Was There An Insurrection on January 6th or November 3rd?
The “Mostly Peaceful Election” and January 6th – What Really Happened?
by Mike C Goodwin | Contributing Writer | Eternal Affairs Media
A little under a month ago, the nation observed an anniversary of sorts. Now, depending on whom you ask, it was either a demonstration against what some viewed as a, shall we say, “questionable election,” or it was the worst attack on the nation since the Civil War. To say it was merely a demonstration is to ignore reality, but to say it was on par with Pearl Harbor or 9/11 is not only asinine, but it tramples on the graves of thousands for political points. I fully realize that trying to sway such people’s opinion on that day is largely an exercise in futility. This is not because they believe any of these obscene comparisons, but because this is political capital to them. Capital they can use to erase what they see as a grave error in American history: the presidency, and more importantly the doctrine, of Donald Trump.
To say the government has never suffered an attack the likes of January 6th is just grossly inaccurate. Over the years the capitol and Pentagon have been bombed, Congressional members and staffers in the gallery have been fired upon. Donald Trump’s inauguration was marred by riots and the Supreme Court was assailed due to the appointment of Brett Kavanaugh. Hell, even 50 Secret Service agents were injured during the “George Floyd Demonstrations” just six months before the apparent “Darkest Day of our Republic.”
The fact of the matter is that what happened was both shameful and foolish, but let’s keep it in perspective, this was hardly the Storming of the Bastille. So again, I ask: what would motivate people to risk their lives and freedom? Well, that would depend on whom you ask.
Certain politicians and media personalities would have us believe that these were rabid white nationalists who possessed a fanatical loyalty to President Trump. They believed they could seize the capitol and dictate terms to reinstate Trump or at the very least, halt the installation of Joe Biden.
So, does this theory seem to match reality? Hardly.
The vanguard of this new Trumpian Empire was void of weaponry, siege equipment, food and water needed for a long occupation, or any solid plan. What did they have? A guy in warpaint who called himself a shaman.
Did they occupy strongpoints and set up a perimeter to repel a counterattack? Nope. They took selfies at Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s desk.
Did they inflict significant damage or casualties?
Assaults were carried out, this is true, but the only fatality from violence was Ashli Babbitt, an unarmed demonstrator who was shot. Three others would perish from medical conditions during the altercation.
So how was this the assault on democracy that shook the foundation of the free world? Well, that’s fairly simple: A political party saw this as an opportunity, a news media had a narrative, and both needed a villain. A villain who admittedly spent far too much time on Twitter. A villain who, as luck would have it, had recently lost an election. To understand the events of January 6th, as well as all that has followed, one must understand the 2020 US Presidential Election. The one called the most secure election in history.
The election of 2020 began normally enough. The Donald Trump enjoyed high poll numbers (relatively speaking) and his rallies were truly impressive to behold. His narrative was one of American greatness despite a corrupt political and media classis. In fact, making the media his enemy was well received by Trump’s base due to their belief that the media was just an extension of the Democratic party. Needless to say, this did not endear him to that same media, many of whom likened him to a dictator, madman, egomaniac, and generally an all-around icky man.
Trump’s opponent Joe Biden’s strategy was the exact opposite. Socially distanced rallies were bizarre spectacles of cars in a parking lot or a room of twenty people. He berated people that questioned him and had moments of nonsensical gibberish. He had long been suspected of being corrupt, a plagiarist, an opponent of integration, and the father of the process of attacking Supreme Court nominees (known as Bork-ing, after Robert Bork.)
This was where the seeds were planted. For you see, a study showed Trump had 90% negative coverage, whereas Joe Biden was suddenly painted as a national healer, an elder statesman come to reassert calm and unity to a fractured nation. Anyone who paid attention to Joe Biden leading up to the election knew full well that this was an absurd proposition, yet when all newscasters said it long enough, it became the reality. So, the narrative was set, Sir Biden of Delaware would be set to slay the vile Count Trumpula.
Then election night happened.
At first, there were some questionable reports of vote tampering, fraud, shenanigans, and all manner of dirty tricks. Images of polling places putting sheets of plywood over the windows, stories of poll watchers being forced 100 yards back, and other occurrences of “non-democracy-confidence boosters” began trickling in. Still, as the public went to bed that night, it seemed the race would be close, but Trump would likely prevail.
Then the “Night of the Living Ballots” happened.
Sometime in the night, long after poll workers were supposed to be gone, boxes full of Biden votes rose up from the depths. Suddenly, a few key counties in a few key states switched over to Biden, and things got interesting. And loud.
An army of lawyers descended, some with poorly written briefs, others with very convincing witnesses. Postal workers, a UPS driver, poll workers, and others began sharing very damning stories about blatant fraud. Each of these cases were slowly, but soundly rejected, denied, or dismissed. Most not on the merits, mind you, but on standing. Meaning the evidence was never judged, only the adherence to the process. This meant that Trump’s supporters never had their grievances judged or aired in the light of day and held to scrutiny. So while his opponents could laugh and mock the Trump supporters for their losses, a great disservice was done by never putting these accusations to rest. Instead, those who questioned what they saw were labeled as conspiracy theorists and idiots at best, traitors and terrorists at worst (they were also called Nazis, because the media is largely uninspired in their choice of insults.)
The final straw for these voters would happen in a special election in Georgia that would determine control of the senate. Again, people went to bed believing the Republicans would hold those two seats, leaving a divided congress for the new president.
“Night of the Living Ballots II, Georgia Boogaloo” put an end to that.
Again, late in the night, just enough ballots were found to give Biden a compliant senate.
What happened next was the lead up to January 6th. On that day, President Trump gave a speech where he called for a demonstration outside the capitol to protest the certification of the election results. It is known now that the demonstrations turned aggressive during the president’s speech, calling into question the assertion that he led them. What is fact is that some entered the capitol building with the assistance of capitol police actively opening doors, whereas others seemingly stormed the building. From there, things get blurry.
Initial reports were of violent clashes between police and rioters leading to multiple fatalities and fires in the building. These were erroneous. They refer to Officer Brian Sicknick who died later of a stroke at his home. To date, the only actual fatalities were a demonstrator (or rioter, if you prefer) who was shot by a capitol police officer and three others who suffered medical emergencies during the events of that day.
The aftermath was what one would expect. A lockdown was put in place of the capitol with national guard troops. Any hopes of investigating the fraud claims evaporated with nobody with a political future wanting to be seen aligned with the insurgents. Finally, the media put in place the narrative that anyone who dare question the election was guilty of perpetrating “The Great Lie” (again, due to colossal laziness, the quote was lifted from a certain mustache aficionado and European dictator from the last century.) Our elections were not up for debate (unless you are Al Gore, Hillary Clinton, or Stacy Abrams, they were clearly robbed.)
If the events of January 6th were supposed to reinstall Donald Trump into the presidency, it had the opposite effect. If polls were to be believed, Joe Biden was sworn in weeks later with a respectable approval rate and Trump was to be investigated and possibly barred from holding future political office.
Then things got interesting. Again.
The narrative of most secure election began to chip away. An article in Time Magazine on February 4th by Molly Ball was published. It detailed what days before would be considered the fevered dreams of Alex Jones (if you are unaware, oh he’s a hoot. Do yourself a favor and Google him. Then grab some bourbon, you’re welcome.) The article detailed a concerted effort, not to steal the election, no no, but to fortify it. You see, America is great, Americans, not so much. Luckily our betters can collude to determine our course.
Faith in the most popular president in history also began to erode. With the election over, Hunter Biden (the fake president’s adult son) was suddenly okay to talk about. Before the election, the New York Post was censored by Twitter in covering Hunter Biden’s, shall we say “libertine” relations. News about alleged corruption with regards to Ukraine and Biden was also not investigated. Polls later conducted report that enough Biden voters might have changed their votes had they have known of this corruption that it might have swayed the election.
Biden’s cloak of authority finally slipped after the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan. This process was bungled to almost cartoonishly bad proportions. US troops were attacked, and refugees were photographed clinging to aircraft, for some, this cost them their lives. Biden’s approval rating dipped below 50%, continuously declining to this day (41% according to a Morning Consult poll.)
The narrative also began shifting with high profile troubles in the media. CNN was embroiled in controversy with regards to Chris Cuomo and his brother, Governor Andrew Cuomo. CNN president and CEO Jeff Zucker resigned following an inappropriate sexual relationship with a subordinate. Zucker’s departure was met with reports of some of the January 6th investigation committee being concerned about CNN’s future. This would lead some to wonder why a political committee would be forlorn over CNN’s leadership change unless that leadership was conducive to that committee’s aims.
The final decline would be in the system of government itself, along with the supposed experts. Lockdowns, mask and vaccine mandates, social distancing, and school closures have eroded public faith and confidence when the very politicians mandating these rules are seen flaunting them on a daily basis. The news and experts tell parents that racial discord is not enforced in the school system, yet the lesson plans and books are readily available to anyone interested in looking. People are basically told not to believe their lying eyes. They’re getting a little tired of it.
Whether or not you believe the official election results or if you will believe the findings of the January 6th Committee, the fact of the matter is that simply calling those that don’t “traitors,” “fascists,” or of course “white devils” (just go ahead and take the leap, have fun with your insults for the love of God,) isn’t going to get us anywhere. We are in a country where national divorce is seriously being discussed. Now, despite the fact that “Russian Collusion” was largely debunked, you’d be a fool to not think Russia (and more importantly China) aren’t watching our dissolution with great relish. For better or worse, we’re in this together for the long haul.
I personally understand why one would believe the official narrative. It makes sense, it seems verifiable, and let’s be honest, Trump was hard for some folks to like. If all in the media, Hollywood, academia, sports, music, and all on social media are against him, clearly, he is a fringe candidate worthy only of scorn.
I also understand the notion that Joe Biden didn’t win so much as Donald Trump lost. Enough uninformed voters were convinced to vote. Mail in voting and vote harvesting due to Covid measures increased voter turnout which historically benefits Democrats.
Lastly, I completely get why some believe there was mass fraud from an entrenched bureaucracy and political class clinging to power, terrified of the notion of outsiders being able to upset their monopoly.
The events of January 6th were counterproductive to say the least. It bolstered resistance to anyone questioning the narrative, not just of the election but the previous 4 years. To call it an insurrection though is baseless and foolish. After watching the nation burn for the previous year in a series of riots and autonomous zones that claimed dozens of lives and cost billions of dollars, well it just looks silly. In fact, while a majority of voters do in fact support the January 6th investigation, two thirds also want the BLM/Antifa riots investigated. The same ones that several politicians, including the current VP supported.
While it is understandable to disagree with Donald Trump’s supporters, it would be unwise to outright dismiss their concerns. We will have many elections (well, hopefully, I’m already learning Chinese just in case, look for my next article “Yankee Dog Inferior to Mighty Xi”,) and it would be beneficial to not go through this again. We cannot maintain a system where half the nation doesn’t just disagree with the outcome of those elections, but the methods on which they are concluded.
Or we can keep screaming at each other, you know, either way.
