The meme is the message

Four years ago Republicans were the target of unforgiving ire lobbed by many on the Left for voting Donald Trump into the presidency. Now that they’ve succeeded in removing him one might expect a little grace and a move towards reconciliation. But instead they’re doubling down on the self-righteous reproach and efforts to censure all of us who voted for him.

The illegitimacy and danger of these efforts can hardly be overstated. If we all would examine ourselves for signs of the cancer of hypocrisy, like I wrote about last time, those of us on the Right might be able to look to the future of a Biden presidency with some optimism. But since the loudest voices on the Left apparently don’t own a mirror and are intent on condemning and silencing all who voted for Trump, we need to defend our right to be heard by spotlighting the dishonesty and hypocrisy they refuse to look at.

What follows is a post I wrote in 2017 in response to this meme. The disdain it demonstrates for people like me has multiplied fourfold and further divided our country. It needs to be exposed for the malignant growth that it is.

I confess that I got a little cheeky.

I could probably keep a separate blog going just responding to mindless memes. Here’s another one in my Facebook face recently. Let’s break it down line by line.

TRUMP SUPPORTERS. First of all, that’s not a complete thought so the period here is not proper punctuation. But at least everything is spelled correctly (which is so rare in a meme one suspects poor grammar and spelling must be considered part of its charm). But who exactly is it referring to? Who are the unfortunate targets of this internet weapon of shame? Those who voted for Donald Trump or those who believe God raised him up for such a time as this and click ‘Yes’ on every ‘Do you support our president’ post? Because the two groups are not identical.

WHEN THIS ALL CRASHES What do you mean by that? Something is said to crash if its value precipitously plummets or it fails suddenly. What would constitute a crash in this context? I wonder if this meme’s creator and others like him or her have some clear dystopian consequences in mind, or just a fear that their personal preferences and prerogatives will be pinched.

WHEN HE IS FORCED OUT OF OFFICE BECAUSE OF ALL HIS TREASONOUS ACTIVITY  Oh, you wish. If the day ever comes when this president is tried and convicted of treasonous activity, then absolutely he should be forced out. But all we have right now are claims, counter-claims, misinformation, and partisan posturing.

YOU WILL NOT BE FORGIVEN. So, those who made a thoughtful choice for Trump in what was for all intents and purposes a two-person race . . . handing him a victory largely facilitated by the failings and falsehoods of his opponent . . . have committed the unforgivable sin. Mea culpa. But, hey . . . if Trump were to be removed for treason or other impeachable offenses the Left will have achieved a major political victory. They should instead be grateful to those who will have presented them with this grand opportunity to glory and gloat.

VOTING FOR DONALD TRUMP SAYS MORE ABOUT YOU THAN IT SAYS ABOUT DONALD TRUMP Really? What does it say? I voted for him . . . what does it say about me? Because he’s such a flawed human being so am I? Yeah, and so are you. And so is Hillary Clinton [and Joe Biden]. Was there a perfect person in the race? Unfortunately, no. Does the fact that he bragged about groping women mean I approve of that? Anyone who thinks that is out of touch with reality or has a hyper-idealized expectation of representative government.

This presidential election was about determining the direction of our country, not about condoning the character of our candidates. Those who like or share this meme either a) arrogantly disparage the ‘deplorable’ disenfranchised who saw in Donald Trump someone who would fight for them, b) intentionally ignore or misrepresent the options that were realistically available to us in the general election, and/or c) naively believe that those of us on the right should have voted for the most pro-abortion major candidate ever with a documented history of lying rather than for an admittedly pompous, irreverent, and sometimes undignified man who nevertheless supports conservative policies.

IT WAS A CHARACTER TEST. AND YOU FAILED. I love this part. Talk about pomposity. Do you really want to judge my character by my voting record? Are you willing to be sized up yourself for every choice you made with limited knowledge and limited options? Are you willing to be stained with every sin your candidate has committed? If so and you think you’d come out squeaky clean, then by all means throw the first stone.

Finally, there’s a line missing and it sums up the message that is the meme:

THIS MEME SAYS MORE ABOUT THE ONE WHO WROTE, SHARED, OR LIKED IT THAN IT DOES ABOUT ANYONE ELSE