Will The Divided House Fall?

The US Election: A view from this side of the pond.

Today is November 5th. Here in the UK some will be commemorating the ‘gunpowder plot’ of 1605¹, when Guido Fawkes and his Catholic colleagues tried to blow up the Protestant King James 1st in the English Houses of Parliament (which would have been blown to smithereens had the plotters succeeded²). This event highlighted the divisions within the country and less that 40 years later there would be a civil war affecting England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. In less that two hundred years there would be a great civil war in America. Today in the US, as people cast their votes, some fear that there could be another civil war in their country.

The US election is probably the most important event since the last US election. The US Hegemon may be failing but it still exerts a huge influence on world events and even though some would argue that it makes no difference which party wins, the fact of the election is significant in itself. ‘A Nation divided against itself cannot stand’, Lincoln said (three years before the civil war started) and this applies to the current situation. I have been saying for a wee while that populations in the West are often divided 50-50 on issues and this is true to a great extent in the US. People there are not only divided between Republican and Democrat and in terms of the values these parties represent: many actually hate each other. Roughly 50% of the population has, to various degrees, accepted the Democrat’s version of globalist liberalism, which includes an assimilation of Woke ideology, to various degrees. The other 50% have rejected this form of liberalism and the Woke ideology that accompanies it. They are more conservative and more patriotic than their Democrat opponents. With regard to a number of issues such as abortion, immigration and gun control there appears³ to be a chasm between them. Therefore compromise will be difficult, especially for Democrats who have bought into the uncompromising monster that is cancel culture. Many Americans will know all this.

But I can’t help thinking that such divisions have been fabricated. This suits the ruling elite which knows that a united population could easily bring them down. The ‘Free movement of people’ philosophy, the promotion of multi-culturalism and the Mexican border deluge into the US - are all inspired by policies that seek to divide us: just as the categories ‘left’ and ‘right’ have been enlisted in this divisive game. But the genius of our ruling elites is not only in creating divisions but also in making one side hate the other. I think much of the Western world is infected with such divisions due to these policies. There were similar divisions here in the UK over Brexit and EU supporters expressed a large degree of anger and disgust at ‘racist Brexiteers’.

The more divisions they create; the greater the likelihood of conflict between the groups. LGBT+ ideology is an obvious example of this.

So - given the fact that there are apparently irreconcilable differences between Democrats and Republicans, because each set of supporters has been persuaded that they will win easily (as Daniel Davis discusses here⁴) and because they have been brainwashed into thinking that a win for the other party would be a total catastrophe - many on either side will not accept the result. Essentially, this amounts to a total loss of faith in Democracy and all its institutions (including government, media, judiciary, policing, schools, the health services). I can relate to that because here in the UK, none of these institutions is operating effectively and it is clear that since Covid/Lockdown/ ‘vaccinations’ - more and more people have lost trust in them. Many had always assumed that the state worked benignly in their interests but now a growing number of people are doubting this.

Whoever wins tomorrow, especially if its a close run thing, the losers will inevitably dispute the result; legal challenges will be initiated and maybe some will take to the streets making violence inevitable.

I have been following US politics quite closely since 2016 but not so closely since I started doing the Update. Many Republicans have been talking about the danger of civil war for years and some are preparing for it. As Daniel Davis argues, we have now reached a point where people in the US have a totally different view of what it means to be an American. There is a traditionalist or patriot view that involves a connection with the past - with all its flaws - and a liberal ‘postmodern’ view that demands a break with the past, because of its flaws. I can’t honestly see how a compromise between these two groups is possible. But that doesn’t mean that a civil war will result - not at this stage anyway. Personally, although I expect there to be civil unrest, whoever wins, I don’t think there will be a civil war.

I have produced this short article because I simply had to say something about this historic day and because it would give my subscribers a chance to say something about it - should they feel inclined. Have a good day - Best Rob

1. ‘Remember, remember the 5th of November, gunpowder treason and plot. I know of no reason why the gunpowder treason should ever be forgot.’ We all learn this as children in the UK.

2. Fawkes was hung drawn and quartered - which was the customary punishment for traitors since Edward 1st introduced it in 1283. Welsh rebel, Dafydd ap Gruffydd was the first victim and Scotland’s famous rebel, William Wallace suffered the same fate.

3. This is more clear among the leaders than the rank and file.

4. Daniel Davis’s video examines books written by commentators such as Stephen Marche and Barbara Walters on the risk of civil war.