Author's Note: In the past, this blog was solely reserved for the discussion around a historical novel set during WWII. That period in history proved to be a pivotal time for mankind. Through the darkness of World War, a great generation emerged to face and defeat tyranny. While we rightly commend that generation and the leaders of Democracy for what they sacrificed, we must be honest when deconstructing our past. Not all of our heroes are above reproach. For instance, while FDR rightly secured his place among one of our greatest Presidents, he cannot be viewed through a historical lens accurately without acknowledging some of his moral failings in leadership. His handling of Japanese American citizens is a stain on his historical record and one we cannot simply sweep away because it doesn't fit our idealization of him.
Likewise, while the United States was founded on the lofty principle that 'All men are created equal', and while this nation formed in response to the abusive, tyrannical actions of the English crown, our Forefathers failed their moral obligation to ensure that indeed every man and woman was viewed as equal under the protection of the Constitution. As a result of our Founding Fathers' failure to fully take on the question of slavery at the time of our country's inception, our nation would nearly be destroyed by a Civil War with that very issue at its core. Nearly 245 years after our founding and 157 years after the Emancipation Proclamation, we as a nation are still falling short of that national promise. What we've witnessed in the past week hearkens to the darker days of our American past. This blog essay is reflection of some thoughts surrounding what has been transpiring in our nation. While some readers may not agree, these thoughts are given through a historical lens of the failed American promise.
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These may be my thoughts but I know many Americans have been feeling the same way the last couple of months & in the last week...
If you're not mortified by what has been happening in this country, & if you believe that when you look at the man currently occupying the White House you see a leader of strength, intelligence, compassion, understanding, & empathy, then you will have justly deserved the crestfallen disappointment and scorn of patriotic Americans who understand that in our complicated history as a nation, we've only endured and improved as a country when we were led by TRUE leaders irrelevant of party; capable of empathy; who spoke & led with intelligence and compassion. Today's America has the opposite of this. Today we have a narcissistic tyrant, endorsed by a complicit, disgraceful Republican party. We're 'led' by a shallow, hateful, cowardly man who, instead of speaking to a shattered nation, hid in a bunker & who only came out not to lead but to gas and use violence on his own citizens so he might have a shamefully opportunistic photo op.
Since becoming POTUS, Trump has used Twitter as a weapon; threatening, lying, bullying, AND inciting/encouraging violence. What's been happening this week in America is a direct result of that. As a four-times bankrupt businessman, he was born into a life of ease he never earned, taking credit when it was never his due while blaming others for his countless, ongoing failures. Regarding the race riots, I equate him, gasoline in hand, to an arsonist blaming the fire department for the blaze he very much helped start.
Those of us who voted against Trump in the last election are not surprised by his actions and lack of empathy, but what does shock us and make us sad beyond belief is when we see people we've loved and admired go on supporting him in the face of all he has done to shame and hurt this country. You willingly forfeited our respect & esteem and gave them to a man who falls piteously short of deserving either.
I've come to believe that Trump voters don't have any real interest in truly making America great again. They only want to reach back to the dark days when white Americans subjugated & suppressed minorities in their own sad, vain efforts to feel good about themselves. Until America purges itself of Trump and the dangerous ideology he peddles, we will never be great. We will remain a land of hypocrisy, where every man is NOT created equal; where an ill-informed, violence-inducing, megalomaniac is capable of brainwashing and seducing masses of ill-informed white people into believing that care & compassion for anyone but themselves is weakness while their 'strength' derives from the lies they've been fed by FOX 'News' propaganda. They've bought hook, line, & sinker all the distortions & willful deceit propagated by the dictator they voted for. Because of Trump and FOX 'News', we are as far from 'one nation...indivisible, with liberty and justice for all' as in ANY time in our lifetimes.
I recall waking up the morning after the 2016 election, sick to my core at what occurred. This...what we're seeing...Trump ignoring months worth of warnings/lack of preparedness for a pandemic; his lack of understanding of basic scientific facts; his purposeful misleading and outright lies; his bullying and harassing; his lack of integrity and basic compassion; his encouragement of hate, intolerance, and racism that we're now seeing played out in real time in our streets...ALL of this...those of us who voted AGAINST Trump are not surprised, but...we still want and NEED a President who cares; who seeks to understand; who speaks truth and compassion in an effort to unite. I very rarely agreed with President George W. Bush, but when 9/11 occurred, one felt he compassionately cared to bring us together in that time of national crisis. We are sorely lacking that leadership and comfort now.
I'm angry, sad, & tired. I want my country back. I want to believe that when we as a nation aren't living up to our promise, we'll be led by leaders who care enough to inspire and compel us to be and do better.
We KNOW the right-wing, blind base will get out to vote without masks in the middle of a pandemic because they're continuing to be fed lies about the seriousness of a disease that has already killed 110,000 of their fellow countrymen and women. Trump and his supporters' minimization and lack of empathy for their deaths and the death of George Floyd is an example of what they've internalized from their 'leader'.
We KNOW the right-wing, blind base will get out to vote without masks in the middle of a pandemic because they're continuing to be fed lies about the seriousness of a disease that has already killed 110,000 of their fellow countrymen and women. Trump and his supporters' minimization and lack of empathy for their deaths and the death of George Floyd is an example of what they've internalized from their 'leader'.
IF the Republican party tries to take away my right to vote safely by mail, you bet I'd be willing to stand in line for days to vote for Joe Biden so we can FINALLY end this national nightmare. If you don't vote because you're 'not interested in politics', you'll be part of the prolongation of our national nightmare. If you take the stance that Biden is no better than Trump, then I'm not quite sure you yourself haven't been in Trump's bunker with him these past four years. If you're a Bernie supporter and want to rebel against the party you feel robbed you and your candidate by choosing to stay home or by choosing to throw your vote away on Bernie, then you'll be just as guilty as the Trump voter in hurting your country. And, if you're a Republican who continues to cling to the 'party line', the rest of the world has news for you -- when you ceded your party to the dangerous megalomaniac Trump; when you and your party became silently complicit in his egregiousness, you forfeited your party. The once 'Grand Old Party' no longer exists. Your support of him dishonors and degrades the memory of Lincoln and every other worthy Republican President of our past. You helped force Trump upon us. It's time for Republicans who have a conscience and soul to abandon the man who has destroyed what once was their party and country. We ALL need to stand-up to VOTE HIM OUT. It will literally be the most important election in our lifetimes and for future generations to come. We vote for them because they can't yet vote for themselves. I do NOT want my nieces & nephews to grow-up in a world influenced by the likes of Trump or those ignorant enough who still excuse and support him. We and they deserve better.
Watch "President John F. Kennedy's Civil Rights Address" on YouTube
Watch "DeOldify Colorization: Martin Luther King - I Have A Dream Speech in color! [HD]" on YouTube
Watch "Robert F Kennedy Announcing The Death Of Martin Luther King - A Great Speech" on YouTube
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