I think I am starting to get it....

I am referring to the dogged intent by Trump supporters to see him as some kind of answer or solution to my view of domestic and world problems that need solutions.  In order to "get it", self reflection and examination are required.  Brutally so!

I am part of the population that to a significant extent believes that part of the Obama appeal was his being payback for Bush Jr.  I believe he was somewhat of a natural response to the Bush/Cheney travesty because appearances were that Obama was the opposite in may regards.  And I believe that there are a lot of Americans who regard Trump to be much the same where Obama is concerned.  But there is much more to this than just that.

When I climbed on the Obama wagon in 2007 (and I will reveal I was never on the Hillary bandwagon during their primary season) part of my thinking was that I knew I did not want to see a redux of Bush/Cheney.  The other part was equally directive for me.  I wanted to believe that all the promises and stated intentions Obama put out were doable and he would get them done or die trying.  If I had viewed this more objectively, I would have tempered this belief with the question, "When in the history of this country did any president actually ever come close to doing that?"  The correct answer is "never" if you need help.  But I was prepared to give Obama support and the benefit of doubt for clearly trying hard regardless of actual outcome.  I had black friends tell me back then they did not believe Obama was who I thought he was, but I was not about to listen to any of that.  How or why would they know that?  Because they and he were black?  I still don't know the answer to that, but that doesn't matter now, either.

I could make my own personal list here of the frustrations that I heaped upon Obama during his first term, but that is not relevant for the current purpose either.  These frustrations affected the level of my support in 2012.  In 2008, I donated to his campaign several times, something I had never done before.  I also volunteered at the KC headquarter office on election day, also a first for me.  I was  one of those "dialing for votes" callers.  In 2012 I voted for him, and that was all.  The good feelings about him were long gone, never to return.  I like the man a lot as a person, but today I do not believe he was probably the president America really needed.  Just my own take on that, nothing more.

So, to finish this point, I clothed Obama heavily, and probably unreasonably, in the mantle of my own desires, intentions, pet issues and concerns, etc.  He could not possibly have completed my agenda for him, even if he agreed with all of it.  And I think in that regard, I am probably not very unique as an Obama voter.  I have had enough conversations over the last 7 years with kindred souls to come to that conclusion.

I do not think the election of Obama led to over the top gloating on the part of those of us who were relieved that Bush ideals and policies were going to shoved out the door, but maybe some of my own bias is showing through in that respect.  However, I can say I was feeling very satisfied early on.  And I was dismayed at the attitude of the anti-Obama crowd.  To my observation, they had no reason to feel about him as their attitudes and words displayed.  I could not understand how blindly and easily they accused Obama of doing or planning actions that were never on the agenda.  Obama was never going to take away their guns.  He did not raise their taxes.  Their accusations about the Obama administration regarding any increases in the national debt were wrong when subtracting all spendings related to the wars Bush and Cheney started.  The anti-Obama crowd was just plain committed to hating him for any reason the could invent.

And now we appear to have Trump on the horizon, and I see the process starting all over again.  Where Obama was the anti-Bush, Trump will be the anti-Obama.  The difference is that I am now on the other side of the ledger.  I do not harbor the attitude of hatred, because that never moves the needle in any positive direction.  Never has, never will.  But I get it now.  I can better understand the experience, even the trap, of allowing myself to get caught up in the act of predicting, imagining, believing a host of future events and outcomes led by Trump that hopefully will never happen.  I admit I have no desire to yield to or move into the Trump camp. Where I liked Obama the man regardless of my perspectives on his efficacy as president, Trump is a man I do not like or respect, and have little if no faith in his capacity to lead this nation where it needs to go.  I stated earlier that I questioned whether Obama was the right person for the job at hand.  I feel certain that Trump definitely is not, and he has not ever been sworn in yet.  Only sworn at.

The only positive note I can add to this is, if I turn out to be totally wrong about him, we all win.

The Correct Outcome

It's the correct outcome -- Does it seem like America has gone over the edge?  Weekly mass killings in unlikely places, gun sales breaking records everywhere in the country, seemingly complete inability of government agencies and institutions to command respect and maintain order.  Is this the new normal?

Is it the correct outcome?  Yes.  Is the right outcome?  Of course not.  But what should we expect?  America has been working toward the current state of condition for a long time.  At least since the Reagan presidency.

Thanks to the Reagan budget cuts, tens of thousands, perhaps millions, of people suffering from mental illness have been "reintegrated back into society" instead of being housed in treatment institutions.

We have continued to engage in foreign wars nearly non-stop since World War II.   Young men and women come back from this traumatic experience with many ailments and diseases, then we often deny them care and treatment after they return.  So we have mentally ill veterans living hopelessly and homeless all over the country.

We have grown the poor population faster than any other group of citizens.  So economic depression and the disappearance of the middle class has reached alarming levels.  Higher education has escalated to become unaffordable to more and more American families. It is reported that over 600,000 Americans declared bankruptcy specifically due to medical bills they could never pay.  This is compared to a couple of dozen other developed countries that reported zero instances of the same.  The working poor are not provided medical coverage in their low paying jobs and they cannot afford to buy it, even with the ACA program.  So this is an expected outcome.

So again, we are experiencing the correct outcome for the investment, or lack of it, in our national social status.  Should we be surprised at this?  Definitely not.

Would we be surprised and disappointed that a tree growing up from planting Apple seeds does not yield pears?  That would be considered insane.  So why would we be surprised about the social ills we live with every day?  They come, after all, from the seeds we have sown for the past several decades.

What to do?  Can we create a better bandaid?  Do we need to pass another law?  Do we need to eliminate the second amendment from the constitution?  Or close that dreaded loophole in regard to gun shows?  How about healthcare savings accounts?  That'll warm the hearts of the average Walmart or McDonalds employee!

Thinking and thoughtful people know what needs to change in order for us to be a safer, friendlier, more compassionate nation.  But most of those people do not choose to run for public office or choose public service jobs for careers, it seems.  Who can blame them?  They have children to raise and educate and that costs more every day.  We do not take very good financial care of our teachers, social workers, and other people who would be inclined to dedicate their lives to serving others.  So the best and brightest look elsewhere for their means of support.  If that does not somehow change, where is the current state of affairs going to lead us?

Flash Mobs for Political Impact

“How many people do you think are here?”, asked the local news reporter at the site of the event?

“Wow, there must be well over 1000! How did this happen?”, replied her camera man as they prepared to file a report about what they were witnessing.

The scene was at the official headquarters of Darrell Issa, the California republican congressman.  A flash mob of over 1000 young people were there to voice their disapproval of the congressman’s position on global warming.  The huge assembly of millennials were very vocal and energetic, but peaceful and respectful of the property they were occupying.  But there was no doubt in the mind of any observer that they were upset, focused, and dedicated to communicating clearly their anger at how tone deaf their congressman seemed to be to his constituency.

The crowd represented a demographic that could not be sold on the idea that if they were unhappy, just wait until the next election and vote Issa out.  They were old enough in spite of their youth to know that option rarely produces actual results.  They used and responded to the tools of their time and understanding, namely social media.  The word spread in a flash that this protest rally was going to happen.  They also knew that the practice of swarming a home base site of a legislator would be impactful, and was probably something that should happen repeatedly and not just once.  They mobilized early enough in the day that the congressman’s staff were still at work in the office. 

It was noticed by all who were close enough to see that the staff inside the building was lined up in the windows with worried, if not panicked, expressions on their faces.  And of course they were all either talking on their cell phones, snapping pictures, or texting as fast as their fingers could move.  This was working!  A new and effective method of political expression was being born on the spot.  Was their finally hope of being heard by the elitist government officials?

Tune in to your local news channel and see what is being said.

Did this actually happen?  No, but it really could, couldn’t it?  And it really should.  We all know the people can take back their power if the really want to.  The technology of today can go a long way toward supporting those who choose to make a difference and communicate that the status quo should not feel safe and secure any more.