Having solved all of the nation’s other problems, the Beltway Circus is now tripping over itself to fight over whether or not the White House should instruct the military to go through with what Allahpundit described as a big-ass military parade. Some fairly decent points have been raised both pro and con, but as the Washington Examiner points out this week, a few of them seem to be coming from people who clearly need to check out some decaffeinated coffee options.

The usual negative rhetoric has been on display from some of Trump’s more agitated critics, but perhaps most of us could agree that reenacting the Tank Man moment from Tiananmen Square is a bit much, no?

There’s something about President Trump that brings out the most asinine hyperventilation in his opposition. Take, for example, this response to news reports that the president wants to hold a Bastille Day-style military parade in the nation’s capital.

“We already have 13 people who signed up to lay down in front of the tanks if Trump brings out a Military parade. This is not a Military Authoritarian State. We [sic] you join us?” tweeted former U.S. Senate candidate Arn Menconi.

https://twitter.com/ArnMenconi/status/961155481883545600

I see. One might have thought that this goes without saying, but the Tiananmen Square debacle in 1989 was, just for the record, not a parade. And the civilians who were being brutally beaten down, imprisoned or killed weren’t out there because they didn’t like parades. They were struggling to raise their voices in support of democracy and the Chinese government sent out the military hardware and troops to crush them. (The world still has no idea what eventually happened to Tank Man or who he even was.)

I understand there are reasons to not favor the idea of this parade. It’s going to cost a bundle and require the reallocation of troops and equipment at a time when our plate is already rather full with other concerns. If it’s held on an official holiday such as the Fourth of July or Veterans Day, we can probably justify the massive traffic issues which will arise from it, but if it’s on some other random day it will be a big headache. And while I haven’t heard many other folks bring it up, we can run jeeps, Humvees and personnel carriers down the streets of Washington, but there will be problems with tanks and any other heavy tread vehicles. I’ve spent more than my fair share of time on military bases over the years and I can tell you that if your streets aren’t built and maintained to very rigid standards, a tank can totally chew them up. Have you seen some of the potholes down near Pennsylvania Avenue lately? A couple of tanks rolling over the area will probably turn them into rubble.

But there are also some reasons to support the idea, assuming we don’t chew up the infrastructure too badly. Yes, I’ve seen the liberal critics in the media saying that this nothing but an ego trip for the President, or even suggestions that he wants a Roman Triumph like some emperor of old. Again… check out some of the decaffeinated options at Dunkin Donuts. A few of them are quite tasty.

In the end, it would just be a parade. If he’s doing it to honor the military, our people in uniform and our nation’s capabilities rather than aggrandizing himself, I honestly don’t see the harm in it. Who doesn’t like a parade? And if you’re really upset over the idea of tanks, don’t march out to lay in front of them. Contact your representatives and ask them about the potholes.