Alright. Whose brilliant idea was it to hang our Governor in effigy during Sunday’s protest in Frankfort? Does a body sit at home on the couch, watching whatever, and suddenly, from the recesses of their dark mind, think, “Say, why don’t we get the gang together to protest the Governor’s policies and as a crowning touch, hang the Governor in effigy!
Not only that – how about we affix the phrase ’Sic Semper Tyrannis’ to the mannequin! After all, ’Thus always to tyrants’ is what John Wilkes Booth yelled right after he assassinated Abraham Lincoln. Perfect!”
The group then moved the party from the Capital to the Governor’s mansion and chanted for him to come out. Not exactly a genius touch. Andy Beshear’s children could have been home (fortunately, they were not). Perhaps recreational pharmaceuticals were involved in the decision making.
A couple of questions come to mind. First, what would the mob have asked the Governor if he had come out? Nothing, probably. Instead, they would drown him out with pithy rhyming chants, like “Hey, hey, ho, ho. Andy Beshear has got to go!” Man, the pseudo-poets who write this dreck need to get some new material.
And who knows? Remove the outlying wing nuts who just like to disrupt peaceful protests, and the whole event might have gone smoothly. Sadly, though, that was not meant to be.
Personally, I see no problem with airing grievances in a public setting. People have been doing it for centuries. It’s our right. Terrorizing a family whose policies you might disagree with, however, is not.
As a thought experiment, try replacing the word “dog” with “protester.” When one or two dogs come together, they are friendly. Sociable, even. Add more and they become a pack. A mob. Aggressive. Sometimes violent. Never pretty. It’s amazing how brave a person gets when surrounded with hundreds of like-minded citizens. That’s the herd mentality for you.
We’re going into our fourth month of the COVID-19 Pandemic and people are justifiably edgy. With most having been cooped up in self-isolation since March, it would be weird if no one acted out of frustration. Yet Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear is taking the same cautious approach toward reopening the commonwealth as he did when he helmed the state shutdown. What on earth happened in the three months between when Beshear was a heartthrob, lauded for his quick, decisive action, and now, when he is perceived as a dictator overreaching his authority?
What happened was the realization that COVID-19, for all its frightful consequences, has been no match for a more familiar disease: cabin fever. And when people get a case of it, they tend to do something about it.
Just look at the public places across the nation that have started to open under the New Normal. Five months ago, crowded restaurants and stores would be considered a sign of a booming economy. Today, its seen as an attack on all the measures people have taken to flatten the curve.
The person who hung the effigy last weekend was identified and quickly lost their job. Hoisted by their own petard? Could be. Let’s just hope that whether you agree or disagree with Governor Beshear’s handling of the Coronavirus Pandemic, you can discuss your issues like an adult. We have no time for people who behave any other way.
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