Via Tengrain, I learned that Nancy Reagan died. Amid the media love fest, I'll choose to mourn the Latin Americans killed by right-wing militias and narcoterrorists, the nuns brutalized and murdered by Reagan administration proxies, the AIDS victims whose plight was ignored by an administration that wanted 'those people' dead, the Iranians and Iraqis killed in a proxy war with American weapons... need I go on?
Regarding Nancy Reagan herself, all I really have to say is that this is the woman who, twelve years after the United States government landed human beings on the moon and brought them home safely, brought astrologers into the White House.
There's a soundtrack for that:
Released in 1981, too... it's like they knew.
ADDENDUM: Maybe Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper can deliver the eulogy at Nancy's funeral:
Mojo's still around, at least he was four years ago, and he doesn't seem to have mellowed one bit.
I dunno. I know I'M not terribly comfortable with this sudden blaming of first ladies for their husband's policies. Hillary is responsible for mass incarceration. Now you have Nancy Reagan responsible for American military excesses in Latin America. Are you REALLY comfortable with that construct?
ReplyDeleteHow do we know that she didn't actually have a moderating effect?
I mean, I'm neither defending her or joining you in accusing her. I DO know who had the constitutional authority to commit those war crimes, and I DO know that it is Ronald Reagan who's name is on the orders. I don't think we need to look past the likes of Reagan and Kissenger to try to find a woman to blame...
I'm blaming her for bring astrologers into the White House. I'm not blaming her for the victims of her husband's regime, but I'll choose to mourn them rather than her.
ReplyDeleteI agree with mikey, although there is much evidence that she had influence on her husband's decisions, including based on the astrology bullshit.
ReplyDeleteHer Just Say No initiative was pure Rich White Folks feel-good meaningless ineffective crap. IN the communities decimated by drugs, they laughed at it. LAUGHED.
She helped engineer Raygun's ascent into right-wing politics, and she covered it up hen he was going insane.
She was, as Molly Ivins once said, and "overdressed little sparrow-fart" but she had the heart of an evil person. I will never remember her with anything like fondness and say, Good goddam riddance and far too late.
Sorry. I am of the Tengrain attitude. I feel speaking ill of the dead is perfectly appropriate when they did ill during their life.
Finally, Elvis has the last word:
https://youtu.be/usAyPYGgBsE
There's a soundtrack for that:
ReplyDeleteI started photoshopping a fone into the cover art there, for a Selfie-with-Lions post, but never got it satisfactory.
I can blame her for "Just Say No" and our so-called war on drugs, can't I?
ReplyDelete~