This Is Where I Vent

"WE are going to run the country. (untilthereisasafeandjudicioustransition) ... We are going to run it basically. And as you know the oil business in Venezuela has been a bust for years now... the best oil companies in the United States will invest on its infrastructure."

Sure, some are proud and adorn themselves with Dear Leader's apparel, screeching with hate from the rooftops.

But others? Others will shake their heads whenever the threat of authoritarianism comes up, agreeing with you, even though they'll proclaim it's overreaction and how it's just another normal pendulum swing.

They will lie in the polls or whenever asked who they support. They will proclaim themselves the ones in the middle, the champions of civility and decorum.

They'll even pat you on your shoulder when those in power walk back your rights a decade.

They'll never reveal how they had contributed or why. At best they'll sometimes slip and say some offhand line about criminals or fairness, or how balance is necessary.

Because they are the first in line to distance themselves from overt and open inflammatory rhetoric and racism/phobia/etc.

They'll claim they aren't bigoted.

Because not all discrimination is driven by overt hatred. It's not all irrationality and anger.

For some, consciously or subconsciously, discrimination is about preserving systems of power.

It's about the economy, you see, it's about "being unheard by the elites".

It's about "returning to normal". Because the status quo, no matter how unfair, is "normal".

When backed into the corner they'd likely proclaim that "the other side went too far". (In what? Wanting the same rights as everyone else?)

Whenever you wonder "how did this happen, how did a character like that gain so much power?", remember:

Minnesota:

Chicago:

San Diego:

Dallas:

Seattle:

San Francisco:

Philadelphia:

Los Angeles:

Phoenix (source)

Boise(!!!!) (source)

Portland (source)