I would have a twisted view of who people are willing to defend if my brother acted like an idiot and I had to defend him.
This is no ordinary story of political dysfunction. No, this is an obscene carnival of cowardice, starring a former president who should be pacing around a cell but instead plays golf and whines on Truth Social. The aftermath of January 6th has turned into a grotesque sitcom with a laugh track straight out of hell. And Fanone? He’s the guy left holding the flaming bag of shit—literally.
Before we get to the pardons, let’s talk about Fanone’s mom. A 78-year-old woman minding her own business in Virginia became the target of a campaign of terror so vile it would make your stomach turn. First, some jackass decided to swat her house. For those unfamiliar, swatting is when some anonymous coward calls the cops and pretends there’s an active shooter, sending armed officers to storm the home of some unsuspecting victim. In this case, the victim was an elderly woman whose only crime was giving birth to a man who helped fight off a mob of Trump’s supporters.
But the lunatics weren’t done. Someone else threw a brick at the window of her home. Then, while she was raking leaves in her front yard, another gutless wonder drove by and chucked a bag of excrement at her. A bag of excrement. Let that sink in. Somewhere out there, a person woke up one morning, decided to take a dump, put it in a bag, and hurl it at an old lady. If there’s a clearer metaphor for the state of Trumpism, I’ve yet to see it.
But the real obscenity, the pièce de résistance of this farce, is Trump’s pardons. One by one, the cretins who beat Fanone and other officers senseless were granted get-out-of-jail-free cards, courtesy of the man who incited the riot in the first place. You’d think the assault of a police officer would be a red line even for Trump’s base, but no—these people weren’t just forgiven; they were celebrated. Heroes of the “patriot” movement. Martyrs to the cause of Make America Great Again.
Legally, those pardons mean Fanone and the other officers are no longer considered victims of crimes committed on January 6th. Think about that. The man was dragged into a mob, beaten unconscious, and suffered a heart attack while defending democracy—and now, thanks to Trump, the perpetrators’ crimes technically never happened. As if the blood spilled that day could just be swept under the rug like some embarrassing accident at a Fourth of July barbecue.
Fanone can’t even get a restraining order against the people who assaulted him. Why? Because under the law, they’re no longer criminals. A restraining order requires evidence of ongoing harassment or threats, and thanks to Trump’s golden ticket of clemency, these goons can walk around with their heads held high, free to harass, intimidate, or worse, without any consequence.
Oh, and if Fanone wanted to file a restraining order, he’d need their addresses, which are conveniently protected. So he’s stuck in a Kafkaesque nightmare where the system that should protect him has been gutted, leaving him exposed to the whims of the very people who tried to kill him.
The real tragedy here isn’t just what happened to Fanone or his mother. It’s what the pardons signify: the triumph of cruelty as a political weapon. Trump has turned victimhood into a brand and grievance into a business model. His pardons are less about mercy and more about sticking it to his enemies. By erasing the crimes of January 6th, he sends a message: “If you’re loyal to me, you can do whatever the hell you want.”
The consequences of this are staggering. It’s not just about Fanone or the other officers who were attacked—it’s about the collapse of accountability. We’re living in a country where the law bends to the whims of a man who treats the presidency like his personal revenge fantasy.
Michael Fanone is a hero, but he’s also a man fighting a losing battle against a system that has failed him at every turn. His mother, an innocent bystander, has been dragged into the fray, humiliated and harassed by people too cowardly to face him directly. And the man who made all this possible is golfing in Florida, grinning like a Cheshire cat while his pardoned goons roam free.
This isn’t just a story about political dysfunction. It’s a goddamn horror show—a cautionary tale about what happens when cruelty and cowardice become virtues, and the people who stand up for what’s right are left to fend for themselves in a country that’s lost its soul.
Who is that by?
I wish I knew, they’re a good writer. They post on Sub/Nazistack as “Closer to the Edge,” and on FBook as:
No individual’s name in either case that I can find.
They also wrote this:
Cool! thanks!
The beer will come in handy.
Come on, don’t encourage him to do more. And all that matters to Trump voters is that he telegraphs the right amount of hate, anyway.
I see what you mean and agree, but I also agree that it’s encouraging to see how bad these clowns are at acting on their many fucked up ideas (even though, on the third hand?, their incompetence is also frightening, since incompetent Tromp loyalists will be running/ruining so many essential day to day federal and military operations).
I will eventually take comfort from their incompetence if it prevents them from lining their pockets, somehow lands them in jail, and foils their plans for one party rule. Until then they are just hurting people whether they are “good” at it or not.
Yes. I’d add that their throwing sand in their own gears gives Dems more opportunity, should they choose to take it, to throw in all that much more sand. Hurting fewer people seems a likely result, as does a better chance of winning back Congress in the midterms.
It’s hard to say whether their incompetence will result in hurting fewer people. Messing with the FAA certainly isn’t saving lives, even though airplane passengers aren’t one of their targets. And anti-vax conservatives were killed more by COVID (my brother being one of them). Hurting fewer of their intended targets, sure, but functional government saves lives.
Okay you’re right, I’ll do my best to stop taking what little joy and hope I thought there was to be found in their manifest, multiform incompetence.
I really don’t want to steal any of your joy, and I’m sorry if I did.
So it goes. I guess we’re all on edge as we try to deal with the swirling bits of fascist shitstorm.
Yeah, trans people are much better about understanding consent than most of society. We tend to not put up with rapists, whether they’re on our ‘team’ or not.
I’d never been asked if it was ok for someone to kiss me until I started dating T4T and lemme tell you, that’s hot.