The Halloween Boys came to Washington on January 6th. In the thousands and all gussied up, they tried to overthrow the U.S. government. Summoned by Don Trump in a replay of their common hero’s Beerhall Putsch nearly a century ago, their Halloween-costumed terror attack was a blowout.
Several things were immediately apparent. No men showed up. Just boys of all ages. All white. And a tiny number of women, one of whom got herself killed.
Like Halloween, all the boys were in costume. Most dressed themselves up to try to look like men. Their man costumes were bizarre. Like the QAnon dude, a serious gussie in his clown combination of horns and makeup. A very odd and decidedly unmasculine bunch.
Yes, the boys—the no-women-allowed Proud Boys even named themselves boys to be sure that we would not mistake them for men—got completely out-of-hand like the children they are.
But, because they are boys in adult form, shells of men in effect, out-of-hand meant over-the-top violence and a concerted attempt to kill then V.P. Mike Pence and House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi. And, had they found them, the Halloween Boys would have killed any and all Democrats and all those Republicans, like Mitt Romney, who they deem disloyal.
The Halloween Boys made sure not to wear masks so that they could create their own Sturgis Event, unleashing Covid 19 far and wide. This way, when they videoed themselves, the Boys ensured that they would be easy for the authorities to recognize. And charge.
Their defense? They made sure to repeat on video time and again that they were following the express orders of Don Trump, the commander-in-chief.
The Halloween Boys' videos successfully raised huge questions about the American education system. People the world over got to see large numbers of Boys shouting out some of the dumbest ideas ever. Faith in American education was quickly and effectively destroyed.
Another thing that stands out is that, unlike with other protests—none of which would ever have tried to overthrow the government and kill so many legislators—law enforcement made no attempt to gun down the Halloween Boys putschists en masse.
This failure sent a strong signal to Mussolini followers Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping that, when confronted with a terrorist attempt to overthrow the government, the U.S. is weak and uncertain. Indeed, it is far weaker and more flaccid than they had ever imagined.
Then President Don Trump helped organize the Halloween Boys, openly and repeatedly encouraging them in their Beer Hall mission every step of the way. His treachery astonished people around the world and lead to a deep drop in America’s image and value.
The fact that Senate Republicans did not all, without exception, vote to convict Trump at both of his impeachment trials is deeply stunning and has shattered confidence in U.S. “democracy” worldwide and probably forever. Why the GOP would offer such a gift to Putin and Xi is hard to fathom. Unless a lot of people have been paid a lot of money.
The price of Robert’s Wreck, the refusal of Chief Justice John Roberts to call witnesses—even those who volunteered—to testify at Don Trump’s first impeachment trial has been extraordinary.
The United States will not be coming back.
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