WORDS MATTER
Despite my unwavering respect and gratitude for the January 6th Committee, I found its final hearing to be disappointing—mostly because of the sloppy editing of what should have been one concerted message. Meaning, that every word should have sounded like it was written by one person (and that would have been a god (or Lincoln), to my liking); instead, the presentation was filled with repetition and vague, noncommittal sound bites.
Potentially, I doubt that the worldwide audience will soon again prove to be more receptive than it was on Monday when eagerly awaiting a well-timed, well-written, climactic political and historical reckoning and summoning. We should have heard the unapologetic, rallying cry of patriots—and should have been made to leap to our feet with an overwhelming hunger for justice. The heroic Jan. 6th Committee should have been carried down the street on our shoulders, with ticker-tape showing the way. The morning’s newspapers should have been filled with distain toward trump, and an insatiable thirst for his arrest. Instead, this “historical” news barely made the front page. Why? Because of poor writing and editing.
Better editing could have inspired listeners with a clear distinction between right and wrong, and infallible evidence of who committed the crimes. I would have named those in Congress who failed to honor subpoenas, as that might have provided at least a hint of the social castigation that they deserve. Some speakers (Thompson, Cheney, and Raskin) did bring forth the necessary gravitas, while others' repetitive statements only muddied the waters. To my mind, they should have chosen one speaker to deliver the entire message, and left out the sound bites that only disrupted the primary message.
Why does this piss me off so much? Because much of the world was aching to be energized by words worthy of a granite monument, but instead heard a disconcerted whimper from these all-to-rare, unquestionable heroes who—while having theretofore exerted themselves to awe-inspiring effect—were ultimately unable to refine the most important speech of our lives. It left me, and I’m sure billions around the world, feeling numb and unmotivated, when we should have been hearing powerful echoes of our forebears’ unassailable truths.
For an example, I point to Michigan's Senator Mallory McMorrow, who's
speech tore apart her Trumpian, election-denying, trolling adversary by standing tall and making statements like, “Yes, my family was seldom seen in church on Sundays because we were out delivering food to the needy.” Bravery, courage, integrity, self-assuredness, unapologetic opinions—they’re what people need and want. That single (perfect) speech has brought her increasing public acclaim and calls for her to seek higher office. It’s too bad the Jan. 6 Committee didn’t ask her to write its conclusions.
Now, we can only hope that the Committee’s actual report provides the DOJ and muckrakers with enough coherent evidence to end trump’s reign of terror.
