If Donald Trump wants to say things that are flagrantly racist, hey, this is America. You’re free to say whatever you want, no matter how hateful and stupid it is. If people are still desperate enough to vote for him in spite of his racist attitudes, hey, that’s America too, although it’s not the America that I would prefer (to put it mildly).
If Donald Trump wants to say things that are flagrantly intolerant of Islam, hey, this is America.You’re free to say whatever you want, no matter how hateful and stupid it is. If people are still ignorant enough to vote for him in spite of his intolerant attitudes, hey, that’s America too, although it’s not the America that I would prefer.
If Donald Trump wants to say things that are flagrantly sexist, hey, this is America. You’re free to say whatever you want, no matter how crass and tasteless it is. If people are still blind enough to vote for him in spite of his sexist attitudes, hey, that’s America too, although it’s not the America that I would prefer.
I have no problem with Donald Trump asking his followers to raise their right hands and pledge to vote for him. The raising of the right hand in making a pledge is as old as English law. To call that a “Hitler salute” is as overblown and unwarranted as it was when Barack and Michelle Obama were accused of sharing a “terrorist fist bump.” Remember that? Just ridiculous media hyperbole.
But if Donald Trump wants to encourage his followers to beat people up, that’s another matter. And that’s exactly what Trump does. He soliloquizes over the mic, while the protesters are being escorted out by the cops, pining for the “good old days” when “there were consequences for protesting.” (By the way, what is he referring to there? Selma in 1964? The Freedom Riders in 1961? Streets of Chicago in 1968? What glorious past era was it, exactly, when righteous and well-justified mobs beat up those nasty evil protesters?) But far worse, and most damning, is that he says over the mic words like this: “If you happen to rough him up a bit, don’t worry. I will pay for the lawsuits.” That is NOT America. That is inciting violence. That is assault and battery. And it’s not just assault on the protesters. It’s assault on the rule of law.
He is even forming a volunteer militia now, called the Lion’s Guard. Their job is to intimidate and beat up scapegoat groups, and provide “security” at party rallies, as if the police weren’t enough. A lot like Mussolini’s Blackshirts and Hitler’s Brownshirts. As the old saying goes, those who don’t know history are doomed to repeat it.
In short, Donald Trump shows signs of attempting to become a law unto himself. He has pledged to violate the first and eighth amendments to the Constitution, as well as international law, if elected. He constantly brags about his money and brains, a la Idi Amin. He constantly effuses about how much the people love him, and forecasts constant “winning,” a la Robert Mugabe. He promises to “make American great again,” just as Mussolini promised to “make Italy glorious again.” And they both promised that everybody would get a job.
Ironic, isn’t it? Since September, the Republican Party, through its propaganda arms of Fox News and talk radio, have been peddling the paranoid fantasy that President Obama is preparing to impose martial law and install himself as a military dictator. Now, here they are, right on the verge of nominating a man who has all the earmarks of a real dictator in the making.
djones2032@austin.rr.com