Still waiting for any of the usual defenders to pop up and defend the idea that over two decades Hillary truly had no idea that her friend and benefactor Harvey Weinstein made a habit of sexually assaulting women in his employ. Waiting in vain, no doubt, as the best approach here is just to let this slip down the memory hole; so that when it’s referenced in the future, the details will be foggy enough to dismiss as yet more deplorable chauvinism.

Then, beneath that tactic lies the rationalization that, as a woman, HRC had to ignore Weinstein’s behavior. She had to play the game. It’s a fair enough point, though it isn’t really contingent upon her being a woman. Everyone is faced with profound coercion when it comes to The Game. Women in general more so, but nature of the game is fraud and force. The Man Card doesn’t get you out of that Jail free.

The great mystery (which is less mysterious than it might seem) is why some people get to play The Game without becoming tarnished by it. It’s interesting, in this regard, to reflect on the fact that both Trump and Clinton had their excuses.

Hillary’s was as stated: she was a woman, and had no choice. Victim card for the win!

For Trump it was more manly: Sure, he’d played the game, and won; now he was ready to put those skills to work for the People.

In reality, though, the decades of game playing had only succeeded in making inveterate players.