Unnatural Selection

       

We can get used to almost anything.  It’s human nature to adapt.  That’s natural selection.  That’s a good thing — usually. 

When it comes to Donald Trump, though, it isn’t.

Among many of our President’s lasting destructive legacies will be his having lowered the acceptable standards of Presidential (maybe even human) behavior.  That’s because we have gotten used to him.

Oddly, that point was driven home to me on Christmas.  It’s my birthday.  The family was over. I have frequently written and performed special songs in celebration of occasions like this.  That sounds sweet, I know, but don’t be fooled.  My songs are disgusting.  They embrace the scatological, the profane and, most often, the sexual.  Hell, enough big words – they are fucking filthy.

When sung at parties to crowds who have not heard me before, those without sticks up their asses are heartily entertained.  My family, as well, at least until now, have enjoyed them with varying levels of appreciation, but always with laughter.  For the first time, however, Christmas was different.

My song was about how it had taken 12 years of marriage before my late parents, Burt and Perle, had been able to have their only child – me. The first line of the song was, “Burt and Perle knew how to fuck.” This is not particularly funny, I admit, but the laughs I get don’t usually come from cleverness as much from the very fact that the words are inappropriate.  It is laughter out of shock. Hearing someone singing about their parents’ sex life falls into that category. It is the incongruity that is funny just like a fart in a church is funny but a fart in the bathroom isn’t.  On Christmas, however, that opening line didn’t squeeze out even a giggle from the crowd, nor did the rest of the song.

I even overheard one of the guests turn to another when the song was over and say, “That was a tame one.” A TAME ONE? MY PARENTS FUCKING?

Here’s why the family had that reaction.   They were used to it.  It wasn’t incongruous anymore.  They weren’t shocked.

And that brings me back around to Trump.  His totally incongruous utterings from the exalted position of President of the United States are no longer shocking.  We have become accustomed to the occupant of the Oval Office tweeting like a petulant four-year-old. The New York Times counts his lies and misleading statements to have reached around 7,000. They go by with little notice like just another boob in a porn flick. The other day he lied to the troops about how he was the first President in years to give them a raise and that it was a raise of 10%.  None of that was even close to true in any respect.  Yet, that lie was reported only in the back pages of the newspapers and the story lasted maybe a day.

So, sadly, we have adapted, as our DNA tells us to do. But, this time, we have to fight against our inherent inclination to reconcile. The opposable thumb was a great adaptation. Acclimation to this opposable Presidency, though, will be a terrible one.