Aging with Grace

Insurrection is an art and like all arts has its own laws.

Leon Trotsky

 I was listening to the news at lunch, yesterday, when I heard about the attack on our Government. I turned on the television and sat in stunned silence as I watched a mob descend on the Capitol. It was as though I was viewing a train wreck. I was horrified, but I couldn’t look away. In many ways, it seemed surreal. There were people dressed up in costumes as if they had been on their way to a masquerade party and were suddenly swept up in a riot. I saw a superhero, a tribal warrior, a Lady Liberty. Others carried Revolutionary war and Confederate flags as if they were caught in a time warp. One rioter clutched a crudely written, cardboard sign with bible verses on it. Later, I wished I had written down the citations to look up. I am curious what they found in the bible that they thought justified their actions.  

After it was over, I wondered if the rioters , with the exception of a few true insurrectionists, felt they had accomplished their goal. Was this just a gang who had been brainwashed by the continuing barrage of misinformation put out by the President? Had they simply drank the Kool-Aid? It’s hard to see how this helped Donald Trump if that was the objective. The electoral college votes were, ultimately, counted. The ceremonial act of accepting the votes and confirming President-elect Biden was done. Once again, our democracy had been challenged and survived. Nietzsche wore, “ – what doesn’t kill me makes me stronger.” I believe history will confirm we, as a country, have been made stronger.