Pilate saith unto him, What is truth? – John 18:38
I don’t think it’s controversial to state that Donald Trump is widely hated, and with good reason. But a sizable number of people hate him so much that it becomes a kind of mania that some refer to as “Trump Derangement Syndrome”: they overreact to every single stupid thing he does as though he were literally lobbing grenades into kindergartens; they focus on inconsequential nonsense like his picky eating habits instead of focusing on his actual, dangerous faults; and rather than criticizing awful policies which definitely originated with him (like his disastrous tariffs) they blame him for schemes which originated with Obama, Bush the Second, Clinton or even earlier. But the scariest and most dangerous symptom of this syndrome is misusing the word “fascist” to mean something like “overtly racist” while simultaneously sanctifying authoritarian terms like “treason” and licking the boots of anyone they think might hurt Trump, even sociopathic monsters like Kamala Harris and police-state organs like the FBI which have caused untold harm to peaceful people (while simultaneously vilifying its sister organization ICE). Last week I even saw people on Twitter claiming that “lying to the FBI” is an actual moral evil (malum in se) rather than a mere arbitrary law (malum prohibitum), simply because they perceive some antagonism between the Orange-utang and the Spawn of J. Edgar Hoover.
First, let’s get one thing clear: lying to sociopaths who work to destroy people’s lives for violations of arbitrary laws made up by privileged douchebags completely disconnected from those whose lives they presume to micromanage is not a wrong; in fact, it is both a right and a sacred duty. But even were that not so, the idea that factual truth is some sort of self-evident icon with the magical power to force the powerful to admit its veracity is so incredibly foolish and childish that one can barely conceive of an adult naive enough to believe it. And yet, my stating that simple truth resulted in numerous attacks from people who no doubt also think that a polygraph is as infallible an instrument as Wonder Woman’s magic lasso. The actual truth is that, when the government is involved, “truth” is defined by the one holding the gun, as explained in this series of tweets by Ken “Popehat” White:
…A very popular response to concerns about a perjury trap is the response “just tell the truth!” This is rainbows-and-unicorns fantasy. Certainly a liar is in jeopardy when testifying before the grand jury or talking to government agents. But so are you, my friend. Unless you’re perfect, and very lucky, and dealing with purely ethical and knowledgeable government agents. Among the MANY dangers: the government is convinced that the truth is false; the government is lying; your memory is faulty; or you panic and make bad choices like some kind of HUMAN. You might even get prosecuted for a non-answer that prosecutors decide was evasive, even if it wasn’t a lie. Don’t believe me? Ask Barry Bonds. The “just tell the truth” response assumes, without basis, that the purpose of interviews is to gather information. In fact, using interviews to create criminal liability is a primary feature of federal criminal investigation. “Just tell the truth” presumes trustworthy questioners with pure motives and enlightened, near-perfect witnesses. Neither assumption is warranted…
The point of interrogation is not to collect information; it’s to destroy the victim or turn them into a weapon against another victim, or both. And the only thing you should do when faced with such interrogation is to shut the fuck up except to say, “I want my lawyer”.
I love you so much right now! Truth Be Told I will always want your voice of reason around when the crazies come to town.
Thank you for a fine commentary and particularly for your point that “fascism” does not mean “overtly racist” or “authoritarian”.
If you really want to know what fascism is as a political/economic system, read about Elizabeth Warren’s proposed “Accountable Capitalism Act”. Bernie Sanders claims to be but is not really a “democratic socialist” but Warren is truly America’s premier Democratic Fascist.
Another great post that expresses what others dare not. Thanks.
Brava!!!
Two of the dumbest comments I hear bleated out by boot licking authority worshipers is “only someone guilty would ask for an attorney” and “only the guilty would assert their fifth amendment privilege against self-incrimination.”
Do you think it’s a coincidence that on the very few occasions a judge, police officer, prosecutors or politician is at risk of actually being held accountable for misconduct “I want my attorney right now!” is literally the first thing out of their mouth? What is it they understand that you don’t?
The State relies on our institutional stupidity of our rights to ensure a steady stream of innocent citizens continue to flow into our brimming prison system. For those who don’t understand, take a look at how evidentiary rules work jackass
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-7o9xYp7eE
http://www.thelibertypapers.org/2010/04/14/flex-your-rights-presents-10-rules-for-dealing-with-police/
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/18/nyregion/testilying-police-perjury-new-york.html
Just remember, no matter how many times Hollywood Cops show morons, the Police, Prosecutors and their sycophant worshipers in the general public tell you this, the Constitution was not created to protect criminals from the State, or to protect the Police from criminals. It was created specifically and exclusively to protect the innocent from the State’s unlimited reach and power to torture and destroy anyone it chooses while laughing in the face of you and your loved ones while they are doing it.
A Politician, a judge, a police officer and a prosecutor all wake up every morning looking for new ways to skirt and circumvent the few protections remaining in the Constitution in an endless quest to extent their authority and lack of accountability while endlessly growing the prison population at your expense. When you make idiotic statements like those I listed above, you’re rooting for our tyrant and executioner.
I would be OK with that if it was just you bragging your friends and family about how nice these new chains look on your placing the rest of us who know better in chains as well. If you wish for slavery fine. Stop dragging the rest of us into the dungeon with you.
There’s a book I saw at a local Amazon Books store that might be of interest for anyone wondering what—and more importantly, what NOT—to say to the police if they are under suspicion. It’s “You Have The Right To Remain Innocent” by James Duane.
Again, you nail it.
The core problem with hating Trump is that this goes against the wrong target. Trump is not important or even interesting and removing him would solve nothing. He is basically a random, self-absorbed idiot with no insight and all the (wrong) answers, same as a significant part of the general population. The real problem are the ones that put him in power. If they had put some other human failure into office, the results would be basically the same overall. That is why I am at best amused by Trump’s cluelessness and blundering. But the people that voted for him, these will not simply go away and will continue to do massive damage.
With that, hating trump so much that you are willing to overlook significant evil in his opponents becomes a bad problem in itself. “Worse” does not make supporting “bad” acceptable in any way.