{"id":28039,"date":"2026-06-14T17:29:56","date_gmt":"2026-06-15T00:29:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/?p=28039"},"modified":"2026-06-16T16:38:03","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T23:38:03","slug":"the-barbarians-are-well-within-the-gates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/2026\/06\/14\/the-barbarians-are-well-within-the-gates\/","title":{"rendered":"The Barbarians Are Well Within the Gates"},"content":{"rendered":"<ul>\n<li>Trump&#8217;s cage match, planned for this evening; his attack on the weather service; comments from Bill Kristol and Robert Reich;<\/li>\n<li>How MAGA-style Christianity isn&#8217;t about Christ at all, what with attacks against James Talarico for quoting Jesus;<\/li>\n<li>Abbott&#8217;s nonsensical claim that Democrats support Sharia Law (does he even know what that is?); Trump&#8217;s obsessions and his cultural references.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div align=\"center\">&#8211; &#8211; &#8211;<\/div>\n<p align=\"center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/nyt14jun26.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/nyt14jun26.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Photo from <strong>NY Times, today<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/interactive\/2026\/06\/14\/us\/politics\/trump-white-house-claw-ufc-fight.html\">How Trump Transformed the White House Lawn Into a Fighting Arena<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\\<\/p>\n<p>Among many others:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Deadline, today<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/2026\/06\/ufc-white-house-trump-1236956016\/\">UFC Tells Attendees To \u201cPlan Accordingly\u201d As Severe Thunderstorm Watch Threatens To Disrupt Trump White House Cage Match<\/a><\/p>\n<p>This has been in the air for days. Naturally, Trump attacked the weather service.<br \/>\n<!--more--><\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/am13.mediaite.com\/med\/cnt\/uploads\/2026\/06\/white-house-1200x800.jpeg\" width=\"400\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>Mediaite, today<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediaite.com\/media\/news\/chaotic-weather-forecast-threatens-trumps-ufc-fights-as-forecasters-call-for-heavy-thunderstorms-30-mph-winds\/\">\u2018Chaotic\u2019 Weather Forecast Threatens Trump\u2019s UFC Fights \u2014 As Forecasters Call for Heavy Thunderstorms, 30+ MPH Winds<\/a><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>The White House\u2019s Rapid Response Team hit back at The Weather Channel\u2019s prediction, writing, \u201cThis event is about celebrating America\u2019s unmatched greatness after 250 years \u2014 which apparently doesn\u2019t sit well with the friendless loser who wrote this bullshit clickbait headline.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>This would never have happened in a *real* dictatorship! Guess they&#8217;ll have to try even harder.<\/p>\n<p>\\\\<\/p>\n<p>Thoughts about all this.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Bulwark, William Kristol, 12 Jun 2026<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebulwark.com\/i\/201740103\/circuses-and-circuses\">Circuses and Circuses<\/a><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8230;the UFC event is not as important as the war in Iran, or the economy, or the 2026 elections. But I do think it\u2019s an event that captures something about this moment in our history.<\/p>\n<p>After all, it\u2019s vulgar, it\u2019s violent, it\u2019s commercial, it\u2019s grandiose, it\u2019s tacky, and it dishonors a place once thought worthy of care and respect. In other words, it\u2019s Donald Trump.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>\\<\/p>\n<p><strong>Robert Reich, today<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/robertreich.substack.com\/p\/sunday-thought-trumps-cage-match\">Sunday Thought: The Horrifying Truth About Trump&#8217;s Cage Match<\/a>, subtitled &#8220;What Trump and his &#8216;manosphere&#8217; are trying to tell us with their public displays of testosterone&#8221;<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Beyond the usual Trumpian issues of self-dealing and pay-to-play corruption, today\u2019s fight also raises the question: What does a cage match on the White House lawn have to do with America\u2019s 250th anniversary?<\/p>\n<p>Just this: Trump and his regime are seeking to project an America that\u2019s like the winner of a cage match.<\/p>\n<p>Trump sees everything and everyone in terms of dominance or submission, and he\u2019s hellbent on dominance. \u201cYou\u2019ll never take back our country with weakness, you have to show strength and you have to be strong,\u201d he told his supporters on January 6, 2021, before urging them to go the Capitol.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>And,<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>He views America as locked in a zero-sum match with the rest of the world, and there\u2019s no limit to our violence. Unless Iran opened the Strait of Hormuz, he memorably said, \u201ca whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Trump\u2019s entire \u201cmanosphere\u201d is obsessed with force and violence. His secretary of \u201cwar,\u201d Pete Hegseth, threatens \u201cno quarter, no mercy for our enemies\u201d and \u201cmaximum violence to the enemy.\u201d When told some fishermen survived the American bombing of their boat, Hegseth <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/newshour\/politics\/who-is-adm-bradley-lawmakers-will-hear-from-navy-admiral-who-reportedly-ordered-attack-that-killed-boat-strike-survivors\">reportedly<\/a> ordered his commander to \u201ckill them all.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Trump\u2019s secretary of health and human services frequently posts shirtless workout videos in which he\u2019s lifting weights alongside figures like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Kid Rock. He <a href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/rfk-jr-comments-trump-testosterone-levels-11885174\">claims<\/a> Trump has \u201cthe highest testosterone level\u201d ever seen in an individual over 70 years old.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>It goes on like this, including Ken Paxton&#8217;s swipe at James Talarico.<\/p>\n<p>\\\\<\/p>\n<p>Over and over, I get the impression that Christianity, especially evangelical MAGA-style Christianity, isn&#8217;t about Christ at all, but about primitive tribal solidarity. This would seem to cinch it.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.salon.com\/app\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Talarico-2277887773.jpg\" width=\"300\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>Salon, Andrew Daugherty, today<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.salon.com\/2026\/06\/14\/christian-right-calls-james-talarico-demonic-for-quoting-jesus\/\">Christian right calls James Talarico \u201cdemonic\u201d \u2014 for quoting Jesus<\/a>, subtitled &#8220;Attacks on Texas Senate candidate aren&#8217;t just about him. They&#8217;re an attempt to crush progressive Christianity&#8221;<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.salon.com\/topic\/james-talarico\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/time.com\/7381394\/james-talarico-jasmine-crockett-texas-primary-democrats\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1781375559473000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2LmXQ6S6tawclk6-hyS4i0\" data-google-interstitial=\"false\">James Talarico<\/a> has been found guilty of quoting Jesus. The sentence he uttered, according to right-wing media, was \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediamatters.org\/benny-johnson\/right-wing-media-attack-james-talarico-his-christian-faith-and-beliefs-hes-not\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.mediamatters.org\/benny-johnson\/right-wing-media-attack-james-talarico-his-christian-faith-and-beliefs-hes-not&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1781375559473000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0hgn4KaY7rF5wSn7zneX6Q\">demonic\u201d and \u201cblasphemous,\u201d<\/a> exposing him as a \u201cfake Christian.\u201d Talarico is running for the U.S. Senate in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.salon.com\/topic\/texas\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-google-interstitial=\"false\">Texas<\/a> on a platform <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newyorker.com\/magazine\/2026\/03\/02\/james-talarico-profile\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The New Yorker<\/a> recently described as basically the New Testament. One <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediamatters.org\/newsmax\/newsmax-host-says-democratic-texas-state-rep-james-talarico-freak-who-uses-fake-sermons-and\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Newsmax host<\/a> accused him of using fake Bible passages.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The passages in question are familiar ones, found in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblegateway.com\/passage\/?search=Matthew%2022%3A36-40&amp;version=NRSVUE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.biblegateway.com\/passage\/?search%3DMatthew%252022%253A36-40%26version%3DNRSVUE&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1781375559473000&amp;usg=AOvVaw353YGjRgB7C6uU0A7F_4jS\">Matthew 22<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblegateway.com\/passage\/?search=Matthew%2025%3A35-40&amp;version=NRSVUE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.biblegateway.com\/passage\/?search%3DMatthew%252025%253A35-40%26version%3DNRSVUE&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1781375559473000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2RjYxvGHpgH4OkYcpQlhSd\">Matthew 25<\/a>. Love God and love your neighbor. Feed the hungry, heal the sick, welcome the stranger. They are, in fact, in the Bible.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The right\u2019s attacks on Talarico aren\u2019t about him, or at least not entirely. They\u2019re about a much older argument \u2014 one progressive Christianity has been losing in public for 50 years \u2014 about whose version of the faith gets to count as real. The answer to that question has consequences far beyond any Senate race. When Christianity becomes a tool of power rather than a challenge to it, it doesn\u2019t just damage the church. It destabilizes democracy. We are watching that happen in real time.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>And this:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/religionnews.com\/2026\/03\/30\/christian-nationalists-are-panicking-because-religious-progressives-are-thriving\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/religionnews.com\/2026\/03\/30\/christian-nationalists-are-panicking-because-religious-progressives-are-thriving\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1781375559473000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1BoeJ-5pBZuNs6kNZ2AdmW\">Christian right spent decades<\/a>\u00a0narrowing the Gospel down to two issues, abortion and gay marriage.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=oiTJ7Pz_59A\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v%3DoiTJ7Pz_59A&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1781375559473000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3w3_ZLD0JFroRfZWv_0MDO\">Talarico told Stephen Colbert<\/a> something that\u2019s obvious to anyone who has read past the cover of the Bible, rather than carrying it around for show:<em>\u00a0<\/em>Jesus never mentions either of those things. But in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblegateway.com\/passage\/?search=Matthew%2025%3A35-40&amp;version=NRSVUE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.biblegateway.com\/passage\/?search%3DMatthew%252025%253A35-40%26version%3DNRSVUE&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1781375559473000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2RjYxvGHpgH4OkYcpQlhSd\">Matthew 25<\/a>, words in plain language, attributed explicitly to Jesus, tell us we will be judged by how we have treated the hungry, the sick, the stranger and the imprisoned.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>\\\\\\<\/p>\n<p>Similarly.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.joemygod.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Unity2-660x330.jpg\" width=\"300\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>JMG, today<\/strong> (from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.texastribune.org\/2026\/06\/12\/texas-gop-convention-greg-abbott-demolish-democrats-james-talarico-2027-legislature\/\">Texas Tribune<\/a>): <a href=\"https:\/\/www.joemygod.com\/2026\/06\/abbott-claims-dems-want-to-implement-sharia-law\/\">Abbott Claims Dems Want To Implement Sharia Law<\/a><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>He also accused Democrats of supporting Sharia law and prompted thunderous applause when he called for completely outlawing it and giving the attorney general\u2019s office more authority to tackle the issue.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Nonsense. Does he even know what <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Sharia\">Sharia Law<\/a> is? I gather it&#8217;s a very harsh set of religiously-based rules for daily living, perhaps a bit harsher but otherwise much like the OT-rules that evangelical Christians would implement on everyone in the US, if they could. Does he not realize this? Does he not realize how ludicrous it is to claim that Democrats support it? Progressives don&#8217;t want *any* religious, tribal rules imposed on modern society, which is supposed to have overcome ancient tribal values. NT, French Revolution, American Revolution, Enlightenment, Constitution, Civil Rights, Scientific advances. At every point conservatives try to deny progress and drag civilization backwards.<\/p>\n<p>\\\\<\/p>\n<p>Briefly noted.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/compote.slate.com\/images\/a3bdb32a-330d-4870-ba5d-9c056b613c99.jpeg?crop=1%3A1&amp;width=960\" width=\"300\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>Slate, Trump Brain, 11 Jun 2026<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/slate.com\/news-and-politics\/2026\/06\/donald-trump-news-age-birthday-ufc.html\">Trump Brain<\/a>, subtitled &#8220;No one can say for sure what\u2019s going on in the president\u2019s head. His 25 greatest obsessions can get us a little closer.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>I can&#8217;t resist posting this clever graphic of those 25 obsessions. They&#8217;re all very familiar.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/slatetrump11jun26.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/slatetrump11jun26.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>I don&#8217;t care about Trump so much as to analyze these particular items. But rather to note this: most people become stuck in a particular cultural place, the one in which they grew up, or came of age, or perhaps their 20s or even 30s. Their tastes form and for many remain stuck forever. Trump has never escaped the 1980s. Andy Weir, in the musical references in both THE MARTIAN and PROJECT HAIL MARY, never escaped the &#8217;60s through the &#8217;80s. (I think Allen Steele has done something similar.) It&#8217;s very hard to break out of one&#8217;s comfort zone, and explore new ideas, to learn new things.<\/p>\n<p>My take-away from this is: Beware of this. Be open to new experiences. Don&#8217;t get stuck in the past.<\/p>\n<p>This is almost impossible not to do, of course. Since I&#8217;m conscious of this, I&#8217;ve tried. I&#8217;ve been rereading the classics, but I also try new writers from time to time. At the same time, I&#8217;ve stopped keeping up with new musical groups around 2000, except for Radiohead and Adele. Maybe Beck? And so on. I won&#8217;t belabor this for now.<\/p>\n<p>Also this:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Slate, Nitish Pahwa, 11 Jun 2026<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/slate.com\/news-and-politics\/2026\/06\/donald-trump-age-2026-birthday.html\">What\u2019s Going On in Donald Trump\u2019s Brain as He\u2019s Turning 80? He\u2019s Given Us Some Clues.<\/a>, subtitled &#8220;The cultural references he makes at the strangest times are oddly revealing.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Especially about gold.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Trump&#8217;s cage match, planned for this evening; his attack on the weather service; comments from Bill Kristol and Robert Reich; How MAGA-style Christianity isn&#8217;t about Christ at all, what with attacks against James Talarico for quoting Jesus; Abbott&#8217;s nonsensical claim &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/2026\/06\/14\/the-barbarians-are-well-within-the-gates\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[48,20,12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28039","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-conservative-resistance","category-psychology","category-religion"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28039","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28039"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28039\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28050,"href":"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28039\/revisions\/28050"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28039"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28039"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.markrkelly.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28039"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}