Nicer

 Somewhere back in the flurry of the strike and all that other fun, the forty-fifth "president" of the United States was found guilty of sexual abuse and defamation. The twice-impeached former game show host and newly indicted still facing multiple state and federal charges of attempting to steal an election and incite an insurrection...That guy. The guy who describes himself all too frequently as "the most innocent man in American history. That guy. 

The guy who is the leading candidate for the Republican nomination for president in 2024. 

Also, somewhere in the throes of all that history being made was the fact that this blog celebrated its eighteenth birthday. For most of the past two decades I have been railing about this thing or that person, celebrating those who deserve it and denigrating those who need it. I spent four years complaining about George W's second term and the war he took us to. I spent another eight years relaxing in the sunshine of the Obama administration. 

Then came the dark times. The Trump years. I spent a lot of time way back then, listing and documenting the slights and omissions and miscarriages and malfeasances. Names like Bannon, Stone, Manafort, Flynn. Eleven associates of the host of Celebrity Apprentice have been convicted or pleaded guilty to crimes from tax fraud to misuse of federal funds and just plain old lying like a cheap hotel rug. The Trump "presidency" was lauded by some comedians for the relative ease with which one could bones which could be picked. Such was the case for this blog. From the moment he appeared at the top of that escalator, we all knew that this would be a different sort of "president." 

It was my wife who pointed out that we had a rapist living in the White House for four years. I understand this statement is open to wide interpretation, so perhaps I should refine: Donald Trump is the only convicted rapist to live in the White House. His reign as enfant terrible ends much the same way it began. There will, most certainly, be those who ignore the verdict or worse insist this is the time to double down and work even harder to support him for a second term. 

But I gotta be honest: I don't really want the next five years of this blog to be all about the new depths this "man" can plumb. I look forward to new and inspired places to take you all. Because that would be a much nicer place to be.