I Feel Sick...
Assassins, Wrestlers, and Fools: Bread and Circus in Modern America, an editorial
I feel sick...
It started last night as I watched the spectacle that is this year’s Republican National Convention. I should have just continued reading the book I'm plowing through for research on my new nonfiction title. Oh, that’s right, I haven’t told my readers here on the Switchblade yet. Earlier this week, I signed a contract with SkyHorse to write my second nonfiction book. This one will tackle the subject of AI and its seismic impact on the writing industry. The working title is "AI Ink. - Writing, Publishing, and Misinformation at the Dawn of the AI Age," and it should hit bookstore shelves early next year. I wrote more about it and my writing journey in my new weekly opinion column in the Estes Park Trail-Gazette called Edge of Insight. But back to being sick.
I wish I could just go back to bed and stay there as long as it may take until I feel better. Unfortunately, I can't. I have to write and research heavily seven days a week until Thanksgiving to meet my book deadline. This week has been yet another manic episode, kicking off with the assassination attempt on former President Trump. A would-be assassin’s bullet breezed past his ear moments before the Secret Service put the assailant down in a fine mist of pink. The attacker, a 20-year-old with no known affiliations, had managed to position himself on the roof of a building adjacent to Trump’s speaking venue—a building that, at the time, was being used by the FBI for routine operations. The lapse in security is staggering and raises serious questions about the preparedness of those tasked with protecting high-profile figures.
It seems that Trump is protected by the elder gods of chaos, destined to walk this planet unscathed and likely back into the White House. With him comes a playbook that aims to fundamentally alter the federal government. It's eerily reminiscent of other dynamic government takeovers that preceded World War II, such as the rise of fascist regimes in Italy and Germany. This playbook threatens to erode the foundations of our democracy and undermine the progress we've made in civil and human rights.
Meanwhile, Biden appears dazed and confused, as if he could get lost in a large closet. Despite many Democratic power players, including former President Obama and several key senators, urging him to step aside for the good of the country, he remains steadfast. This leaves us wondering who could possibly emerge to defeat Trump.
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