For over 2 decades the response has been that my claims are hyperbole, silly exaggeration, liberal hand-wringing.

And here we are now. Yes, Trump was defeated in the election, and the violent coup failed... but Trumpism, fascism, authoritarianism is winning. Draconian voter suppression measures are being enacted all over our nation. Election officials that resisted the attempted coup are being terrorized and replaced by Trump conspiracy nuts, a large fraction of the republican party believes in a repackaged Blood Libel, where democrats are feeding off the blood of children, and sexually abusing them. The Republican base is straining at the leash waiting for permission to kill people that Fox news tells them are the enemy... and more and more they are slipping the leash and engaging in violence. We have 2 political parties in the US, and one of them has gone utterly, and violently, insane.

With the voter suppression and corruption they have put in place it will be a miracle if they don't take the senate and house next year- despite being a minority, if that happens they will never lose power again.... and our democrat president will either be forced out of office, or lose in the next presidential election.

So I can't just let it go. There has been no time in history when the proper response to fascism was to make the fascists feel more comfortable. The people throughout history that have taken that approach are remembered as collaborators and appeasers- their names joining the lexicon as an epithet. The barbarians at our gate don't just need a friend, or to be listened to... they will only accept total power, and when they get it they will make sure to kill and destroy all those people that make them feel ashamed of themselves.

Rob willingly joined in an assault on our democracy, and aggressively defended it... I sure as hell will not let him feel that its all ok now. If he had any decency, if he were a man, he would feel deep shame and work to repair the immeasurable harm he helped do. But he is not a man... so fuck him. He can burn in hell, or freeze in Canada for all I care... he literally cheered the stealing of children from undocumented refugees.

I will never consider him a friend, he is an enemy, he is one of the millions of barbarians at our gate, and I refuse to open the gate and invite him in to tea. If you think that is harsh, I can assure you its not anywhere close to harsh enough. He deserves to live a long life with guilt, shame, and regret until he draws his last worthless breath. But he won't, because he isn't man enough to face what he has done honestly.

My entire life I dreamed of being able to work on helping humanity explore and expand into the universe... by incredible luck and chance I got to do that... only to watch in slow motion as 'men' like Rob bring a gun to humanity's head and pull the trigger... while wearing a red hat and a shit-eating grin.

Those that are easily led and controlled by someone like Trump, easily swayed by normalization of bigotry, fantasizing about violence- they are NOT reasonable people- the only point in debating them is to sway those in the audience that may be on the fence- you will NOT succeed in using reason to reach the people converted by conspiracy theory- all you can do is try to defeat them, make an example out of them, and prevent them from ever gaining power.

The future of our nation, and of humanity, is very grim because of little 'men' like him, it is immoral, and suicidal to act like we are ok with that. We may be doomed to have them drag us down into the abyss, but we are morally obligated to go down swinging.