Superly, Duperly,
GOP Candidates
Brace for disaster,
Prepare for the worst;
Fearing the wrath of a
Megalomaniac
Each of them aided by
Saying “you first!”
So far, slaying the dragon has been difficult. Sending out champions one by one is never a good strategy against a dragon, after all. Dragons, after all, are accustomed to taking on champions–dragons know how to choose the terrain, how to single out champions from their supporters, how to use weapons that champions are unaccustomed to defending against.
And when “champions” are more than willing to send their peers out, one by one, to slay the dragon and return bruised and bleeding and easy to pick off, their plan relies on the relative strengths of dragons and champions tilting in their favor. So far, though, the dragon’s den is littered with sword, shields, and skeletons, and the dragon is not so much “wounded” as “well fed”. And the remaining champions are only now realizing their numbers are too small to continue such a strategy.
Yeah, Super Tuesday could end up “interesting”. For some pretty nauseating definitions of “interesting”.
As I write this, I see the occasional GOP biggie (congressperson or governor) promising to vote Hillary over Trump (or perhaps to sit this one out)… remember, Christie opposed Trump before he endorsed him. Maine Governor Paul Lepage went from opposing Trump to endorsing him in the span of one New York Times article. The GOP biggies may well find religion and turn to Trump; I will not bank on today’s “anyone but Trump” promises. I hope I am wrong.
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Frankly, I should be happy. There is every reason to think the GOP is imploding (at the national level; the local and state levels are a different story). The only problem is… the Democratic party has a long history of finding a way to shoot itself in the foot. In the current GOP field, I can’t really say there is a candidate I like more than the Zika virus. It’s not just the dragon; the champions are horrible champions. So I really hope the Dems find a way to… Ok, a quest for you. There is a quote, I remember it poorly… I want to say it is in science fiction… it goes a bit like “the real trick is not in snatching victory from the jaws of defeat, but in grasping compromise from the jaws of total disaster”. I have not been able to find it via google, though. I swear it exists. So… can anyone help me here? Anyway, that’s what the Dems need to do. Not contrive some manner to collectively fall upon their swords.
Tomorrow (well, by now, today–I should ask the Australians, for whom our today is yesterday, how it all went) should be interesting.
The ‘snatching victory’ quote made me think of John Varley’s Gaea trilogy.
But I can’t find it.
In my view – watching on from a Pacific ocean away and then some but knowing how powerfully the USA influences the word generally and my nation in particular – the Republican options =
1) a shit sandwich with broken glass and ebola. (Cruz)
2) Versus a shit sandwich with rusty nails and smallpox. (Trump)
3) Or alternatively a shit sandwich with dysentery (Rubio)
All served on stale bread with a cup of cold sick to wash it down with. Who’d eat any of those by choice? (And our Aussie choices this year – both major ones – are not that much better either. )
Kasich may be slightly better – though probably not really that much better but really I think he’s already out bar the end of the counting, knocked down on the floor still out and the refereee already up to nine and a half seconds.
(Being realistic, a similar situation applies to Bernie Sanders campaign too here – only in his case the count is just up to eight.)
The Democratic nomination sandwich may not be as tasty as we all would like. Hey, it may even be bitter, dry or over-cooked but least it won’t be shit.
@chigau–I know it is not that, simply because I have not read it.
@StevoR–that may well be true, but it is not the classic source I am looking for.
I want to say Heinlein… and it might be, but I can’t confirm it. It might be that my memory has re-written it beyond recognition. I hope not; my memory has it as a really worthwhile quote.
It may be too late based on the number of people who are swearing they’ll never vote for Clinton or Sanders.
I have been googling around, and neither “heinlein quotes” nor “quotes about compromise” has borne any fruit. I’ve found some amusing quotes with the phrase “jaws of total disaster” but nothing that resembles the concept you’re describing. “total disaster” with “acceptable loss” wasn’t helpful either. I’ve read most of Heinlein’s stuff and Varley’s Gaea trilogy and never seen anything that looks like this in either one.
This comment is officially devoid of positive indicators.
Yeah, Heinlein liked to liberally sprinkle aphorisms through his stuff, but one that celebrates compromise doesn’t really match his style. He was too cocksure of his libertarianism.
Ok, another thought, though perhaps as misguided as the first. Perhaps something from one of the “The mouse that roared” books? It bears a bit of similarity in mood to “though the pen is mightier than the sword, the sword speaks louder and stronger at any given moment.”
Alas, I am coming up dry in any word searches.
@ ^ Cuttlefish : Me too. Sorry I’m not much help here despite having read a lot of Heinlein – agree it doesn’t sound like his sort of statement.
The Mouse That Roared?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mouse_That_Roared
Haven’t read it or any in its series, but will add to my long list of books to find and read. Thanks.
I thought it might be one of David Gerrold’s “Quotations of Solomon Short” but I can’t find it there either.