It’s over.  All 20th-century and 21st-century battles for the heart and soul of America were lost, decisively, by conservatives.  The political civil war is over.  No matter the entertaining preaching of Kurt Schlichter, there will be no comeback in 2022, or ever.  Every conservative in the United States now knows how the Confederates felt, at the end of the War between the States, when Lee surrendered to Grant in the McLean House in Appomattox Court House.

"The Surrender," a painting by Keith Rocco, shows Generals Lee and Grant shaking hands near the end of the meeting.  Via NPS.

Generous terms were offered by Grant.  "The heart of the terms was that Confederates would be paroled after surrendering their weapons and other military property.  If surrendered soldiers did not take up arms again, the United States government would not prosecute them.  Grant also allowed Confederate officers to keep their mounts and side arms.  Some accounts mention that Grant glanced at Lee's dress sword before including that line, and Grant indicated he included it to avoid any unnecessary humiliation for the Confederate officers.  Stories soon circulated that Lee had offered and Grant refused Lee's ornate sword, but Grant dismissed them all as 'pure romance'" (National Park Service, "The Surrender Meeting" [2020]).

Progressives will not emulate Grant.  Rather, victorious progressives will be vengeful toward defeated conservatives, as jihad-triumphant Mohammedans were merciless toward conquered unbelievers.  In the near future, conservatives will be driven from the public square and from their corporate employment.  There will be thoughtcrimes, show trials, and so on.  "That's what socialists are good at" (Monica Showalter, "Robert Reich vows purges and show trials of conservatives if Biden is elected" [AT, 10/19/2020]).

The English language will be stripped of its glory.  Already, conservative writers use "he and she" in place of "he," and they write as if "everyone" were plural.  Words such as heroine and hostess are verboten.  A female presenter of a TV show is a "host."

The rot is everywhere.  In judicial opinions, gender-neutral words must be used.  "Administratrix" and "brethren" and "congressman" and "foreman" and dozens of others were vaporized by judges.  "He" and "she" may not be used as generic nouns (New York State, Law Reporting Bureau, "New York Official Report Style Manual," para. 12.1, pp. 101–103 [2017] [official edition]).

No one who was young on January 20, 1953 could conceptualize then, let alone articulate, that the United States of America would implode in his lifetime.  We are at the starting point of inglorious decades for Americans.

Stephen Kruger observes the world from China.  Contact him at kruger753rr at yahoo.com.