"The peaceful transition of power"--is there not something vaguely alarming about the easy yet portentous way in which the phrase falls from the lips of Americans around inauguration time? The gravity of the pronouncement suggests that "the peaceful transition of power" is another aspect of "American exceptionalism," although--as the examples of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Switzerland, Israel, Australia, Belgium, Chile, Canada, Iceland, New Zealand, Malta, Spain, Italy, Japan, and six or seven others show--we are not really in this regard exceptional. When a "peaceful transition of power" occurs in any of these countries, do citizens and journalists feel the need to blare "Congratulations!" 70 zillion times a minute, or is it regarded as so routine as not to require commentary? To me, it seems more exceptional if you don't need to talk about it.
This whole question of "American exceptionalism" is fraught. Usually it seems like just a stick for conservatives to swing at liberals who complain about, say, the comparatively high rate of infant mortality in our country. You think too many babies aren't living to celebrate a birthday? You hate America! But, considering the inaugural address, maybe not as much as the new president. He wants to make America great again, but it is unclear when in his mind it ever was great. I suppose it would have been achieved without his assistance and that must be the problem. "The American carnage ends today!"
What exactly is he talking about? The unemployment rate is at 4.7%. The number of Americans without health insurance is at last on the decline. Gay people can marry and we are still awaiting the dreadful consequences of that development. Osama bin Laden is dead but of course there is something new to hyperventilate about. Keep out the Muslims! Back in the day when I might have considered voting for a Republican here and there, they were calmer. Maybe the new president will be so distracted by the daily insults to his vanity that he will forget about the wall, the registry, &c. That spectators at his Friday inaugural were outnumbered by protestors the next day clearly irritated him.
I like a lot of the signs I saw in television coverage of those protests.
We need a leader, not a creepy tweeter.
Get your small hands off my pussy (and NATO).
He's orange, he's gross, he didn't win the popular vote.
I was watching the news the other evening, and they showed Trump declaring to a roomful of sycophants that his cabinet will have the highest IQ of any ever assembled--before cutting away to show Rick Perry, the next head of the Department of Energy, testifying at his Senate hearing.
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