Debates And Grouse Hunting: Part 6

Driving to a grouse hunting area, the radio reported Trump had been exposed to COVID. I had no idea.

I shrugged my shoulders. It doesn’t worry me. In the long term, we’re all going to be exposed to COVID. It popped up in China nine months ago and is now in pretty much every nation on earth. We Americans fret over whether Florida has too few restrictions or New York has too many, but the virus ignored our posturing and covered the planet.

As far as I can tell, all we’ve done or not done had almost no impact. Maybe it was delayed here or accelerated there but no more than a few week’s change at most. Hide in the basement or ride your Harley to Sturgis; there is no option that eliminates all risk.

With COVID, there’s no putting the toothpaste back in the tube. It’s here. It’s a done deal. I knew that months ago.

I’m not worried about Trump. Almost certainly they caught it early. Plus, it’s a pretty weak pathogen. COVID is not Leukemia. I figured Trump would get some bed rest with his hot wife, take a few days off work, and then get back at things with hammer and tongs. Meanwhile, the press would shit its pants. Does the press do anything but that? And if I’m wrong? Then, he’ll die. We are all mortal and presidents have died before. That’s why we have a vice president. This isn’t our first rodeo.

I stopped at a gas station. They were sold out of shotgun shells. Yes, I buy shotgun shells at a gas station, as do vast swaths of the nation. Tell that to someone from Manhattan and watch them shiver.

The sold-out shotgun shells mean something. They’re the tip of a mostly hidden iceberg. Same with the toilet paper in what looks like a Mexican brand. It is a time of change.

Then again diesel is dirt cheap. Change isn’t always one way.

Someone was chatting about cancelling Halloween. Meanwhile, they’re already stocking ice fishing gear. Time passes.

I ate a proper American meal of shitty fast food and used the store’s Wi-Fi to check my PredictIt markets. Everything I bought has tanked. Dude’s been sick for like an hour and… Wait, is he sick or just testing positive? Meh, like the press would tell me the truth? I’m in it long term, all of my bets will pan out at $1 or $0. I’ll know in a few weeks.

PredictIt tells me Biden will curbstomp Trump like a boss. It also said Hillary was a guaranteed winner. Who knows? Is anything not propaganda?

Back in the truck, the radio was telling me Biden was leading by eleventy billion percent in every state except a few disgusting flyover trainwrecks that nobody cares about. Meanwhile I was counting Trump signs. Big ones, little ones, HUGE ones, serious ones, silly ones with Trump astride a tank with a flag held like a spear, multiple ones, individual ones, and flags.

Yeah, that’s right… flags. People where I live have flagpoles. I have one too. Probably a third of the flagpoles had a Trump flag beneath the American flag. Never above! People with flagpoles know the protocol. That’s not to mention the trucks with flags. Yes, big trucks with big flags. They’re fairly common. Sometimes you’ll see a flag on a semi.

Sometimes, on a dirt road, I’ll pass a Trump lawn sign in the middle of a corn field or a cow pasture. I’ll see them on small roads that probably have six cars a day. I assume the person putting it up is well aware it’ll hardly be seen.

When I was a kid people tied ribbons on trees in support of the Iran hostages. Those signs in the middle of nowhere are a lot like that.

Trump everywhere. Dozens, hundreds, maybe thousands. Ten times what I saw in 2016. Maye a hundred times what I saw in 2016. There’s a store that sells Trump flags in a nearby small town. It’s open seven days a week. It has longer hours than the grocery store.

Once in a while I’ll see a Biden sign. I’ve never seen a large Biden sign. I assume they make them but I’ve never seen one. I don’t know if they make Biden flags.

I figure the ratio is 100:1 or more… probably closer to 120:1. A landslide of Trump signs of every size and shape scattered all over the land to match every lone, generic, Biden sign.

I passed a boulder that had Trump 2020 and a flag painted on it. They did a good job. Must have spent all day painting that flag. The boulder was in a cow pasture.

Meanwhile the radio is telling me Biden’s got it in the bag. Maybe he does, but I have my doubts. With the press being what it is, I don’t have the slightest idea what’s true beyond what I can see in person.

By the time I get to the grouse field, the radio is talking about the possibility Trump will die from COVID. I’ve been driving maybe 50 miles. It went from “tested positive” to “Pelosi comes right after Pence” in less than an hour!

Sorry media, dude ain’t gonna’ die just so you can have some sort of wish fulfillment. Life isn’t that convenient. Your side is going to have to level up. “Outcompete” is possible. “Win by default” isn’t. At least your dude finally stepped out of his basement. It’s a start. Good luck.

Then I leave the truck. I’m alone, carrying a shotgun, hiking though the forest. How many people have never done these three things?

More to follow…