Thinking in an Emergency

Elaine Scarry.

Have you heard this—this what? This meme, or maybe this tic: “Two things can be true.” 

I started to notice it about a year ago, usually in speech. The statement is always prelude to two more statements, each incontrovertible, delivered with a touch of proud geometry and a hard-hit “and.” The violent attack on Trump is wrong, AND Trump’s ca…