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Donald Trump claims he is a religious man who loves his creator. He also claims to be a self-made man. You do the math.

We all talk about how we would have handled the big moments of history had we lived through them. But, to be cliché, hindsight is 20/20. No one really knows how they will act in the big moments in history because we cannot recognize them in the moment.

We can only teach ourselves, and our progeny, a set of morals that can allow us to respond in at least a decent way as history unfolds. This is part of the problem addressed in my last post. If we consciously choose to forget history, we forget our moral values. Life becomes relativistic. It is how dictators control the masses. They erase community history, thus, they erase community morality.

We, as Americans, have never agreed on our community history, thus, our community morality has always been open to interpretation. We are, in many ways, a Machiavellian society with no actual concept that Machiavelli was writing satire when he wrote, “The ends justify the means.” We take it literally without any real thought into the underlying philosophy.

Trump is the personification of everything that is bad in our society. He is unintelligent. He possesses zero intellectual curiosity. He feeds and stokes the fear in segments of our society. In some cases, he creates that fear so he can stoke it.

His followers listen. Why? Because the ruling and political classes in our society have long encouraged a more jingoistic view of our supremacy that does not require we actually be supreme. It is easier to control an electorate that is uneducated, especially in the function of the societal contract.

Every man for himself is encouraged. We use platitudes like, “self-made,” and “pick yourself up by your bootstraps.” Any actual thought of a society that cares for all it’s members is called evil. If you think our society should be equitable for all, you are labeled a socialist. As if that is a bad thing.

The ruling and political classes have divided us by teaching us “otherism.” We are us. Everyone else is “other.” Other is bad. The corporate overlords who give away your jobs for profits are not the evil in our society. The “others” who are given your jobs are the evil.

A divided populace is easier to control. We started early. Plantation owners told the poorest white man that he is better than the richest black man. It fed a fear. It worked so well that millions were convinced to fight a war to defend a system that provides nothing for them. In fact, the plantation system is part of what kept the poorest white man down because the plantation owners created a built in work force that kept poor whites from finding work.

It did not happen overnight. It took a generation. We are seeing the same seeds bloom again. It happened when one group of the political class defined themselves as “real Americans” while everyone else was the “liberal elite” that needed to be defeated.

The problem is that they lost control of the monster they created. It is how we find ourselves with Trump. He knew how to manipulate, and for a time control, the beast.

Now, the beast is awake and the bulwark that could protect our currently fragile democratic experiment is playing ostrich to the possibility of the danger. We cannot admit to ourselves that we are on the brink of a new schism that will irreparably split us this time.

We forget that “the pen is mightier than the sword” does not mean we can bring a ballpoint to a knife fight. Trump, however, understands just how well words can motivate. He knows as well as any other dictatorial-minded tyrant has known how to turn a crowd into a mob. He has shown it time and time again since he entered politics.

This week, he fully admitted that he tried to overthrow the rightfully elected government of the United States. Nothing meaningful will be done. Half the political class will continue to protect him.

Why? Hubris.

In the back of their minds, they still think they have some level of control over a deal they made with the devil. Those that know they don’t, are still betting that the devil will win and they would rather be pets than cattle.

It will not end well for anyone. The devil only cares about his own power and comfort.

I forgot to post this yesterday. Forgive me if it seems a bit disjointed. I am still finding my voice again after the break in posting.

There are a lot of discussions as to why ‘Maus’ is being banned in Tennessee. I believe people with an actual thought process can agree it is not for the reason that the McMinn County Board of Education states. Their argument is nothing more than the cut-and-paste debate used by authoritarian-minded people throughout history.

An argument from the anti-ban side is that ‘Maus’ is being banned because it is being told from a completely Jewish perspective. There is some truth to this debate. The viewpoint of the story makes it an outlier to the average Christian American.

It is not because it is about the Holocaust. There are plenty of stories about the Holocaust. The problem is that this does not have the “necessary” Good Christian Doing Good Things to make people feel better about something completely horrible.

It also doesn’t end the story before the horrible thing needs to be talked about so people can make it a narrative about the bravery of the protagonist(s). Instead, it tells the complete, unvarnished truth about what is probably the most horrific event of the 20^th century.

Again, this is a valid viewpoint. But, it is only one tenet of a larger picture… and problem. Let us begin with the debate of Critical Race Theory. It tells an unvarnished truth. It is a truth that many people don’t want to hear.

The narrative on slavery in the United States has always allowed white Christians to feel good about some role they can claim to have played in the ending of the institution. This has always been the problem with history in the United States. White (Christian) Americans have to be made to feel good about the bad situations they create.

Programs that fall under Critical Race Theory tell the unvarnished truth. Good (White) Christians Doing Good Things are not included in the story. Therefore, it must be stopped because, now, white people have to feel bad about their history.

‘Maus’ takes it a step further. It completely eliminates Christians from the story. In a certain worldview, that can never happen.

But, even this is just a part of a bigger problem. When I was a child, I remember a skit in my school that discussed the horrors of authoritarianism. In the 70’s, the authoritarian regime in question was the Soviet Union.

The rise of authoritarianism does not just happen. We do not live in a democracy one day and under an authoritarian government the next day without a war being fought. To use the overly used Nazi comparison, Germany didn’t go from a democratic government to concentration camps right after the Nazis took power.

It is the frog in boiling water analogy. If the water is heated slowly, the frog sits still until it dies. In our case, as long as the authoritarian-minded (read: the GOP) people go slowly, the hope is that we will just take it. So far, this has been true.

The United States has always had a sketchy history with our own… history. We have never been able to critically think about the blemishes of our past. We couch it as protecting our children. It is never about protecting our children.

The difference is that now, instead of being weaponized to protect triggered white Christians, now it is being weaponized to overthrow democracy. If we really want to protect our children, we need to teach them the truth about history. If that is uncomfortable, so be it.

It was not my intention to pick this blog back up, however, we are probably in the most dangerous time in American history since the Civil War. In reality, we are already in the second American Civil War. So far, it is just a cold civil war.

We are so far gone that one of the two major parties in this country no longer has a platform that they use to attract voters. Instead, their strategy is to ensure anyone not likely to vote for them cannot vote. If a vote does not go their way, they cry foul. They are not afraid to resort to political violence.

We are now a country where obstructionism is the norm. We are a country where politicians egg on sedition and then try and cover it up as “no big deal.”

So, I will pick up this blog again. Silence is violence.

*sigh*

If I hear one more redneck rant about how football players kneeling during the National Anthem is disrespectful to veterans, I am going to start the next American Civil War single handed.

Let me be clear, as a veteran, I will tell you flat out that I take NO OFFENSE whatsoever to football players kneeling to protest injustice. I fought for their right to do this. We are a nation founded on civil disobedience. Our breaking from England was a massive act of civil disobedience.

If you are so upset about football players kneeling, by all means, boycott the NFL. But, have the guts to admit that it is because YOU are upset, not because you actually think veterans are being dishonored. Quit hiding behind us and quit using us to justify your anger.

I am dishonored by people who do not believe that their fellow Americans have a right to protest what they see as systemic injustice. If you want to take the politics out of sports, quit playing the National Anthem prior to the start of the game.

The anthem started being played during, and later before, sporting events to gin up enthusiasm for WWI recruitment. That, in and of itself, is political.

I do believe that some of you cannot admit that what actually upsets you is that people of color are getting “uppity” and forgetting “their place” in society. If we are a society that respects the right to protest, then we must respect the right of these sports figures to kneel in protest.

Oh, if you really want to do something to honor veterans, I would suggest that you should lobby Congress to quit voting down EVERY SINGLE BILL designed to benefit veterans. Then, and only then, might I see you as having a moral argument behind your outrage.

Until then, you are just a bunch of assholes.

I started this blog in an attempt to be a reasonably objective observer of our modern times. I stopped for a while. Something about it rang hollow in my head.

I finally figured it out. I am not an objective observer. History is, and always has been, subjective. I am a subjective person.

We are currently debating whether or not Nazis should be tolerated in American society. I need to repeat that for my own self. We are currently debating whether or not Nazis should be tolerated in American society. I am having trouble wrapping my head around the entire concept.

Don’t get me wrong. I know this country has a racism problem. It is practically built into our foundations. It needs to be addressed and redressed.

But, that being said, the idea that we should, in any way, tolerate Nazis in America is beyond absurd. Over and over, people have talked about how certain protests dishonor veterans. I will address that in another post.

Let me talk about dishonoring veterans, our nation’s WWII war dead, and any other single person in this nation, or in the world, who sacrificed so much to end this scourge. At least they thought they were ending it.

Nazi-ism not only did not end, but, it seems to be flourishing in the new climate that is Trump’s America. I am left with a hollow feeling in the pit of my stomach.

So much so, that I must remind all of you what Nazi-ism really stands for.

WARNING: WHAT FOLLOWS IS VERY DISTURBING.

This is Nazi-ism:

This is Nazi-ism:

Does this hurt yet?:

I know (at least I hope I know) that these images are hard to view.  That is the point.  This is what Nazis do.  This is who Nazis are.  They are not good people.  They are not misguided.  They are an evil that has no place in the world.

They cannot be tolerated.  The Tolerance Paradox states that a tolerant society cannot tolerate intolerance.  It is insidious.  It infects.  It must be ended.

Godwin’s Law:

“As an online discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Hitler, that is, if an online discussion (regardless of topic or scope) goes on long enough, sooner or later someone will compare someone or something to Hitler or his deeds.”

Like the fabled Murphy, from Murphy’s Law (Edward Murphy arguably paraphrased a mathematical theorem), Mike Godwin actually exists.  He is still quite alive and kicking (the phrase was not uttered until 1990, as the internet was proving to be the land of modern trolls and not the philosophical paradise we all first imagined).

Mike Godwin, after the Charlottesville riot, proclaimed that, by all means, we should call these people Nazis.

As far as I am concerned, the leading legal mind on the subject (Mike Godwin is an attorney) has handed down a ruling.  Nazi-ism has no place in the USA.  This movement must be destroyed.

I am amazed at how hard this post has been to write.  As a Jewish person in the USA, I have seen and experienced profound racism and anti-semitism.  I have even been forced to leave a small town in a southern state due to my religious beliefs.

Minorities in this country will tell you that the racism has always been overt; I am one of them.  However, white privilege is being able to plausibly deny systemic racism, even in the face of so many news reports documenting it.

To most of white society, racism is something that has nothing to do with them.  They are not affected by it, so it is just too easy to look away.  It is easy to see it as an aberration and not the norm.

Even the news helps.  When a white terrorist is shown in the news, they are depicted as lone wolves.  An aberration.

But, they aren’t.  Hate groups exist on almost every level of our society from fringe militias to, now, mainstream political organizations.

Just as our current President.  More than one overt racist works in a high level position in his administration.  We all know who Bannon is to Trump, but can anyone tell me what Sebastian Gorka does for the administration?

This, alone, emboldens the hate groups.  Immediately after his election, this country saw a rise in hate crime.  This is not entirely true.  The hate crime has always been here, but now, the news has found a reason to report on it more.

This also emboldens the supremacists and Nazis.  As the old saying goes, “It is better to be infamous than to have no fame at all.”  But still, the haters used to hide their faces in the shadows.

The fact that our hater-in-chief (he started his real estate career discriminating against minority renters) can be so prolific in his rants and tweeting for, seemingly, every subject under the sun, but remains silent about a race riot is probably the most emboldening thing to the haters.

It is silent assent.  But, it is assent.  It is proof to the scum that they don’t have to hide behind masks anymore.  In their eyes, this is their country and getting rid of minorities (both cultural and religious) is equivalent to “making America great again.”

Charlottesville was a perfect example of this.  Even the klansmen were exposed.  This is their America.  To them, and to a lot of us, the President is one of them.  So why hide?

In the aftermath, however, they are finding out why they should continue hiding.  After being exposed, some of them are having their lives destroyed.  I hope so.

But again, this is nothing new.  In Denver, in 1992, the haters came out in force on Martin Luther King day.  At least one of them learned his lesson the hard way.  Cockroaches stay in the shadows for a reason.  The organizer of that rally lost his job.  I was surprised to learn we worked for the same company.  I was gratified by that company’s response.

Hate is ingrained in our society.  The one good side to Trump is that white society in general is now forced to see it.

We are at a nexus.  Either we sink into the hate, or we recognize it and eliminate it.  Silent assent must end.

Which side are you on?

So, Lord Cheeto von Trump has just gutted a nationwide program to combat teen pregnancy.  This will shock you (/sarcasm), but this is an Obama era program.

The only “successes” Trump has had at all during his presidency, aside from Neil Gorsuch, is the systematic dismantling of the legacy that Barack Obama has created.

The Trump administration has ended a retirement savings program, a program to arm Syrian rebels, protections for undocumented immigrant parents, and has scaled back the nutritional requirements for a school lunch program.  Why?  Because they came from the Obama administration.

Of course, we cannot forget his obsession, along with Congressional Republicans, to end the ACA.  The Donald is the father of the birther movement, loudly claiming that his “investigators” have found things you would not believe.  Of course, this supposed information was never revealed.

Why is Trump so obsessed with Obama?  There are several reasons that could answer this.

First, Obama makes a good foil for Trump to keep his base fired up amid the scandals that are plaguing his administration.  The people who support Don the Con are, to a large degree, the same people who were so adamantly opposed to Obama to a very racist degree.

Second, destroying Obama’s legacy, to some extent, makes Trump’s presidency look better than his predecessor’s.  Given that Donald has so few victories to brag about, he most certainly needs everything he can find to try and add legitimacy to his administration and his goals.

But, let us put all that aside and look at Trump the man.  He has a narcissistic personality that brooks no embarrassment.  We cannot forget the roasting that Trump took at the hands of both Obama and host Seth Meyers.  Trump was fuming afterwards.  He lashed out at Seth Meyers in the aftermath.

But, why did Obama take his shots at Trump?  The correspondents dinner was in April of 2011.  Donald began his birther claims in late March of 2011.  While he was a true statesman, I cannot blame Obama for firing a few shots “across the bow” at Trump for his racist rantings.

Donald had been flirting with a presidential run, and in previous elections had declared his candidacy.  However, in olden times, people realized that he was a joke candidate.  Oh, how many of us long for those times today.

The bottom line is that Trump was embarrassed.  He began his run, in earnest, to regain what he saw as a loss of stature in the political world.  Donald cannot let go of old hurts, and believes in revenge against his “enemies.”

The damage that the Federal Government is doing right now to real American families and individual citizens boils down to Lord Cheeto wanting to hit back against a perceived slight from Obama.  Nevermind that Trump is the one who picked that fight.

In Trumpland, Trump must always win.  It does not matter who gets caught in the crossfire.