I’m going to date myself here and ask if you’ve heard of or remember The Little Rascals. They were on tv back in the ’40s and ’50s. Maybe you even watched them. In any case, you might recall one of the gang named Spanky:
Naturally Spanky grew up and in recent years reappeared as an adult named JD Vance:
But Vance had political aspirations and apparently thought his Spanky face didn’t look serious enough for the grown-up world of politics. So before entering the race for Ohio’s Republican Senate seat in 2022, he grew a beard:
And lo and behold, JD Vance, the author of “Hillbilly Elegy,” became a US Senator. The beard was magic. And to prove it, a mere two years later he got tapped as Donald Trump’s vice presidential running mate.
So, what do you think? Did the beard turn the Spanky lookalike into a credible vice presidential candidate? (Shhh, some on the internet are even saying he adds eyeliner.) Obviously Donald Trump thought so.
Personally, I think under that beard (and eyeliner?) lurks a grown-up who hasn’t grown up. Yes, I think the beard was a definite improvement; it hides the Spanky face. But he still acts and talks like a kid — an ignorant, mean-spirited, name-calling kid.
“Childless cat ladies”? Seriously?
(Apologies to the real Spanky. As I recall he was a good kid.)
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Banner image (viewed in landscape mode): From left, Alfalfa, Buckwheat, Darla and Spanky (Photo: Genius Products)
It does seem that many Republican politicians are afflicted with some degree of stunted emotional and intellectual growth, eternally stuck in some incomplete stage of childish mean-spiritedness, arrogance, conceit and lack of empathy.
With the MAGA minions, I’ve tended to think of it as willful ignorance. But when they rise to positions of power, it becomes potentially dangerous.
It IS a remarkable resemblance. The beardless JD looks like a pampered, petulant child.
Stunning what a difference the beard makes. I would never have recognized the beardless person as JD Vance.
I keep thinking that one of the republican candidates will say, “my daddy can beat up your daddy”
Nah, they’re having too much fun picking on women.
Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel is how come JD Vance is … well, still around, I guess. Thiel has backed Vance in a thousand ways – sorry, in millions of ways. Like, $millions.
Vance is like another Trump, only much younger and much smarter. That makes him more dangerous and much, much scarier.
Dunno about that, Colorado: without the constant financial backing of Thiel, Vance would be just a suburban arsehole.
I don’t know if he needs the backing anymore. He’s in the US Senate now and he could become Vice President, a breath away from the presidency.