Spazzie knows a rant requires slow, low heat. A good rant is like a good stew, start with good ingredients, don’t rush the roux and, by all that is holy, let the stew simmer! So, when Spazzie woke me up at 3:30 am this morning shouting “THEY’RE GASLIGHTING US,” I knew this ‘stew’ was ready and it was time for me to write.
Wikipedia defines gas-lighting as “A form of mental abuse in which information is twisted, spun, or selectively omitted to favor the abuser; false information presented with the intent of making victims doubt their memory, perception, and sanity.”
- It’s Sean Spicer saying, from behind the White House Press Secretary’s podium, “this was the largest audience to witness the inauguration ever, period. Both in person and around the globe.”
- It’s President Clownshoes Asshat robustly defending his admiration for Vladimir Putin to Bill O’Reilly “There are a lot of killers, we’ve got a lot of killers. What do you think? Our country’s so innocent?”
- It’s Fox News tweeting, after Lada Gaga’s Super Bowl Half-time performance, “Lady Gaga sings a medley of hit songs at Super Bowl LI, steers clear of politics.” The “hits” being “Born This Way” (LGBT empowerment anthem) and “This Land is Your Land” —Woody Guthrie’s song that no one, anywhere, has EVER sung out as a form of political protest.
- It’s “Alternative Facts.”
Are you feeling it yet? That twitchy, unsettled feeling in the very back of your lizard brain that something in our country is very, very wrong? Sure, you do. And here’s where our American story shifts from “WTF? Is he completely insane?” to “Holy fuck, they’re going to steal from us what little we have left.” Allow me to introduce you, Dear Readers, to the new American Kleptocracy.
A Kleptocracy is a government with corrupt rulers (kleptocrats) that use their power to exploit the people and natural resources of their country, to extend their personal wealth and political power. Typically, this system involves the embezzlement of state funds at the expense of the wider population, sometimes without even the pretense of honest service. The last bit there is especially important. It’s the bit that distinguishes this administration from every previous administration in our country’s history (Democrat or Republican).
There are processes within our government that are meant to discourage politicians, and their political appointees, from leveraging public office for personal, financial benefit. We (the people) grant our public officials extraordinary decision-making power, on our behalf, and we do so with the expectation that these officials will, in good faith, make decisions that benefit us.
This agreement is the “social contract” we enter into with our representatives. We elect you to do the people’s work; we expect you to work for the people. Seems plain and straight forward, yeah? If only!
Many of the mechanisms that we (again, I’m talking about ‘the people’ here) rely on to ensure that our political officials are working in our interest— not in their self-interest—aren’t codified as law; they’re just common practice. Meaning that our public officials can elect NOT to practice, what is common practice. The current administration’s soon-to-be-confirmed political appointees have ‘respectfully declined’ to participate in thorough ethics reviews. They filled out the ethics disclaimer form that is legally mandated, and that is all. So how are we, the people, supposed to be confident that our public officials aren’t robbing us blind?
We’re not! But we’re not idiots; we clearly can see there’s something seriously rotten at the top! What’s a corrupt public official to do?
“Ya gaslight ‘em,” sings the K-Street Chorus!
This administration is so confident that it can get away with stealing from the American people what little we have left because they're already doing it (seriously, Steve Mnuchin as Treasury Secretary?) . They’re distracting us, denying facts, crying “fake news” in response to stories that highlight how their policies erode our civil rights, and imprisoning those who dare to protest (not hyperbole, people, check out the NPR article, see if it doesn’t make you afraid)!
They are stealing our public legacy; they’re working to convince us that the problem is us, not them. The current administration doesn’t even give a fuck about hiding it; why bother? Oh, hell yeah, folks, we’re being gaslighted. Bend over; the worst is yet to come.