Celebrating Justice, Not Criminality

 I HAD PREDICTED A NOT GUILTY VERDICT, or, most likely a hung jury, and an interminable continuation of a seemingly endless saga, the saga of an obvious criminal who tragically enjoys the continuing support of a shockingly large portion of the American electorate. I was of course quite pleased with the verdict. I have despised Trump since he graced the front page of "The National Enquirer" repeatedly decades ago, his smiling smirking visage proudly proclaiming his unearned, ill gotten wealth, his narcissistic self absorption, his made up trophy wives. His political career, a seemingly unending litany of self aggrandizement, lies,  horrible policy positions and corruption while president, disgusted me, as it did and has tens of millions of other reasonably intelligent, morally discerning Americans. Pleased with the verdict, but not celebrating it. All across Facebook, all across the internet, all across America's fruited plain Trump haters like myself are "celebrating the verdict", champagne corks popping. Not so much for me. Why should I celebrate when a criminal's criminality is formally recognized in a duly constituted court  of law? I already knew he is a criminal, and I deplore it, rather than celebrate it. The thing for me to celebrate is the administration of justice. I had rather the criminal himself had never chosen a life of crime, and that our prisons be emptied, and all citizens reformed, and newly committed to personal redemption and renewed productivity. But Donald Trump, like all Too many others, chose a life of crime, and his criminality has been too readily apparent for far too long, and his inevitable justice delayed far too long. Little, for all practical purpose, will change. The prevaricating criminal will continue to proclaim his innocence, and to hurl absurd, insane accusations about the system being stacked against him,"rigged'. The 20020 outlandish presidential election  lie, redux.  Donald Trump's cult will regroup, harden its already hardened hearts, become more self deluded than ever, and "double down", as we like to say, on their inane, delusional rhetoric about Trump's imaginary greatness, and the alleged, fabricated criminality of Biden, who, in fact, has led a life of abiding the law. The constant attack against truth, reason, and facts will be redoubled,  and Trump will have to be defeated at the ballot box, as always, and again little if anything will change. Only now, when the arguments resume, which is immediately, those who detest Trump will, if nothing else, be able to refer to a New York judge and jury to support their claim that the former and perhaps future president of the United States is indeed a confirmed criminal. confirmed by our system of justice. As the late great Casey Stengal would say: "You could look it up".