What’s everybody so mad about? Sure, it’s cold outside and there’s a worldwide pandemic and the economy is in trouble and we’re on the verge of war with Russia and Netflix just raised their rates. But at a rally at the Iowa Statehouse last Tuesday, Wilton Republican, Rep. Bobby Kaufmann seemed really upset about something else.
“When it comes to these gun-grabbing, freedom-hating, over-regulating, civil liberty-violating tyrants,” Kaufmann fumed, “here’s my message!”
But instead of a message, Kaufmann held up his two middle fingers. If he could write up that sentiment into legalese and pass around copies for everybody, maybe they could all vote on it. But if he had some policy change in mind, it was not clear. First of all, I would point out to Mr. Kaufmann that if he’s complaining about liberals, they are all about freedom and civil liberties (well, okay—and maybe gun-grabbing). But I bet when he was little, Kaufmann’s mother told him it was not nice to call people names. Also, flipping somebody “the bird” is very bad. And a double-bird is just plain excessive.
At the rally, somebody in the audience shouted, “Is the federal government a tyranny?” at which the crowd roared its agreement. It’s hard to argue against that charge. The government makes us pay taxes and stop at stop signs. How dare they? Just imagine how much better off we’d be if there were no laws at all.
Rep. Shannon Lundgren of Peosta was inspired by the anger at Washington and spirit of rebellion in the room. “They are not in charge of us! We are in charge of them!” (Translation: You’re not the boss of me!)
The rally would not have been complete without an appearance from former US Senator Rick Santorum, once the undisputed dumbest person in Congress, although much has changed since then. Santorum wasted no time throwing red meat into the ravenous audience, railing about how terrible things have become when he was interrupted by a group of animal rights activists, which although a bit off-topic, did temporarily take the wind out of his sails. Nevertheless, his group got back on course and loudly countered with, “USA! USA! USA!”—cheering for, one assumes, our tyrannical government.
Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin is angry, too—in her folksy, high school cheerleader sort of way. At the moment, Palin is angry with the New York Times and is suing them for defamation. In July 2017, the Times inaccurately accused her of inciting the shooting of 13 victims, including Rep. Gabby Giffords. Palin took time off from shooting wolves from her helicopter—or whatever else she does for fun in Alaska to come to New York for the trial. But wouldn’t you know it, she tested positive for COVID—for the second time? Famously unvaccinated, Palin had declared she would get the vaccine “over my dead body,” which now sounds a little creepy. Teeming with COVID, Palin showed up, unmasked, at two New York City restaurants. The mayor’s office warned that anybody who came near her needs to get tested. Anyway, the trial has been postponed while Palin recovers.
Palin’s case against the Times must show, not only was the publication wrong, but that Times was motivated by “actual malice,” which these days, might describe a lot of people.