After the Aftermath

This theme for our Autumn Quarterly Fundraiser was one of my great ideas that should have been shoved back into the closet to be dragged out again later, during less parlous times. But I figured talking about the horrors of Autumn 2012 — Sandy at the beach, Benghazi under cover, and the re-election of the most incompetent president ever — would be worthwhile. I thought those subjects could stand an airing, and then we could move on.

Wrong!

All that happened is that I got mired down in those images myself —

• The homeless and bereft that our Feckless Leader ignored as they went without electricity and food — and in some cases, their homes;
  
• The grim pictures of the abandonment of Americans in Libya while our FL & Friends just stood there and watched;
  
• The smug smile that has been on the Feckless One’s face since election night (“I won”)

Writing about them, thinking about them didn’t allow me to process the Aftermath after all. Instead of helping, the process sucked me into the maelstrom as though they were all still happening. In retrospect I can see I’d have done better to stick to one catastrophe and let it go at that. After two days of dwelling in the valley of the shadow of death I found myself wandering the trackless wastes.

I have okay moments here and there. The generosity of our donors was a welcome distraction. I have never taken for granted the willingness of those readers who come through for Gates of Vienna each quarter. But in addition this time, there were lots of first-time donors (twenty-three, the Baron tells me), and that is especially reassuring.

And there was an usually wide spread of states and countries that sent out gifts to us:

Stateside: Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, N. Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin

Near Abroad: Canada

Far Abroad: Australia, Austria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Slovenia, Sweden, and the UK

*   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *

The Baron’s (almost) unfailing patience with what he calls my “deer in the headlights” look — my facial muscles freeze into a “what-me-worry” expression that wouldn’t fool anyone — is a great blessing in my life. He may have even questioned the wisdom of focusing on so much horror, but he let me go ahead. Next time, I hope he takes my computer away and tells me to go read Jane Austen or something.

This is going to take some time to heal. Once I can begin, once I can start to recover my Pollyanna persona, I’ll know I’m going to make it through the desert. Right now all I can see is the valley of death and Obama’s smirking grin.

One bit of good news, though: On January 21, which happens to be Obama’s public inauguration and also the observance of Martin Luther King Day, there is a march planned by concerned citizens who want the questions about Benghazi answered. It would appear that not even Obama can get away with watching an American die before he returns to campaigning.

Now there’s some aftermath I can look forward to. I’ve seen several blogs mention it, and there is a Facebook page and several posters: one is from a Tea Party group and another from a vets’ organization. But it’ll be a tough sell. January 21st is more or less the bottom of the winter in Washington, D.C. It can be bitter and damp. In addition, the mood of the country isn’t good. Obama may have won, but his programs are still unpopular.

I get the sense that there is indeed a national aftermath setting in. Perhaps a combination of a sense of loss on one side and buyer’s remorse on the other. And everyone wishes Congress and the administration would just follow one another over that cliff… the silence of that aftermath would be golden.