I don’t like being political. I prefer writing about good people, vacations, funny situations. I know that my readers feel more comfortable with happy optimistic thoughts. I would do myself a favor if I stuck to such topics, but there come times in life when ignoring truths can be lethal, not only to oneself, but also to others.
I believe that most people do indeed want a peaceful world in which everyone has an opportunity to feel and be successful. We all prefer living with a feeling of security. In truth on most days we find ourselves hovering near the foundational values of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. We save our aspirational desires for days when all seems well with the world. For some people such days seem never to come as they fight for food, water and safety.
We citizens of the United States like to boast that we are the good guys ready to rescue the rest of the world. We claim to be the best at almost everything and often we are. Our citizens are mostly good honest people who only want to live their lives with a sense of freedom and purpose. We are a diverse bunch because of many factors.
Our country is large and filled with those who were here before the first European sailed across the Atlantic as well as descendants of those early colonists. Over time people came to our shores from all over the world looking for the same kind of good fortune that we all wish to have. They brought their cultures and religions and beliefs with them because we did not have a national religion or a single way of doing things. We may come across asa country with a raucous rabble of ideas but that is all part of our lives, liberties and pursuits of happiness. We hold elections to choose individuals to represent us and to guide our nation. No one person has ever been able to speak for all but with patience and compromise we have overcome the challenges of governing our incredibly diverse population.
With effort we have slowly but surely provided more justice and equality to more and more people, but in the present moment all of that progress seems to be moving in the wrong direction. Instead of being more welcoming to differences there are groups attempting to force everyone to embrace a national religion, a national morality, a national belief that only certain kinds of people belong here, a national belief that anyone who questions or challenges a particular group is a traitor. Surely this is not what we want for our country.
We are a nation that is on a precipice. We may not like either of the candidates for President of the United States in the current election cycle but one of them has publicly stated some horrific ideas. To be clear, Donald J. Trump is a threat to our very democracy. Our choice in this election is between a man whose only goal is to regain power and one who has attempted to keep our democracy intact in very difficult times.
Trump was unwilling to accept the results of the 2020 election and has spent the last four years reeking havoc in Congress and throughout the nation. He has made it clear that if he is reelected he will punish those that he views as his enemies including every member of the January 6th investigatory commission. He speaks of rounding up immigrants and putting them in camps. He tells us that only those who will be one hundred percent loyal to him will be members of his cabinet. He wants to rid us of important legislation and programs that protect our environment. He is an open fan of Putin and a dangerous security risk for our nation. He has been found liable for sexually assaulting a woman and is on record as saying that if he loses a second election he will not accept the results. He predicts blood in the streets if he loses. He is unhinged and unfit for the office and everyone who loves this country should be working to defeat him. Instead his following grows because people have to pay a bit more for the things they buy or because people think that Joe Biden is too old, or because people fear the immigrants coming to our country. While these may be valid issues, none of them are as important as protecting the very foundations of our democracy. We should all be able to agree on that.
This is not a time to be timid about telling the truth which is that electing Donald Trump might result in the death knell of our country as we know it. He is anti-science, anti-women, and racist. We have all heard his ramblings. We all know how dangerous he is and yet a sizable percentage of the population is willing to look the other way or even to defend his egregious behavior. It boggles my mind to see how low we will have fallen if this man wins. It is heartbreaking to think that he has not been totally shunned by society. I find myself thinking that the Founding Fathers are rolling in their graves at the mere thought of Donald Trump leading this nation that they fought so hard to create.
The world is a very dangerous place right now. If Ukraine falls there is no telling what will happen in Europe. Someone has shot the Prime Minister of Slovakia. The situation in Israel and Gaza is dangerously complex. Joe Biden may not be the strongest person to meet such urgent situations but he is a good man who will protect our democracy and at this moment in our history there is no other issue as important. This is what we must all understand. If we make the mistake of encouraging a vindictive despot by allowing him to win in spite of his invective and assurances that he will totally change the way we have always done things then surely our very way of life is in danger.
I don’t enjoy sounding an alarm but somebody has to begin doing this. Our silence will be the ruination of our beautiful United States of America. We must turn our backs on Donald J. Trump who is purposely dividing us into warring groups. We must not allow Trump to achieve his goal to exercise a vendetta against those who have had the temerity to question him. We may not believe that we have a perfect choice or even the best of choices but how we vote should nonetheless be clear. Donald J. Trump must never again be allowed in the Oval office. Surely this is clear to enough of us to insure the safety of our nation. Silence and ignoring the truth will lead us to disaster.
All It Takes Is A Little Love 