Is It Over Yet?

It hasn’t even been a month- think about that for a minute. IT HASN’T EVEN BEEN A MONTH, and the scandal of this administration continues to exhaust and infuriate the public at all new levels EVERYDAY. Logging into Twitter, biting your nails, timidly glancing at the screen to read the ‘very smart’ new message the POTUS has so graciously blessed us with on his personal account and then inevitably deflate into a pile of sadness and doubt at his pettiness. 

We’re living in a world of alternative facts and chosen realities, so it’s hard to really make sense of anything or even have civilized conversations when your sources of information are referred to as ‘fake news.’ I mean, the president is taking time out of his day to chastise the very entities that are for the most part just doing their job, which brings me to the circus that was a press conference yesterday.

Seeing how he presented himself was not only disheartening, but embarrassing. Having a political figure behave like a child, insulting reporters and their stations on live television was like watching an absurdist play, but IT WAS REAL. His blatant disregard for minor courtesy is not the only thing one of the many things that truly bothers me. The way he handles questions about the country’s seemingly growing divide is devastating. He basically said that all of these racist provocations are a result of the left perpetuating these attacks in his name, when we all know these people who are drawing swastikas and yelling obscenities at POC are all too real and feeling embolden by President (I shudder writing that) Trump’s lack of acknowledgement or care really for the spiteful language he uses DAILY.

Not to mention the way he spoke to April Ryan, a White House correspondent for American Urban Radio Networks, when she asked if he made any plans to involve the Black Caucus in his decision-making for his plan on developing inner cities. He proceeded to ask her if she knew them and if she wanted to set up a meeting, and she responded, “No, I’m just a reporter,” instead of a more apropos, “You’re an incompetent racist, bigoted fool, of course I can’t set up that meeting. Contrary to your belief, not all of us black people know each other you piece of sh*t.” In case you missed this incredibly uncomfortably exchange, you can watch it on one of the few networks that have not been accused of reporting ‘fake news.’ Here’s a piece ABC did on this unbelievable interaction. Brace yourself.

Back to President (*faints on keyboard, wakes up*) Trump’s provocative dismissal of responsibility for his ‘fans.’ It’s reminiscent of the way some white people fear or deny that racism exists, so instead of confronting reality, they push the blame elsewhere and/or get defensive. The way he handled that question about the uptick of anti-semitic crime (take a look here if you dare) from Jake Turx, a Jewish reporter with Ami Magazine was exactly that. He even told the reporter to ‘sit down,’ and called him a ‘liar!’ That’s right, folks, we’re dealing with someone so completely unhinged that he cannot face the fact that even though this country has been divided for years, it’s his direct election to power that has tipped the tension into the direction of active violence. Instead of being self reflective and understanding of the fear that anyone who isn’t a rich anglo-saxon male might harbor is real, he rails against the reporter as if the reporter is the enemy and offers absolutely no solace or solution for these violent acts, confirming, to everyone’s terror, that he is willfully out of touch. Can you call him blissfully ignorant? I can’t imagine blissful being used to describe him in any way.

I remember hearing or reading something about the kinds of qualities necessary to make a successful or at least effective president, and one of the traits is self-awareness, which President (*rolls around, spins in circles, sits back down*) Trump severely lacks. I don’t know if he’s aware anyone else is around him really. I imagine all he sees when he closes his eyes is himself, not even darkness. 

The way he refuses to address the division in constructive ways, whines about ‘hard questions,’ blames the media for his mistakes is terrifying to think about when you know he has access to nuclear codes and doesn’t seem to think anything he does is wrong. Troubling doesn’t even begin to describe his actions. We need to ban together more than ever to stop the insanity. I just. I just hope we can.

Help Me Understand

It has been 70 days since the most depressing presidential election I’ve ever experienced and there has been no reprieve from the glaringly unstable president elect’s ability to frighten and disappoint on a large scale.

As his inauguration quickly approaches to the utter surprise and disgust of most of the country, people are continuing to battle for their voice and remain angry in protest to, frankly, TRY to stand up against a lying racist no, def racist, fascist narcissist that is relentlessly threatening our freedoms. In all of this, he still has a vicious staunch following that believe his lies so wholeheartedly that any hint of dissension unleashes a reign of despicable fury, a litany of personal insults that makes you question whether or not this aggression is coming from something deeper than a desire to defend an ideal, but is really a culmination of compounded hatred and blind selfishness that leads to the hapless belief in policies in direct opposition to their own interests. Not to mention these assaults are usually led by the president elect.

I listened to a podcast today, (shout out to Pod Save America!) and was able to (kind of) understand where some of this frustration comes from. There can be an air of superiority that liberals have when it comes to discussing conservatives that can be off-putting and stratifying. Calling Trump supporters classless and stupid are not great ways to garner traction to change minds, but then again, I guess that’s not really the point at this juncture. The right has alarmingly made up its mind to house and support white supremacy, and ignore the plea of thousands to rethink disrupting Obamacare- just to name a few indiscretions. At this point, the priority is to protect the republic and defend ourselves from the inevitable onslaught of bigotry that is going to find its way into law. A vast majority of the country has made it abundantly clear that we will not walk quietly into the night, while this incoming administration attempts to steamroll, crush, and diminish our rights.

There’s just a piece of me that wants to believe people can change. In the right context, under the right circumstances, truth can prevail against a despot. Alas, this election has chipped away at that hope and I am resigned to believe no amount of fact or the witness of actual events will change the minds of the white America that is so wrapped up in an identity that is based on ostracizing and belittling “The Other” while turning a blind eye to an emerging government that cares nothing to little about democracy (or their wellbeing) and everything about money. 

To those people who will seemingly never see the dark side of this presidency: 

How can you so intensely follow someone who wants to MAGA for the upper class no matter the cost to the rest of the American people? Why can’t you see you’re being duped?