Musings on the Most Ridiculous Band I Can't Stop Listening To

Tag: virginia

Sweet Jesus, Virgina

VIRGINIA – SMOKEY BACKROOM 

“Jenkins!”

“Yes, sir.”

“You and I, representing the business interests of Virginia, must decide how far down the line of succession this moral rot has spread. We need a governor, man. The people are ungoverned.”

“I’m sure they’ll be fine, sir.”

“Nonnycock! The people are wild and full of hooch. They crave the iron. Pack animals, Jenkins. That’s what the people are.”

“Then let’s get through this without getting sidetracked, sir.”

“Begin.”

“Northram is out. He was the governor when this orgy of dumbfuckery began. Blackface in the yearbook.”

Never be racist in a yearbook. My uncle has that phrase tattooed on his chest.”

“That’s the kind of statement that leads to one of the sidetracks I mentioned, sir. The lieutenant-governor, Fairfax, might be a little rapey.”

“How rapey?”

“Oh, sir, there are no levels of rapiness.”

“Fish sauce! Copping a feel is not full penetraysh.”

“Sir, we’ve discussed your use of the phrase ‘full penetraysh’ and how uncomfortable it makes me.”

“Babby ears, Jenkins. You’ve got wee babby ears. I wouldn’t even put them on my necklace.”

“Stop talking about that necklace.”

“Made it in Vietnam out of ears cut from my victims!”

“You bought it off the internet.”

“Got a story for each ear.”

“I’m going to continue with the main thrust of the conversation, sir: Fairfax may also be untenable in a political sense. Next along the line is the attorney general, Herring.”

“Fine, make him governor.”

“He just admitted to doing blackface.”

“Recently?”

“It was part of a Kurtis Blow costume, sir.

“That doesn’t answer my question. KB is a perennial costume. Get yourself a wig, sweater, neacklace. Jordache jeans. Then you rock the house party til the break of day.”

“This was the very early 80’s, sir.”

“How racist could he be if he was on the Blow train so early?”

“Notwithstanding, sir. It’s just bad optics.”

“Fine, fine, who’s next?”

“President Pro Temp of the State Senate Doug Runk. Moderate. Moderately intelligent. Won’t set the office on fire if left unattended.”

“Perfect. Put all our money on him.”

CELL PHONE NOTIFICATION NOISE

“Doug Runk has a secret Twitter account.”

“Does he use the identity to fight crime on Twitter?”

“No, to hate Jews.”

“Ah. Much easier. Runk is out. Who comes next after him?”

“Lisl McCurdy, the Speaker of the Statehouse.”

“A woman! With curves like Hypoglangia and legs like mighty Dryla!”

“You made those gods up, sir.”

“She’ll do nicely.”

“No, sir. There’s a photo of her at a Cinco de Mayo celebration where her and her sorority sisters are riding Mexicans like horses. Furthermore, immediately after the picture was taken, the man she was riding–a Senor Hecho Perrico–snapped in half.”

“Tough to break a Mexican. They have spines made of spunk. Forget McCurdy, How far down does the line of succession go?”

“Weirdly far, sir. After the Speaker comes the Court Bailiff. Seven DUIs.”

“I admire the tenacity. Who’s next?”

“Tallest judge.”

“Well, there you go, Jenkins. Just measure the judges and ship the biggest gork to Richmond.”

“Half-done, sir. The largest jurist is a fellow named Peculiar Institution Carter-Wilkins.”

“That’s a fine name.”

“Mm.”

“Blackface?”

“So much and so recent, sir. Has a YouTube site demoing how to get the lips and eyes just right. Attended more than several all-blackface weddings.”

“I admire the tenacity. Moving on. Fetch the second-tallest judge.”

“It doesn’t work that way. Parts of Virginia’s founding charter were written by drunken gentlemen farmers 400 years ago. It’s complicated. After the tallest judge, the power of the governor shifts to the very next slave-owning man to enter the Capitol when Congress is in Seffion.”

“That’s sexist. Women can own the hell out of a slave. I’ve seen it.”

“Yes, sir. And since, obviously, no one could fulfill the terms of that appointment, the line of succession continues. Next up is The Outer Lane of Southbound 1-95 south of Richmond.”

“The lane becomes governor?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Is it sentient?”

“I have no idea, sir.”

“Why is a section of highway given agency and status within Virginia’s line of secession?”

“Same answer.”

“Can a stretch of asphalt be racist?”

“No, sir.”

“Put all of the money on I-95.”

“Yes, sir.”

A Partial Transcript Of An Interview With Virginia Governor Ralph Northam, 2/2/19

GOVERNOR’S MANSION – VIRGINIA, DAY

“Governor Northam, thank you for meeting with me.”

“Always time for the VirginianPilot, Gordon.”

“Let’s get right to it: in the past 48 hours, it’s come to light that you posed in either blackface or a Klan robe in your medical school yearbook. Additionally, your high school’s yearbook has you listed under a racist nickname.”

“Gordon, I was the first member of my family to attend medical school. My people are simple hill folk, often lacking in knowledge. Most of ’em are also lacking in pinky toes due to a genetic hiccup caused by close-breeding. My cousin Junie’s neck doesn’t go up-and-down; it goes side-to-side. Doctors puzzle over the phenotypical spasms that biology takes in my home, but we were honest people and we were right with the Lord.”

“Okay.”

“There you go.”

“Sir, you didn’t answer my question.”

“Repeat it. I was thinking about Junie.”

“Was that you in the blackface photo in your yearbook?”

“No.”

“No?”

“Absolutely not. I remember precisely where I was when that photograph was taken, and it wasn’t there.”

“How could you remember that?”

“I kept my schedules and calendars. I couldn’t have taken that photo because I was working out with Squee and Tobin.”

“You know Squee and Tobin?”

“Different guys with the same names. All prep schools have a Squee and a Tobin. Plus a Mooch and a Rosie.”

“You were working out with Squee and Tobin?”

“Yes. In blackface.”

“What?”

“We would routinely cork up for our workouts. To pretend we were powerful black bucks.”

“I’m sorry what now?”

“I am not the person wearing blackface in the photo, but I did regularly don the ol’ warpaint for most of my adolescence and young adulthood. And also occasionally nowadays.”

“You do know that you’re speaking into a recording device, right?”

“The voters will understand that my use of traditional minstrel makeup was out of respect. It was a tribute!”

“A tribute?”

“Yes. I went as Soulja Boy for Halloween seven Halloweens in a row. That was because I was a fan, not out of racism. Look, I even learned to Superman Dat Ho. Watch.”

EXASPERATED WOMAN ENTERING THE ROOM NOISE

“Ralph! Do not Superman Dat Ho!”

“Not cool?”

“No, dipshit. Not cool. Fucking moron.”

EXASPERATED WOMAN LEAVING THE ROOM NOISE

“That was my wife.”

“Yes.”

“Rest assured, I know the dance. Don’t ask me to twerk, though.”

“No, sir.”

“Although I should just get ahead of that and tell you that there will be video of me twerking coming out soon.”

“Oh, that won’t be good for you.”

“No. And I am, of course, in full-body blackface during the video.”

“Of course. I just need you to confirm this one more time because I need to make sure I’m not insane: your argument is that you weren’t in blackface in the photo, but you were during almost every other moment of your life?”

“Yuh-huh.”

“Now what about the other yearbook?”

“Which one?”

“The one where you’re called ‘Coonman.'”

“Again, that goes back to my upbringing. Raccoon was our prime protein back in those days. My uncles Jezroath and Feelings taught me to tree them. We were bare-chested and heroic and, as you might have expected, in full-body blackface. I had a knack for it, and would come home with dead ‘coons slung from both shoulder. Sometimes, I would distribute finely-sliced fillets of the varmint meat to my classmates and teachers. Thus, I became known as the Coonman. Nothing racist about it.”

“I guess that’s more believable than the rest of it.”

“There you go. Anyway, I got a lot of important Virginia business to do, so–”

“Sir, what is that behind your ear?”

“–if you’ll excuse…what now?”

“Your left ear. There’s a black smudge.”

“Oh, I’m sure that’s just ink from the mimeograph machine.”

“Were you in blackface right before I arrived, Governor?”

“I got nervous!”

“We’re done here.”

“I’m not resigning!”

“See you Monday afternoon at your resignation.”