Most of My Country I No Longer Recognize
Americans have forgotten many things.
We have forgotten how abhorrent it is to have troops patrolling our streets. We broke away from a king for garrisoning soldiers in one of our major cities, Boston. In the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson paid close attention about the deployment of soldiers on the streets of American cities.
In their list of grievances in the Declaration, the Continental Congress cited several things having to do with the deployment of the king’s troops:
Grievance 11: “He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.”
Grievance 12: “He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil Power.”
Grievance 14: “For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:”
Grievance 15: “For protecting them, by a mock Trial from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:”
Grievance 25: “He is at this time transporting large armies of foreign Mercenaries to complete the works of death, isolation, tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & Perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.”
I am sure Trump never read the Declaration of Independence nor has the slightest idea about the principles on which this country was formed. The problem is most Americans have not read the document either and only have the slightest idea about our founding. Blame it on liberal teachers, bad public schools, or just a lack of basic knowledge and interest. It doesn’t matter but that is how a would-be dictator gets elected. Knowledge prevents that from happening.
Trump was a terrible businessperson who kept failing upward. For years he was bailed out of his troubles by a father who didn’t want the Trump name to be associated with failure. When his father died, he kept using his inheritance and those of his siblings to continue putting bankruptcies behind him.
By the time Mark Burnett created the opportunity for him to become a reality TV star, he was a laughingstock to those that knew him in real estate circles. His offices were so unglamourous and decrepit that they had to be rebuilt for the show.
The ersatz mogul looked like he was running a boiler room operation. In some respects, he did while selling college courses, steaks, wine, sneakers, Bibles, and now cell phones. Not to mention the crypto world of the President of the United States making billions by saps, foreign governments, and others showering him with U.S. dollars for worthless air.
He always was on the grift. Licensing was his game, not actual real estate. It was and is all a charade.
Americans should be respectful of all law enforcement. Yet should law enforcement personnel be wearing masks to hide their faces. Aren’t they proud of the work they are doing? If not, should they be doing it at all? Local police and deputies have badges and name plates so that we can all see who they are. They wear body cameras. Does anyone from Homeland security? Or are we now surrounded by the Trump Secret Police.
Why has debate taken on such a toxic air? Remember when debating teams didn’t even know what side of the question they were going to defend until the debate. I am not saying we shouldn’t have viewpoints and defend them, but it was once fun to have spirited arguments with people. And you didn’t lose friendships over being on different sides to a question or political point of view.
This past weekend, we had an elected official killed with her husband and another shot with his wife in Minnesota. There were at least several million people peacefully protesting with a few exceptions at 2000+ “No Kings” rallies. An army parade in Washington commemorating the 250th birthday, which happened to coincide with the president’s birthday, drew 250,000 people according to the White House… but to most other observers, it appeared to be far fewer. The U.S. Navy and Marine Corp will be celebrating their 250th birthdays this year. Do they get parades?
If you were to ask any member of the armed forces, they would say the two things they hate are war or being on parade. Perhaps for Trump’s 80th he can have all six which would include the Space Force and Coast Guard of the nation’s military branches march past him as they honor “His Majesty.”
You may think I have TDS (Trump Derangement Syndrome). I don’t. What I have is amazement. From my first vote for Nixon to my last vote for Romney, I knew that Republicans were the right persons for the presidency. Trumps never will be.
I believe Trump has been nothing but bad for the nation since he became part of our political fabric. His Republican Party is so different than anything we have ever had that I consider it a cult without core values except whatever the Dear Leader utters. Of course, his pronouncements can change from moment to moment so all the sycophants must be ready to change their beliefs on a dime.
This is where we find ourselves in 2025. We live in the bizzarro world of Donald J. Trump.
