When I was a college Freshman 50 years ago, I quit Air Force ROTC in favor of marching band, after I met a beautiful clarinet player. She was also valedictorian-smart and one of the most fundamentally decent people I’ve ever known. We married a few years later and remain so. She stays very aware politically, always votes and always understands what is at stake, though she rarely writes about politics and does not do campaign work or make donations in her own name. For all of these years, I can't remember her wanting to watch cable news coverage of anything, save perhaps Presidential debates or a breaking disaster. She might be trapped at an airport lounge with that stuff on the noisy box, or at home when I watch. But she would rather usually watch documentaries or British TV programmes.
When Donald Trump summarily fired James Comey, that all changed. Now, CNN has moved into our Empty Nest like an underemployed Millennial offspring. Mrs. Left suddenly seems to have an even higher tolerance for cable TV news than I. She seems even quicker to turn it on and much more willing to take in the offerings with much less yelling at the screen than typifies my own engagements. We’re both retired, she from a long law career with a federal regulatory agency involving years of financial crimes enforcement. She understands exactly what is going on and appreciates that to not watch is to ignore a major historical event unfolding before our eyes. After months of pining away following the election, current events begin to offer a small portion of hope. I love watching her love watching it all happen in real time.
And it sure as hell tells me how serious all of this has become.