Safety?

In case you missed it, here’s the extremely well-researched, extremely well-written story of a series of incidents centered in Kenosha, Wisconsin during the Summer of 2020 which highlights, underlines, focusses attention on and otherwise does justice to what may be a turning point in the already endangered social system labelled “democracy”. The article appears in the July 5th edition of the New Yorker:

A Reporter at Large — July 5, 2021 Issue — Kyle Rittenhouse, American Vigilante — After he killed two people in Kenosha, opportunists turned his case into a polarizing spectacle. — By Paige Williams

As we watch from the World, the United States of America is re-writing its own story in twisted, time-lapse fashion. The pioneering spirit is wrapped in bigotry. The fight for equality is wrapped in looting and rioting. And “safety” has become a metaphor for “segregation”.

We watch as the Ignorant try their damndest to replace The Best and the Brightest. If we’re lucky, these two extreme factions — pure tactics vs pure strategy — will cancel each other and leave the World to be run by reasonable people who understand that progress is built on tradition but has no mandate to perpetuate it. If we’re unlucky, one of these factions will win and herald in an era of confusion the likes of which North America hasn’t seen since the First Thanksgiving — and this may finally sink the American Dream.

As the 17 year old vigilante, Kyle Rittenhouse, explained to detectives at the Antioch Police Station last summer, soon after murdering or maiming three people with an assault rifle he owned: “I’m not a child anymore”. America has spoken, I guess?