Looking at just a few of our past presidents, we can see that effect:
> George Washington, this country's first president, leading this country through its very beginnings.
> Abraham Lincoln, who led this country through its most divisive time in its first century, which included the American Civil War.
> Theodore Roosevelt, whose bold words and personality emboldened this country at the turn of the twentieth century.
> Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who led the country for more than two terms, through World War II and out of the Great Depression.
> John F. Kennedy, who inspired Americans to dream big and to serve their country.
More recently, during the presidency of George W. Bush, this country saw a rise of divisiveness in terms of criticizing your country -- specifically, in terms of questioning presidential policies -- being deemed unpatriotic and anti-American. Barack Obama's presidency, which some naively thought was the official end of racism in this country, saw a rise of racial problems in this country.
With the demeanor, words, and actions of our current president, Donald Trump, what has been the effect on this country broadly? As has been noted by reporters and pundits alike, Trump "likes chaos around him". He purportedly likes things going on around him to be frenetic. That may work for him -- maybe he gets bored easily -- but the vast majority of the American public prefers calmness and steadiness. If you are creating chaos and you have chaos around you, much of the American public find that unsettling.
His rhetoric has not only raised the level of fear and hatred for "the other" in this country, he has legitimized those feelings. He has only minimally, very minimally, spoken out against white nationalists and neo-nazis in this country, mostly turning a blind eye, which sends a signal that he'll speak out against them only if he has too much pressure to do so ... hardly a firm condemnation.
He has embraced the idea of nationalism, which encourages the feeling of arrogant supremacy ... supremacy over other countries, supremacy of one race over another, and supremacy of one ideology over another. It also encourages blind faith or allegiance. In fact, that kind of blind faith is typically part and parcel of nationalism.
He has brought the "us vs. them" mentality back to the forefront of our society (as if in all caps and bold font), including international alliances and treatment of immigrants, and has done nothing to end the "us vs. them" drawing of battle lines (as opposed to simply having different ways of accomplishing goals) in Washington. He has brought all of this about under the guise of his campaign slogan "Make America Great Again".
One example is on social media. I have seen, and maybe you have as well, people arguing on platforms like Facebook and Twitter and those arguments resulting in unfriending and unfollowing those people. Is that on the rise? I am not sure, but certainly it happens far more often that what is on my screen alone.
Famous individuals are not immune to giving in to the mood of the country. Recently, actor Peter Fonda posted about Barron Trump, the president's youngest child, on his Twitter account, writing:
"We should rip Barron Trump from his mother's arms and put him in a cage with
pedophiles and see if mother [will] stand up against the giant a--hole she is
married to."
Yes, the feelings about what is happening at the border are strong, but does that justify those of us opposed to it stooping to such a low level to express it? (Fonda removed the comment, calling it "highly inappropriate and vulgar", and saying he "went way too far".)
And hate groups have been emboldened. Yesterday, it was revealed that a man named Jason Kessler applied to the National Park Service for a permit for a rally in Washington, D.C. If his name does not ring a bell, it should. Jason Kessler is the same person who organized the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, late last summer, under the group name of Unite the Right. (The same rally where 32-year-old Heather Heyer was run down and killed, and President Trump claimed there was "blame on both sides".) This rally is to mark the first anniversary of that deadly Charlottesville rally, and would be in support of "white civil rights", whatever that is. (No permit has been issued yet, but the application has been approved.)
In short, while there have always been differences in this country and there always will be, President Trump's effect seems to be making America an angrier, a more divided, a more hateful, a less hospitable, and a less settled place. What's so great about that?
Terry
TOMORROW
OUR INVOLVEMENT
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