As I read about the latest goings-on in the circular firing squad that is Georgia Republican politics, I am reminded of another famous incident from the Peach State, circa 1979:
So the Devil comes up to this cocky kid Johnny one day and wants to get the kid's soul. He makes a bet with Johnny, whoever the better fiddle player is wins, a golden fiddle against Johnny's soul. Johnny, clearly not too bright and quite arrogant, takes the deal. They both play, and upon hearing Johnny's song, the Devil concedes that he's been defeated, and departs, leaving the golden fiddle with Johnny.
There are a number of aspects about this story that simply do not make any sense. The first one, of course, is why is does the Devil seem to have a quota of souls he needs to get like he's got a boss up his ass about it, but that's not particularly relevant here.
The first relevant point is about the contest; there is no third party there to judge it. Neither the Devil nor Johnny seem perturbed by this, as if they're both trusting that the "loser" won't fight it. This is even weirder because one wouldn't even have to be dishonest; they could simply have different opinions about eachother's relative skill (as I'm sure many competing performers do), and right there, the bet becomes messy and unresolved.
Even stranger than that, however, is that the Devil actually does it. He "knows that he's been beat", and just turns tail and runs. This is the Devil, the embodiment of evil, the Prince of Lies, he who pretty much fucks around with bets and bargains for a living. It seems very odd that he would simply go, "Shucks, I guess he was better after all," and leave.
A final point, which, as I said before, is subjective; I honestly think the Devil's solo is better. I know nothing about fiddling (heh), but his just seems cooler; it's got more kick and emotion. Obviously, many might disagree, but if I was judging that contest, I'd give it to the Devil.
So, if none of this adds up, what's another way to look at it that would make more sense? Let's see what we know; the Devil is tricky, Johnny is arrogant and probably not too quick. So the Devil comes along, sees this kid, and wants his soul, so he sets up a trap for the kid. He sees that Johnny's number one flaw is his pride, and he plays on it; by offering a bet, he challenges Johnny's pride. Johnny can't possibly refuse, even though he knows it's a sin, because his pride won't let him. That and Johnny's thickheadedness are what prevent him to see he's being played; obviously the contest will be rigged if no one's judging it.
So the Devil plays his solo, then Johnny plays his, and the Devil concedes. Truth is, it doesn't matter what Johnny played here; he could have played like a monkey with Parkinson's doing a Nickelback cover, and the Devil would have still conceded. That's the genius of it. He challenges this average fiddle player's pride, then loses to him deliberately, inflating that pride to an enormous extent. The gold fiddle that he leaves behind is nothing to him, and the wealth probably won't help Johnny much.
Think about what happens after this meeting. Johnny goes through the rest of his life thinking that he's, quite literally, "the best that's ever been". He thinks he's the number one fiddle player in history, so good the Devil himself bowed before his skill. That pride will torment him his entire life. It'll push people away from ever getting close to him, and leave him mystified when clubs won't book him because they "don't understand his genius". He'll end up in the gutter, a man ruined after spending a life chasing a delusion, and when he finally pulls the trigger, he'll open his eyes to a familiar face, one who now has the soul he was after.
Okay, that’s probably not what Charlie Daniels had in mind for his most famous hit, but it does make the point that when you make a deal with Old Scratch, the dark one always comes back to collect. Always.
Republicans made their own Faustian bargain in 2016, and now they’re paying the bill:
Former President Donald Trump escalated his grudge Saturday against Brian Kemp at a rally in northeast Georgia, urging supporters to oust the incumbent he once endorsed and purge state government of many of the governor’s allies.
Before a crowd of a few thousand supporters, Trump’s rambling speech invoked familiar, false claims that he and former U.S. Sen. David Perdue got “screwed” in 2020 and warned that his backers won’t vote in a general election against Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams if Kemp is the nominee.
“Trump voters will not go out and vote for Brian Kemp,” Trump said, adding that the Senate GOP frontrunner will also be damaged.
[…]
Perdue, meanwhile, returned the favor. He said for the first time this past week that he also was the victim of a “stolen” election when he lost the January 2021 runoff to Democrat Jon Ossoff. And at Saturday’s rally, he unveiled sharper attacks on Kemp.
“In the state of Georgia, thanks to Brian Kemp, in 2020 our elections were absolutely stolen,” Perdue said, adding that he would make sure that “whoever was responsible goes to jail” if he’s elected.
Chants of “lock him up!” directed at Kemp broke out, as Perdue smiled and flashed a thumbs-up sign.
With hefty leads in recent polls, Kemp has hardly uttered Perdue‘s name in recent days. His spokesman Cody Hall issued a statement saying that Kemp “is focused on making sure Stacey Abrams is never our governor or the next president.”
It’s always a good sign when candidates are calling for the imprisonment of other members of their own political party.
Georgia is probably the purplest state in the Union, and Kemp barely beat Stacey Abrams for the Governorship in 2018. Abrams never really accepted defeat, and her team is doubly motivated for a rematch in 2022. If Kemp wants to hang on he cannot lose any support from his own party.
But what are the chances Trump and Purdue will now support Kemp in the general election? I suppose I can see Purdue issuing an extremely unenthusiastic endorsement, but Trump will endorse Abrams before he endorses a man whom be blames for stealing the election from him.
Actually, he’s come close to doing that already. Purdue might still be willing to hold his nose and take one for the team, but Donald Trump is an individual athlete, not a team player. There’s a reason he plays golf instead of, say, basketball.
The constant whining and infighting might just be taking its toll:
Now, I’m not going to get too overconfident about the midterms. The first-term President’s party almost always gets whupped, gas prices are high and inflation is a problem, and if the Democrats gain any momentum someone you can count on someone from “The Squad” to loudly demand more government funding for the perverted arts or something.
Georgia Democrats had a great 2020, but that doesn’t mean everyone who turned out to specifically vote against Trump will show up when he’s not actually on the ballot. The state is definitely trending Democratic, but hasn’t gone all the way yet.
If I were a betting man I’d still put money on the GOP taking the House and very possibly the Senate. But I’m not as sure about that as I was even a month ago, and the statewide races in Georgia might be a coin flip.