I find it amazing that so many people have been conned by this two-bit snake oil salesman who occupies the office of the President. They have given their allegiance to someone who has no loyalty to any principles, shows loyalty only to family, and exhibits a strong affinity to authoritarian regimes, only because they wish to follow a bully from his demonic pulpit.
Most politicians have to sell some "Snake Oil" in order to get elected. Pledging allegiance to a man with few (if any) principles wouldn't be too bad if he understood how power should be used, and that he was truly making America great again. Instead, Trump is destroying the very things that helped keep America great in the economic world we shaped after World War 2.
- - - - - -
In their effort to extract more wealth from the populace, our nation's elites have abandoned the most vulnerable in our society. Structural unemployment is damaging both rural and urban areas in America, as it is doing in the rest of the developed world. And the populist insurrection that brought Trump to the White House is playing all over the world with "Yellow Vest" protests in Paris, Brexit in Britain, and the shift towards autocratic rule in Eastern Europe. Trump is acting exactly as I'd want him to do if I were Vladimir Putin. Every action Trump takes is geared to destabilize American political institutions, American social institutions, and American economic institutions. It only makes sense for Trump to have done what he did, if he were a puppet of the Russians.
Sadly, in its leaders' lust for power, the GOP has lost its soul. The base no longer cares about principles. It is mostly a populist mob led by people who will deliver meager rations of bread and entertain them with meaningless political stump speeches geared to promote tribal identity. The base has allowed its leaders to become irresponsible, enacting a so-called tax cut which is adding more billions to the budget deficit than if they left the tax code alone. Even more important than this is their tolerance of a leader who shows them no loyalty as long as he is willing to pursue a retrograde social agenda.
Did the swamp get drained? No, that was only a useful political slogan. And yet, the base ignores the lack of progress in this area. I think this illustrates a greater social problem in our society. America has divided itself into haves and have-nots. It has also divided itself into well educated people and poorly educated people. More importantly, it is divided into compassionate people and non-compassionate people. I feel sorry for those government employees not getting paid because of a pissing match between the House and Trump. My Dad, however, has no compassion for them - he lived a hardscrabble life, and only has enough room in his soul to care only about himself and his immediate family. Many of Trump's supporters are very much like my Dad - life has not allowed them the luxury of caring for others who are not doing well.
Sadly, we have only ourselves to blame if this traitor is allowed to hold the office of the President much longer. It is no longer a luxury to be well educated or compassionate. The world has changed from a "Win-Lose" world into a "Win-Win / Lose-Lose" world, where education, communication, and compassion will be needed for future prosperity. That means we have a choice: Continuing to let this traitor lead us astray, or to go in the opposite direction - where we can all work together to pursue common interests, making things better to pursue our individual interests as a result....
No comments:
Post a Comment