I only understand friendship or scorched earth.
– Roger Ailes
I normally don’t like to put quotes up by those people who I find reprehensible but this short quote above explains so much.
It’s from Roger Ailes, the late serial sexual abuser and fired head of Fox News. It was Ailes who served as the engine driving the darker aspects of cable news that feeds American public willing to believe even the most suspect drivel so long as it fit in with their own beliefs and prejudices.
He was also a confidant, adviser and friend to the current president.***
And I would bet my life that if he were to be asked whether he agreed with this short statement from Ailes, he would most likely say, “Yes. Bigly.“
As I said, this explains so much.
A scorched earth policy, for those of you not familiar with the term, is a military tactic where a retreating army destroys anything that might be of use to their opponent. It usually means burning fields, destroying buildings and homes, disabling utilities and so on.
In short, making that place practically uninhabitable for some time to come.
Now, some businessmen like Ailes and his ilk like to think of themselves as warriors and treat transactions like combat and their business rivals like enemies. Anything goes in trying to win. If someone does not side with you, you destroy them in any way that keeps them from opposing you now or in the future.
Scorched earth.
While, this ugly and often cruel method may be somewhat acceptable solely in a business environment, where those involved put themselves there by choice, it is not one that can be transferred to governance.
Governance is for the totality of the citizens. Even those who do not vote for you or those who openly protest when your policy decisions adversely affect them. To preside over a nation means you act as a caretaker for that nation.
All of it. Every person in that land.
That is not a concept the current president*** understands or accepts. He sees anyone who stands in opposition to him, even in a perfectly civil and legal manner, as being an enemy that must be punished if not destroyed.
For the past four years he has viewed more than half of this nation as his enemy.
He never looked out at the people of this nation and simply saw nation of American citizens to whose care he was entrusted. He saw the crowd as being his people and his enemies. Those who would protect him and those who would attack him. They were always broken into two camps.
And from day one, he has put that perception to the test. He never tried to bridge the gap to bring the two sides closer together, never sought to extend a hand of help or unity. In fact, he seemed to take pleasure in punishing or taunting his perceived opponents. And the more he taunted and punished his enemies, the more they spoke out against him and the more his people defended his every move, even his most egregious actions.
And the divide grew wider. Now, much to his delight, his people see the other side as their enemies, who they wish to hurt and destroy.
Scorched earth style.
The unfortunate truth here is that in their adulation of this selfish fool, they are willing to scorch the very land where they live.
Their economy. Their security. Their democracy. Their future.
It is obvious that the president*** has lost and by a wide margin. When all is said and done, his opponent may have over 80 million votes with a 51% majority that gives him a nearly 4% gap of victory.
That is an overwhelming defeat in any election.
Yet, instead of now heeding the voice of the American people, he would burn the soil and homes of this land before he retreats. He is setting fires every day before he leaves with the hope that this country will be so ablaze that the next administration will be facing an impossible task in putting out the many fires in trying to stabilize the nation.
He has proposed a war with Iran. He has gutted vital defense departments and tried to our make open to our foes military methodology and secrets. He has sped through the sale of public lands to his business cronies. He has attacked our very democracy through is constant and unsubstantiated accusations of voter fraud.
Just this morning, he fired his head of election cybersecurity because his statements verifying the security of this year’s elections didn’t line up with the false and flawed narrative he and his cronies are feeding to his people.
In my eyes, this president*** has not shown any real love for this country or the people in it. He loves the power and prestige of the office, loves the perks and the constant flow of attention and adulation he receives in that role. But when it gets down to the nitty gritty, he doesn’t love the people of this country. Certainly not those who he sees as his enemies.
And not even his people because he sees his defeat as their failure, not his. They didn’t do enough for him.
A lot of these folks will be badly hurt by his scorched earth tactics but he will try to keep a bridge or two open for them. But it’s not done out of love for these folks. They have failed him and he will never fully forgive them for that. But he knows he may want to use them again in the future, either for protection or for profit. Most likely for profit.
As it is with any good conman, you don’t give up on your marks until you get everything you can from them.
Then it’s scorched earth once more.
Let’s hope he doesn’t fully burn this joint to the ground on his way out. For ALL our sakes.
Redtree Times 