Both Sides Agreeing on Something

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I noticed that my Facebook feed has been oddly heavy on liberal conspiracy theories in response to the attempted assassination at Saturday's Correspondents' dinner. The Washington Post reports that the rush to declare conspiracies, by both the left and right, was unusually "marked and potent."

Both sides claim Donald Trump and his flunkies staged the chaos in order to build support for Trump, floundering in the polls, and that ridiculous ballroom he lusts after so much it might as well be a female eastern European.

Disinformation experts noted something I glommed onto, namely that all this conjecturing highlights a growing disenchantment with Trump among MAGA types. It would be poetic justice if he who gained the White House on a hot mess of lies were brought down by the same.

A big factor in this conspiracy theory explosion is the human need to make sense of a crisis when little information is available. One expert said that Trump calling for the ballroom right after the incident created mental discomfort for some, who then leaped to conclusions. "It's like conspiratorial Mad Libs."

I loved Mad Libs as a kid. My siblings and I used to think it was hilarious that whenever a noun was called for, we shouted "toilet!"

We were ahead of our time. The conspiracy theorists need to plug in something to make the world make sense—and under Trump, Washington IS a toilet.

Last Night

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Regarding the events at last night's White House Correspondents' dinner, I loathe Donald Trump as much as any thinking American, but I don't believe he, nor any of his minions, should be assassinated.

That said, let me tell you who I felt the most sympathy for last night:  the female reporters. Do you have any idea how hard it is to hurl yourself under a table wearing a formal dress and heels? I'd have strangled myself on the tablecloth in the attempt.

One Cold Fish

 

This Week's Quote

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Anyone that knows me knows that I will always tell you I told you so, but knowing that Sue Bird would eventually dump Megan Rapinoe, well, that was very, very easy. First, Megan Rapinoe . . . is a predator, and Sue Bird, I told you forever was not a lifetime lesbian. Maybe I'm wrong, but I knew, I knew that was never gonna last because Rapinoe is a predator.

The aptly named Dick Dakich, former ESPN announcer

Source:  Out

We Miss You, Jill

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As you well know, the Trump administration has labored to roll back gay rights and to destroy transgender people.

The cavernous difference between this administration and the previous one jumped out at me as I read that former First Lady Jill Biden attended The LGBT Community Center's Dinner in New York City last week. Apparently she's such a fan of "Heated Rivalry," the gay hockey series, that she bid $35,000 for a walk-on role.

She lost. We know how she feels.

The queer community, in a short amount of time, has gone from being supported to being vilified by Washington. We have whiplash like we were checked into the boards by a toothless enforcer from Saskatchewan.

The Trashy Trinity

 

News Flash

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I was driving home this afternoon, listening to NPR, when the local affiliate teased that the biggest power couple here in Seattle sports had split up.

I sat in the driveway, listening to the piece on the breakup of Sue Bird and Megan Rapinoe. I soon discovered that The Seattle Times had emailed a news bulletin announcing the same.

In fact, this story of a lesbian rupture made mainstream news all over the country. That in itself is news, a positive sign of how things have changed. The accounts I read were direct and respectful. No need to hint at what their relationship had been, since Bird and Rapinoe didn't.

What I wonder now is will the mainstream press get the rest of the story: that from coast to coast, half of all lesbians are sad about the Bird-Rapinoe split, and the other half are weighing their chances with the both of them.