’s a task that begins with specifying where it needs to go and what to avoid along the way. This brings us to the matter of articulating our existential problems.
Quite frankly, it doesn’t instill much optimism. Here’s anecdote to illustrate my point. Last week, a pilot was caught ranting on a hot mic while taking off from San Francisco.
I sympathize with his sentiments because the proper outrage seems to be there, but they’re indicative of a particular rightwing affliction which could be classified as impotent articulation. Leftists often suffer from cognitive dissonance, which involves an emotional incapacity for objectivity and reason. In contrast, impotent articulators have the ability to recognize something’s wrong and register the appropriate disgust. Their infirmity is an inability to accurately describe problems and blame the core culprits.
For example, impotent articulators read articles about appalling bloodshed in cities like Chicago and Baltimore and then rant in comment sections about how such municipalities are “run by democrats” without mentioning the demographic spraying the lead.
The pissed-off pilot’s tirade consists mainly of grievances about people driving electric vehicles, which isn’t exactly addressing the underlying issues or even the more serious superficial maladies of San Francisco. Getting rid of EV drivers wouldn’t even cleanse the place of the feces and used needles strewn on the sidewalks. Leftists have denounced him as a Nazi, but there’s a strong chance someone like this would turn around and denounce me as a Nazi.
To be fair, this is a condition that’s been deliberately curated. I therefore attempt to harbor the hope that because the extremist line is being drawn at merely objecting to any aspect of the insanity, these people might start speaking the truth since there aren’t any rhetorical outs being allowed to them anymore.
Maybe one day we’ll finally be disabused of all the cringe vocabulary of American Conservatism. When the water is up to my nose, I’ll settle for never having to hear “Judeo-Christian” again as consolation.
I’m proud to officially announce my candidacy for the office of Dogcatcher.
