First-time readers, the dialogue in this blog is set in the future (sometime after the year 2020).  Each entry assumes there has been a 5th revolution in the US — the Revenge Revolution.  More about Revenge Revolution and author, Entry #1.  List and general description of entries to date.  Annual assessment if Revolution plausible.

Note: most characters appear in a number of entries, with many entries building on previous conversations.  Profile of characters.  You’ll catch on quickly.  Thanks for your time and interest…and comments.

Scene: Gelly, JC and Greenie having drinks with Jordan following a session in Jordan’s office.  Conversation starts Entry #244.

Waiter: “Would you folks like to order some food?”

JC:  “Yes, we would…right Jordan?”

Greenie:  “I agree, although I’d prefer some hors d’oeuvres to a full dinner.”

Jordan:  “So what do you guys want?”

Waiter takes order.

Gelly:  “I’m still a bit confused about who took out the Donald.”

Greenie:  “Do you agree it probably wasn’t the North Koreans or the Mexican drug lords?”

Gelly:  “Yes, either one of those groups seems unlikely, now, although I must say both seemed to be reasonable candidates at first.”

Greenie:  “Then if we stick to our list, that leaves the Russians or someone, some group inside the US government.”

Gelly:  “I guess that’s what’s confusing me.  I agree Trump was like a water bug when it came to international policies – he’d head off in one direction one second and then quickly shift to another direction.  But other than some blustery talk about bombing North Korea and the infamous wrong-way destroyer claim, he never caused any turbulence below the surface.  The diplomats and the professionals somehow handled the foreign-policy issues.”

JC:  “So you think the real danger was on the domestic side…to US citizens and the fabric of the country, right?”

Gelly:  “Seems to me that some of the Trump proposals, if implemented as drafted, would have completely split the country.  Even though some of the crazier the ideas were eventually watered down, we still had the Revenge Revolution.  Just how much carnage would there have been if had not been taken out?”

JC:  “Jordan, your turn.  You’ve been awfully quiet.”

Jordan:  “I agree the damage domestically could have been much worse had the Donald stayed in office.  Not worse than nuclear war, which I thought we might have for a while.  Fortunately, some cooler heads among the military top brass really got control of the all the nasty weapons.”

Gelly:  “Ya’ know, it’s probably not fair, but when I think of Trump as president I think of Howdy Doody.”

Greenie:  “That’s great.  Howdy Doody…and with a bad haircut!  What a great picture.  Now, as I think about it, I can’t decide whether to laugh or cry.  Maybe I should do both.”

JC:  “Back to you Jordan.  You’re a big dog inside the Beltway.  I mean you get calls from POTUS, visit the White House.  What really went on?”

Jordan:  “I was not part of the ‘in’ crowd during the Trump Administration.”

JC:  “C’mon.  Staffers and guys like you all know one another.  What went on?  Who took him out?”

Jordan:  “I’ll give you my take but your buddy here, Greenie, might know more than I do.  She’s the real insider.”

Greenie:  “Thanks for the compliment…but it’s been a while since I was an insider.  Anyway, I want to hear your take.”

Jordan:  “I think Gelly’s right.  Trump was like Howdy Doody.  A small group of puppeteers were pulling the strings and he would react accordingly…often without thinking or even understanding.”

Gelly:  “I know I said Howdy Doody, but wasn’t he smart enough to realize what was going on?”

Jordan:  “I don’t know what his IQ was but I do know he was woefully uneducated about a wide range of subjects…and especially about government.  I’m not sure he even read, let alone opened, the Constitution.  His knowledge of geography was breathtakingly and embarrassingly awful.”

Gelly:  “Didn’t he have an MBA from some top school?  What was the name of it?”

JC:  “Wharton.”

Gelly:  “That’s it, Wharton.  I remember he claimed he graduated first in his class.”

JC:  “Maybe first in not studying and first in narcissism.  But he’s no one’s academic.  And I’m sure Wharton would rather not admit he’s an alum.”

Greenie:  “You know the tell-tale signs of his lack of education were his statements that ‘Who knew health care could be so complicated?’ and ‘Being president is more difficult than I imagined.’”

JC:  “Duh, Donald, you been living in a cave?  What really scared me was I’m not sure he had any idea of what was really going on…other than playing golf at Mar-a-Lago.”

Greenie:  “Then the Howdy Doody president introduces two absolutely off-the-wall proposals – replacement for Obamacare and a tax plan.  Both would have resulted in huge transfers of wealth to the already wealthy, including the Donald.”

Gelly:  “What about letting oil and gas companies drill willy-nilly on public land?  We sure didn’t need any more oil or gas.”

Greenie:  “He claimed his actions were for job creation.  That claim was a ruse, if he ever understood what he was proposing.”

JC:  “Back to you, again, Jordan.  Who took him out?  If not the CIA, who else should we put on the list?”

Waiter: “Excuse me.  Here’s your hors d’oeuvres.”

Jordan (to waiter):  “Thank you.  Just one check and give it to me, please.”

JC:  “Thanks Jordan but just because we’ve got food and you picked up the tab doesn’t mean you’re off the hook.  Who besides the CIA could have done it?”

Jordan:  “What I heard is a couple of black-hole guys directed by the top-level adults inside NSA.”

Gelly:  “If that’s the case, what happened to the Secret Service?”

Jordan:  “They were likely told to discreetly disappear for a few minutes.”

JC:  “More like, if you don’t disappear voluntarily, then you, too, will disappear.”

Jordan:  “I suspect that’s about how the conversation went.  Greenie, what have you heard?”

Greenie:  “I’d say your story’s about right.”

JC:  “Unfortunately, taking out the Donald didn’t stop the Revenge Revolution.”

Greenie:  “But as we talked about, can you imagine how much worse it would have been had he stayed in office?  I shudder to think of it.”

Voice: “Folks, you’re right about how bad it could have been.  But some of your story is wrong.”

(Continued)