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The Old Order is Already Gone [1]

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Date: 2025-02-14

When tyranny arrives, it looks a lot like what I apprehend to be happening now. Therefore I conclude it has arrived. Many writers, pundits, thinkers have described the situation variously, constitutional crisis features frequently. To my thinking, the constitutional crisis already happened, it is over and past and now we arrive at the practical consequences stage. The constitutional crisis was the Supreme Court ruling immunizing the President from everything. The rest is little more than logical result.

The early stage we see now is the radical (radical not in the sense of left/right, radical vs reactionary, but in the sense of tremendous divergence from (previous) norms) reshaping of government and society. This reshaping is revolutionary (again, not in a left/right sense). The smashing of the machinery of government is the goal of some of those doing the smashing, but only a steppingstone of others in the new order. These steppingstones indicate the path that will be followed, predicting what will happen next. The most salient, to my mind, of what will happen next is a transformation to a one party state.

How might this unfold? I view the worst possibilities as the most likely with these as some of my expectations:

The vilification of democrats and of values espoused by democrats and the left has been underway already for a long time. The simple use of an us vs them argument is attractive and near irresistible. Already, it progresses from vilification to ostracization. Since those with "wrong thought" are so obviously in error, they must in fact be criminal. I expect to see increasing provocation until there are protests. When protests emerge, some combination of rash hotheads and agents provacteurs will become violent. Following this, groups will be named as terrorists, a labeling which will be at first propaganda, followed by statutory and official action. This will proceed up to the banning of the Democratic party.

I expect all officials opposed to the new order to be removed, either through official acts (impeachment of judges, for example, firing civil servants) and unofficial (resignations compelled by fear for one's self and family, violence, assassination). I expect the return of officially sanctioned, even statutory racism and sectarianism. I expect unbridled corruption and bribery. Tyranny is inherently loot oriented and corruption is only one aspect of the looting. I expect wholesale looting of assets, public and private, divorced from regard for consequences, since there will be few. Does this seem overly pessimistic? Follow the steppingstones already laid down.

Background

I write this more for me, than for anyone else. I need to remind myself that what I see is not hard to comprehend. It has happened before, and although the product of complex issues in the country and in society at large, is straightforward. The main difficulty for me, and probably for most people is that it is difficult to the point of impossibility of remembering that other people are not like me. By this I mean that I have a set of assumptions something like this: I value certain things, actions and processes. What I value is reasonable based on my own background, upbringing, and ethos. Since reasonable, and here comes the rub, all other reasonable people value the same things, actions, and processes. I project my value system as an absolute, since it is the only value system I understand, when in truth, it is relative.

However, when I take a breath and distance myself from my assumption, I understand that everyone, or nearly everyone is operating in the same way, each projecting their own value system onto others. We each, tend to think ourselves blameless. And we are each suckers for our own assumptions. The diversity I value is antithetical to the uniformity valued by another. We each are manipulated psychologically by messaging aimed at triggering our fears. Many or most of us are hooked by the notion of revenge. Don't believe me? Look at all the FAFO posts - "oh, 'they' are getting their comeuppance now." Recall that they are us. Pray, or wish, or hope that my expectations are erroneous.

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