James Abbott McNeill Whistler: Invitation Card (1882)

"I am not one of them."

I feel baffled by the odd attraction some seem to feel about the Invitations that MAGA characters offer. It appears as though they extend permission for others to engage in whatever truly awful behavior they might have previously felt constrained against, as if they had been impatiently waiting to be offered entry into a genuinely despicable manner of living. I feel no such compulsion, and I cannot imagine any invitation that might convince me to flee into the dark side, but seemingly not so with the MAGA faithful. They immediately start spewing venom with the best of them. Hate speech seems to be their small talk, and bitter accusations, their typical conversation. It looks as though they've been granted grudges as a reward for their entry.

They seem to require near-constant reinforcement, as the media machine they subject themselves to repeats the same ugly memes like catechisms. The least of these followers seems capable of mimicking the very worst of these commentators, seemingly without critical reflection. They claim Dems are evil without providing evidence, except for some hyperbolic story based upon some popular fictions. A single word can spark a fresh round of venom. Once invited to hate, it's as if it's suddenly too late to respond in any way kind. Forgiveness, even for imagined transgressions, becomes absolutely out of the question. No benefit results because there's not enough doubt to foster it. A caustic certainty prevails.

The resulting behaviors exemplify nothing so much as evil. The continuous hate speech. The oaths promising to get even for things that never actually happened. The threats of employing "second amendment remedies" to redress non-existent maladies. The firm beliefs in the absolute rightness of their twisted perspectives. The similar beliefs espoused about so-called Christian belief systems seem to actively exclude any New Testament "good news." They're like alcoholics who took the oath but never stopped drinking, thinking that since they'd taken the oath, they were thereafter protected from the deleterious effects of drinking because they were saved. They seem to sin with even greater abandon once they accept their camo-Jesus' compassion toward them. They extend no compassion toward others themselves once they accept the MAGA Invitations to live in sin.

These don't seem to be serious people. They seem to lack a soul, for instance, and many of the other dimensions essential for an authentically human existence. They seem to be playing roles, engaged in performance, seeking neither human connections nor forgiveness. They seem to consider themselves much holier than thou. Holier than me. Holier than anybody. They worship so-called conspiracy theories that fail to exhibit anything in the least bit theoretical. These appear to contain only impure speculation passed around as proof, conjecture masquerading as evidence, lies extended for the apparently sole purpose of protecting over-delicate egos. These are not people of faith, but of belief. The price of admission seems to be complete and utter submission. To think for oneself is to commit the one truly unforgivable sin. I am not one of them.

©2025 by David A. Schmaltz - all rights reserved

Tags: #FollowingChapters, #PureSchmaltz