The Boogeyman...

What do you do when the boogeyman is dead? It's a question I asked a friend when Osama bin Laden was finally captured and killed. We had spent so much time being afraid of him, of wanting some sort of justice for what he did, when it happened there was a feeling of relief from all of us. The United States and a lot around the world. But then there was also a feeling of...what do you do now?

Because killing Osama bin Laden didn't stop the terrorist activity. It didn't get us out of the two wars were fighting at the time. It took out one man, and he was still very much involved and recruiting, but others stepped up. It kept going. 

I feel like that about Trump leaving office. We've spent four years resisting. We've spent four years feeling helpless as he dismantled things we thought were important. We've spent four years working toward yesterday. And now...

I made it really clear four years ago that the person I was voting for in the 2020 election was the democrat. I didn't care who it was. I was Blue No Matter Who from the start. And Biden wouldn't have been my choice if I had been the one to decide. But I think he might have been the best choice for what needed done. 

I think Trump would have won if we hadn't had the pandemic and he hadn't handled it so poorly. 

I think he might still have won if the Republicans could have found something more to try and pin on Biden than the Bernie material they had been working on thinking it would be Bernie. 

Biden is non-threatening enough to win over the moderates. Biden is empathetic enough to make those that are grieving feel heard. Biden is Democrat enough to make those that were Blue No Matter Who happy. 

And now he's got his mission, he wants to bring unity. He wants to go back to a time where you could disagree without hate. 

I'm not sure he will be able to. 

I mean he's going to work towards it but...

Seventy four million people voted for Trump. Now, not all of them bought into the whole rigged election nonsense. But a good portion of them did. And right now, as we speak, we have the Right Wing Media and certain Republican politicians trying to get them worked up that in his speech calling for unity Biden called them all racists. Well, no, he said we need to fight against racism and white supremacy. He didn't call you anything. Are you self selecting the deplorable basket again?

There isn't a lot to gain for them in unity. In disagreeing on policy without villainizing the other side. Because if you are judged strictly on your policy you might lose some of those 74 million who realize they would benefit from some of the policy choices on the left. 

Trump might have been the boogeyman, the figurehead, but voting him out doesn't end that strain of Trumpublicans. Cult45 is still out there. They are looking for a new figurehead, and there are plenty trying to step into that space. 

Jumping right to a death threat when you disagree with someone didn't start with Trump and it's not just a Cult45 thing. Being threatened with rape for being a woman with an opinion didn't start with Trump and it's not just a Cult45 thing. Seeing people who disagree with you as less than you didn't start with Trump and it's not just a Cult45 thing. It's naïve to think it will end with him losing an election. And again, an election he never admitted he lost, and a large part of the Republican base and all of Cult45 believes he didn't.

They believe something was stolen from them and so they aren't looking to find peace and unity.

And it's not just the Right that isn't ready to make nice. I've talked about it too. There is no moving forward without accountability. You want to pretend the last two months didn't happen? That it wasn't completely ridiculous that the not even that close election should be contested at all? That the past year where you decided that wearing a mask, socially distancing, treating a deadly virus seriously was somehow against your politics? Let alone the embracing of the radical right that's happening. You know, the part where if someone speaks out against racism and domestic terrorism and white supremacists your feelings are hurt because you think it's speaking out against you? Why would you think that? I don't ever think people are talking about me when they talk about the Karens and the Beckys out there being vile white women. You know why? Because I don't do those things. 

I'm not ready to make nice. 

I'd like to be. 

It's who I used to be.

I used to believe in the common space we all held.

I used to believe we were more alike than we were different. 

But I'm not sure I do anymore.

Because you followed the boogeyman into the scary places and liked it there. 

He might have been chased out from under the bed but you are still lurking in the closet. 

So the boogeyman has gone to Florida and we are left with a nation divided. What happens next?

I knew what I was doing four years ago. 

What happens next?