Right, wrong and January 6

I don't write much about politics anymore, because what am I really adding to the conversation. I'm still guilty of the ocassional drive-by Facebook link, but seeing as how no one uses it anymore, and I mostly post for my own historical record, whatever. But today is a pretty dark anniversary. Three years ago, we watched on TV as criminals stormed the Capitol in protest of a legitimate election outcome, encouraged by the lame duck president of the United States. Maybe we got used to the dismemberment of institutional norms over the prior four years, but this was something completely different.

This comes to mind in part because today I read a story where NPR details what happened that day, and Trump's role in it. But they also detail how he's willing to trade votes for pardons for the people convicted of their crimes on that day.

Let me just keep it brief. There's a difference between right and wrong. The people supporting this fascist believe that votes for pardons, for people convicted, deserves precedence over illegal immigrants trying to find work and escape subhuman conditions. Violent, convicted criminals rank higher than people trying to make a better life for themselves.

Is Joe Biden a "good" president? He's, at best, mediocre. I can't understand why our system can't do better than two ancient white men. But even if you believe that Biden has shitty policy, shitty policy is not illegal, and it's not treason. Fomenting an insurrection is illegal. Trying to invalidate a legitimate election is illegal. Racketeering is illegal. Stealing top secret government documents is illegal. Defrauding the banks with false property valuations is illegal. There's a long list of things that are immoral as well, including the obvious racism, misogyny and such. But so is offering pardons for votes. So is admiring dictators and leaders of nations who are not our friends. So is declaring that we should throw out the Constitution. These aren't what-ifs, these are demonstrable facts, not shitty policy.

We need to stop pretending that moral equivalence has anything to do with this. One man is a fascist, criminal defendant, the other is, at worst, someone with shitty policy.