Dystopia Now

UPWARD FACING KITTY

Ever watch a post-apocalyptic movie or read a book in the same genre and wonder, how did the world fall in to dystopian disarray so quickly?

Over three months later and look where we are. Before the Feds arrived to the beleaguered City Of Roses, they were told that things, riot-wise, would escalate and, sho' 'nuff, that's what has happened.

The little gang of ne'er-do-wells who have been causing most of the damage to said Stumptown since Day One of this protest cycle have been joined in ranks by new groups of well-meaning folks like the Walls of Vets, Moms and Dads w/leaf blowers (3 separate factions), healthcare workers, lawyers (!) and the cherry on top of this super sundae, a naked yoga enthusiast. What prompted this influx of newbies? Why, the arrival of Benito Trumpilini's jack-booted thugs onto our city streets, here to protect the federal buildings under siege by those lil' rascals running rampant without rhyme, reason or care in the world. And how are they doing this, you may ask?

BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY

Mayor Ted and Governor Kate were outraged! 

"WE DON'T NEED YOUR HELP! WE ARE PERFECTLY INCAPABLE OF HANDLING THIS ALL BY OURSELVES, THANK YOU!"

And to prove their pint, Mayor Ted walked into the thick of battle, proclaiming, "They won't gas me"

which, of course, they did. An appreciative crowd didn't offer sympathy, only a horselaugh and told Teddy Bear to not go away mad, just go away.

Kate herself would have been a lot more aggressive if someone convinced her these weren't protests, but massive book clubs. Instead, she sat on her hands, even when Ted got a snoot full of gas. "Whoops! Sucks to be him."

What an adorable corporate logo!

Finally, after intense negotiations...the Feds went away. Then the Oregon State Police. The violence subsided...temporarily, until it didn't, Back to square one. Now we're coming up on 80 straight nights of peaceful protests complete with rocks, bottles, fireworks, just plain fire and lots and lots of tear gas.

This has gotten international exposure. Everybody knows about Portland now! We're Number One with a Rubber Bullet!

The populace is still under the impression that these gosh darn kids a right to protest. Yeah, they do. It's called Freedom of Speech. The thing is, kids, they've hijacked the movement. The message is getting lost thanks to all these miscreants. Oh, wait. They're Freedom Fighters, aren't they? The Great Antifa has been lionized to heroic status. Look at the marvelous memes they've generated. The Rebel Alliance is Antifa. The Avengers are Antifa. Harry Potter is Antifa. The Muppet Babies are Antifa. Lord love a duck. It's enough to make an old geek cry.

Gag me with a Tardis.

I didn't know that another symptom of Covid-19 was denial. Or is it delusion? Perhaps a combination of both.

Your blind hatred toward Donald Trump is turning these creeps into something they are not. They have been around for as long as I can remember. Whenever there was a protest of any sort in downtown Portland, anarchists, as they were was known, always screwed things up with randoms act of violence and vandalism. In recent years, they've stood up to right-wing extremists who invaded our town (see blog post : BATTLEFIELD PORTLANDIA) and all of a sudden, they were the good guys. Now where are we? Black Lives Matter, fighting for change in this country as Antifa fights for their right to party. They are only in it for themselves. If Mayor Ted made one valid point (and I think it's been one), it's that this giving Trump fuel to fan the flames of his campaign and remember, he plays dirtier than anyone. Then again, Ted is compliant too with his non-action. He didn't think of that. The tear gas must have stunted his cognitive abilities.

Ya gotta wake up, Portland, for the sake of your beloved city. With the Pandemic still holding us hostage, homelessness reaching epic proportions, the economy going down the shitter...you're allowing the inmates to run the asylum. I know, I know. Maybe we're only talking about a few bad apples here...oh. Ouch.

Get your heads out of your asses, people. You might want to believe we're all part of a cosplay interpretation of LES MISERABLES, but you're wrong. It's just plain miserable. This isn't an anti-protest rant by any means. There are issues for which you should take to the streets and have your voices heard loud and clear. Don't go out there just because it's Summer. 

UPDATE: Since I first wrote this, the Proud Boys came back to town for a scuffle with the young scalawags of Rose City which made Mayor Weenie stand up and take notice, but not about the riot du jour until...today (8/26). He made a fist toward these delinquents of justice and said, basically, "Hey, maybe if we ignore these gosh darn kids, maybe they'll go away." Way to make a fist, Ted. How's that re-election campaign going?

Worst of all, Jacob Blake was shot in the back seven times by police in Kenosha, Wisconsin and a 17 year old turd named Kyle Rittenhouse decided to go rogue, killing two protesters with an AR-15.

Coming up on Day 100 in PDX with no end in sight.

Dystopia. We're soaking in it.