The Tyranny of the Karens
While the dictates of people like Michigan Governor Whitmer are disturbing, what I find terrifying is how many of our fellow citizens welcome being bossed around by their Karen Overlords.
With this Wuhan Pandemic, the Karens of the world have found newfound authority and sway.
Now, I’m not sure when it became a thing to call suburban cul-de-sac busybodies “Karens.” But it’s a thing.
Personally I prefer cul-de-sac busybody over Karen – mostly because it’s fun to say.
But, it is what it is. In the Internet Age where attention spans are short and nicknames save time and mental effort, Karen has become the name of choice for those bossy Betties who believe that their desire to control things to their liking supersedes everything else – including your civil rights.
Karens were made for this Wuhan Panic.
It has transformed the neighborhood busybody from the annoying pest who calls the cops when the smoke from a neighbor’s firepit has the gall to waft into her backyard into an essential cog in the machine of petty tyranny.
Now, those annoying calls to the police are not only welcomed, but encouraged.
It’s like a dream come true for the neighborhood Karens.
Problem is, some of these Karens aren’t just the cul-de-sac busybody who, up until a month ago, had no power or authority. Some Karens are governors.
Take Gretchen Whitmer,
No, really. Take her. Please.
Her sweeping dictates are a cul-de-sac busybody’s wet dream.
Instead of merely calling the police, “Karen” Whitmer gets to deploy them to enforce every stupid edict she unilaterally decides will “keep us safe.” How preventing people from buying garden seeds or cans of paint keeps anyone safe is a mystery to me. But it’s what Governor “Karen” wants, so it’s what Governor “Karen” gets.
She, not you, gets to decide what is and is not an essential purchase. And since she deems garden seeds non-essential, then by golly, you certainly don’t need to buy them — even if they’re right there on the shelves in front of you.
As I said before, some state and municipal leaders are taking to tyranny far too easily.
And the Tyranny of the Karens, while extremely annoying, is not at all surprising given how many Americans view government as their parent.
Remember Obama’s reelection campaign video about the Life of Julia — the happy, pliant sheep who relies on government from cradle to grave?
This is nothing new. But the Wuhan Panic is making this embrace of well-meaning tyranny spread like a virus throughout the country.
So while the dictates of people like Michigan Governor “Karen” are disturbing, what I find terrifying is how many of our fellow citizens welcome being bossed around by their Karen Overlords.
“Thank you for keeping us safe,” they gush whenever Whitmer imposes another dictate on the people of Michigan. “Keep doing what you’re doing,” they say as they hide in their homes like frightened sheep.
It makes my head hurt seeing just how willing some American citizens are to have their liberty ground to dust in the name of “Keeping us safe.”
Speaking of the Tyranny of the Karens, Kurt Schlichter’s column “The Rise of Karen-ism Means this Lockdown Nonsense Needs to End Soon” is a must-read:
We need to come out of this and reopen soon, not just to save our economy – though we totally do need to save our economy – but to save ourselves from coming to believe that freedom is a luxury we can’t afford. Freedom is not a luxury; it is a necessity. Maybe a Karen’s life is worth living on its knees, but I’ve gotten used to being free and I’m thinking that if I can’t be free, then why bother being at all? How about you?
[snip]
You look at half-wit pols dreamcasting that we’re going to sit in our houses like sheep for the next year awaiting their permission to live again, and you see vids of cops shamefully tackling unmasked people on buses and you know that we’ve turned a corner. These goofs have overstepped. Rampant Karenism is going to provoke a backlash, one that might include people disregarding legit medical precautions because YouTubes of Keystone Kops chasing lone joggers around empty beaches have nuked the authorities’ credibility. The clock is ticking on our patience. This needs to end.
Now, to be fair, not all Karens are women.
Oddly enough, one of the biggest Karens to emerge from the Wuhan Panic is Scott Adams. He sees no problem with the government being able to track you and your Wuhan virus status in the most 1984 of ways.
Jesus wept.
I’m thinking Scott’s next book will be titled “KarenThink.”
If the Karens of America want to stay holed up in their houses in fear for their lives, nobody is stopping them. They can weld their own doors shut for all I care. Then again, if they only took care of themselves, they wouldn’t be Karens, would they?
Kurt Schlichter is right. The Tyranny of the Karens has to end.
This isn’t America. In America, the police should never be permitted to shut down church services while telling free Americans that their rights are suspended.
Our freedoms and unalienable rights can never be suspended – even for the pretext of “keeping us safe.” Especially when “keeping us safe” amounts to nonsensical, arbitrary dictates that serve no purpose but to make the Karens of the world feel important.
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