Joe Biden has been President for a couple of weeks now, and the rebuilding has begun, but we can’t seem to be rid of the previous regime just yet. This is largely because we have yet to fully reckon with the insurrection of January 6.
The violent white supremacist groups Trump unleashed on the Capitol, along with the various conspiracy theory followers, including members of Congress, have kept the craziness a top news story.
One of the groups, the Proud Boys, has even been designated a terrorist entity by Canada. Many of these extremists want to bring about another civil war in the U.S. But for all their desire to bring about a Second Civil War, the only civil war they seem to be instigating is within the Republican Party. The right-wing nut job faction of QAnon believers appears to be winning out over the old-time conservative Chamber of Commerce Republicans, with the QOP replacing the GOP.
The violent groups like the Proud Boys and the Boogaloo Bois provide anti-democratic, fascist armed support for the QOP, not necessarily under Trump’s command, though they are certainly in sympathy with him. It would be very easy to label them the modern day Brown Shirts, except for one, very annoying detail. Today’s Brown Shirts have ditched the brown shirts in favor of Hawaiian shirts.
This expropriation of the Hawaiian shirt is an affront to every anti-fascist fan of Tiki culture. May the Volcano God hit them with a Tiki Curse. A little more than four years ago I began this incarnation of this blog as a reaction to Trump and the rising trend toward fascism in the U.S. Now it’s 2021 and Trump is gone, congrats everybody, but we are still dealing with the fascists. Not only do they want to take away our American democracy, but they’ve come for Tiki, too. It’s time to stand up and fight. I suggest starting with a Jungle Bird cocktail, Tiki and bitter, perfect. This classic (via kindred cocktails) is:
4 oz pineapple juice
1.5 oz Jamaican rum(dark)
.5 oz Campari
.5 oz lime juice
.5 oz simple syrup
orange slice(blood orange is good here) and cherry as garnish
Shake well with plenty of ice and pour without straining into an old fashioned glass, garnish.
Cheers!
Gin & Bitters 