Very strange start: A most unusual inaugural

It promises to be the weirdest inauguration in history. In expectation of violence, highway signs leading to the nation’s capital read, “Avoid Travel to Washington, D.C.”

Another fear, the coronavirus, has cloistered hundreds of thousands of other would-be inaugural attendees. In their absence, the National Mall is covered with American flags, a symbol of unity, that masks the disunity reflected in the presence of 25,000 National Guard troops. They ring the Mall and federal buildings. They’ve shut down roads and bridges. They check IDs in an eerily quiet city. Their presence has laid the groundwork for wacky conspiracy theories by people who should know better.