A thread on how much you should be worried.

You guys always tease me about not letting you panic. Don't panic. Panic is a useless emotion. But after yesterday, you should be very, very alarmed right now. /1

I have said for a while that we're at the political version of DEFCON 1. Trump is doing what a lot of us knew he would do, attacking our institutions while leaving us nearly defenseless: The Capitol was breached last night, with the VP and Congress having to run for safety. /2

To protect the Capitol itself, the VP and the Acting SecDef had to go around the President - who, by many reports, has now become completely detached from reality. This is a government breakdown of the kind we usually only think of happening in other countries. /3

This is happening in full view of the world. Our allies are watching this with great alarm. Our enemies are watching it with great interest, and they're taking notes. Because that's the smart play. /4

But the President still holds the powers of Commander in Chief. He still has the nuclear codes. He's going to be in office for as long as the Cuban Missile Crisis lasted. This is beyond dangerous. Right now, even an accident or a miscalculation could be catastrophic. /5

Don't let anyone downplay this just because Trump is a moron; don't underestimate what happened last night just because the mob was a bunch of Facebook addicts and OAN-addled loons. The President is mentally unstable and the United States is in danger. /6

Our elected officials and the members of the Cabinet have to act. They have to contend with the reality that the president has become unstable and is inciting insurrection and sedition. They cannot just throw the dice and hope we get through the next two weeks. /6

What can *you* do? Contact your elected officials. Show you're engaged and paying attention. Stay informed and follow the news. (But not obsessively - I'll do that for you.)
But for the future: Never forget the names of the enablers who caused all this. Never. /7x