as the dust settles

Just to clarify - yesterday's post was written at 4 p.m., as the mob was just getting started. The rest of the day - where to begin? Where were the police, so powerfully present for Black Lives Matter, smashing heads and arresting? Why was that pathetic little group of cops there, did the authorities not listen to Trump, not follow what was being planned for months, if not years? 

Some good will come of this. The man is toast, first of all - if even some of his weasly, spineless group of supporters have turned on him, if even Mark Zuckerberg has had enough, he's done. We all feared what he'd be capable of in these coming two weeks - starting a war, dropping bombs, God knows - but he won't be able to now. May his enablers be haunted till the end of their days. May Josh Hawley be confronted by that photo of himself with his fist raised, saluting the mob, everywhere he goes, forever.

The optical metaphor was extraordinary. Just as American democracy has been threatened, these last years, by a lawless band of greedy opportunists, so yesterday was the Capitol building itself. Maybe other countries will now take seriously the threat of domestic terrorism, violent white supremacists like the Proud Boys - which, as my daughter just pointed out, was founded by a Canadian. No country is immune.

This is what I wrote on Facebook:

Never did I think I'd spend the evening watching the U.S. Senate! One senator, speaking of the lawless mob, invoked the fall of the Roman Empire. I thought of Caligula, a vilely cruel and insane Roman ruler in power for nearly 4 years until he was assassinated. But the American Caligula and his enablers are still in office. Of course they and Fox News are to blame for today — but also an education system that has not taught people to look at FACTS, to think. Horrifying.

Some of the Dem senators spoke eloquently, and it was heartening to watch Nancy Pelosi stay calm last night under immense pressure and force the vote. Though listening to the backtracking of the monstrous cretins on the other side made my stomach churn. 

It's hard to work, it's hard to do anything today but read the paper and check social media - what's happening? What's the response been? What's next?!