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Intellectually Exhausted
I find myself posting less and less these days. Probably it’s because we have had more than a handful of Ricochet members that have really stepped up their game and set the bar far higher than I can reach. (I’m looking at you, you and you, plus a whole lot more.)
Worse, I have been overcome by a certain malaise, a resignation that the American moment has passed. I see the discourse that emanates from our political class and that seems pretty hard to overcome. We are, as a people, intellectually exhausted.
I keep trying to tell myself that Twitter is not real life. But the media has just become Twitter on steroids, amplifying the same nonsense to a greater degree. Where once we had the “CW,” i.e. “conventional wisdom,” we now have the “CD,” the “cognitive dissonance.” Here’s how this works (or more precisely, doesn’t work) on the Left:
I have my own truth, you believe lies.
I am the #resistance, you are an #insurrectionist.
I believe SCOTUS is illegitimate, the Senate is undemocratic, every red state law must be overturned, you do not believe in “norms” or upholding the Constitution.
I believe the 2000, 2004, and 2016 presidential elections were rigged (not to mention Georgia’s gubernatorial election of 2018), you need to accept that 2020 was totally the most legitimate and secure election ever and any talk of “stolen” elections is downright un-American.
I want to live in a diverse nation, you don’t understand how your views undermine unity.
I believe that the American Right is full of gun-loving fascist nut jobs BUT if we pack the courts, rig the elections and add four sure-fire Democrats to the Senate by granting DC and Puerto Rico statehood those same gun-loving fascist nut jobs will totally roll over and accept that. Not only will they accept it, but when the newly constituted court invalidates Heller and the entire 2nd Amendment they will gladly turn in their firearms.
Any of this may translate into a great eight-minute segment on MSNBC or CNN. As a governing philosophy, not so much.
They discount the possibility of civil war because they are entrenched in a red-state, blue-state mentality. But if that were to happen it will most certainly not be that way. It won’t be the armies of Union vs. Confederation, it will be more like Beirut or Syria, urban and asymmetrical, a bloodbath of innocents. But that’s what you get when you lose the plot and have no idea what holds a country together.
There is, of course, a cadre of those on the Right that have semi-lost the plot, as well. They can see the coming disaster and therefore advocate surrender to the authoritarian Left rather than risk a shooting war. Perhaps they believe they will be a moderating force. Perhaps they believe the crocodile will eat them last. They’re probably wrong on both counts. They, too, are intellectually exhausted.
Where we go from here is the great question. I’m too exhausted to come up with an obvious solution.
Published in General
Having lived through the 60s and 70s, as did many Ricochetti, I find the best balm is to close Twitter and think about the Risorgimento of the 1980s. It can happen again.
Maybe. But do you have any doubt that if the commander of those troops ordered them to attack that they would obey?
They look a bit like they just stepped off the set of In the Heat of the Night (the film version).
From the OP:
Where can one encounter this cadre? Heaven forbid they are in some of the more respectable ranks here at Ricochet.
They seem to play tag team.
Well, those
twotoo. But as Yoda said mysteriously…”There is another.”Yes.
I know how you feel. There are times I want to comment fully on the miscellaneous news items I post, but I’d end up writing a string of COC violations and get booted for a month. Still, we trudge on, because we know the left never, ever gives up. It’s a constant struggle, and as one military leader said, “No army ever won a battle by surrendering.” (Wish I could remember the exact quote and author)
Where in NC, if you don’t mind my asking? I’m noodling on an exit strategy, living in Charlotte right now. I get the sense that in a few years we’ll have to push further west into the mountains to find what we’re looking for, a smaller town, mountains, water, etc. A million of them out there but Charlotte’s growth creates that 2nd/retirement home market out in the mountains.
A good example might be the Black Mountain area.
https://exploreblackmountain.com/
I just lie back and think of Mark Steyn.
Let me see . . . Mark Steyn, or Nicole Kidman?
I’ve made my choice . . .
Looks intriguing, @gazpachogrande! We’re about a 75 minute drive southwest of Asheville in Lake Toxaway, between Brevard and Cashiers/Highlands. We haven’t visited many of the towns around Asheville yet, but hope to begin to explore this part of the state more this fall. We finished building our home up here in 2015, but because we had kids late and I have ongoing caregiving responsibilities with my mother this is actually our very first month as official empty nesters. Woohoo!!! I hope to hang around Ricochet more reliably from now on too.
One heads up: huge rainfall in this region a few weeks ago washed out some roads, caused mudslides and closed popular hiking trails in several counties around here, but those are quickly getting cleared up if you want to explore this part of the state this fall. We are way, way overdue for another Ricochet meetup in this area (we had one in Greenville, SC back in 2011) so maybe we can make one happen this fall. And @ejhill, you’re welcome to join us down here too any time. Western NC is a wonderful place to rest one’s exhausted intellect, and my husband is originally from Ohio so if you’re as peeved as he is about the renaming of his beloved Indians you’ll have plenty to talk about.
Thanks! Just poking around at potential locations, now, Lake Toxaway makes the list. We love that part of the state, Asheville in particular.
Same here @gazpachogrande. I’m just south of Charlotte, and like you am looking for someplace less crowded. Ideally we’ll find someplace semi-remote, but still within reasonable distance to markets, etc. I’ll check out that link.
And @theotherdiane, Lake Toxaway sounds like it’s worth a look.
(Had to trim the quotes due to word limit.)
Never been to Asheville but I’ve been to Boone to do football. My daughter lives in the Charlotte burbs. So, maybe someday…
Look at the shine on those boots and shoes. I wonder what they were protesting, the lack of pants tailoring services.
And?
M-1’s and rolled up jeans, no doubt about when it was. I am curious about where and for what reason.
Probably not Portland.
Agreed. I’m certain that this picture predates my time in the army but from the insignia on their helmet liners (Armor), I’m just guessing that they might be from Ft Knox or maybe Ft Hood. So, perhaps the troops were bused in to address some disturbance in Kentucky/Tennessee or Texas/Mississippi/Alabama.
To tell the truth, this is the first time I’ve ever seen this photograph and I’ve seen a lot from the Civil Rights protests/riots of the 60s.
The latter, of course. Mark is funny, smart, and spot on with his observations. Nicole is . . . well, rather pleasing to the eyes (sorry, Mark) . . .
Clinton TN, 1956. From here, page 34 (“The Halting and Fitful Battle from Integration): https://books.google.com/books?id=6kcEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA34&source=gbs_toc_r&cad=2#v=onepage&q&f=false
Thanks, Dawg.
Hahaha, look what’s on page 61!
Been all around there, liked the area. But you know just a bit further west and you could be in Tennessee, which would be really nice.
Life Magazine photo in Clinton, TN in September of 1956. Right click on the photo and select search Google for image.
Things are seldom what they seem.
Interesting pose by that couple…
Nicole Kidman as pictured, or now? That’s another factor to consider.
Not bad for 53.
Either way . . .