I wrote this column today about Trump, and Tehran, and the butterfly effect. A few people have reached out with kudos and it’s going viral on the Macleans site. But, after some thought I think I regret writing it for a couple reasons. 1/ macleans.ca/opinion/donald…
First, there’s an important conversation to be had about the unintended consequences of the Trump presidency. He has been such a black swan, so energetically an unexpectedly erratic, that we’re going to spend literally generations measuring his legacy. 2/
And that legacy may overshadow most of the President’s before him. The global balance of power has seen its greatest shift since 1989 (not in America’s favour), the office the Presidency will never be the same, the role of the judiciary and legislative branches are changed, 3/
And greatest of all, Trump’s impact on the global fight against climate change will have effects measured not on a historical scale, but a geological one. But, I don’t think using the deaths of those poor airline passengers is how to have that conversation 4/
Not because Trump isn’t responsible. There is no doubt that those people would be alive if he hadn’t order the assassination of Soleimani. But he was just one link. There was the missile battery operator who flicked the wrong switch... 5/
... the initial attack that killed the American contractor, hell, we can go back and draw a direct line from Tehran to Trump to Anthony Weiner’s dick pic (possibly the most consequential dick pic in human history) 6/
No, it’s not right because it drags an horrid human tragedy into the cesspit of partisan cock fighting & we can all take a break for a day. I respect the argument that horrid tragedy is *exactly* why we should pillory Trump, but it doesn’t feel good, not for me, not today. 7/
Which brings me to my second reason why I’m regretting that column. It’s going viral and I knew it would blow up. There are some great writers at Macleans, people like @anne_kingston who know exactly how to do wrestle with our most pressing social issues... 8/
... and Paul Wells, Cda’s best political columnist. But my special talent is frequently knowing exactly which ganglion to poke in the hivemind - an instinct for knowing how to rile the mob. Which is valuable, literally, in the age of the click. 9/
But there are a lot of us, spooking the herd in this direction, then throwing a firecracker to stampede them back. And, honestly, i’m convinced this has really sickened our body politic - it’s not a coincidence we call it going “viral” So we don’t need yet another flash-bang 11/
I’d wish I could emulate @bobservant and promise “I’ll learn from this”, but I know myself well enough that I know I won’t. I’m sure I’ll end up throwing firecrackers again, in spite of my better angels. But for now, at least, I’ll try to slow the pen down a little. 12/
In the meantime, why not email a small donation to the folks at STEM Fellowship (mailto:info@stemfellowship.org) a cool youth run charity that mentors students and was co-founded by Mohammad Asadi-Lari, on of the victims in the crash. That’s it. Thanks for listening. 13/13
