SHUT UP AND FIGHT BACK
Dr. Common Good (https://dr-common-good.com/).
Dr. Common Good is sick and tired of all the whining, handwringing and self-flagellation that has been rampant since Vice President Harris’ loss to Trump in the election. There is nothing to apologize for. So I am going to lay out the following:
- Regardless of whether or not he got elected, Trump is an amoral pathological liar, with no interest in democracy or the Constitution, ignorant of American or world history, a convicted felon who is guilty of much more than he was convicted for, a wannabe authoritarian dictator, and generally a sociopath who has no business governing anything. If the voting public ignored all this, well, good luck. But it’s the truth, and well-documented, and I for one will not back off on that characterization.
- Trump manipulated and benefited tremendously from a right-wing mediaverse that is the dominant source of information for a substantial portion of the US population. This mediaverse effectively ignored all the significant achievements of the Biden administration (called the envy of the world by The Economist), and painted a grotesquely false picture of an America in deep decline, both culturally and economically, overrun by immigrants, plagued by crime, and threatened by increasing diversity. This daily fearmongering provided the perfect platform for Trump to declare himself the savior of America.
- Trump’s wild and phony claims for achieving global respect and achieving the greatest economy the world has ever seen would be laughable if they were not believed by so many people who allowed their minds to be dominated by the Trump-supporting mediaverse. He was not respected globally. He was either viewed as a joke, a fool, or, in some cases a dangerous fool. The latter characterization will unfortunately be more common now.
- All those legal and often treasonous transgressions for which Trump was impeached and charged in Federal court were no hoax, despite the mendacious denials by Trump and spineless claims to that effect by boneless sycophants like Lindsey Graham and Marco Rubio (I’m not even counting the out-and-out crazies like Marjorie Taylor Greene). I mean, as just one example, he did call the Georgia Secretary of State and ask him to “find 11,780 votes.” It’s recorded, and it is a crime, period. He did obstruct compliance with a legitimate Justice Department request for classified documents that he carelessly stored at his Florida home. It’s on video, and it’s a crime. And he absolutely did share information and communicate with the Russians during his elections, who were only too glad to help him get elected in 2016 and even more so in 2024. This is well-documented.
- And his Neville Chamberlain-like approach to Ukraine, a total appeasement to Russia – who attacked Ukraine and in doing so threatened NATO countries –.is revolting, and should make all those who fought and died to fight tyranny in WWII roll over in their graves. People should know that appeasing Putin threatens Europe’s well-being, and ours. Supporting Ukraine is in our self-interest. But people don’t know that, and hardly even know the historical context. Trump certainly does not, and doesn’t care in any case, because he wants to be in Putin’s good graces.
- Many progressives, Arab-Americans and others are angry at the Biden Administration’s support for Netanyahu’s horrific mass-killing of Palestinians, even as we all can agree that Hamas’ October 7 attack was brutal, indefensible and inhuman. But Trump will be much worse. Trump is a Netanyahu bootlicker with no concept of Palestinian rights and history, who does not in any case care one whit about the fate of Palestinians. He will unapologetically give Netanyahu and his far-right allies carte blanche to go as far as they want to clear out all Palestinians and expand the borders of Israel.
- Trump is the entry door for a whole army of anti-government radicals (Project 2025) who aim to gut health care, Social Security, Medicare, the Departments of Education, Environmental Protection Agency, and countless other essential federal agencies – all in the name of some imagined effort to cleanse out the phantasmagorical “deep state.” Well, voting public, good luck when there are no more food inspectors, safety inspectors, people to monitor occupational safety or water quality, and much more.
- And there is absolutely nothing wrong with increasing the equity, inclusivity and diversity of our social institutions and social life. Calling it “woke” is just a cheap schoolyard name-calling trick. It is actually a logical extension of American values, and the American promise that animated the civil rights movement, Brown vs. Board of Education, the women’s suffrage movement, and so much more of what has made America a country that people admire, even with its flaws. It is truly pathetic to see Nikki Haley join the MAGA fever in criticizing Democrats post-election for being too “woke.” Give me a break.
- Finally (for now), where are all the critics of election fraud? Nowhere to be seen or heard from, because of course Trump won the election. That should tell you all you need to know about the validity of all that hyped nonsense and the violent January 6 attack. Oh, and notice that neither Kamala Harris nor Joe Biden stooped to such accusations in this election. They conceded, and promised a peaceful transfer of power, as should occur in a democracy.
The bottom line is this. Trump is a threat to American values, the constitution, and the American idea, regardless of the election. We should not apologize in any way for opposing this abomination of a president. It was and remains justified and critical. We should resist, anywhere and everywhere possible, to preserve the United States as a democracy and a just society.