Future generations will ask, "What does covfefe mean?" On the one hand: Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Decidedly, indelibly, despondently, and abjectly nothing. Wholly nothing. Whatsoever nothing. Nothing at its very fibers and fabrics. Nothing on a cosmic level. That it's so enchantingly estranged from the ground-level necessities of a comprehensible, substantial, or meaningful thought is the mighty beauty of it.
But even more beautiful is the fact that, despite all this, on the other hand, it does mean something. Something very special to all of us. Because we didn't let this nonsense word--tweeted in what we, offering a most generous benefit of the doubt, might assume to be great haste by President Donald Trump late Tuesday night--merely crumble beneath the weight of its vexing incoherence. No--we crushed, pummeled, and eviscerated the everliving hell out of it. Together.
It didn't take long for the internet to seize the opportunity either. Almost immediately following the publication of the tweet, which hit the 'net right around midnight ET...
...the valiant knights of Twitter leapt to the task with jokes and memes tearing mercilessly into the remarkable inscrutability of this most recent effort in communication by the United States' Commander-in-Chief. Scoff though we may, there is something to be said for the bliss, fortitude, and--most importantly--unity with which they embraced the task of lampoonery. No, those who leapt at the opportunity may not have ushered in a shift in tides; sure, you can say that such time and energy would be better served focused on the severe ramifications of Trump's influence and rein. Yes, there's plenty more we could all be doing to ensure a better world for ourselves and our fellow Americans, longstanding and newcomers alike, in this especially trying day and age.
But sometimes, we need something like covfefe to remind us that we're all in this together.
As such, when future generations do ask us what that infernal non-word really means, may we share this bounty of memes and jokes spawned in the wake of its abominable conception.
Enjoy:
We got the obligatory Arrival whiteboard...
https://twitter.com/iamsosorry/status/869782781160640512
A few Star Wars tweets...
https://twitter.com/mikeryan/status/869774736850604033
https://twitter.com/hesthesenate/status/869820540298678272
https://twitter.com/mikeryan/status/869770303588749313
References to shows like Twin Peaks...
https://twitter.com/JacobOller/status/869772804497051648
...American Horror Story...
https://twitter.com/maxprobably/status/869811253161545728
...and Game of Thrones...
https://twitter.com/RisaPersuasoria/status/869825116015874048
As well as movies like Batman v Superman...
https://twitter.com/HolyBatCast/status/869807000460206080
...and Harry Potter...
https://twitter.com/TheBlakeRodgers/status/869782107551301633
Not to mention classics like The Graduate...
https://twitter.com/stevensantos/status/869775764392116225
...Citizen Kane...
https://twitter.com/elenaYAY/status/869773682305974274
...and 2001: A Space Odyssey...
https://twitter.com/NeoWestchester/status/869808032741564416
Comedy Central weighed in on the gag...
https://twitter.com/ComedyCentral/status/869834052571975680
...as did Jimmy Kimmel...
https://twitter.com/jimmykimmel/status/869799353724026880
...which, of course, leads us to the inevitable Oscars twist...
https://twitter.com/melgabored/status/869810435301797888
We got classy with Jackie...
https://twitter.com/cschleichsrun/status/869806077323431937
...and classier with T.S. Eliot...
https://twitter.com/MikeDrucker/status/869809982610354176
...And a little less classy with Smash Mouth....
https://twitter.com/cool_as_heck/status/869797000438362112
We saw a couple of Simpsons jokes...
https://twitter.com/becness/status/869793639769161730
https://twitter.com/Breznican/status/869786841800691712
...and a couple of Saturday Night Live variants...
https://twitter.com/sstarz75/status/869795244212187136
https://twitter.com/BrianJMoylan/status/869796584346836993
One from Naked Gun...
https://twitter.com/jessecarp/status/869794492336939009
...one from Airplane!...
https://twitter.com/scottEweinberg/status/869794683454726144
...and what the hell? Throw in an Eyes Wide Shut...
https://twitter.com/BWDR/status/869798123408728065
Soon enough, people got really creative...
https://twitter.com/TheLastMerlin/status/869799589498556417
...and pretty ambitious...
https://twitter.com/JohnRMoffitt/status/869839969933606912
...perhaps too ambitious...
https://twitter.com/exdli/status/869776014020419584
Pokémon made an appearance...
https://twitter.com/maudegarrett/status/869808575295741953
...as did a few other familiar faces...
https://twitter.com/Kindkath/status/869793307500703744
...because, after all, this was a truly historic occasion...
https://twitter.com/boring_as_heck/status/869770043743059972
Really, it's true!
https://twitter.com/twilink11/status/869802139182223360
So with that, we bid you all a good night (or good morning). You've endured covfefe together and made... well, something of it.
https://twitter.com/erockappel/status/869826778864295936
And considering what you had to work with, that's not too shabby.
Images: Michael Vadon/Flickr