TRUMPISM CAN BE STOPPED

TRUMPISM CAN BE STOPPED

The year 2017 will welcome the biggest political divide in American history, with the exception of the years during the Civil War. No one has the crystal ball, nor can any one accurately read the tea leaves, to say what will happen in the next four years. However, if Mr. Trump continues to surround himself with bigots and appoint racists to cabinet posts, the next four years will be volatile. Every time he appoints another bigot, Fox News, the KKK, White Supremacists, and the American Nazi Party celebrate. Fox News celebrates because its ratings increase. The KKK, White Supremacists, and the Nazi Party celebrate because they believe the appointments are a means to take back the country they lost. All they needed was a demagogue as their leader.

Looking at the other side of the coin: after the final election countdown was complete, Democrats received a majority of the popular vote. Therefore, the Democratic Party is far from being dead. Everyone knows that America’s political pendulum swings back and forth every four to eight years. So if the Democrats in the House and Senate demonstrate strong leadership, the Democratic Party will survive. Millions of Americans are going to be greatly disappointed with the Trump administration, but the greatest disappointments will be within America’s working middle-class.

The Democratic Party must rebuild; America’s working middle-class must be the center of the rebuilding process. Democrats must fight for an increase in the minimum wage to 15 dollars an hour, and nothing less will do. They must continue to fight for tuition-free colleges and universities and use every means possible to fight for America’s youths. If the Democrats can win over the millions of average working Americans who are now devout followers of Fox News, the greatest change in all American history can occur. But it is going to take strong words and strong leadership, followed by strong actions, to prove to white working–class Americans that they have been brainwashed by this so-called news media whose sole purpose is to keep the Rich Man’s Party in power. 

Paul Ryan, the Speaker of the House, will perhaps get his legislative agenda passed through the Republican-controlled House and Senate. His plan is to cut funds from Social Security, Medicare, disability programs, and programs that provide food for the needy. When retirees actually hold reduced Social Security checks in their hands and see with their own eyes that the funds have been cut, maybe reality will set in. Although at this time in American political history it is difficult to predict the reactions of any citizens. 

When working-class white Americans realize they have been manipulated by Fox News and the Republican Party and will have to work another four years without an increase in salary, it is possible they might wake up. They will also be faced with the problems of the Republicans increased inflation that will further reduce their purchasing power. For the next four years America’s working-class will continue to work but will receive a salary that is below the poverty level in the Great American Society.

Some churchgoers already have broken away from the Republican-controlled Christian churches, and many more are sure to follow that example. Parishioners will not continue to sit quietly in church while preachers spew rhetoric of hate disguised as Christian responsibility. Many intelligent church members will no longer continue to be brainwashed by money-loving preachers who have turned the gospel into a multi-million-dollar Ponzi scheme. 

Within the next four years a Great American Coalition will be formed. This coalition will consist of working-class Americans, African Americans, Latino Americans, LGBT Americans, disabled Americans, Muslim Americans, Jewish Americans, and displaced American Christians. When this SOLID coalition is formed, it will be a force that cannot be stopped. The Republican leaders have already realized the possibility of this coalition, and that is why they have continued to support Fox News with unprecedented loyalty. They know the only thing keeping the Rich Man’s Party in power are the millions of average white Americans who are brainwashed by Fox News.

I have problems understanding parents, particularly those living in the South, who want to revive the fears of the KKK, the unrest of White Supremacists, and the renewal of the scars in flying the banner of slavery. Why they desire their children and grandchildren to live in the turmoil of bigotry is something I’ll never know. There are small communities scattered throughout America in which diverse peoples are living together. Christians are living with Muslims; Whites are living with Blacks; and heterosexuals are living with homosexuals. Recent surveys show that these are the happiest communities in America.   

America is running out of land for military graveyards and granite for headstones, but hate still continues to breed wars.  The astonishing fact is that the chief promoters of hate in America are the Republican-controlled Christians. They hate Muslims, Jews, African Americans, Latino Americans, and the wide diversity of Americans in the LGBT community. Republicans have no idea the kind of hornet’s nest they have stirred up. We are the hornets who have been mistreated all our lives and we are prepared to produce a severe sting. The Christian church has lost the complete meaning of the cross. The truth is the devil controls the minds of most so-called Christians because hate is a demonic characteristic.   

Many of my acquaintances are presently involved in a great advent of gloating. My advice to you is this: you best do your gloating now, because it will be short-lived.  May I remind you that four years, seen from a historical perspective, are no more than a few grains of sand on the beach. The chest you are now beating is a drum that contains the heartbeat of all humanity; within a few, short years that drum will be fine-tuned to the sounds of a different drummer.  

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

The results of the recent election make it apparent that most Americans do not want to solve America’s social ills. They have lived so long with hate they enjoy the turmoil that hatemongering brings. A few Americans realize they are living in distress but seem helpless to know what to do about it.

An American tragedy is in the making. The election of Donald J. Trump proves that America is front and center in the “dumbing down era” of American history. To make the assumption that Donald Trump is America’s great Santa Clause is a grave mistake. Americans voted for a Christmas wish list of campaign promises that will not be fulfilled. It is morally wrong to accept a sexist, racist, bigot, homophobe, and xenophobe as the leader of the free world. Racism alone will create more problems than a Republican police state will be able to solve.

The only way to end this tragedy is to adopt an inclusive progressive agenda. That has not happened and apparently will not happen within the next four years. America’s social mixing bowl consists of people from all over the world and that is one of the nation’s greatest strengths. The exclusive Republican agenda, plus the selective teachings of the Republican Christian ministries, will not solve the problems. 

There is no doubt that a vote for Donald Trump was a vote for a “political savior.” A confused citizenry is an open invitation for a dictator, and Americans are headed down that path with incredible speed.  A one-party political system, which Americans have just adopted, is only one step away from communism, and communism is a form of authoritarian rule.

The jobs of the future depend upon the creative ability of American citizens.  Creative individuals cannot reach their full potential under a repressive form of government. Any move on the part of the government to stifle creative growth is a major mistake. At the present, Americans have no idea the harm they have caused to themselves and to the democratic form of government.   

Americans claim they cannot trust an established politician, yet they reinstated several lifelong Republican politicians to the House and Senate. It is one thing to throw a corrupt politician under the bus, but it is another to destroy an established politician with a pack of lies conjured up by an obviously corrupt political machine. 

It is also evident that Fox News played a major role in the defeat of Hillary Clinton.  A man from outside the United States came to America with a little money and the idea that, if he could fan the flames of hate, he could attract a following that would render him a billionaire. He cared nothing about the American people then or now; he just wanted to become richer. He hired a group of so-called news anchors who will do or say anything for money. They have developed a massive following of confused individuals who have turned into a cult. Therefore with the use of brainwashing techniques—which meant pounding the airways 24-7 with one lie followed by another—they were instrumental in electing the President of the United States. 

Like the bully he is, every time Mr. Trump got into trouble on the political playground, he ran to Fox News to heal his wounds. “Of course, you won the debates,” they lied to him and many other confused Americans. So now the President elect is a puppet to Rupert Murdock and perhaps even to Roger Ailes, who is still working behind the scenes.  Americans are left with the tragedy.

Americans have no idea how bad the situation is going to get. Here are   a few examples of the beginnings of the tragedy.

~There are videos of students running in the hallways of America’s Junior High Schools with signs shouting, “White Power!”

~There are also videos of elementary students shouting down the teachers with chants of, “Build that wall! Build that wall!”

~Bullies have reestablished themselves on America’s playgrounds controlling their playmates as if to say, “Listen up chums, being a bully will get you to the White House.”

~American citizens are already questioning, “If the president pays no tax, why should we?” 

Mr. Trump, your favorite phrase—“IT’S A DISASTER”—has quickly taken on a completely new meaning. You are just about to see what a real disaster is, and this is only the tip of the iceberg.  

On January 20, 2017 Americans will have a new president. Already this man is showing signs of being a puppet, because he just isn’t qualified to take on the job. Have you heard the latest news? Donald Trump has said he is going to relax and play golf and let Mike Pence run the government. My, my, how quickly things change. It was just a short time ago that Republicans were criticizing President Obama, and   calling him all kinds of nasty names, if he even thought about playing a game of golf. Now we see what was NOT okay for a man of color has just become OKAY for a white man. But according to the leaders of the Republican Party there is no PREJUDICE within their ranks.

The process of brainwashing is not going to work with me. The statements saying “now is the time for everyone to get along and work together” are hogwash.  Fox News and the Republicans in the House and Senate chose to give President Obama not one second, not one hour, not even one day for the so-called political honeymoon. The very minute he set foot in the White House they started an organized program to destroy HIM. There are no second thoughts, there is no doubt, Fox News and the Republican Party did everything within their power to destroy America’s first black president. If the Democrats in the House and Senate have any kind of a backbone, they will give Donald Trump a double dose of the same medicine that was given to President Obama?

I have experienced—first hand—threats, verbal abuse, even physical abuse as a gay man when I lived in America’s Southland. I believe a heavy responsibility rests on my shoulders to tell the world of the evils of homophobia in the entire nation. I plan to do everything within my power to see that the future generations of young gay boys, young lesbian girls, transgender teenagers, and bisexual youths born in the United States of America do not live in a bigoted environment surrounded by homophobic prejudices. However, that responsibility has just developed into a greater challenge with the President-elect and the Vice President-elect being two of the most extreme bigots known around the world.  It is going to take some strong words, and yes, maybe some robust actions, to prevent them from destroying the progress that has been made in human relations in America in the last fifty years.

COUNT ME OUT

COUNT ME OUT!

(Suffering from Post-Traumatic Election Disorder)

As I sit in my condo trying to make sense of what has happened in American politics, I am befuddled. I don’t even know the meaning of that word, but it is the only word that seems to describe the way I feel. I see the future for America as a rodeo where a cowboy is about to hop on the back of a mean bull. For the next eight seconds he needs to hold on tight because he is in for a rough ride. Those eight seconds for Americans will be extended into days, weeks, months, and years.

 

The “dumbing down” of America is a mystery yet to be solved. I have difficulty getting my head around minimum-wage workers going to the polls and casting a vote for the political party that has looked them directly in the eyes and said, “We are not going to increase the minimum wage for working-class Americans.” So you are stuck with at least four more years working for minimum wage that is not even a living wage. But because Fox News told you that you must vote against the lady who used a private server for her emails, you voted for the Republican Party. If this is intelligent voting—COUNT ME OUT!

I have further difficulty understanding retirees, many of whom are barely making ends meet with Social Security checks, voting for the political party that has publicly stated they will reduce funds for Social Security recipients. Plus—those who plan to retire must work an extra two years because the Republicans plan to up the retirement age.  But because Fox News told you that if a lady used a private server for her emails she is evil and you must vote against evil, you voted for the Republican Party. If this is intelligent voting, please do not hesitate for a second—COUNT ME OUT!

Hold on just another minute. I personally know many individuals who count on monthly disability checks as their only means of income. But they went to the polls and voted for the political party that has also stated they will cut federally funded disability programs. Let me put this in terms that are easier to understand.  This means that your monthly check is going to be less. It isn’t something that will happen to someone who lives a hundred miles away; this is something that is going to happen to you. But you listened to Fox News and you believed all the lies about the evils of the Democratic Party, and you went to the polls and voted to cut off your nose to spite your face. If this is intelligent voting, don’t give it another thought—COUNT ME OUT!

But wait, I’m not finished. I personally know many Christians who voted for the man who told evangelicals that he will appoint judges who will overturn the Marriage Equality Act. There is absolutely nothing on record that proves same-sex couples have caused any harm to anyone.  But those same Christians voted for the political party that has cut funds for programs that feed hungry children. Not only that, they have stated they will cut more funds from the same programs. Same-sex couples have caused no harm, but cutting funds that feed thousands of hungry children has caused much harm.  I will tell you straight out, actions such as those have caused me to have little or no faith in man-made Christianity. If this is an example of Christian voting, please—COUNT ME OUT!

Now I come to the final point. I know a few gay men who have been very vocal in their support for Mike Pence. Apparently you fellows don’t know that he spent millions of taxpayers’ dollars to DENY the rights of LGBT citizens in the state of Indiana. He even went so far as an attempt to jail same-sex couples who applied for a marriage license. I know that straight America loves this, but I have difficulty understanding gays who support these actions. Apparently you don’t understand “conversion therapy”—a program Mike Pence intends to institute all across America—and the harm it will do to young gay boys, young lesbian girls and transgender students. I hope it’s because you don’t know, rather than you don’t care, because your vote has already done much harm to gay America. I assure you that the millions of gays yet to be born will be much smarter; they will do extensive research and find out who voted for what, and when. They will continue to write the book of gay accomplishments and name the great gay leaders who sacrificed their lives for the cause. It is highly improbable that your names will ever be inscribed in that book. If your vote for candidates who have caused harm to LGBT citizens is, in your heart and mind, the right kind of vote, then by all means—COUNT ME OUT!

(Of course, I got the idea for the title COUNT ME OUT from the lady, Mrs. Hillary Clinton, who used the important phrase “DEAL ME IN” successfully in many of her campaign speeches. I want to give credit where credit is due.)