A metaphor
Historically, World War II, “The Last Good War,” was fought to prevent Hitler’s military conquest of Europe and the Soviet Union. Metaphorically, it can be likened to radical chemotherapy aimed at stopping the aggressive spread of Hitler’s White Nationalist elitism. The Nazis were defeated, but the cancer has now metastasized into authoritarian regimes across Europe and into Conservative politics and religion here in the U.S. That the Americas are regarded as God’s gift to the white race, its Manifest Destiny, is the greatest blasphemy of American Christianity.
Robert Porath/Boulder
Stand up for truth
It’s difficult to believe that Trump continues to run against Hilary. But there’s his state department, interviewing 130 of her former colleagues, hunting for email dirt. Future administrations, if we have any, may find it impossible to wade through all the inflammatory, cheap, crude Twitter rhetoric spewed by Herr Trump. Are lies and bluster any way to run a country?
Difficult to understand is what might [have been] going on as he contacts the NRA amid his Ukraine call angst. Reportedly DJT was looking for donations. What if he instead enabled or encouraged through some code word the near-future “activation” of a kind of grassroots militia to prevent any early end to his term? Don’t tell me it can’t happen here. Nixon almost pulled it off. But too many of his henchmen were lawyers, indoctrinated as officers of the court. The current batch of White House scoundrels and lackeys doesn’t appear to have the same scruples.
The real, blatant and continuing DJT misfeasance centers on his repeated proclivity for going around Congress. A dictator may believe he can grab money appropriated by our elected representatives, in order to build a border wall demanded by a small coterie of ideologues and a few hundred thousand barnyard xenophobes. A true President would not, should not, cannot do that.
Aghast? Embarrassed? Dismayed? Frightened? Who would have thought we would feel so because of our chief executive? True, few of our presidents have been lily white do-gooders. But how are you sleeping these days? Are you content that DJT’s trade vendettas have been sapping the strength of our economy, admittedly juiced by the unnecessary accelerant of tax cuts sprayed on an already rising GDP? By the way, how big was your tax cut?
Blatant disregard for the rule of law, for the Constitution, and for the equality of three branches of federal government mark DJT as the danger to end all. Impeachment may be a siren to mark a new civil war in America. I think the Supreme Court, populated by two misogynists and a Chief Justice who’s light in a wind, will likely need to weigh in on this mess.
Then there’s the military. Consider if (when?) it needs to ignore an unlawful order. What about the opposite? In the case where it is needed to quell a putsch instigated by their putative Commander in Chief, where is the civilian supervision so necessary and implicit in the organization of our armed forces since the days of John Paul Jones? I don’t see Nancy Pelosi in a steel pot and flak vest.
It’s true our country squandered its honor in a divisive Southeast Asian war that was lost. After that, our angst over a subversive President never healed, because he didn’t stick around to face justice. Then came the disintegration of our economy in stages: first, the Paul Volcker moonshot interest rates, next a terrorist attack and more interminable “police actions.” Who wouldn’t be weary, full of anything but confidence, tired of struggling to make ends meet when all about seems to conspire to deny our chance?
We have, as a nation, endured worse. I clearly remember the 1960s — we came pretty close to disintegrating, and three blatant assassinations didn’t help at all. We need our tried and true, best-effort methods from a long time back to reclaim our heritage and vote to stand up together for truth and a responsible society to which we all give our attention and not only our dismissive derision. I know. I have been a practitioner, too.
The media didn’t make us this way; we did. We became preoccupied with our pocketbooks (see above) and forgot that freedom needs us as much as we need it. And we dare not take it for granted. If we do, it will soon be gone. And may God have mercy on us all.
Gregory Iwan/Longmont
