Ending My Battle with Trump Supporters

Exasperated by the usual Trumpian defense of his authoritarian aspirations, and asked to defend Democratic candidates, I posted, then gave up and deleted the response below, tired of my recurring role in The Trumpman Show.

I’m no nationally syndicated columnist. I’m no government official, former or current or soon to be former. Or soon to be current then frog-marched out of the building for my office-supply fetish, a condition that, I'll be the first to admit, got out of hand. My credentials as a would-be political analyst are wafer thin. I do not entertain a fantasy that one day the future equivalent of a Ken Burns documentary, America 2020: A Nation Gone Wild, will include a voice actor reading my Facebook posts, like the letter from Union Major Sullivan Ballou to his wife Sarah a week before his death at the first battle at Bull Run. (I am on my couch, typing this with my thumbs on an iPhone at the Battle of Sedentary Self-Amusement.) I do, however, pay attention. It’s all any of us can do! For while I may not be fully “woke” — a term that annoys me both for its pop-liberal self-righteousness and its assault on grammar — I will admit to being, at the very least, “groggy.” That is more than I can say for the Forever Trump Club.

My position is firmly and always has been grouchy, irritated by extremists to the right and the left, and often by my own kind, mostly because I hate being interrupted. "Hey, I let you talk, uninformed as you are!" I am immoderately moderate, a position that itself doesn’t shift so much as one I try to hold on to as things shift around it, a location that makes me feel superior to most people, except climate change activist Greta Thunberg and that little Japanese drummer girl, Yoyoka Soma, who thrashes John Bonham parts.

I adhere, but have strayed, from the Buddha’s Middle Way. I value, if I’m getting it right, Christ’s message of love, and to the extent I see the same in other religions, none of which I practice myself, mostly because I don’t care for the songs. I believe, as will any toxicologist or chef will tell you, that it’s all about dosage and proportion. Too much capitalism. Too much socialism. Too liberal. Too conservative. Is there ever just enough authoritarianism? Well, we do accept trace amounts of rodent feces in our diets, but it should never be a required ingredient.

Balance people. Balance. 

So, with that, and for what it’s worth.... If you find anything here of value or amusing, it is accidental. Anything glib or immature, well, it’s my reason for being.

“So how do I respond to this exactly? What could I possibly say, me, a person labeled here as a libtard, that would penetrate that propaganda-soaked mind of yours? 

"I am able to disagree and criticize the people you would say are on my team. I can find value in the positions of some (albeit weak-kneed) Republicans and conservatives. I don’t think you could say the same about your club.  

"I could point out how Trump’s subservience to global strongmen while shoving allies aside makes us less safe.

 "I could point out his many violations of everything from the constitution to invaluable norms strictly and solely for his personal enrichment. 

"I could point out his attacks on institutions at home — from intelligence professionals to scientists to judges and juries and many others, institutions and citizens we need to step up for the safety, health and protection of us all. 

"I could try to suggest that you’re being used, manipulated, and tricked. How we all fall prey to these things. 

"Or I could ask whether, when you and your buddy are watching Fox News together on your Cheeto-stained loveseat how exactly it is that you are able to give a Nazi salute and hold hands at the same time. 

"These are all things I could do. Instead I will back out of this room slowly and leave behind the disappointing scene I tripped into. Don’t forget to snuff out your tiki torch before heading off to bed. Good luck.”

Trump is Responsible for Deaths in Wars He Starts -- Even 'Accidental' Ones

From what I know about war (damn little, I admit*), accidents are common. From what I know, people may not always perform at their best in the middle of it. From what I know, this is because of anxiety, stress, and terror, not to mention the quality of training, battle experience, or tolerance for unfamiliar foods and preservatives, or lack thereof. In some instances, some just aren’t cut out for that sort of thing. And, in all instances, the resilience of undergarments must be a factor — be they wash-and-wear or dry clean only (leaving out consideration of “going commando,” a concept which I am hopeful an actual commando will one day explain to me). 

When one wages war, I've always assumed that an educated and experienced military tactician will consider accidental destruction and loss of life, innocent or otherwise. So as we debate what was evident from the start, that Iran shot down a commercial airliner in the fog of war (or whatever you want to call it when two parties lob bombs at one another), let’s not get comfortably mired in whether the annihilation of 176 souls was an accident. 

Everything is accidental; nothing is accidental. 

Like so many debates in this administration, some want to discuss the deliciousness of the icing, while others are stubbornly focused on the fact that we’ve been served a shit cake. 

Let’s not dismiss as an innocent hero, the inept narcissistic cowboy — the maverick who was “just doing a job his predecessors were too timid to do” — responsible for waging this particular little war. He set the stage. He alone. As a consequence, innocent people — babies, wives, husbands, fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers, etc., died in a horrific way. Their families will forever grieve. 

No. Trump didn’t personally fire the missile into the fuselage. He's incapable (bone spurs), but he’s culpable. He acted with reckless disregard for anyone’s life but his own and, worse yet, for his personal gain. And too many Americans want to throw him a parade. 

It’s not THAT he neutralized a bad guy, it’s HOW, WHY and WHEN. Those things matter.

*Obviously a lack of direct experience in a subject stops no one these days from spouting off. I hold myself to the same low standards.