Busting out the GOP
A Soprano's analogy
My son and I have been watching The Sopranos. In the second season, there’s a storyline about a compulsive gambler, Davy Scatino, who is one of Tony Soprano’s childhood friends. Tony has known him since high school and their kids have grown up together. Scatino owns a sporting goods and hiking store.
When Scatino finds out that Tony is running a high-powered card game, he asks to get in. Tony initially discourages him, but eventually lets him play, covering Scatino with a loan. After accumulating a pile of money on some early wins, Scatino bets big and loses, leaving him deeply in debt to Tony.
Tony learns that Scatino is not only broke, he’s in hock to other mobsters, too. After missing some payments, Tony beats him in his store. Scatino gives Tony his son’s car as partial payment, humiliating himself with his own family.
With no other payments coming, Tony becomes a “partner” in Scatino’s store. He begins borrowing money against the store and buying goods on credit to sell on the black market. Eventually, he bankrupts Scatino, leaving the store in foreclosure.
Tony explains to Scatino that the process of taking over and bankrupting a business is called busting out. It’s what Donald Trump is doing to the GOP.
If we avoid a new civil war, the GOP’s bankruptcy is likely to seed the rebirth of a healthy two-party system, or several vibrant political parties that evolves into a parliamentary system that represents America’s growing multiculturalism.
I’ll call this simile rather than analogy. Because similes most often have the reductionist term “like” to make it official. An extended simile. Insert transition here. Been thinking a lot lately about heads of cabbage. And a term I’ve never heard used and desire to coin: cabbage-headed. To mean those with a 3 lb. entity sitting atop their heads who lack knowledge of how to use their upper storey. Oh the garish cabbage heads follow along as if their la-di-da bootlick will give them some scratch. Bust out.