The other day, I posted an image similar to this with the phrase:
Lock him up!
Lock him up!
Lock him up!
And she responded, replying that Biden should be the one locked up. Regardless of how one feels about Trump and Biden, I am disgusted by both parties' inability to discipline troublesome members when they break the law. I was one who said that Bill Clinton should have been impeached for committing perjury in regard to having sex with Monica Lewinsky. I was also in favor of going after Bush #43 for unwarranted searches (actually, unwarranted, secret wiretaps) after 9/11. Yet, I would have given him a hall pass on that if Congress had given him an express OK. So when the GOP refused to discipline Trump, I was appalled.
Being a member of the LGBT community, I feel at risk by the laws being passed in our most conservative states. The radical right would rather us not exist, and wants to deny us the medical treatment we need when it is called for, as well as denying us our basic civil rights. Trump gave the radical right a hall pass to pass laws that would disenfranchise us in exchange for them looking the other way while he cut deals with unsavory characters and with foreign powers.
The radical right wants to use our existence as if it were a waving red cape at a bull in a bullfight. To preserve their power, the right's leaders are making us their focus of hatred. Considering that my acquaintance likely uses Fox "News" as her only news source, I can't help but believe that a reasonably sane person can be corrupted by a steady diet of misinformation that reinforces her existing beliefs.
I don't believe that our current president is guilty of a crime. However, I do believe that the son is guilty of a crime for which he had a plea bargain deal, and should have been allowed to cop the plea. Instead, we will have a trial where justice is not served. The verdict passed on the son may (or may not) be just, and the trial will be used by the political right to smear our president. So I closed out the conversational thread by saying that if there is evidence, the father should be tainted. But if not, the political right should stop stirring up the base with falsehoods.
It saddens me that we no longer have the "fairness doctrine" to preserve objectivity in news reporting. If this were in effect today, we wouldn't have a nation as polarized as we are now.
3 comments:
Hello Marian
I've commented before on your worries about Trump and his supporters. On this latest topic you may like to see my blog post from 2021 about dealing with stupid people that I feel is directly relevant here:
https://suerichmond.blogspot.com/2021/12/liberation-from-stupidity.html
I do feel that, at least as far as bringing Trump to justice goes, a lot of lawyers, DAs and constitutional and legal experts are putting a lot of work into ensuring that he gets eliminated from ever holding actual power again. What one does about the Republican Party as a whole, though, I'm not sure. The world has suddenly lurched towards fascism and I'm not quite sure why but it's disturbing given the lessons of history. And as trans people we can't expect much good to come our way.
Sue x
I feel that the "left behind" population in the developed world are reacting to the elites not providing for a reasonable transition for the left behinds to a post-industrial world. Think of who is supporting authoritarian leaders and movements. It is not the educated, mobile, technologically capable people. It is the population who is stuck to a region, stuck in low skill jobs, and left without hope for their futures.
But the big question is: How do we keep these people from destroying the system? Or, better yet, we should state how we will help these people make a successful transition to the future. Yes, there will be cultural disruption. But that would happen anyway. It's better that the elites manage the disruption with the knowledge that failure for the currently "left behind" is not an option.
M
Hi Marian
I don't doubt the economic situation of many and the possible solution you suggest; it just bugs me that the uncertainty and ignorance of the less well off are engaged by populists to attack the wrong targets, like trans people.
Sue x
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