Brief 43: Being wrong about a big thing

It's ok to be wrong about big things sometimes. Some people are paid good money to be wrong about big things three times a day, after all. Considering how much time I spend online, I've managed not to make a fool of myself tooooo much, by strongly stating big important opinions that would go on to be completely wrong.

I tend to be able to hedge, or to stay silent on things even if my head is burning to submit a big important, heartfelt opinion to the world. I'm glad social media came along when I was just about old enough to mainly know how not to be an overt mega-twat all the time.

I comfortably get along by getting things wildly wrong about sport sometimes, which is fine and less embarrassing, but still a little bit embarrassing.

But I did give one terrible twitter take this year, which I'm happy to admit was a terrible take (whatever should happen in the next few weeks).

I tweeted in early March: 

"The way the Democrats have suddenly closed ranks to shut out Sanders would be impressive if it wasn’t so depressing. One would almost think they could organise to win. But Biden will lose in November. Without a fight"

Whatever happens, this is clearly a bad take. It felt to me, at the time, when South Carolina congressman James Clyburn led the closing of the ranks by Democrat leaders in support of Biden just when it looked like Sanders was going to be the nomination, that it was not only a poisonous conspiracy, but an unwise one.

Wrong on both counts - swayed I suppose, by leftist online fervour, which I am usually only slightly partial to. Biden has been an excellent candidate, his best qualities have shown, and the doddering, compromised fool the Sanders left was painting  has not been seen.

The key thing is, and this is an indictment but it's true, he was always going to be the guy most likely, when some were finally too sickened by Trump to stick with him, that they'd look to and be ok with what they saw. That's not a good thing, but it's true. That's what was needed in this election, and I guess O'Rourke, Buttigieg etc, even Warren when she didn't explicitly back Sanders, saw that.

God knows what's going to happen, but Biden's been the right candidate for 2020, and I'm glad to have owned up to my terrible take.