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| "Boredom" -- Wiki Commons |
One sundry Saturday night a few months back, I decided to see if I could figure out how to watch my beloved SNL online since it isn't part of our package on Sling.
I googled every combination of search terms I could think of -- SNL, NBC, live, streaming content, etc., plus the names of the host and musical guests listed in pre-show publicity that week.
After shooting blanks, suddenly bingo! I think I hit pay dirt. A result popped up and I clicked on the link.
There on-screen was a rough-looking older guy, who said he was a parolee from prison, speaking into a microphone with patriotic paraphernalia arranged behind him. His monologue was remarkably unremarkable. He had a limited vocabulary and a notable propensity for cliches.
He didn't look familiar; he must be a TV actor (I don't see much TV).
Every now and then, an older woman, his "wife," leaned into the picture to say someone new was calling in and she waved to us all. She didn't look familiar to me either.
Eventually, a younger man joined via Zoom. Sporting a scraggly beard, a baseball cap and a neck tattoo, he clearly worshipped the older man, repeatedly saying how how inspirational he found him to be, though I couldn't figure out exactly why.
Wow, this is a pretty good parody of something, I thought to myself.
The two guys continued to go back and forth, sometimes taking phone calls from other folks with names like "Big Guy" or "Luke" and so forth. Everyone spoke in the same desultory manner, with nothing much to say. But I was sure I detected a certain low-grade excitement, as if everyone knew something bigger was going to happen.
Maybe it would be Alec Baldwin calling in as Trump to wake up the audience? Because they sure seemed to be lulled into silence. No canned laughter or anything.
Come to think of it, this was the longest lead-in I ever remember for SNL. Wasn't it past time for the first musical performance by now?"
Then I heard myself actually speaking out loud:
"There's no live audience because of Covid!"
The broadcast droned on and was weirdly captivating, yet I found myself starting to nod off. None of the hosts or callers made any pro-Trump or anti-government jokes. In fact, nobody made any jokes at all.
Boy, SNL is really going downhill, I was thinking by this point.
Suddenly, I found myself waving at the older lady whenever she broke in. She seemed really nice.
Slowly, much too slowly, I realized that there was never going to be a punchline.
***
Lately many people, myself included, have been throwing around the phrase "civil war" led by savvy anti-government extremists to describe what we think may be happening out there.
But in his Esquire essay "Clowns to the Left of Me, Soldiers to the Right," Charles P. Pierce describes how comically easy it has been for the F.B.I. to track down many of the Capitol rioters based on the many clues they left behind on social media, in selfies and on videos, etc.
Thus the thought occurs: Perhaps these guys simply are not all that savvy after all. While there are plenty of signs that a few rioters planned mayhem, others may have simply gone along for the ride.
None of this excuses the actions of Trump, Trump Jr., Giuliani, Hawley, Brooks & co., of course, for inciting the crowd. But in a larger sense, what if most of the folks involved were like the cast on that low-rent broadcast I'd stumbled upon by accident?
After all, not all the 75 million people who voted for Trump are thugs or extremists. Many are law-abiding, lifelong Republicans who just favor a different set of policies from those advocated by Democrats.
Trump supporters tend to live in smaller cities and towns. Many are less-educated, and tend more likely to be white, more likely to support the Second Amendment, and more likely to be skeptical about government authority in general.
Many may share a sense of frustration with a world that seems increasingly to favor big tech, elite institutions, coastal lifestyles, and diverse ethnic populations over the traditional America they've long taken for granted.
In a word, many fear their way of life is going extinct.
And maybe when they throw an online party on a sundry Saturday night, not all that much happens. Maybe they're sorta like me, waving when the old lady leans in and says "hey everybody!"
***
The headlines:
* Biden to sign executive orders rejoining Paris climate accord and rescinding travel ban on first day (CNN)
* C.D.C. Warns the New Virus Variant Could Fuel Huge Spikes in Covid Cases -- The more contagious version, first identified in Britain, is expected to spread widely and lead to further strains on an already overburdened health care system. (NYT)
* TSA assessing whether hundreds should be barred from flights ahead of inauguration (WashPo)
*
Journalists prepare for protests where they could be targets (AP)
* Top Lawmakers Not Told of Police Request for Backup Before Riot, Aide and Others Say (NYT)
* A small town seethes after learning one of its own says he joined Capitol’s mob (WashPo)
*
Trump trial pending, McConnell calls it ‘vote of conscience’ (AP)
* Videos Show How Rioter Was Trampled in Stampede at Capitol -- Rosanne Boyland died after losing consciousness in the crush of a pro-Trump mob as it surged against the police. (NYT)
* National Rifle Association files for bankruptcy, seeking to escape New York lawsuit (Reuters)
* In Washington, police arrested a man at a checkpoint with a gun and an 'unauthorized' pass to the inauguration. (NYT/CNN)
* Poll: Majority Of Americans Blame Trump For Violence At Capitol (NPR)
* Atlanta Prosecutor Appears to Move Closer to Trump Inquiry -- The Fulton County district attorney is weighing an inquiry into possible election interference and is said to be considering hiring an outside counsel. (NYT)
* Out of 7 million votes in Pennsylvania last fall, there were just three cases of fraud, all votes for Trump. (CNN)
* Martin Luther King gave his life fighting the same forces stirred by Trump (WashPo)
* He Brought Moynihan Train Hall to Life, but Didn’t Live to See It -- Many credit Michael Evans with turning the vision for the hall at Penn Station into a reality. Before it opened, he took his own life. (NYT)
***
You walk into the room with your pencil in your hand
You see somebody naked and you say, "Who is that man?"
You try so hard but you don't understand
Just what you will say when you get home
Because something is happening here but you don't know what it is
Do you, Mr. Jones?
And somebody points to you and says, "It's his"
And you say, "What's mine?" and somebody else says, "Well, what is?"
And you say, "Oh my God, am I here all alone?"
But something is happening and you don't know what it is
Do you, Mr. Jones?
-- Bob Dylan
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